Doctor Who – “The Reality War” Review – Two Villains. Two Companions. Too Many

Clint Schwalen gives his SPOILER-filled commentary on the eighth episode of Series 15.

NOTE: this review contains full SPOILERS for episode 8 of Series 15.

Though overstuffed with too many side characters, Doctor Who’s Series 15 finale features some of the show’s most subtle, yet effective character work.  Sadly, this development is split between the two outgoing companions, with one playing a larger role within the narrative, while the other gets the more satisfying send-off.

The script for “The Reality War” also allows showrunner Russell T Davies to revisit several moments from the series’ history, shading the audience’s perception of their importance.  (. . . .)  Why are you looking at me weirdly?

I didn’t realize you’d still be here, this week.  We usually just do this dialogue-as-review thing as a one-off.

Oh, no worries.  I’ll just dominate the first half of the article and then disappear, leaving you feeling unfulfilled and wondering why I was even here in the first place.

Wow—I see what you did there.  Tell me how you really feel about the Rani.

I’m still convinced that Archie Panjabi’s interpretation of the Rani is a fantastic update of a classic character.  Her speech to the UNIT staff about humans being “cattle” compared to the Time Lords reeks of the melodramatic camp inherent to Kate O’Mara’s original portrayal.  I particularly enjoyed the initial interaction between the Doctor and the Rani, in this episode.  The two are wary of the other, but they treat each other with deference—even respect—believing themselves to be the last of their kind.

It is a fine line to walk, tonally, and Ncuti Gatwa and Panjabi turn in excellent work.  The two are captivating together.

The Ranis are even able to play on the Doctor’s desire for connection as they tempt him into staying uncharacteristically complacent while they release Omega from the Underverse.

I particularly love how Fifteen’s comment, “I am not alone,” serves as a callback to Series 3’s “YANA” subplot and the return of the Master.

Honestly, the Rani’s plan isn’t all that evil.  She doesn’t want to obliterate humanity or rule over the Earth—she just wants to rebuild her home world.  If anything, the Rani is more “haughty” than “naughty.” 

You’re terrible.  How do you feel about this episode’s depiction of Omega?

Horrible!  While it is in keeping with Sutekh being resurrected as a giant, CGI-ed dog-beast, Omega’s new skeletal, quadruped form is so far removed from his iconic, helmeted design as to be “Omega” in name only.  He literally doesn’t even make it out of his portal before he is again banished by the Doctor.  What a waste of a classic villain!

Two villains, actually, as Omega eats the Rani seconds after he is released.

Ugh!  And he eats the perfectly realized Rani, too, leaving the doddering old lady to reappear in future series.

Yes, though I guess that answers the question of which iteration resulting from a bi-generation can regenerate—they both can.  Someday, we’ll see the Rani again, and she won’t always be played by Anita Dobson.

While I appreciate that the first half of the finale moves quickly and leaves 31 minutes to resolve this series’ multiple storylines, underutilizing two major villains undermines both their legacy as classic characters and the sense of conflict inherent to Series 15 and Mrs. Flood’s cameos.

That’s fair.  What was your favorite moment?

The reappearance of Anita is literally one of my favorite moments in all 62 years of Doctor Who.  It’s completely unexpected, yet it makes total sense within the narrative.  I literally screamed and jumped up and down with shock and glee.

I’m so glad that her appearance wasn’t teased in advance by the cast list.

Her story arc in “Joy to the World” felt so incomplete, her character underutilized . . . and now we know why!

What else did you love?

I immediately teared up when Jodie Whittaker appeared in the TARDIS.  I miss Thirteen—and Whittaker—so much.  Her kindness.  Her energy.

Yes!  I love that, when she leaves the TARDIS, she doesn’t merely fade away.  Instead, we see her turn and run back towards her adventures, still full of boundless energy.  Davies understands her character and I’m glad he got the chance to write for her, even if only for one scene.

But consider what Davies does with that one scene!  As Thirteen prepares to go, Fifteen turns and calls out, “I love you!”  Thirteen replies, “I never say things like that.  I should say that to Yaz!”  Note the look on Thirteen’s face when Fifteen states, “You never do”—she’s crestfallen and only slightly comforted when Fifteen clarifies, “But she knows.”  Not only does Davies give us insight as to the Doctor’s true feelings regarding her relationship with Yasmin—a relationship that previous showrunner Chris Chibnall wrote mostly from the companion’s point of view—it’s written in a way that mirrors the shared experience of queer people as they come out.  Thirteen recognizes her feelings for Yaz, but doesn’t yet feel comfortable voicing them.  Fifteen, however, has found that confidence and lives his life openly.

The scene that cuts from the Doctor in a suit to him in a vest and kilt is nonsensical, but visually signifies his determination to live his life authentically.

That this Doctor chooses to spend his last moments shouting, “Joy to the world!” at the Star of Bethlehem demonstrates that Fifteen’s life was about joy—joy in his travels, joy in his companionship, and most importantly, joy in himself.  Could there be a better final statement than that?

So, what are your feelings on Billie Piper as the Sixteenth Doctor?

I think that, as much as Davies has given to Doctor Who, if he wants to bring his tenure full circle and feature Piper in a cameo, he has earned that right.

Is it stunt casting?

Of course, it’s stunt casting!  I do think, though, that Davies is misguided in his expectation that long-time fans of Rose Tyler will clamor for Disney+ and the BBC to produce Series 16 sooner rather than later.

Yeah, a better idea might’ve been for Davies to hire the biggest star he could afford for that five-second cameo.  I mean, he’s going to have to write his way out of that scenario when he scripts Series 16 anyway, so he might as well feature Daniel Craig, Idris Elba, Helen Mirren, or Judi Dench.

