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Geek Vibes Nation
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Vibes Nation
'Doctor Who' Season 2 Episode 6 Review - Eurovision Meets Die Hard In The Explosive And Campy "The Interstellar Song Contest"
Belinda Chandra (Varada Sethu) and The Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) | Photo Credit: Lara Cornell/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf The Doctor and Belinda's journey back to May 24, 2025, takes them from 2019 Lagos to the depths of space, in the far future, on a space station hosting the 803rd Annual Interstellar Song Contest. Written by Juno Dawson and directed by Ben A. Williams, 'The Interstellar Song Contest' pays homage to one of Europe's most beloved traditions, the Eurovision Song Contest, in the most Doctor Who way possible. One part love letter to Eurovision and one part Die Hard -style thriller, 'The Interstellar Space Contest' is a delight from start to finish—even if the episode feels a good twenty minutes too short to really delve into everything it wants to explore. Still, it's a love letter to a European tradition wrapped in a very Doctor Who blanket and packed with huge ramifications for the upcoming two-part season finale. Welcome to Eurovision…in Space! When the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Belinda (Varada Sethu) land on the Harmony Arena space station in 2925, they find themselves in the audience of the 803rd Interstellar Song Contest. But as the festivities begin, a sinister force breaks into the control room and takes over the broadcast, expelling the audience into the cold depths of space and separating the Doctor and Belinda. Can the TARDIS stop the malevolent Kid (Freddie Fox) from committing mass murder? Or is the 803rd Interstellar Song Contest destined to go down in history for all the wrong reasons? Juno Dawson returns to Doctor Who (after penning the 'Doctor Who Redacted' podcast and the Thirteenth Doctor novel The Good Doctor ) with a story that combines Doctor Who 's penchant for camp mixed with horror and a genuine affection for the Eurovision Song Contest (what with its cameos from BBC Eurovision stalwarts Rylan Clark and Graham Norton). Dawson's script strikes a good balance between Eurovision excess and Doctor Who drama, paying a lot of love to Eurovision's long cultural history with its campy Europop ballads and over-the-top performances while still sticking to what makes a good Doctor Who story. In this case, a base-under-siege tale mixed with some biting social commentary. It's all a bit Die Hard meets Doctor Who, with an over-the-top terrorist trying to cause as much destruction as humanly possible. But Dawson and director Ben A. Williams mostly pull it off, held together by some solid tension and a shockingly dark performance from Gatwa; his most Capaldi-influenced yet. It's the weakest episode of the season, hampered by some uneven pacing, but it's never anything less than delightful. Rylan Clark and Sabine (Julie Dray) | Photo Credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Frenetic Pacing Leads to a Slightly Uneven Message Where 'The Interstellar Song Contest' falters is in its pacing, suffering similar problems to 2018's 'Kerblam!'. 'Kerblam!' overlooks the atrocities of its Space Amazon analogue while focusing on its antagonist's misguided terrorist actions, and 'The Interstellar Song Contest' makes a similar mistake as it overlooks the atrocities committed by the Poppy Honey Corporation against the citizens of Hellia. Dawson's script (in its struggle to cram a story better suited for two parts into 45 minutes) and Fox's performance paint Kid so thinly that it makes him a cartoon caricature of a villain. Yes, Kid's plan to kill the three trillion people watching the completion as an act of revenge against one of its sponsoring companies is obviously horrendous. But there's a nuance to Kid's motivations that's hinted at in the script, mostly absent in Fox's over-the-top performance, and woefully underexplored as a whole that robs the situation of that nuance. 'You' Season 5 Review - A Satisfying, Gluttonous Send-Off And like 'Kerblam!', 'The Interstellar Song Contest' offers no retribution for the evil company. No follow-up on the exposure of its misdeeds, hardly even a mention after the Doctor's defeat of Kid—except for Cora (Miriam-Teak Lee) singing a traditional Hellion song onstage. Perhaps that in itself could be a criticism of Eurovision's very milquetoast take on geopolitics, with its 'music brings everyone together' state of mind while some of its very contestants commit unspeakable atrocities. But the episode doesn't frame it this way; rather, it comes across as an unearned 'come together' moment in a way that leaves a sour taste in your mouth. Kid's actions are horrific, but so were those of the corporation he was seeking to punish, and a longer, slower-paced episode may have had ample room to explore that. Kid (Freddie Fox) and Wynn (Iona Anderson) | Photo Credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Susan, Mrs. Flood, and the Destruction of Earth A large part of the episode's franticness is its need to lay the groundwork for the two-part season finale—often in the most obvious of ways. Mrs. Flood (Anita Dobson) keeps popping up in the crowd, rejoicing as the Doctor's Vindicator finally finishes its final scan, opening the door for the Doctor and Belinda (and Mrs. Flood herself?) to return home. There's that hologram of Graham Norton that gives a pretty big exposition dump in the final few minutes of the episode, telling the Doctor and Belinda all about the Earth's destruction on May 24, 2025. And then, most mysterious of all, are those flashes of the Doctor's granddaughter, Susan (Carole Ann Ford, reprising her role after 42 years' absence), on the TARDIS and telling the Doctor to find her. Speaking of mysteries, this episode finally solves the mystery of Mrs. Flood. Last seen in the eighties, during the Seventh Doctor's era, the renegade Time Lady scientist known as The Rani returns as the episode reveals when Mrs. Flood bigenerates at the end, with Archie Panjabi taking over as the freshly bigenerated Rani. Just how she's back, what her plans are, and how they intersect with the rest of these storylines remains to be seen, but their inclusion here lays the groundwork for what's sure to be an explosive finale. Final Thoughts Despite its frenetic pacing and underbaked commentary, 'The Interstellar Song Contest' still delivers an enjoyable Doctor Who take on a European cultural landmark. Sure, you can feel the episode struggle to cram all of its ideas into its meager 45-minute runtime, and the necessities of setting up the season's final two episodes occasionally steal the episode's focus. But Dawson's loving homage to Eurovision, combined with Gatwa's shockingly fierce performance, makes for appointment television nonetheless. Though it's the weakest episode in a season of absolute bangers, and the episode whose runtime feels most constrained, it's nevertheless a deeply fun Doctor Who experience that's sure to draw you back time and time again. All eyes, however, turn to next week's 'Wish World', the first half of a two-part finale, and the culmination of Mrs. Flood's machinations. Until then, let's just enjoy the ride so far. New episodes of Doctor Who premiere Saturdays at 3 am on Disney+.
Geek Girl Authority
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Girl Authority
DOCTOR WHO Recap: (S02E06) The Interstellar Song Contest
Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest,' is a wild ride from beginning to end. We see a new side to this Doctor, and Ncuti Gatwa absolutely kills it here. He channels the Doctor's rage to a tee, cutting an imposing figure. After referencing Susan in Season 1 Episode 2, 'The Devil's Chord,' she finally returns in some trippy visions. What does this mean? Oh, and Mrs. Flood is a Rani, undergoing bi-generation to bring forth the Rani. As for our eponymous Time Lord and his companion, the narrative culminates in a high-stakes cliffhanger as the doors are literally blown off the TARDIS as May 24, 2025, comes knocking. It's a pulse-pounding, compelling episode overall. RELATED: Read our recap of the previous Doctor Who episode, 'The Story & the Engine' Doctor Who, 'The Interstellar Song Contest' We open on the Harmony Arena in 2925, a space station hosting the 803rd Interstellar Song Contest. Rylan Clark emerges from his cryogenic chamber to co-host alongside Sabine (Julie Dray). He joins Sabine onstage. At the same time, the Doctor (Gatwa) and Belinda (Varada Sethu) land the TARDIS in a box seat. The Doctor whips out the Vindicator for another reading, revealing they only need one more to get Belinda home. Belinda wants to stay, though, after spotting Rylan. Eurovision has gone — wait for it — interstellar, baby. Elsewhere, Nina Maxwell (Kiruna Stamell) ensures the competition runs smoothly while behind the scenes. A host of drone guards stand at attention behind her and her employees. Mrs. Flood (Anita Dobson) is also in attendance. She spies on the Doctor with her binoculars. We see an ad for Poppy Honey, one of the sponsors of the contest. Hmm. Captain Poppy from 'Space Babies' appeared on last week's episode. Could 'Poppy Honey' be another hint at what's to come? DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Ready and Primed Belinda remarks that she and the Doctor were worried about Earth's destruction on May 24, 2025. However, this contest proves Earth thrives after that. The Doctor points out the mavity shell encasing the Arena, protecting them, while also giving audience members a picture-perfect view of the stars. The Vindicator beeps, indicating that the reading is complete. 