The Magician's Apprentice

It must be that time of year again. The nights are fair drawing in, the football season is back on (not that I have been that bothered about it) and Doctor Who is back on the TV. This time last year I was greatly anticipating the prospect of a new Doctor in a new series. For some reason I haven’t been that excited about it this year. Not that I haven’t been looking forward to it but it’s one of those events that I have just been expecting to happen – like Christmas or the inevitability of Scotland messing up qualification for the next big football tournament.

I suppose it’s a combination of the same cast being in place combined with knowing, at least to some point, of what we can expect from them. I really enjoyed Peter Capaldi’s first series in the role but it is often the lead actor’s second series where they really make their mark – partly as they are more comfortable in the role and also because the writers have a much better idea of what they are aiming for. Even though I enjoyed most of the episodes of  series 8 it was very obvious at times that they had been written with Matt Smith in mind. As good as both Matt and Peter are, their interpretations of the Doctor are radically different from each other.

For the first time in a while we start the series with a two-parter. Actually, this was really the case last year but the opening story was presented as a feature length episode. Nevertheless this does give the opportunity of a big cliff-hanger and we were presented with a huge one – the highlight of the episode for me. As for the rest of the episode, we were presented with a million and one things to look at but I do feel some sympathy for the casual viewer. Last year’s opener was intended as an introduction to the 12th Doctor but it would also act as a reasonable introduction to the series for someone who is vaguely familiar with the concept but who has never actually watched an episode. This year’s opener delves deep into the show’s history and mythos which is fine for an obsessive fan like me who has seen most of the episodes since the show’s beginning but must be perplexing for the first time viewer.

In essence, this story is a sequel to the classic 1975 adventure The Genesis of the Daleks. I’d guessed this almost from the outset of the pre-title sequence with its seemingly 20th Century battlefield inhabited by a confusing mix of weaponry from both the past and future. This was confirmed almost straight away. However, the premise of the story centres upon philosophical questions posed between Davros and Tom Baker’s 4th Doctor back in that 1975 classic serial. This was alluded to, even including a clip of Tom, but I do wonder whether many viewers will have realised the significance of this 40 year old clip.

Anyway, aside from my newbie angst I did think that this had much to offer including yet another trip into the darkened imagination of Steven Moffat in the form of the “Hand Mine” a Dantesque vision of Hell as disembodied, mono-ocular hands emerge from the mud to drag their victim below. I’m sure that would have had me fleeing behind the proverbial sofa as a child. That aside the episode seemed to be filled with much frippery including the Doctor playing rock guitar in a medieval castle (didn’t make that much sense to me either) and the largely unexplained return of Missy – played by the wonderfully insane Michelle Gomez.

As it is, I’ll wait until the story concludes next week before drawing any conclusions but it looks promising. I’ll also try not to put any major spoilers in the posts (the few in this are very minor and are mostly in the trailer) as I realise that many of my friends that read these posts will be watching on catch-up as the Rugby World Cup is on. I wonder how long it takes Scotland to completely mess that one up?