Doctor Who – The Haunting of Villa Diodati Review

Doctor Who enters into the realms of gothic horror with the Mary Shelley focused episode “The Haunting of Villa Diodati.”

In the year 1816 on the shores of Lake Geneva, some of the greatest writers of the period have gathered together for a night of fun and games. This was the night that Mary Shelley was inspired to write her greatest work, Frankenstein and The Doctor takes her companions to witness the event. But history doesn’t play out as expected.

During the Chibnall era, the historical episodes have generally been the best. “Rosa” and “Demons of the Punjab” were two of the best episodes of Series 11 and with Series 12 the writers have found a sweet spot of merging historical events and figures with sci-fi elements. “The Haunting of Villa Diodati” was both gothic horror and a surprise Cyberman story.

Gothic horror was bound to happen because that’s what Mary Shelley is known for. “The Haunting of Villa Diodati” was essentially a haunted house story and the writer, Maxine Alderton, and director Emma Sullivan were able to give the episode a dark and foreboding atmosphere. Alderton and Sullivan made use of the limited location to add to the tension: all the characters could do was hide from the threats like reanimated bones. The episode was able to be tense whilst still being family-friendly.

“The Haunting of Villa Diodati” does bear a similarity to “The Unicorn and the Wasp,” a Series 4 episode that focused on Agatha Christie and explains how and why she disappeared in Doctor Who fashion. “The Haunting of Villa Diodati” showed that the Lone Cyberman influenced Frankenstein because it was man-made from parts of other men, a modern Prometheus. I personally liked the historical detail that the episode was set in 1816, the Year Without a Summer and The Doctor came up with an alternative explanation as to why the event happened.

The Lone Cyberman plays in the wider storyline of Series 12. In “Fugitive of the Judoon” Captain Jack warned the Doctor’s companions about the Lone Cyberman and not to give it what it wants. Despite this, The Doctor throws herself into the face of danger. This is when Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor is at her best because she is heroic and cares about civilian lives.

The episode also follows up on previous events in other series. The first was when The Doctor she didn’t want anyone else she knows being converted into a Cyberman. This was a reference to Bill Potts who was turned into a Cyberman in the Series 10 finale and The Doctor still had mental scars from that event. Despite the warning from her companions to not give the Lone Cyberman what it wants, it turns out the easier said than done. The Doctor’s choice was an impossible one because if she didn’t give the Lone Cyberman what they wanted then a historical figure could die which would have unpredictable results. It was similar to “Rosa” where the villain’s plan was to cause the butterfly effect.

The Lone Cyberman was a cool design. It was a damaged Cyberman and the face the broken so the lifeless flesh underneath. It reminds the audience that Cybermen are not generic robots but were human. The Lone Cyberman had an oddly sinister and tender moment when the Cybermen picks up a baby says it would become a Cyberman. It showed a bit of The Lone Cyberman’s former humanity.

“The Haunting of Villa Diodati” is one of the best episodes of the Chibnall due to it being able to compare historical drama, horror, and using Doctor Who past. Maxine Alderton should come back to write more episodes of Doctor Who.