Doctor Who - Time Heist

Clara was glad this heist came along when she was dressed
for Reservoir Dogs night at the club, rather than disco fever.

Doctor: I know one thing about the Architect. What is it that I know about the Architect? I know one thing, something that I’ve known from the very start.

Clara: What?
Doctor: I hate him! He’s overbearing, he’s manipulative, likes to think that he’s very clever. I hate him! Clara, don’t you see? I hate the Architect!

The Doctor has a mission he can not refuse (unless he could have done, but didn't): To rob the unrobbable bank. There is something in the Bank of Kalabraxos that he needs to steal,  but he doesn't know what it is. He doesn't even know why he's doing this; he only knows that he agreed, and that the TARDIS isn't around.

Don't you just love a good memory wipe?

The Good

• A good, old-fashioned heist with some excellent timey-wimey gives the Doctor a much-needed chance to be actually large and in charge, rather than setting him up for a put-down.
• The fast-paced heist and the rapid progression of revelation and pay-off surrounding the abilities and needs of the other half of the crew made good use of the running time for once.
• The story isn't tied into the arc at all, and it kind of serves as a reminder of why arc plots aren't always good. It was actually pretty refreshing to just have a one off.
• The Teller was an excellent monster, a fun play on words, and capped off with a tragic reveal. Love it.

The Bad

• The terminal firing bit has been done to death. The same could be said of the scifi bank job, but that schtick never gets old.
• On the same note, the monster just looking for its lost/imprisoned love is another callback to 'Hide', but it's not too glaring and the set-up surrounding it is quite different (the other is a deliberate captive and hostage, rather than just being trapped.)

The Ugly

• This episode has no outstanding ugly. Yay!

Theorising

• "I hate the Architect!" - I quite like the idea that the Doctor on some level hates himself for surviving all that he has and anyone else hasn't (a la the Dream Lord in 'Amy's Choice'), but I now have the fear that Missy will turn out to be another aspect of the Dream Lord persona.

Top Quotes

• Doctor: Are you taller?
  Clara: Heels.
  Doctor: What, do you have to reach a high shelf?
  Clara: Right, gotta go, gonna be late.
  Doctor: For a shelf?
• Doctor: Question one – Robbing banks is easy if you’ve got a TARDIS. So why am I not using it?
  Clara: Question two – Where is the TARDIS?
  Doctor: Okay, that probably should be question one.
• Psi: Still don’t understand why you’re in charge.
  Doctor: Basically, it’s the eyebrows.

The Twelfth Doctor
"What do you think of the new look? I was hoping for minimalism, but I think I came out with magician."

So, this Doctor is shaping up to be highly pragmatic (see also 'Into the Dalek'), willing to let someone die when he can't stop it rather than making a wild - often futile - throw. He calls himself a magician, but there's a stronger air of Derren Brown about Twelve; a manipulative streak beneath his almost autistic exterior*.

The Verdict
So, here's a thing: When it works, when the balance is equal, the badinage between Clara and Twelve is beautiful; it just falls down when Clara is given the whip hand, because when push comes to shove this is Doctor Who, not the Clara Oswald show, and I hold to my position that making a given companion too super-special is bad. The companion is the space into which we the audience insert ourselves, and a) how can we if Rose/Amy/Clara is sooo irreplaceable, and b) why would we if the Doctor is a complete pill?

In this episode, for my money, they got it right. They also cracked that pacing thing, and steered clear of too much arc plot (brief mention re. the telephone in the TARDIS, which apparently still isn't redirected to the console). The supporting characters were involving and likable - or hateable, as needed - and the episode managed a strong pace and a satisfying conclusion.

This one, I liked. It falls short only on arc integration (I know, I know; I liked that it didn't get all arc-y, but the arc is here to stay it seems, so it remains a factor in my final score, although not in my gut response.)

8/10

* For an examination of the Doctor's alien perspective and social blindness as a parallel to autism, see - or rather hear - 'The Curious Incident of the Doctor in the Nighttime' on the Sixth Doctor Big Finish release Breaking Bubbles and other stories