'Vindicator ready and primed,' Mrs. Flood says to herself. She picks up a circular device, which lights up. She now has the final link. RELATED: TV Review: Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 4, 'Lucky Day' Next, a married couple, Mike (Kadiff Kirwan) and Gary (Charlie Condou) Gabbastone, learn that the Doctor and Belinda are in their seats. Gary is a mega-fan of the Interstellar Song Contest, while Mike is indifferent about it. Frustrated, Mike approaches a drone guard, demanding it do something. 'Phase one activated,' it responds. That sounds ominous. A man named Kid (Freddie Fox), of the Hellion race from the now-dead planet Hellia, bursts into the gallery. He gains control of the drone guards as Nina tries to give him the boot. DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: Dan Fearon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Unfortunately, Kid has a lady on the inside — Wynn (Iona Anderson), another Hellion. Nina admits she took a chance hiring her because nobody hires Hellions. So, seizing the gallery and drone guards is phase one. Kid and Wynn share a passionate smooch. Phase two involves airing the dress rehearsal of the Interstellar Song Contest for all three trillion people watching. Will they notice Rylan isn't present, though? Kid claims he's prepared for that. Publicity comms can claim Rylan contracted food poisoning. Phase Two Then, the Doctor notices something is amiss. He sees both the dress rehearsal footage and the live show on his screen, switching between them. He leaps over the side of the box seat and opens the control panel on the side, utilizing his sonic screwdriver to examine its innards. Kid grabs Nina's hand and scans it to grant him access to the Harmony Arena. RELATED: TV Review: Doctor Who Season 2 Premiere While on stage, Rylan notices something's amiss when Nina doesn't respond to him via his earpiece. Kid pulls down a lever, which opens the roof. One hundred thousand contest attendees fly out into space, including the Doctor and the TARDIS. The shell on the box seat prevents Belinda from joining them. Said shell encloses the box seat, keeping her within. A contestant, Cora Saint Bavier (Miriam-Teak Lee), an Interstellar Song Contest legend, is also spared. Belinda starts sobbing in a moment that delivers a gut punch of emotion. Wynn closes the air shield. Kid kickstarts phase three. Wynn calls for the retrieval of the device — the Delta Wave. Nina insists it's not too late to save those people floating in space. The mavity shell is still activated. A drone guard brings in the Delta Wave. This ain't Doctor Who 's first rodeo with delta waves. DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: Dan Fearon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Her Only Way Home Later, Belinda realizes she's not alone. She meets Cora and Cora's partner, Len Kazah (Akemnji Ndifornyen). Belinda wonders if the galactic police or authorities could be on their way. Cora reveals that 'gambling rules' are in place to ensure no one can contact the outside world from inside the Arena and vice versa. That means they're alone. Belinda breaks down, realizing the Doctor is gone. He was her only way home. RELATED: Doctor Who : 11 Easter Eggs in 'Boom' Meanwhile, Nina calls Wynn out for saving Cora from flying through the roof. Wynn orders her not to say a word to Kid. Out in space, the Doctor has a vision of his granddaughter, Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford), who's in the TARDIS. Susan calls out to her grandfather, urging him to come back to her. The Doctor wakes up. He grabs a floating confetti cannon and uses it to blast himself back to the Harmony Arena. Mike and Gary, who bear witness to the Doctor's confetti escape, open the airlock so our titular Time Lord has a place to land. Once safely inside, the Doctor collapses. Thankfully, Mike is a nurse. Mike inspects the Doctor, in awe of the Gallifreyan's two hearts. He revives the Doctor. Funny how the Doc keeps running into nurses. Our trio notes that the mavity shell is still in place. Those thousands of people can be saved. Sure, their life signs are suspended, but revival is possible. DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Delta Wave Later, Kid and Wynn install a deadly upload, noting that song 14, Cora's tune, will blow everyone's minds. The Delta Wave will kill all three trillion people watching the Interstellar Song Contest — well, the dress rehearsal. The Doctor uses his sonic to access the control panel, but stops in his tracks when the new software Kid and Wynn uploaded takes effect. The Doctor notes the text is Hellion script. Mike and Gary explain that Hellia was gorgeous — Hell poppies as far as the eye can see. The consensus is that the Hellions destroyed their own planet. RELATED: Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: Doctor Who 's Ruby Sunday The Doctor touches the screen, which emits a high-pitched signal that practically bursts the eardrums. The Doctor uses his sonic to cut through the deafening noise. Afterward, the Doctor wipes his nose in bewilderment, realizing