Doctor Who: Spyfall, Part 1 (12x01)

We're back! Man, I missed these friends.

Cons:

This is only part one of the story, so I feel like some of the things I might have qualms about will be addressed. But I do want to say that last season, one of the most prevailing complaints about the show was how "safe" everything was. And here, we have some humanoid aliens that look like beams of light, we have the entire episode taking place on Earth, we have the familiar trappings of a spy movie, we have the return of a familiar villain... none of this was bad at all! But none of it felt particularly fresh or innovative, either.

Also, I know that Doctor Who is a show made nominally for children, but I still think the reveal that "O" is the Master was telegraphed a bit too much... I could have used a few more misdirects. I basically knew he was the bad guy from minute one.

Pros:

But this episode was, for the most part, quite fun! And I'm excited that it's a two-parter, because we got to exist in the mystery for a while, and really explore the different possibilities of what could be going on here. I like that we have MI6, and Stephen Fry, and a tech mogul with hidden allegiances, and fun spy gear, etc. etc. It was simply a fun story to hang out in for a while, and then of course it ends with a big twist that's going to catapult everything in a new direction for the second half.

I love having a Doctor with a whole group of companions, because we get to see them split up and try different relationship combinations. This episode includes a section where the Doctor and Graham are off in Australia meeting with "O", who turns out to be the Master in disguise. Graham doesn't have a ton to do here, acting more as an audience avatar and a sounding board as the Doctor solves mysteries and asks questions. But that's okay - I think it makes sense in a show with so many moving parts if certain characters take a backseat sometime. I'm sure Graham will get his due in other episodes.

While that's going on, Yaz and Ryan are off to spy on Daniel Barton, who turns out to be... part alien? In league with the spies invading Earth and apparently the whole Universe? Again, this is part one, and we don't get all of the answers we might want. But I like that we get to see this duo hanging out together. They banter about Yaz's sister fancying Ryan, they work together to gather information, and then shit goes wrong, and Yaz vanishes, leaving Ryan to run for it alone. Even with Yaz safe and returned, it's clear that her experience has frightened her. I loved that moment where Ryan promised to protect Yaz in future. It didn't feel condescending or paternalistic, honestly. It felt like Ryan understood that he had failed her in some way, even if it was out of his control. And he wants her to know that he's there for her, however he can be. I loved that, and hope we can explore it more in future.

Then there's the reveal of the Master. I honestly think it's awesome that as the Doctor changes and undergoes different character arcs, so does the Master. The last we saw Missy, there was something of a redemption arc going on. But it doesn't bother me that this version of the character isn't following up with that directly. Sure, it might be nice if there were slightly more cohesion across the years, between different show-runners, different Doctors, companions, etc. But really, you have to look at Doctor Who as a show that has periodic soft-reboots embedded into it. We haven't seen enough of this version of the Master to be able to make a judgment call, but I'm excited to see where this is going.

Just the inherent creepiness of the Master surreptitiously inserting himself into the Doctor's life and then lying low, waiting for the right moment... that's pretty twisted and fun. And this performance of a more ham-handed, manic Master reminds me of our earlier looks at the character, from the David Tennant days. And there was complexity there, that we got to explore and discover over time. Here's hoping that the same thing will happen here!

I could certainly go on, but I think I want to save the rest of my thoughts for after I've seen the second part of the story. I'm thrilled to have this show back on the air, though! It's been a while!

8/10