World Enough and Time

"Every star in the universe... we were going to see them all."

Writer: Steven Moffat
Format: TV
Broadcast: 24th June 2017
Series: 10.11

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Bill, Nardole

Synopsis

The Doctor decides to test how good Missy has become by sending her on a trial run with Bill and Nardole. However, when things go wrong, the Doctor takes over. With Bill trapped in a different time zone, can the Doctor make it to her before it is too late, and who are all those people getting cured?

Verdict

World Enough and Time was simply outstanding and certainly the best individual episode of the tenth series of Doctor Who thus far. Sadly, I can't give a rating yet as I am yet to conclude the story with the second part but I can only give this one a heap of praise. The idea of the Doctor giving Missy a test run to show that she was good was intriguing and Michelle Gomez was magnificent in flaunting her Doctorish charm. The humour surrounding the Doctor's real name being Doctor Who was delightful and I really loved how she was messing with Bill and Nardole. She had an absolute sense of control and authority and I think because we know her as evil, it was even more authoritative than what the Doctor's presence brings. The fact that Bill was killed so early on in the episode was quite incredible and the manner of it was simply shocking. Gemma was absolutely astounded when it happened and she refused to believe that she would die in this episode. I was glad to see the shock factor of someone new watching it. The Doctor was utterly helpless though and things had quickly taken a severe turn for the worse. It was just a test for Missy but now his closest friend had been killed. She was taken by some mysterious people to a lower floor on the ship and it seemed that she would be repaired. Just how that would happen was to be seen but the Doctor knew she'd be okay and imprinted a memory in her that told her to wait for him. So she did just that. Lower on the ship, time was slower because the top was closer to the black hole that was slowing time down. That meant Bill was waiting for a good few years watching slow picture frames that were live of the Doctor, Missy and Nardole. Mr Razor was a superb character and the relationship he created with Bill was quite wonderful. I loved the revelation of his evil intentions once he tricked Bill into entering the conversion chamber. Her cybernetic heart could only last so long. The evil intentions of Razor were extended once he conversed with Missy and the deftness in which he revealed his true identity was simply sublime. The Master in a disguise was hugely nostalgic and seeing John Simm's incarnation with Missy, two of my favourite villain, was quite spectacular! The image was just outstanding and that came right at the end of an incredible genesis story for the Cybermen! Seeing the people in mid-conversion, in absolute pain, was superb and it made the process incredibly real. The revelation that the colony ship was from Mondas was fantastic and the Doctor discovering that the fresh Cyberman was actually Bill was heartbreaking. His reaction to the Master's emergence was stunning and seeing Missy, the Master and a Mondasian Cybermen that was Bill was an image that will resonate with me forever. It's one of my very favourite cliffhangers to what was simply a stunningly good episode. I look forward to its finale!