Liverpool Sound and Vision 7/10
Cast: Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Mandip Gill, Tosin Cole, John Barrowman, Chris North, Harriet Walter, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Nathan Armarkwei Laryea, Helen Anderson, Nicholas Briggs, Barnaby Edwards, Nicholas Pegg, Sharon D. Clarke.
You cannot knock the style or the sentiment of certain ideas when they have been placed upon the screen; especially in a time when CGI can put into practice the structure of the author and the imagination of the crew. However, in wanting to declare a revolution one must expect casualties, one person or more will be sacrificed to the winds of war, and many will take a step back and ask if the end justifies the means.
There is much to be admired in the 2021 New Year’s Day Doctor Who offering, Revolution Of The Daleks, and yet there is also the feeling of Deja vu, the sense of sadness of tie-ins and the inevitable belief that influence is more than a cycle of events, but one that is forever exploited and re-hashed, only with more technical ability and computer driven expertise to guide the viewers onwards.
The sadness of the episode is magnified by the loss of Bradley Walsh as the companion Graham as he steps down from the role, and the reminder of what John Barrowman’s exceptional turn as Captain Jack Harkness brought to the screen in episodes past; and whilst the return was welcome, even delightful, it only served notice that the character, and the spin off series of Torchwood, has been sorely missed. If nothing comes of this appearance, if it means that the character is shoved back into companion history for a few years, then effectively becomes a tease, a moment of torment to rue.
Every fan loves a Dalek story, there is perhaps no other villain in the universe that has as much iconic screen time as the fascist-like creatures from Skaro, still visually terrifying, the memory of what they represent still haunting the psyche, even if the person watching doesn’t realise the implication of the image. It is in this image, the unwritten social commentary on how the country is looking to the outsider and the open minded native, that the latest excursion of the mad killing machines appearance of Earth is one of tragedy, of a warning to those who see the future in misplaced security and jingoism.
The problem for the episode perhaps arises in homage, it cannot fail to register with the audience the sense of other film and television series worming their way into the narrative; the saving grace that whilst this can lead to a slight roll of the eye, it was at least handled with suspense and handled well by the actors involved.
The Christmas/New Year special has in all honesty rarely hit the sublime heights, with arguably the notable exceptions of the David Tennant era two-parter The End of Time and The Next Doctor, Matt Smith’s The Time of The Doctor and Peter Capaldi’s Twice Upon A Time, as the series that precede them, but that is to be expected, it is after all a time for family, and in year when family has taken on a different meaning, when the world has changed beyond our recognition, to still have the opportunity to be in the company of the Doctor and her companions is perhaps enough.
Revolution Of The Daleks may salute and embrace other science fiction film elements, but it was all in the spirit intended, an ending and new beginning in one dramatic, if expected, episode.
Ian D. Hall