it's bleeding. This is the Delta Wave — the aforementioned deadly upload. The Doctor realizes Kid and Wynn's objective is to transmit this Delta Wave signal through the station to kill everyone watching the song contest. Our Time Lord springs into action. To combat the signal, he needs a caustic hyperlink. Gary's quite tech-savvy, and our trio finds a tech desk in the Interstellar Song Contest museum. This museum documents the history of the competition, from its humble Eurovision roots to now. The Doctor encounters a hologram of Graham Norton. He remarks that Belinda would love this. He has another vision of Susan in the TARDIS. Fifteen's Rage The Doctor finally makes contact with the enemy — Kid. Belinda sees the Doctor on the screen, overjoyed that he's alive. The Doctor is pissed . I love that we're seeing Fifteen's rage, undoubtedly fueled by thinking he lost Belinda. He vows to put an end to Kid's evil plan and exact justice. Belinda watches the Doctor deliver his threats and notes that she's never seen him this angry before. He's not himself. RELATED: 6 Doctor Who Episodes That Show the Eleventh Doctor's Personality After this, Belinda and Len learn that Cora is a Hellion. She reveals the horn nubs underneath her hair. Cora shares that they were forcefully removed. Len feels betrayed. We learn that Hellia was a harmless planet. The Corporation bought it for one reason: to harvest the Hell poppies for honey. Her planet was invaded for honey flavoring. The Corporation burned all of Hellia's fields to ensure the people couldn't grow more Hell poppies. So, Kid blames the Corporation, and the latter sponsors the competition. DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: Dan Fearon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Cora begs Len to help her reach Kid and Wynn so she can talk some sense into them. Belinda will accompany her because the Doctor will likely find the Hellion duo. In the museum, the Doctor feverishly constructs a solution to combat Kid. Mike and Gary try to warn him that two drone guards are behind him. Our Gallifreyan simply uses his sonic screwdriver to explode the drone guards' heads. Holographic Pain Now, Cora's performance is on the docket — song 14. The Delta Wave upload is at 99 percent. Kid insists that the Corporation will be held responsible for the massacre of three trillion people (and the thousands floating in space). The Doctor enters the scene. He claims he's met so many Kids in his long lifetime, people who relish the kill and slap on revenge as an excuse. Kid fires on the Doctor, but we see he's really a hologram. RELATED: Doctor Who : 8 References From the Russell T Davies Specials in 'Space Babies' and 'The Devil's Chord' Then, the real, tangible Doctor appears. He tosses the Delta Wave cube into the air and explodes it with his sonic screwdriver. He also knocks the gun out of Kid's hand with it. The Doctor explains he's converted his hologram to hard light, which can inflict pain. He puts on a glove, activating the hologram. The Doctor's hologram touches Kid's shoulder, causing him to convulse. The Doctor does this repeatedly. At one point, Kid is on the ground, curled up in the fetal position due to the pain. We've never seen this side of Fifteen before. Suddenly, Belinda and Cora arrive. The Doctor embraces Belinda. Cora kneels to chat with Wynn, who's hunched over an unresponsive Kid. Wynn accuses Cora of being spineless and cowardly, hiding behind her music. Nina regains control of the Arena and the drone guards. She orders them to take Kid and Wynn to the Justice Monolith. Kid, now responsive, warns the Doctor that he'll see our Time Lord again. DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Revival Belinda reminds the group that there are still 100,000 people trapped in the mavity shell. At least three trillion people are now spared from the Delta Wave. A lightbulb goes off in the Doctor's head. They can use Rylan's cryogenic chamber and fashion it into a revival booth. Gary can convert the hard light of a hologram into a tractor beam, which they'll use to retrieve the contest attendees. RELATED: Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: Doctor Who 's Belinda Chandra Belinda and Mike launch into nurse mode, conducting medical checks on those they revive in the booth. Len also helps convert the box seats in the Arena into revival chambers, so, you know, they're not doing 100,000 times. After saving everyone (thanks to the Doctor's 'insane genius'), the Interstellar Song Contest is back on track, with Rylan and Sabine as the co-hosts. Cora takes to the stage to perform. She shares with the audience and those watching from home that she's Hellion. So, she'll sing a Hellion song to honor her fallen planet. Kid and Wynn watch from the Justice Monolith. Wynn looks emotional. The Doctor and Belinda watch from the audience, the song also moving them to tears. DOCTOR WHO Season 2 Episode 6, 'The Interstellar Song