The Cutprice Guignol

ARE WE READY to yelp about Doctor Who once more? I know that I am, my dear and darling internet friends, and just so luckily, a trailer for the next season dropped right about now. And I would like to chat a little about it – but mainly, take advantage of this primo yelping material and get right into a real-time breakdown. Shall we?

0:03: Let me just say for a real quick second here that this, as in, this Chibnallian era of Who that we are in, is probably the most cinematic the show has ever been. It’s got this sense of scale and technical magic that I’ve really enjoyed – yes, I have more room in my heart for the slightly ropey early Who years, but it’s still wonderful to see the ambition the show has taken on in terms of cinematography and style.

0:07: John Bishop’s character has the same name as my brother, which is gong to be needlessly annoying. On a side note, I’m rapidly coming round to John Bishop in this season, even though I was initially pretty averse to him in the role, after a fellow Whovian politely reminded me of the excellent run that comedians have had on the show so far (including the very recent and wonderful turn from Bradley Walsh).

0:13: I know some people have mixed feelings about this six-episode story, but honestly, I’m very excited for it. This trailer, the scattered characters and locations, gives me the vibes of some of the fabulous Big Finish audio adventures, which can only be a good thing. Not to mention the fact that Chris Chibnall has proved with aplomb how good he is at serialized storytelling, compared to his wobbly episodic run on the show thus far.

0:14: That make-up is both really good and really silly.

0:21: The Sontarans, the Ood – it feels right that this last Jodie season should invite back some iconic villains, but balancing them all might prove a little more difficult without the monster-of-the-week format to help keep them seperated.

0:31: I mean, look at that! If that isn’t just some grand-scale, balls-to-the-wall fantasy television right there, and I don’t know what is. And I’m not just talking about Greyworm from Game of Thrones turning up.

0:41: It just looks so expensive, you know what I mean? Huge, cinematic, sweeping, planet-hopping; feels big enough for a send-off.

0:47: Look, not to bring this up again, but why did Steven Moffat think it was a good idea to show the Weeping Angels moving? They whole point is that you never do! That’s why they’re so scary! Ahem. Looking forward to seeing how they’ll roll in the hands of a new writer, since they are villains with such potential.

0:51: This “no!” is actually quoted verbatim from me realizing that the Doctor was kissing Yas on the cheek and not the lips in the last season finale. Anyway.

1:00: I was looking forward to this season anyway – a great big send-off for Jodie, a grand six-part story, new characters – but this trailer genuinely just looks bloody great. I can’t wait for Flux – and I’ll be covering every episode right here on this blog, so hit subscribe if you haven’t already and come along for the ride!

Oh, and if you like this post and want to see more Doctor Who analysis – check out my very excellent/stupid recaps of the last nine years of the show. And consider supporting me on Patreon or grabbing a copy of my latest book if you’d like to see more stuff like this!

(header image via Den Of Geek)