Missy

A Game Of Old Men Who Have Lived Too Long

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It’s relatively minor, I’ll admit, but one of the things I enjoyed about this week’s episode of Doctor Who was that now I don’t have to be so circumspect about what happened in the season premiere. So, spoilers away…

When we last left The Doctor, he was in another very dark place. Trapped on Skaro by his ancient nemesis Davros, with his three closest friends seemingly exterminated before his eyes, he looked truly broken, desparate enough to throw away his greatest rule: the rule of compassion.

Exterminate?

And so ended “The Magician’s Apprentice,” a dazzling beginning to Series 9. But this was a two-parter. And we all know how hard it is for the second part to live up to the promise of the first.

Except this time, it was even better.

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Tonight, You’re Going To Break Your One Rule

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Good men don’t need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.

As good as Matt Smith was as The Doctor – and he could be very, very good – his time on Doctor Who gave Eleven few moments where he could be well and truly dangerous. (The above quote, from “A Good Man Goes To War,” is one of those few.)

That hasn’t been an issue with Twelve. From “Deep Breath” on, Peter Capaldi has taken the character to those dark places only hinted at before. He’s borne the weight of the horrible things The Doctor has seen, the horrible choices he’s had to make.

And he’s nowhere near done.

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Old Friends Die Hard

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“Clara, be my pal. Tell me… am I a good man?”
“I… don’t know.”
“Neither do I.”

– from “Into the Dalek,” by Phil Ford and Steven Moffat

They were the central questions of Series 8 of Doctor Who. What kind of man is this new Doctor? Is he a hero? Does he still care? Is he even capable of caring anymore?

It’s to the show’s credit that it dared to ask those questions, to explore the darker sides of life with, and as, the last Time Lord. Asking those questions gave us stories like “Listen” and “Flatline.”

And it’s to the show’s credit that in the end, it found a way to answer them.

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