Contest.' Photo credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf Once the song concludes, the Harmony Arena is silent … that is, until Mike and Gary initiate the clapping. Then, the whole Arena fills with applause. Cora beams with pride. RELATED: Doctor Who : Our Favorite Easter Eggs From 'Lux' Destruction Date: May 24, 2025 Later, one space station employee reveals they found the TARDIS on the asteroid spar. The Doctor and Belinda see it now sitting in the museum. Before they depart, Belinda tells the Doctor she thinks he's wonderful. He embraces her. Still, the Doctor scared her earlier when he was torturing Kid. The Doctor admits this event struck close to home. He was thinking about Gallifrey and his people, all dying in the blink of an eye. When the Doctor mentions getting Belinda back to Earth, the Graham Norton hologram materializes, revealing that Earth died 'many years ago.' As it turns out, Earth disintegrated on May 24, 2025. Cause? Unknown. The Doctor and Belinda rush inside the TARDIS. Our Time Lord hooks up the Vindicator, revealing they have enough readings to take her home. How could the planet disintegrate on the day Belinda left, though? The Doctor vows to save Earth. RELATED: Read our Doctor Who recaps Suddenly, something prevents the TARDIS from moving. An alarm blares as the light within turns red. Belinda and the Doctor hear a peculiar groaning and a knocking from outside the TARDIS doors. The Doctor reveals it's May 24 — the source of the noises. Then, the TARDIS doors explode open as fire pours inside. Well, that can't be good. Let Battle Begin Mid-credit scene time! Gary and Mike save the last person floating in the mavity shell. It's none other than Mrs. Flood, emerging from Rylan's converted cryogenic chamber. She asks if the Doctor has left, to which Mike and Gary reveal he has. 'Then, it's safe,' Mrs. Flood says. She remarks that her double-brain stem has frozen, which is lethal for a … wait for it … Time Lady. Bi-generation energy swarms around Mrs. Flood as she tries to think of 'famous last words.' 'Let battle begin,' she declares as another woman (Archie Panjabi) splits from Mrs. Flood, à la the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Doctors. Both are the same person — the Rani. Well, Mrs. Flood is a Rani, while this new one is the Rani. Mrs. Flood hands the Rani the Vindicator readings. The Rani declares she has a date to arrange and plans to bring the Doctor 'absolute terror.' Oh, Panjabi is going to demolish this role. Doctor Who Season 2 airs on Saturdays at 3 am EST/12 am PST on Disney+ and 8 am BST on BBC iPlayer in the UK. New TV Shows This Week (May 11 – 17) Contact: [email protected] What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events. Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet. Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium. Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
The Review Geek
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Review Geek
Doctor Who – Season 15 Episode 6 'Interstellar Song Contest' Recap & Review
The Interstellar Song Contest Episode 6 of Doctor Who season 15 begins with us over at the Harmony Arena in 2925. Rylan Clark is here, having been in cryogenic freezing for all this time and unfrozen for this contest. Within the festivities, Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor and Belinda touch down with the Vindicator. However, Belinda is surprised when she notices Rylan up on stage announcing the Song Contest. This Interstellar Variety features a number of different songs from singers hailing across 40 different worlds. Hearing this, the pair decide to stick around. There are over 3 trillion lifeforms that apparently watch this live, and Belinda is now one of them. She purrs how this used to be one of her favourite nights of the year and got to stay up late until the voting took place. Mrs Flood is among those in the audience, and she's been keeping tabs on the Doctor's Vindicator status for a while. Now that it's complete, she holds a strange contraption that seems to be full of juice. Still, she's sticking around for the show just like everybody else. The Doctor and Belinda's touchdown though is not good news for everyone. A couple of men whose booth has been hijacked are unable to get a seat in the audience now and end up arguing. However, backstage things take a crazy turn. Robots activate Phase One while a Hellion called Kid shows up in the studio and blinks Rylan out of view on the TV monitors. As Phase Two commences, the air shield above the arena collapses. The Doctor does what he can to try and stop it but 100,000 people are sucked out and fly through space, along with the Tardis and a number of other people, including Rylan. Phase Three begins with Kid bringing a strange box called a Delta Wave into the studio. He shrugs off the concerns of the officials here, claiming he's just doing what's expected of him, pointing out the horns. Hellions, as