Who Review: The Magician’s Apprentice

The mysterious Colony Sarff is looking for the Doctor, but he is nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, across the world, the planes have stopped. They hang in the sky, suspended, as if time has stopped for them. Everyone stares in wonder–everyone, that is, except Clara who expects the call she gets from UNIT and makes her way to the Tower where she is greeted by Kate Stewart and her team of special soldiers. It doesn’t take long to figure out someone is trying to get their attention, someone who should have died at the end of last season! Missy contacts Clara and arranges a meeting. It seems the Doctor has left her his will. Not only is this a clue as to his whereabouts, but it indicates his intentions. The Doctor is preparing to die. But there’s an old foe waiting to see him, and he is prepared to use the Doctor’s friends to get to him…

SPOILER ALERT!! My comments may (and likely will) contain spoilers for those that haven’t seen the episode. If you want to stay spoiler-free, please watch the story before you continue reading!

Peter Capaldi returned this past Saturday as the Twelfth Doctor for what promises to be an exciting season full of cliffhangers, foes old and new, and plenty of surprises. The pre-season leaks and spoilers have been relatively few, so either the BBC has done a better job keeping the lid on things, or the fans have been better behaved. Either way, I like it like that. Yes, I have seen a few rumors of things to come, but I’m not taking anything seriously until it’s been aired.

“The Magician’s Apprentice” is the first of a multi-part (presumably two-part) story which sets us up for a Dalek rematch. The opening sequence with the young Davros was possibly the strongest episode opener I’ve seen for a while, probably since “The Name of the Doctor” (remember that pre-title sequence set on Gallifrey, where Clara recommends a TARDIS to the First Doctor and Susan?). Steven Moffat then plays to the strength of multi-part stories, which is the opportunity to develop characters, build tension, and slow things down a bit so you can enjoy the performances. I seem to say this a lot with Who these days, but the performances really are top-notch, regardless of whether the stories are any good. The UK is blessed with some fine acting talent, and it’s cool that so many of them want to be on Doctor Who! Despite my misgivings over the Missy-Master, Michelle Gomez plays her with just the right level of insanity where she’s wobbling on the edge of stark raving bonkers enough to be dangerous.

The storyline with Colony Sarff searching for the Doctor on behalf of Davros has a lot of merit, and I’m sure I wasn’t the only Whovian that appreciated this exploration into Classic Who territory. We see the battleground of Skaro, recalling the opening of 1975’s “Genesis of the Daleks.” The replay of the Doctor’s dilemma in that same story, where he deliberates over whether he has the right to destroy the Daleks, is made relevant once more, as Doctor number 12 confronts the young Davros with a Dalek gun. In “Genesis,” the Doctor considers the good that has come about in the universe as a result of planets and people joining together to defeat the Daleks. Will that same thought prevail? We’ll have to wait until next week to find out.

I liked the overall story, the pace, the acting, and the surprises, though it seems a little odd to kill off Missy and Clara in the first episode. If they stay dead for the rest of the season, that really will be a huge upset, but somehow I doubt it will happen. Clara is supposed to make her exit sometime this season, however this seems a little too early. Besides, Jenna Coleman has been talking about Clara and the Doctor’s relationship in season nine, which suggests she has a few more stories left. Unless she’s deceiving us, which is entirely possible.

What didn’t I like? The Doctor with the “ax”–i.e., the guitar–was fun, but was overplayed. The guitar should have been set aside sooner. The one thing that really made me roll my eyes, however, was the whole “the Master is the Doctor’s best friend” bit. Yes, best friends squabble, but even on Gallifrey, I’m sure they don’t try to kill each other every time they meet. If you consider all the good and bad Time Lords we’ve met throughout the show’s history, I think there’s a pretty clear distinction between the ones the Doctor can trust–the ones he calls his “friends”–and the ones he can’t. The Master has NEVER been a friend to the Doctor. Not by any sane definition of friendship does the Master consider the Doctor a friend. The Doctor has tried to save the Master’s life on a few occasions, but the Master has never repaid the favor. It has always been the Master’s intention to be rid of the Doctor, and any alliance he made with the Doctor was always contingent on the Master getting the upper hand in the end. If the Master is Steven Moffat’s idea of a best friend, I’d hate to meet his enemies.

If you live in the US and haven’t seen this episode, BBC America has made it available on YouTube to watch free of charge:

If you’re in the UK, you can watch it on the BBC iPlayer. Fans in Australia can catch it on iView.

What did you think of this episode? Share in the comments!