Last season, Doctor Who was an extremely major letdown with a fantastic new Doctor but poor stories and lackluster writing. When this season rolled around, I was hoping it would bounce back to form, but had never expected to receive such a consistent string of amazing episodes. “Heaven Sent” picks up with the Doctor lost and dealing with the death of Clara, which is clearly taking a toll on him and the normally masked grieving process. It’s rare that we get to see a Doctor with no companion, but when it happens, it’s normally a treat because the actor portraying the Doctor gets to show off their full range of skills, which Capaldi did this past week, and it set up for one of, if not, the best Doctor Who episodes since the show’s return in 2005.
After the departure of Matt Smith, I think the only redeeming thing about the previous season was Capaldi. He was fantastic and instantly displayed how perfect he was for the role, which I absolutely loved. This season, I feel that his talent has only been amplified with good writing backing him up, and it’s truly allowing him to make the Doctor his own. Capaldi’s acting has been so good, that I think it’s easy to admit he’s already become my second favorite Doctor behind David Tennant’s 10.
After witnessing Clara’s death, being betrayed by Ashildir (again) and getting sent off to be locked up somewhere, he’s in a pretty emotional state. “Heaven Sent” reveals that the Doctor is stuck in what appears to be a prison with some eerie representation of death slowly chasing him down. The prison was very cool and I loved seeing the Doctor stuck in a maze on his own, especially because when he’s put into a tough situation with no companion, it forces him to think hard. It was nice having Clara back in the Doctor’s mind because it really offers insight into what the companions do for the character. The companions give the Doctor motivation, something to fight for, which helps him to really push the limits of his mind.
Doctor Who really creates beautiful episodes when it wants to craft a tragedy. The episode is thrilling like normal, but also embodies the same eerie horror theme that has been around all season. I’ve really loved how much of an emphasis the episodes have put on giving us creepy characters, but the score of the show has been really brilliant and elevated good to great each week. While in the past, Doctor Who has had a tendency to give us very big and loud overly dramatic scores, the tone of this season has been very subtle yet impactful. The score for “Heaven Sen,” was perfect because it was looming throughout the whole episode.
The show has been pretty perfect in all aspects this season, and Doctor Who is finally back to its old form. Peter Capaldi is really flexing his acting muscles, and “Heaven Sent” blew me away with another phenomenal performance. The episode was easily a top 5 of New Who, and I’m hoping the finale continues the streak. I think that Capaldi’s 12 is the perfect Doctor to re-discover Galifrey, because he’s mature enough to display a full range of emotions similarly to Tennant. I’ve had a lot of fun with this season, and Capaldi, so a strong finish would really be the icing on the cake, but “Heaven Sent” was just beautiful in all aspects and was one of the most well-rounded Doctor Who episodes I’ve seen in awhile.
Other thoughts:
- The Doctor says the Hybrid is “Me.” Obviously the first thought is that he’s talking about himself, but could he be referencing Ashildir who normally goes by the name Me? It wouldn’t necessarily be the twist I was looking for but certainly seems plausible.
- Discovering the Doctor had died over and over again for both thousands and then millions of years was painfully beautiful. The character’s will power and Capaldi’s acting made me want to cry.
- I had hoped that this whole season was building to the Doctor being back on Galifrey. I don’t even care what happens next week; That was one of the best episodes I’ve seen and the Doctor is on Galifrey!!!!
- The Monster of Last Night, The Grave Digger, Death, whatever you want to call it, was once again very cool and eerie. The shock factor definitely caught me off guard when it would rise from under the dirt or the fingers started trying to grab at the Doctor.
[Photo via BBC America]
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