Over the years, I’ve seen many movies and TV shows where the entire story is carried by one or two people. It usually shows off the acting talents of a given actor or actress.  Boom may have a handful of cast members but Nguti Gatwa carries it all and he can’t even move through the bulk of the story.  The representation of the hair-trigger land mine may be somewhat iffy, since Nguti clearly moves while standing on one foot, but it takes nothing away from the tension around this episode, and believe me, the tension is high.  It’s no exaggeration to say that I was at the edge of my seat the whole time.

This is another episode that has loads of great moments and observations.  Let’s see how much I can pack in.  Though this is a Moffat episode, I was reminded of Russell T. Davies’ excellent series Years and Years both in music but more importantly, the idea that we’ll eventually have our phones built into our bodies.  I had noticed an influence of that series during the start of The Giggle as well.  Also, like much of this season, there was another callback to Chris Eccleston’s first season with Villengard.  Additionally, there’s the reference to Smith’s first season with fish fingers and custard.  On top of that, we’re back with the Anglican Marines, which turn up from time to time, specifically through Smith’s era.  And I want to give a special shoutout to excellent writing because something happens here that happens all the time in real life, but almost never in drama.  Ruby asks why the Doctor is singing, but he answers what he’s singing.  She has to clarify that she didn’t ask “what”, but rather “why”.  If I could tell you how often that happens in my personal life, you’d be amazed.  To see it dramatized always stands out to me!

One of the great things I’ve noticed about this season is the use of the hero.  We’ve seen all too often that the companion ends up being the hero or the Doctor doesn’t do something that s/he normally would in a heroic way.  Not so with Nguti’s Doctor.  The moment he hears the cry for help, he’s running into danger.  “Someone’s in trouble!”  He bolt out of the TARDIS without even carrying his trusty sonic!  (Seemed unlikely to me, but certainly not impossible!)

The tension is remarkable and the interpersonal dynamics make sense.  Mundy’s idea to allow Ruby to shoot her backfires when Canto shows up and shoots Ruby.  The moment is tense and horrifying and electric and the fact that the Doctor keeps it together is beyond belief, but knowing he could wipe out half the planet, maybe on balance, he did some Zen meditation.  It’s still stunning.  That scene, shown in slow motion as Ruby tumbles down the hill, before being asked who her next of kin is, was perfectly set.  I was there with them and felt every bit of the chills.

Speaking of Mundy, the moment I saw the actress, I had a lightbulb moment but the short hair threw me off.  It took until her second appearance onscreen before the real revelation struck, but Verada Sethu makes her Doctor Who premiere.  She’s been announced as the next companion, but the Doctor leaves without her.  Is she going to play a completely different character when she comes back?  Or should we read more into a passing comment of the Doctor’s?  He says he’ll be popping back in to check on things.  Is this foreshadowing his return and Mundy’s continued experiences with him?  I wonder!

I loved this episode: the tension, the acting, the thrills…  I certainly don’t go into these episodes looking for flaws, but when things jump out, I make note.  I think Millie Gibson is a great companion and I love her relationship with Nguti.  I also think she’s lovely.  But was something amiss with her during the filming of this story?  She spends a lot of scenes in a slightly hunched state, like she’s bent at the middle a lot.  Sure, the moment she sees an alien world for the first time, I understand her reaction, but it stood out because it happened so frequently.  I can let that go because it means nothing and takes away not one thing from the episode but I did notice it and it made me wonder.  On the other hand, more intrusive to the story is the fundamental flaw with Splice.  No, it was not how many times she asked where her daddy was, even though I’ve heard many people complain about that.  She does admittedly appear to be old enough ton comprehend but she acts much younger, but I can live with that; we all mature at different rates.  No, it’s that there’s no logical reason a child would be allowed into an active warzone.  “Special dispensation” doesn’t cut it.  This is a warzone – the marines simply would not allow it; it’s a liability.  Her father would be less focused on the mission and every marine present would be forced to act differently and their capabilities would be cut in two.  If no one would be available to stay with Splice, her dad would likely be retired or commissioned for some other purpose.  The whole reason she’s there is so the writer can get us to the end where “parent power” is the order of the day.  This screams to me that it was part of the Disneyification of Doctor Who, but to be very clear: I’m not saying it’s a bad choice.  If I have to accept a silly contrivance to get a kid on the base for the sake of bonding parents and children in real life, I say: “Disneyfy it!”  I never had the family viewing experience with Doctor Who and if a little silliness gives some other kids the ability to watch this show with their family, that’s a gift.  In fact, there’s a lot of beautiful messaging in this episode despite it taking place on a landmine!  “Never let them down…” is absolutely the motto of most parents would agree with.  We  would do anything for our children.  The whole “dad to dad” thing is something I probably didn’t understand until I was one, but as one, I understand completely, and have a better understanding of what my own dad would do for me.  When a war is won by “this little kid’s dad”, I absolutely loved it!

As if focusing on the love a parent has for his child isn’t enough, we also get some things to think about with faith.  I wasn’t sure what to make of it at first when the Doctor was so anti-faith.  He calls it “the magic word that keeps you ever having to think for yourself.”  That’s pretty damning, but later he acknowledges that just because he doesn’t like it, doesn’t mean he doesn’t need it.  There is a place for faith, as long as we temper it with logic.  I think that’s a very important and seldom acknowledged lesson.

I can’t wrap up without commenting on the final message that Moffat squeezes in around death.  Death, as we all know, is a part of life, and Disney has shown death a lot over the years.  (Bambi?  The Lion King!?!)  But I don’t think it ever ties in with the idea of faith, belief and love quite the way it did here.  I mean, Simba just grows up singing Hakuna Matata.  (Yes, I cried, damn it!)  But Doctor Who took it a step further.  Splice says her dad isn’t gone, he’s just dead.  News flash: since my dad died, I can tell you she’s spot on.  He’s not alive, but he is a perpetual part of me!  “Dying defines us… It all melts away in the end, but something stays. Maybe the best part…  What will remain of us is love.”   He says this while the image lingers on a beautiful shot of the TARDIS, the Doctor and Ruby on an alien world.  It’s awe inspiring.  For more on that, see Roger’s bonus article here.  I think Doctor Who is an excellent method for teaching our children important life lessons.

Finally, we come to the mystery of the season: there’s always a twist in the end.  Susan Twist is the face of the ambulance and the Doctor has a proper chance to see her now.  What does it mean?  So far, nothing. However, it seems unlikely that I’ll get lucky with this being Susan, the Doctor’s granddaughter.  I mean, I suppose she could live long enough (Ruby is 3000 years old at the time of this episode, so why couldn’t Susan live that long?  Susan’s a time lord, Ruby is just out of time.)  But the mystery remains and we’re left with the Twist in the end credits again but are no closer to a resolution.  This season has been a wild ride so far and this episode has been the best yet.  If we keep this momentum up, I think Nguti’s first season will be long remembered as the season that brought Doctor Who back!   ML