As an American*, I have to admit that the Eurovision Song Contest and all that it entails is rather foreign to me. (Although my social media tells me that it ended today and Austria took home the crown, so congrats to them.) Which means that the outer trappings of this week’s Doctor Who were lost on me – although I’m well aware of who Graham Norton is (and that he’s a commentator during the Contest), so I did get that reference. I also have to admit I wasn’t aware of who the Rani is in Who lore – although I am very aware of who Archie Panjabi is and I’m thrilled to see what she will bring to the series in next week’s two-part season (and possibly series) finale. I have, however, done my research and understand the significance in bringing back this particular adversary of The Doctor at this stage of the game. More on her next week when she’s in her full villain mode.
*I should stress that there are Americans who follow Eurovision (there’s a particular love amongst gay men). But yes, the vast majority of us don’t watch. Although I think a lot of us know that ABBA won back in the ‘70s.
As an episode, this one was much more concerned with stressing the failings of The Doctor and introducing our final boss villain than it was with the story at hand. Yes, there was an important message – not hiding oneself out of fear, especially when being true to oneself could expose others to a truth long kept hidden – but this was an episode meant to thrust our story into the endgame quickly and with major shock value.
As I suspect many folks sussed out, May 24, 2025, is the day Earth was destroyed. After all, we saw the debris when The Tardis tried to return to that day to drop Belinda off in the season premiere. But just how, why, and who was involved in the destruction remains a mystery for us. And I’m not entirely certain the Rani was involved in what went down – although I wouldn’t be shocked if she was. That would a heck of a return: destroy Earth after spending two seasons following The Doctor and his companions around time and space just waiting for the right moment to pounce.* Although we also have the issues with the various gods of the universe trying to stop The Doctor, and the Rani doesn’t seem to be a part of that story arc (even though Mrs. Flood did show up in the various episodes that included gods throughout this run of the series, so who knows – I assume we’ll get the entire villain’s speech at some point in the finale). So, we have the destruction of Earth mystery to solve, the reveal of the Rani surprise to integrate into the story, and one more major shocker: the return of Susan, The Doctor’s granddaughter (played by her original actress, Carole Ann Ford, no less), to the series.
*I appreciate someone who can play the long game, but boy was that a very very long game from the Rani. I assume that if one were to go back and check each appearance of Mrs. Flood – and knowing this fandom, someone will – the breadcrumbs are all there. But I’m also going to need an explanation next week regarding just why she took so long to act. And another explanation as to why the bi-generation has Mrs. Flood acting all subservient to the Rani when that wasn’t the case with The Doctor back during the last regeneration.
Susan’s appearance to The Doctor when he most needed hope – and a guiding hand – was truly spectacular. She’s been name-dropped multiple times throughout the Fifteenth Doctor’s run, but to see her, seemingly alive and mostly well, was a shock. In fact, it’s impressive there are so many Galifreyans running around the story now, since we have Susan and the Rani (and the Master is presumably still at UNIT) considering they were once all thought destroyed. But what struck me as particularly interesting was that Susan begging The Doctor to stop torturing Kid wasn’t enough to break through his fog of anger. He had dismissed her initial appearance to him as simply a memory or wishful thinking while on the cusp of death – but her second message not getting through to him was surprising. And having Belinda be the one to get him to stop was quite the choice.
We’ve seen The Doctor have a hard time stopping himself from doing something violent in the past. In fact, Russell T. Davies’ past Doctors tended to fall into that well at least once a season. So, that’s nothing new. But, as with those past instances of anger, it’s the presence of their companion that pulls them out of their spiral, reminding them of goodness and their role not as an intergalactic judge but as a protector and traveler. And once they see the companion’s fear, worry, or disgust for their actions, they always take a step back and reassess. But those moments are crucial for the series, as they serve as reminders just how powerful The Doctor really is. Sure, their often jolly, excited, and hoping to show their companions some of the magic of the wide universe, but there’s a darkness within The Doctor that always lurks. And it’s important for the character and the series that we occasionally get a glimpse of that. Because it’s that darkness that allows The Doctor to make some very hard choices when the time calls for it. This is a character that is smarter, more powerful, and more traumatized that most beings in the universe – the happy, joyous personality hides so much, and when the mask slips, we get to see just why someone like the Rani might want to slide in and try to fight them. That’s intriguing for what is to come in the finale.
Because we have a host of conflicting narratives heading toward an inflection point. We have Belinda and The Doctor trying to get Belinda home and solve the mystery of what destroyed Earth. We also have the Rani and Mrs. Flood trying to get to The Doctor to . . . destroy him? That one is a bit murky. And we have Susan, seemingly trapped somewhere, begging The Doctor to find her. But The Doctor thinks that part of things is all in his head, even though it definitely isn’t. So three story arcs, converging together, in a two-part finale that might mark the end of modern Doctor Who. Appointment TV to be sure.
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