we later find out, hail from the planet Hellia, which is covered in Hell Poppies. However, the planet has been ruined thanks to Corporations that have shown up and destroyed everything. Public sentiment is that the Hellions did this to themselves, but of course that's far from the truth. Signals on this station have been completely destroyed and are unable to be broadcast out (except in the main studio) and when Belinda finds out she does what she does best- she thinks of herself. She's not happy that she's got no way home and begins spiralling. However, she befriends someone called Cora and learns from her that someone (whom we know is Kid) is overriding the software. Out in space, the Doctor manages to stave off the effects of oxygen depravity and freezing cold after having a vision. He then uses a confetti cannon to blast himself back to the station, where he meets Gary and Mike. Here, the Doctor explains that just before they were all sucked out into space, he managed to triplicate the mavity field so they're in navitic suspension. In other words, they're not dead but basically in a state of suspension, floating about until the Doctor can bring them back. I For now, the Doctor intercepts the sound wave the Hellions are working on which includes a primitive delta wave pointed at the temporal lobe of the brain. With 3 trillion people watching, it'll kill every single person watching. The Doctor manages to find Kid and speaks to him on the coms, threatening to kill him if he enacts his plan. The name Kid, as we later find out, is given to a child that hasn't been named on Hellion, and as we soon learn, Cora is actually one of those native to the planet too, having had her horns cut off by the very same Corporation that burnt the Poppy fields. They're not allowed to sing on the planet, for reasons we're never really told, but it sets up the final act of the episode so there is that. Kid is out for revenge against this to let the Corporation burn, so Belinda believes Cora could be the one to talk him down. However, the Delta Wave that Kid intends to throw out is through Cora's dress rehearsal performance, which has overwritten the current events happening on the station. The Doctor shows up as a hologram and threatens Kid, with no kindness whatsoever, taunting and belittling him. The Doctor then destroys the Delta Wave and proceeds to do his best Emperor Palpatine impression and electrocute him constantly. Belinda and Cora show up in the midst of The Doctor's torture and it works to snap the Doctor out of his mood. Belinda hugs the Doctor while Kid is taken out by the robots. The same robots that were apparently working for Kid earlier in the episode but have since been put back in place. The Doctor then uses a makeshift tractor beam from the Station, bringing Rylan to life and then one by one bringing everybody else back too. Cora eventually gets up and sings a song in Hellion on stage, in memory of her planet. Afterwards, the Doctor and Belinda leave with the newly found TARDIS. After witnessing the Doctor torturing another lifeform, Belinda tells him that he's 'wonderful' although he did scare her. Despite saving worlds and millions countless times, this time it actually triggered the Doctor into memories of the Time Lords, hence why he snapped. On the way off the planet, the Doctor and Belinda learn that the Earth is destroyed on May 24th, which we've known for a while. Anyway, the cause is unknown so with the Vindicator having finished calibrating, the Doctor heads inside the Tardis and jets off for May 24th. When they leave, Mrs Flood winds up bi-generating and we see The Rani, who's back. The Episode Review So Doctor Who returns with an episode that remembers Peter Capaldi's last words: 'never be cruel, never be cowardly' and decides to do the complete opposite for ol' Ncuti's camp Doctor. Sure, we've seen the Doctor being dark before but we've never seen him outright torture a guy and look to be enjoying it. The episode itself also throws in some metaphors around acceptance and respecting cultures, although Kid's plan is flawed from the off. He intends to use one of his own race to broadcast out a Deltawave to kill trillions, but in turn will just basically reinforce the Corporation's feelings against the race. That's before the questionable way of how robots are used in this episode, along with nobody thinking to use the studio to broadcast out a distress signal. Surely there's some sort of failsafe here in case they're hijacked? Apparently not though. Ultimately, Doctor Who is a shell of the show it once was and this episode pretty much exemplifies that in the way the Doctor now thinks. This Doctor is happy to let a maniacal God go and feast on Light across the entire universe but a man with a podcast deserves to be belittled and rot in Hell. Gio figure. Still, we've got two part finale coming up now ready to end this one on a bang. 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