Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Mandip Gill, Tosin Cole, Warren Brown, Matthew McNulty, Molly Harris, Gabriele Toloi, Soo Drouet, Tristan de Beer, Thapelo Maropefela.

There is a war of information and understanding that is hidden under the veil of the so-called generational divide, of those born and raised during the era of the supposed Millennial and the folks who were raised before the rise of Generation X, with those native to the idea of defiance but caught between the two opposing sides, one it could be argued defined by its persuasive shifting attitudes to the environment and the absolute carnage done in humanity’s name, and those to who the memory of annihilation at the hands of madmen have driven them to influence all that come after.

It is perhaps the nihilism associated with Generation X that motivates people under the age of thirty to wage war, one not adverse to sarcasm, the use of language meant to defame, or even pointing out with calm or hysterical reserve, that catches the eye, and when it comes to the environment, when it comes to the food we eat, the havoc of tourism, of population control and certain topics such as plastic pollution, arguably by far a bigger problem than others we face, can we then really blame writers for wanting to highlight the problem, can we feel the guilt when some will say they don’t want their favourite programme to be “preachy”.

Doctor Who‘s Praxeus is a case in point, a story which suffers under the weight of its own good intentions, a warning undisguised, a tale of caution and advice, and whilst those intentions are completely honourable, indeed, valued and required, it will no doubt be seen as immersive propaganda, a tireless evangelicalism which will agitate and expound the differences between generations.

Praxeus though is story for our times, and rather than dismiss it out of hand as addressing only those to whom the axe has been grinded, it should be seen as encouraging talk, of dialogue between people. There is after all, physical proof of the problem, that plastic use and its poison on the seas and marine life is getting into our own systems, microplastics clogging our systems, rewriting perhaps what it means to be human.

It is in the remark by Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor that connects the dots, “Autons?”, tie this in with the Target novelisation of the episode Rose, where the narration shows how much plastic is unknowingly in our system, in our bodies, how much poison we have willingly devoured.

It is a story mired though in confrontation, and whether we like it or not, whether we can find a way to understand the knowledge and desire between two opposing forces and the nihilism of a third, remains to be seen. Confrontation does not have be about smart put downs, of anger, instead it should be a time to teach one side and to have empathy with the other.

Ian D. Hall