The eagerly awaited Series 9 opened with a rip-roaring double like no other series opener. The reviews were strongly in favour and the world (of Doctor Who viewers at least) breathed a sigh of relief that Peter Capaldi's second series would be as good as, if not better than his first. It was tinged with a slight sadness and trepidation tough as Jenna Coleman had just confirmed the rumours that she would be leaving the show some time before the end of the series...
The episode opened on a desolate battlefield with a classic quarry-like appearance. A biplane flies over head firing lasers at gas-masked soldiers defending themselves with bows and arrows. This all feels strangely familiar, but could it be... A little boy wanders lost amongst the fighting and stumbles into a minefield, but these are no ordinary mines. These are hand-mines! Hands that thrust up from the ground to grab their victim's ankles and drag them under. But there is hope for the little boy as a device flies across the screen and lands at his feet. It's the Doctor's sonic screwdriver...
The Doctor has opened up an acoustic corridor to the boy so he can talk directly to him without shouting across the mine field. He tells him that while the chances of survival may be a thousand to one, he should concentrate on the one. He further encourages the boy to be brave by asking him "Tell me the name of the boy who isn't going to die today" but is unprepared for the answer. For this is war torn Skaro earlier than he has ever seen it before and the little boy is Davros! This then, is the genesis of the genesis of the Daleks! A story to give us background to a story that itself gave a background to the Doctor's oldest foe. A story in which Tom Baker's fourth Doctor first met Davros and had the chance, given by the Time Lords, to wipe out all the Daleks before they could reek havoc across the universe, but had he the right? Now he was presented with a second chance...
Elsewhere in time and space a nest of snakes takes the form of a man under the name Colony Sarrf and looking for the Doctor. He visits the Maldovarium, the Shadow Proclamation and the planet Karn, all places featured in recent and not so recent series, but the Doctor is nowhere to be seen. Sarrf tells of the story that Davros is dying, Davros knows, Davros remembers, but he is simply told by the sisterhood of Karn that the Doctor is where he always is... Right behind you, and one step ahead... In fact he is right there hiding but we still only see him briefly.
It's ten minutes into the episode before we see Clara. She's happily at work teaching English and telling the kids that Jane Austin was a phenomenal kisser (with no explanation of how she knows!) when she notices an aeroplane stationary in the sky and sets per pupils into action with the hashtag #PlanesHaveStopped and it's not long before she is called to the office to speak to UNIT. But where is the Doctor? Clara steps up to the plate and explains that they shouldn't bother him yet because all they have is gossip. Then a message comes through on the computer (via the "Doctor Channel", which of course the Doctor never uses). It is deciphered as "You so fine" and just serves to confuse things more until a second line reads "You blow my mind" at which point viewers should be clued in enough to know what is coming next... "Hey Missy!" Then all of a sudden a three dimensional holographic projection of her springs out of the screen and invites Clara to tea! That is to say, she demands eight snipers because that's the only way she (meaning Clara) will feel safe with her. It turns out that Missy is also looking for the Doctor and needs Clara's help. She has received his Confession Dial, effectively a Time Lord's Last Will and Testament which means he believes he is about to die...
UNIT's search results using the key words "Doctor Blue Box" include San Martino, Troy, multiples for New York and three possible versions of Atlantis (all references to past adventures across the last fifty years) It's easy to find him in the records because he makes a lot of noise and loves to make an entrance, but Clara states that the Doctor won't be where there's trouble if he's about to die. He'll be somewhere having a party!
Finally, half way through the episode the Doctor makes what is probably his biggest entrance to day, bursting into 12th century Essex courtyard on top of a 20th century military tank rocking out a tune on an electric guitar that sounds suspiciously like Queen's "Tie Your Mother Down" (but isn't quite, for copyright reasons, presumably)! With squeals and trills reminiscent of Bill and Ted (payback for their phonebooth time machine!), he is greeted by a local with the words "Dude! What is that?" The Doctor has been playing loose and fast with the laws of time for three days, introducing words and ideas far earlier than he should and making terrible puns that the locals don't get. When Clara and Missy arrive, he swings his guitar back into action and introduces them with a lick of Roy Orbison's "Pretty Woman"... but which lady is it for? There has already been some confusion over which is his closest friend.
When Colony Sarrf arrives, to whisk the Doctor away, the adventure proper can begin. Missy tries to advise the Doctor against it with the line "It's a trap. Doctor listen to me. I know traps, traps are my flirting. This is a trap" but he knows his time has come so Clara and Missy insist on going with him... cue exposition mid-flight from the Doctor telling Clara about Davros.
More than ever before, Missy steals the show with every scene she is in, but everyone's performance is top notch. Special mention also has to go to Julian Bleach who breaths painful dying life to the centuries old Davros, head lulling to one side propped up by his one good arm as he reminds the Doctor of their past conversations in the form of video clips of classic episode (including, of course "Genesis Of The Daleks", though that clip is part of the "Have I the right" speech as the Doctor holds two wires poised to detonate genocidal explosives which was not a conversation with Davros but does include the apt reference to meeting a child one knows will grow up to be a ruthless dictator).
My only criticism of the episode was the clear sense of multi-part formatting ready for international broadcasters. Not a bad criticism and certainly not something new, but something that was noticeable. It was particularly evident at the episode's final surprise reveal as Murry Gold's music built to a climatic crescendo then quite suddenly cuts at the scene change. That said, I didn't really notice the music anywhere else in the episode. Sure, it was there, but doing it's job of helping the story along rather than driving it or covering poor writing or performance. Everything about this episode was top notch, even if the shock cliffhanger ending was predictably misleading to a well experienced viewer. I mean, Missy might have been exterminated but The Master has always found a way back, and the companion can't be exterminated like that, though Clara is on her way out... But Jenna Coleman has said that her exit is very clever and well structured and satisfying... then again, her surprise début was in a Dalek based series opener... But the TARDIS being exterminated as well!?
How will the Doctor get around this conundrum? The final scene shows him back on old Skaro with young Davros, stating that he is going to save his friend the only way he knows how, holding a Dalek gun he exclaims "Exterminate!"
But again, which friend is he talking about?!
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