Season 15, Episode 1
š
Aired: 12 April 2025
Hello, and welcome to DW Deep Dive! This is a fan blog where I am going to be reviewing new Doctor Who episodes as they come out - and when they aren't, I'll review older ones!
As you can probably tell, I am a couple weeks behind writing this, but here's hoping I can finish writing two reviews (the pressure...) before The Well comes out on Saturday.
When it comes to rating episodes, I've decided to take on a marksheet style approach, ranking every episode out of 100. Grading wise, I'll follow a system similar to how UK universities work for their Masters. For those of you who don't know how they work (and honestly, you're lucky not to):
- 70% and above: Great Episode!
- 60% and above: Good Episode
- 50% and above: Passable
- Below 50%: ...let's just say it's not my cup of tea.
Now, percents are one thing, but how am I going to give marks? I've decided to split marks based on this criteria. NOTE: this is subject (and likely) to change in the future.
- Plot and Structure (25)
- Emotional Impact (20)
- Character Development (15)
- Villains (10)
- Visuals/Music (10)
- Themes (10)
- Rewatchability (10)
Anything else before I get started? Oh, yeah, this review will contain heavy spoilers. I repeat, heavy spoilers. So don't go reading this until you've watched the episode (although if you haven't watched it already, what ARE you doing?!).
Now, without further ado, it's time to kick off the new series, and this blog, with The Robot Revolution!
Plot and Structure ā 17/25
RTD has always had a pretty reliable formula for a season opener, give or take a few space babies. This one, plot wise, I can't particularly fault - it does the job of introducing the characters, setting up the series mystery (I thought the ending shot was particularly effective), and giving us some good, campy fun.
The one issue I have, and it's an issue that a lot of the episodes recently seem to have, is...
IT GOES TOO FAST.
Think back to The Legend of Ruby Sunday. You remember how that episode just... randomly starts? Off the back of nothing? Well, that was after a pretty dramatic cut to part of the episode. And I can't help but feeling that this episode was a victim of this as well.
Randomly by the end, Belinda seems to know what a TARDIS is, and frankly, hardly seems mindblown by time travel. I appreciate there was only 46 minutes to cram a lot of detail in, but I think just an additional 4 would have worked wonders for allowing better setup.
Still... What it does do, it does well.
By the end of the episode we have managed to get a good feel for MissBelindaChandra One, even if some characters remain a bit two-dimensional (even more two-dimensional than ones in the week after!), and the plot moves at a decent enough pace that it's a comfortable watch. Which is what you really want from an RTD season opener, isn't it? Plus, I really enjoyed the two twists, them being the nine words, and the AI/AL.
So, I'd say it's successful. It's not necessarily worth writing home about, but then again it's not trying to be either. Good job!
Emotional Impact ā 14/20
The main aim of the episode is to be camp, for certain. And camp it most certainly is. The main source of the camp? The titular robots themselves.
From the face changing (love the cat face, hate the cat murder), to their silly looks, to their silly names for things (I laughed a fair bit at MissBelindaChandraBombs) these guys prove that RTD is back where he enjoys being.
And let's not forget the character we all fell for. The character we loved, cherished, and who brought us all to tears...
POLISH POLISH!!!
... wait, sorry, who's Sacha 55 again?
Character Development ā 12/15
This episode competes with The Halloween Apocalypse on how to give an Any% Companion speedrun. Now, I'm probably fairly alone in thinking this, but I think both of these episodes do a great job at introducing Dan and Belinda separately.
While The Halloween Apocalypse showed Dan's comedic side to being kidnapped, Belinda is actually given a proper authentic reaction to being kidnapped. She gets to show off being scared at first, then annoyed, even disgusted at the AL Generator, so I'm really glad that by the end of the episode she is not won over by the Doctor in the slightest. It's a really refreshing side to see.
Ncuti and Varada have such a great chemistry, shown best in the hideout. They can get on brilliantly, but it's clear that Belinda will be holding the Doctor to rights throughout the series. At least, I really hope this trend continues.
SIDENOTE: when writing this, I only just realised how similar Dan and Belinda's initial scenarios are. Weird, huh?
Villains ā 6/10
Sadly, I think this is the weak link of the episode for me.
I'm not going to count the Robots as villains (as they are both too cute, and are perfectly happy by the end of the episode), so in this case it all falls down to AL.
The twist that he was actually in pain for most of the time and wanted it to end was really good actually, and was a major redeemer for him. Poor Al.
...actually, no, what am I saying? Screw him!
The way he acted with Belinda at the start? Totally believable. Planet of the Incels indeed. But I don't then believe that after being kidnapped, any person would start randomly becoming a dictator and murdering people for literally no reason? It just doesn't quite make sense how that jump was made, and as much of the episode hinges on that, it doesn't sit well with me.
Still, perfectly serviceable for the Doctor and Belinda to riff off eachother with (and they do riff beautifully).
Plus, bonus points for his destruction being brought around by Polish Polish. Love that funky little dude!
Visuals & Music ā 8/10
Now, I'm not an expert director or musician or anything, so whatever I say in these sections is not going to have much depth. I can only write about how the episode makes me feel. And it makes me feel great.
Very much love the whole 50's aesthetic of both the Robots and MissBelindaChandra One, it adds to the camp and cosiness for the episode.
Bonus points for the trippy timey wimey sequence at the end of the episode. Loved this.
Negative points for this TARDIS shot at the beginning. Something about this just looks... bleugh.
Themes ā 7/10
Planet of the Incels indeed.
A nice twist, as I really expected it to actually be about AI. Glad it's being talked about, as it's definitely still needed in this day and age, although the message could have been better if Alan's descent into being evil was made more gradual, or made more sense.
Rewatchability ā 6/10
I've watched this episode 3 times now, so clearly there is a decent level of rewatchability to it - it's a fun, rompy opener. However, I get the feeling it will be outshone by a lot of other episodes this season. Not sure if this will be on the top of my list to go back to in the future, but it is good.
Total Score: 70/100
Summary:
A solid opener for the season with a memorable aesthetic and buckets load of camp humour, but a slightly too fast pace and a confusing villain bring it down a bit. Still, definitely one to watch!