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| Poster (c) ... Well, this one was apparently a BBC commission, so probably (c) BBC, but designed and all by Stuart Manning. |
"Your version of good is not absolute. It's vain, arrogant and sentimental. If you're waiting for me to become all that, I'm going to be here for a long time yet.”
This review will contain some spoilers.
The monks have won. The monks have always been here. The monks are a fact of history. The Doctor says so, so it must be true. But Bill knows that this is not true, that the monks have only been on Earth for a few months. She also knows that the Doctor must be working on a plan, if only she could find him.
The Good
Oo! Pun title!
For all his fascination for humanity and apparently a millennium on the planet watching the Vault, it would seem that the Doctor doesn't really have the emotional connection to its history necessary to overwhelm the Monks. This is interesting, even if I don't entirely agree with it.
The use of old-fashioned Walkmans for the not-Eye Drives was a nice touch.
Michelle Gomez played an older, wearier version of Missy, struggling to be good, but coming up short, to the hilt.
The fake news angle was one of the show's better and more painful political allegories.
The Bad
I wasn't thrilled by the Doctor's test, which frankly felt like it was designed to provide a big fake out for the trailer.
The Ugly
Nothing of note.
Theorising
I hope that the Monks aren't a spent force. While I'll buy that Bill was able to destroy their psychic link through the power of love and so thwart their first invasion plan, they were built up as much, much more than that and their dismissive defeat was rather disappointing. I'd like to see them in the finale, perhaps.
Top Quotes
This review will contain some spoilers.
The monks have won. The monks have always been here. The monks are a fact of history. The Doctor says so, so it must be true. But Bill knows that this is not true, that the monks have only been on Earth for a few months. She also knows that the Doctor must be working on a plan, if only she could find him.
The Good
Oo! Pun title!
For all his fascination for humanity and apparently a millennium on the planet watching the Vault, it would seem that the Doctor doesn't really have the emotional connection to its history necessary to overwhelm the Monks. This is interesting, even if I don't entirely agree with it.
The use of old-fashioned Walkmans for the not-Eye Drives was a nice touch.
Michelle Gomez played an older, wearier version of Missy, struggling to be good, but coming up short, to the hilt.
The fake news angle was one of the show's better and more painful political allegories.
The Bad
I wasn't thrilled by the Doctor's test, which frankly felt like it was designed to provide a big fake out for the trailer.
The Ugly
Nothing of note.
Theorising
I hope that the Monks aren't a spent force. While I'll buy that Bill was able to destroy their psychic link through the power of love and so thwart their first invasion plan, they were built up as much, much more than that and their dismissive defeat was rather disappointing. I'd like to see them in the finale, perhaps.
Top Quotes
"You know, back in the day, I'd burn an entire city to the ground just to see the pretty shapes the smoke made. I'm sorry your plus one doesn't get a happy ending, but, like it or not, I just saved this world because I want to change." – Missy
"Oh, you clever, brilliant, ridiculous girl." – The Doctor
"I keep remembering all the people I've killed. Every day I think of more. Being bad, being bad drowned that out. I didn't know I even knew their names. You didn't tell me about this bit." - Missy
The Verdict
As noted above, this is a somewhat underwhelming end to a really very well-executed story. The Monks as built up in the last two episodes are barely present in this one, and while this is explained as a result of them attempting to run the Earth with what is really a very small force, it's a shame that the Doctor never got to face off against them again.
Score - 5/10
"Oh, you clever, brilliant, ridiculous girl." – The Doctor
"I keep remembering all the people I've killed. Every day I think of more. Being bad, being bad drowned that out. I didn't know I even knew their names. You didn't tell me about this bit." - Missy
The Verdict
As noted above, this is a somewhat underwhelming end to a really very well-executed story. The Monks as built up in the last two episodes are barely present in this one, and while this is explained as a result of them attempting to run the Earth with what is really a very small force, it's a shame that the Doctor never got to face off against them again.
Score - 5/10
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