SPOILERS.
The Doctor and Clara are back (and Missy/The Master, too) for Series 9, and I'm having trouble right out of the gate. I love the central idea that Davros is dying and wants to see The Doctor one last time. I love the idea of a reborn Skaro, and I'm even totally fine with seeing Davros as a sweet little boy begging for help, because the dramatic irony is too good to pass up. I love Michelle Gomez as Missy. I love Peter Capaldi as The Doctor. I love seeing The Doctor back on Karn, a planet we first saw in The Brain of Morbius and were able to revisit for the 50th anniversary. I love the big ideas and the exploration of our characters, especially Davros, and how these two episodes manage to retcon a few things about the Daleks and change how we will now view the previous half-century of stories.
I do not love the massive amounts of excess that surrounds these episodes. I don't love The Doctor riding in on a tank playing Van Halen's "Eruption" on an electric guitar and launching into "Pretty Woman" when he sees Clara and Missy. I don't love The Doctor introducing the word "dude" to a medieval culture, nor do I love the ridiculous plot device of Missy freezing all the airplanes in the world to announce her arrival. I don't understand why these elements are here, because they detract from what are some fantastic, intelligent story elements. Look, I get it: Doctor Who is a family show, so there are children watching. Those children need to be entertained in between all the existential back-and-forth between The Doctor and Davros, I understand, but there's very little logic or POINT to a lot of it other than to say "look what we can do! Check out our budget! We got a tank! A TANK!" It's so distracting to me that I have a hard time getting past it. I don't want a Doctor Who without whimsy, but I wish we didn't have to go so far over the top so often. I bristled when Russell T. Davies did it years ago, and most of my fellow Whovians did, as well. Now here we are, Series 9, and we're still seeing the same strange mixture of hard science fiction, thought-provoking ideas, and absolutely bonkers children's programming that isn't grounded in any idea or purpose. I don't want a joyless program, but I don't want an excessive one at the sacrifice of the pacing and storytelling, either. Old school Doctor Who had to rise above a shoestring budget with exceptional stories and phenomenal performances. I fear the opposite could be happening now that the show is experiencing unparalleled success.
Getting past all that, though, these episodes really do deliver in spades for long-time Who fans. It's fantastic to see former incarnations of The Doctor and get a reminder of the core idea behind one of Tom Baker's most famous stories, Genesis of the Daleks. I like that this show has the guts to revisit a storyline from forty years ago, which A) points new viewers to classic adventures, and B) shows that many of those older stories are still strong and relevant. I also completely endorse the idea that Daleks shout "exterminate!" to power their weapons and that everything they do is led by their own anger and fear. What a smart idea that explains why Daleks can't seem to shut up.
I really feel like the character of Clara is struggling to find a purpose. A look back at the previous companions, Amy and Rory, reveals that Clara has never really clicked as a companion. Last season's attempts at a love story fell flat for me because I didn't care about her romantic interests in any way, and now we're two episodes in and I still don't care if she lives or dies. I get that she had to stick around for Capaldi's Doctor to give viewers a through-line (especially the millions of fans who jumped on board with Matt Smith's era and had never seen a regeneration, let alone a companion change before), but she seems to be in a holding pattern. I hope they have something planned for her this season, especially since it's to be her last.
Criticisms--some of which are substantial--aside, I think this is a pretty good start to Series 9. I love that Capaldi's era has been one that isn't afraid to look backwards and isn't afraid to tackle some serious subjects. It's not scared of being hard science fiction, leaving Earth, and being a little bit unlikable. So far, I identify with Doctor number 12 immensely as a cranky, loner who secretly needs people and has a heart of gold under all the crust. Here's hoping Series 9 continues the excellent groundwork established last year.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
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