You can’t tell me that Benedict Cumberbatch wouldn’t have played the part as a favor to Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss.  But let me offer a counterpoint: it’s stunt casting only if Davies immediately recasts the role and Piper’s involvement is merely meant to generate interest in Series 16.  There is an enormous amount of goodwill for Billie Piper, Rose Tyler, and that era of Doctor Who.  Do something with that—let Piper play the Sixteenth Doctor!  Sure, it’s another example of the Doctor regenerating a “familiar face,” but one could make a case for it, narratively. 

Like, “Having just encountered Thirteen, the Doctor regenerates as a woman, giving herself a second chance to engage with others now that her communication skills have matured”?

Sure!  And, “As a reminder to be forthcoming with her affection, she subconsciously chooses the face of a beloved companion.”

I mean that makes more sense than the reason given for why the Twelfth Doctor took the face of Cæcilius!

(. . . .)

Oh, he wasn’t kidding about just disappearing mid-article.  OK, then!  Where was I in my review . . .

“The Reality War” includes some exceptional, if subtle character work.  In an unusual twist on the trope of the companion being changed by their interaction with the Doctor, the Series 15 finale allows the audience to consider how the Time Lord’s character also affects those who oppose him.  Conspiracy theorist Conrad Clark reveals to Ruby that, when creating the Wish World, he considered the Doctor’s sentiment that “people just want to feel safe, and fed, and warm.”  “You tried to give everyone a family,” Ruby notes, recognizing Conrad as her mirror opposite—what might have happened to her if she hadn’t found a loving family, her potential for greatness funneled away from her journey of self-discovery and into a futile quest to validate herself by hurting and excluding others.  Having grown beyond her justified anger at the conclusion of “Lucky Day,” Ruby acknowledges that, regardless of Conrad’s duplicity, her feelings for him were genuine—he is deserving of love, despite his despicable actions and ideology—and she treats him with compassion, wishing him happiness.

Unfortunately, this character development doesn’t extend to Belinda Chandra, the other departing companion.  Series 15 never seemed to know exactly what to do with Belinda, especially when she appeared alongside Ruby.  Note that the Doctor refers to Poppy as “little scraps of memory—yours and mine—brought to life,” while gesturing to Belinda.  However, it wasn’t Belinda that remembered Poppy from “Space Babies”—it was Ruby.  Yet the episode doesn’t pair Ruby and the Doctor as Poppy’s parents or allow Belinda to be the companion that saves the day.  Rather, Belinda gets shoved inside the Zero Room, isolated not only from the passage of time, but also the narrative.

It doesn’t help that Belinda’s exigency changes suddenly in this episode, shifting from unwilling traveler to unwitting mother.  If Belinda’s false memories are so convincing that she is distraught over the thought of losing Poppy as a daughter, why is she not similarly bereft to discover that her idyllic marriage to the Doctor is also a sham?  The narrative understandably avoids the fact that its two lead characters were forced into a nonconsensual romance and focuses Belinda’s ire solely on Poppy’s safety.  Despite remembering his and Ruby’s adventure with the real Poppy aboard Baby Station Beta, in 21506, the Doctor chooses to regenerate not to save Poppy’s life, but to keep her as his daughter—a mission that ultimately fails, rendering Fifteen’s sacrifice pointless.

Still, the epilogue of “The Reality War” does give Belinda a fantastic final scene that establishes that she is happy in her newly retconned life as a single mother and allows her to say farewell to the Doctor.  You know who doesn’t get a good send-off?  Ruby Sunday.  Sure, one could argue that her character arc ended when she solved the mystery of her parentage and met her birth mother, in “Empire of Death.”  However, her separation from the Doctor seemed irresolute in the Series 14 finale, and Ruby continued to appear throughout Series 15.  That she is again denied a proper goodbye is egregious as it is Ruby’s ingenuity, empathy, and compassion that both defeat Conrad and convince the Doctor to “save” Poppy.

Ultimately, the biggest issue with the finale is that it needs to check off too many items on Davies’ narrative to-do list: defeat Conrad and the two Ranis, introduce and vanquish Omega, feature the UNIT staff who will star in the upcoming spin-off, rescue Rogue from the hell dimension, say goodbye to both departing companions, reunite the Doctor and his granddaughter, regenerate Fifteen, resolve all loose ends from Series 15, and pay homage to Davies’ tenure as a whole.  Even with its expanded runtime, “The Reality War” cannot fully develop its large cast or sprawling plot.  Consider the staff at UNIT, for example.  Rose Noble’s absence from “Wish World” makes sense from a narrative perspective, as her erasure reinforces that Conrad is so close-minded that he denies her right to exist.  However, when she reappears, the finale does little to justify her appearance beyond acknowledge that she is a trans woman.  Hopefully, The War Between the Land and the Sea will allow for Rose, Susan Triad, and the Vlinx to be further developed, alongside Kate Stewart, Colonel Ibrahim, and Shirley Bingham.

In contrast, Mel Bush is a great example of the show continuing to weave past companions into the present narrative in a manner that doesn’t feel like stunt casting or nostalgia-bait.  In fairness, her character’s eidetic memory makes her the best candidate for a position within UNIT.  Still, one must wonder if Davies purposely reintroduced Mel back into the series knowing in advance that she would again encounter the Rani.  A pastiche of the classic era’s melodramatic camp, Mel and the Rani’s catty exchange is the best dialogue of the episode!

Random Musings

(Time) Capsule Review

Saddled with too many narrative tasks, “The Reality War” fails to capitalize on its two classic era villains or give closure to departing companion Ruby Sunday.  Still, there is much to love in the Series 15 finale, including the surprise return of Anita and the Thirteenth Doctor and an examination of how the Doctor’s character affects even those who oppose him.

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