Doctor Who: The Timeless Children (12x10)

I have some serious qualms about this episode. I wanted to love it. I wanted to be blown away. Instead, I'm torn.

Cons:

First of all, I don't like how separate the Doctor felt from her companions here in the finale. I want more bonding between the Doc and her Fam, not two separate plot threads that only coincide briefly! That's a bummer.

It also feeds in to my bigger complaint, which is that we've just discovered a truly shocking game-changer for Doctor Who canon. Apparently, the Doctor is the very first Time Lord, and their adoptive mother was part of the indigenous Gallifreyan people, and did experiments on them in order to discover the secret to regeneration. Thus, the Doctor is the reason Time Lords exist. She is the timeless child. She is the proto-Time Lord.

I don't like this. It's not a matter of whining over changes to the canon, I really don't give a shit about that. It's more about the type of show we're being shown. I always thought that the Doctor was remarkable for not being remarkable. They were just one member of a species who, due to circumstances, managed to survive and stir up a lot of trouble all through time and space. And the companions, too - they're extraordinary because they're just so perfectly ordinary in their humanity. The Doctor is just a mad (wo)man with a box. The Doctor isn't supposed to be the mystery at the center of the universe. Moffat used to pull this shit all the time, and it always drove me bonkers. Ugh.

Another problem is the sacrifice of Ko Sharmus. Again and again, over the course of this show, the Doctor is faced with complex ethical dilemmas, pushed to the edge of violence or even murder in order to save the world. And again and again, a human swoops in and makes the choice for her. We get this long, tense will-she-won't-she moment, and then someone else comes in and the Doctor runs off. It feels unmotivated. It feels like a cheat.

The emotional resolution of this episode should be the Doctor reuniting with her companions, which is I guess something that will happen during the Christmas Special. It just felt odd to have this big story about the history of the Time Lords, and the Master, and the Doctor learning this new shocking revelation about herself, and then to have it end with the Judoon showing up and putting her in custody.

Pros:

I didn't hate this episode. There were so many powerful and lovely moments throughout. The number one highlight for me was Graham's conversation with Yaz. The companions had criminally little to do here in the finale, but this is a moment that will stick with me. Graham is so sweet, making sure to highlight Yaz's incredible bravery and compassion. While Yaz is so caught up in idolizing the Doctor, Graham is letting her know that she's pretty remarkable on her own. Yaz's response to Graham is less robust, which added a nice moment of comedy.

The Master is absolutely feral and I love it. All of his rage and his destructive behavior lately makes sense in light of this new revelation. I don't have a ton to say about this, other than that I think this actor is killing it, and if that's the end of the road for him as the Master, I'll be seriously pissed off.

I also thought Jodie Whittaker did a fantastic job. Even if I'm annoyed about the twist, I still have to examine the way it was handled within the episode. And the Doctor's reaction... wow. So much to process. So much grief, and fear, and anger... and then that moment where she claps back at the Master, and says that the truth has set her free. He wants her to be afraid because he's afraid. But she refuses. She contains multitudes. Damn, that kind of gave me goosebumps just writing it.

In all, I feel like I'll probably be in the minority for not enjoying much about this finale. It felt like the season was leading somewhere cool, and then we got to the end and I don't really know how to feel about where we've been left. Ruth-Doctor and the random man who couldn't die from last week have been explained, somewhat, as other lives that the Doctor doesn't remember living. Obviously, we've got a lot more left to explore and discover. I still remain optimistic and excited about the 13th Doctor's run, even if I could have hoped for something a bit more cohesive as we say goodbye to another season.

6.5/10