Lucky Day

I like the overall theme of this episode. And the reveal halfway through is extremely surprising. Never would have seen that coming!

But there are a lot of things I dislike about this episode.

First off lets just get it out of the way. This new UNIT 2.0 is just dreadful. It's like they are trying to spin off UNIT as it's own show or something. And the target audience of that show is going to be along the lines of the Sarah Jane Adventures. Little kids.

It really has a feel of a kids show when they are at UNIT HQ right up to when Kate goes a little over the edge.

I actually liked that. I hope this foreshadows a more Kate centered episode. Though I hope that is absent Captain Hair, Wheels and Dubious Robot.

The other part I heavily dislike about this episode is the emphasis on romantic relationships. That simply isn't what I tune in to DW for. I dislike it when it's gay, when it's straight, when it's between two aliens with no concept of gender at all. It's just weird to have lovey dovey romanticism when you know it's never going to go as hard as Torchwood. (no pun intended) There is also that I've just never liked Ruby. It's not Millie Gibson's fault. It's how her character is written. We have a hard time relating to her because she doesn't react to things in a relatable way. And her character was built up as some kind of Impossible Girl/Bad Wolf enigma. Which went nowhere.

Varada Sethu's Belinda is more relatable. She frequently asks what the hell is going on, and reacts to weird stuff by saying 'that is weird stuff!' I also really disliked the very corny references to social media. They seem like they were written by someone who only had a vague concept of what that is. And it is the kind of element that will look dated in a few years.

That all said, it's a competent episode. None of the episodes this year have been as bad as last years. They are trying to write stories with more substance. And we aren't seeing the ludicrously bad CGI which plagues so much Who. I'm also not someone who is deeply offended by Russell T Davies pantheon of 'gods'. Keeping Sci Fi free from fantasy elements is a ludicrous hill to die on. Who has always included psychic elements and that is just as much fantasy as gods, demons or elves.

Long story short, it's not a bad episode, just not great.

Conrad Clarke thinks it's his lucky day when Ruby Sunday walks into his life.

The Well felt like a step back to the early years, so did this, I had vibes of Rose, Love and Monsters and more. The trend for very good Doctor 'lite' episodes continues with this one.

Funny, intriguing, energetic, it's the elements that used to make this show so watchable, so much fun and appeal to the masses.

I just loved that it was a Ruby story, as much as I like Belinda, it felt as though her story was cut short, great to see her back as well as the myriad of familiar faces.

This was very well produced, it looked so good, great use of lighting, compare this to an episode such as Orphan 55, The Shreek looked pretty good.

I liked that The Doctor showed a different side, anger, that was great to see, showing he's got a bit of metal.

One question, who exactly is he?

8/10.

He (RTD) reintroduced Dr Who to us with Eccleston and now he's back to save it. This is the stuff we're talking about! Big personalities, flare and damn right unpredictability. Fans are going to go wild with this one after last week's episode raised so much hope and expectation. I honestly think the rating for last week's episode was a little too high if you compare it to the 8.6 episodes of past seasons but I understand how happy fans are to finally get their beloved show back. It will be very interesting to see how this episode is rated as fans celebrate a hopeful new era that will allow people to forget about anything Chibnal and Whitaker took part in.

Another Doctor lite episode. I know last season had two because of scheduling issues with Ncuti Gatwa. With only 8 episodes a season, I did not expect one this time.

Mille Gibson returns as Ruby Sunday, she suffers from PTSD after her adventures with the Doctor and she takes part in a podcast with Conrad Clark. He met the Doctor as a kid and has been obsessed with him ever since.

It began with something like Love and Monsters from the David Tennant era. It flipped to a darker version.

The story takes aim at far right conspiracy grifters who deliberately spread disinformation and lies. The bottom line is they are either zealots or just do it for the money. Conrad did not even pay any taxes which to me was a killer line.

There were issues though. Ruby seems to have fallen for Conrad so fast. Also she spilled the beans about the Doctor and aliens to a podcaster and thus to members of the public. Did she get the ok from Kate Stewart?

It seems it is so easy to break into UNIT headquarters. The backdoor is not guarded or there are no concerns when the cctv goes down.

Although it was a sight to see Kate Stewart cross the line after the her father's memory got desecrated. I thought she was going to order five rounds rapid at point!

I usually enjoy Doctor-lite episodes - Blink being a standout - but this one just didn't land for me. These episodes can be a great way to explore side characters or smaller-scale stories, but this time the writing let everything down.

The biggest issue was the so-called "villain." He was loud, obnoxious, and completely lacking in credibility. His whole argument was that the monsters weren't real - and somehow, the public believed him. That part was especially hard to buy. With everything they'd seen and experienced, their sudden denial of the obvious threat felt forced and unrealistic.

UNIT is supposed to be Earth's first line of defense, yet here they were, flailing around and almost undone by a troll. It was frustrating to watch them be so easily outmaneuvered, especially by someone so clearly unstable. They lacked the authority and preparedness that usually defines their role. It felt like they were just there to react, not lead.

And when the actual monster finally showed up - after all the tension and buildup - it was dealt with far too quickly. There was no clever plan, no major twist, just a straightforward confrontation that ended without much effort. The resolution felt rushed and left little impact. For all the noise and buildup, there wasn't much substance in the end.