Previously on Doctor Who: The Doctor and Clara find themselves on an “abandoned” space station, being hunted by the sand that collects in the corner of your eye while you sleep come to life.
So, that happened.
… I’m more sad than I thought I would be.
Here We Go Again
Clara gets a call from Rigsy, who has a strange tattoo on his neck that’s counting down and no memories of how it got there. The Doctor is intrigued, and reminded of rumors he’s heard about “trap streets,” or streets on which aliens live, but are nearly completely hidden from the human eye. The three quickly find the street, and an old friend: Ashildr, this time going by Mayor Me. Rigsy is accused of murder, and when the tattoo on his neck reaches zero, he’ll be killed. While they investigate, Clara talks Rigsy into transferring the sentence to her, in order to buy time. But when the trio finally discover that the supposed victim is still alive—and that Ashildr’s plan all along was to capture the Doctor and teleport him somewhere—it’s revealed that Clara didn’t buy time; she condemned herself to an unavoidable death.
Fantastic!
So, this shocking moment doesn’t really fit with the name of this section—I’m not that callous—but Clara actually dying was quite unexpected. (I don’t think that’s the last we’ll see of her, however; there are at least two episodes of this series left.)
Don’t Blink or We’ll Exterminate
Although the Quantum Shade wasn’t exactly a villain, and Ashildr had control over it, the whole idea of a “guilty until proven otherwise” situation—and a time limit on the proving—is a scary idea. And it gets even scarier when you realize how tentative Ashildr’s hold over the entity is.
We’re All Stories
Winner: Rigsy. It’s gotta be a relief to both not be a murder and not be dead.
Loser: Clara. All of her rash decisions—many she made because she cared too much—finally caught up to her. It’s unfortunately that her last decision, made completely out of trying to do good, and save an innocent man, was her “last.”*
*Like I said above, I’m pretty sure this wasn’t actually the last we’ll see of her.
Words from the Madman
Doctor: “No, don’t bring the new human, I’ll just get distracted.”
Doctor: “Hoodie up, Local Knowledge. They know what you look like in there.”
Ashidr: “I give myself a title for the same reason you do, something to live up to.”
Doctor: “Difficult, isn’t it.”
Ashidr: “Don’t worry, we’re perfectly safe.”
Doctor: “Yes, a phrase I find is usually followed by a lot of screaming and running and bleeding.”
Doctor: “What’s the point of being a doctor if I can’t heal you?”
Clara: “Heal yourself.”
Doctor: “What Clara said about not taking revenge—do you know why she said that?”
Ashidr: “She was saving you.”
Doctor: “I was lost a long time ago. She was saving you. I’ll do my best. But I strongly advise you to keep out of my way. You’ll find it’s a very small universe when I’m angry with you.”
Keep Moving
After last week’s snooze of an episode, it was nice to have one that seemed fresh and actually kept my attention for the full time. It wasn’t an easy episode, and I’m left with many questions, and … I’m actually a little sad that Clara went out like that. I’m just hoping she’ll somehow find Danny and they’ll enjoy a happily ever afterlife.
But, what did you think of “Face the Raven”? Let’s discuss in the comments.
