Spoilers
I was very disappointed by the first two episodes of the latest season, confusingly rebranded season one. The third had some strong ideas but proved deeply flawed and had a pretentious work out the ending for yourself arrogance.
Dot & Bubble actually gets everything right and the tonal shift with the twists in the closing ten minutes are stunningly good.
It’s another minimalist use of the Doctor (and Millie too this time), apparently as Gatwa was filming this alongside his Sex Education (never seen it) episodes.
The Black Mirror comparisons are obvious from the outset. People out of touch with reality, reflecting their blinkered simplistic thinking, literally trapped in head bubbles of bland chatter within a domed city that is a Hell masquerading as a utopia. Lindy is too narrow-minded to see even the co-workers sharing her work room, or noticing the slow moving slug monsters everywhere. They were a neat effect, looking very old fashioned Who – they would not have been out of place in the 3rd Doctor era.
As she met her wall of friends in the zoom event, I noticed none of them were non-Caucasian except the Doctor but never realized how important that was immediately.
Lindy being barely able to walk without the bubble arrows was a neat touch spoilt after she met the dream hunk guy when she can suddenly run down stairs and along conduits and co-ordinate her hands to punch in the code numbers too.
Susan Twist’s cameo seemed shoehorned in as her character didn’t have much to contribute (I did like Dr Pee’s comic relief appearances though) Twist was just there so the Doc and Ruby could positively recognise her as being a recurring presence, way after the viewers caught on to that. (Ruby did suss it in the previous episode of course).
Outside, the streets were bland and sterile, as away from the virtual, the World was just dull, which seemed right for it.
Ricky September was the game changer and I was wrong footed by him being an obvious hunk to Lindy and so good/independent at everything. I thought I had the rest of the story sussed, that he would seem to be her rescuer but just trying to use her to get to the Doctor who the system might identify as a threat to it, leading to the Doctor fighting off Ricky led armies of slug beasts.
Wrong! Ricky is everything Lindsey dreams of in her dreamboat Ken doll man – but faced with the Dot’s attack, she betrays him to death to save herself. At that point, I thought her action was just a desperate cowardly act of self-preservation at any cost, and I didn’t stop feeling sorry for her, but a bigger and much more devastating twist was coming.
I thought the finally encountered heroes were going to save the survivors and the Doctor would figure out what had happened to Ricky. Nope, the flat out racism twist kicks in hard. The earlier hints start to strike back as it is clear Lindsey and the others won’t be saved by ‘him’. First hint, the slug fodder are all white. 2/. Lindsey immediately rejects the Doctor’s presence by blocking him (at first I thought it was just as he was an unknown friend request). She does warm to the (white) Ruby easier. 3/. The ‘you’re not as stupid as you look’ line isn’t just a gag. 4/. Finally invited for them all to evacuate in the TARDIS the rich spoilt white brats refuse the helping hand of the outsider. They condemn themselves to terrible dooms in the near future.
The Doctor’s shock and tears at their rejection of his help is among the best acting the show has produced – quite a bold, stark finish. Really liked this one.
Photos taken by me.
Arthur Chappell
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