Robot of Sherwood

"When did you start believing in impossible heroes?"

Writer: Mark Gatiss 

Format: TV

Broadcast: 6th September 2014

Series: 8.03

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis 

Clara is offered the chance to go anywhere she wants. She decides that she wants to meet Robin Hood. Upon arrival in Sherwood Forest, could the Doctor and Clara really be standing face to face with a fictional legend?

Verdict 

Robot of Sherwood is a wonderful episode and was just as good as I remembered from its original broadcast some six months ago! It's crazy how fast time flies by and it really does beggar belief how it's been half a year since this episode broadcast! Series 9 will be here before we know it but by then I'll be moved out and studying at university for a History degree! Scary thoughts. Anyway, I liked the start of this episode and despite how incredible Clara looked for most of the episode, the more simplistic look Jenna Coleman had for the TARDIS scenes was just amazing. She truly is an extraordinarily beautiful woman. I love the fact that when given the choice of going when and wherever she wanted she chose a fictional character in Robin Hood. The story is a legendary one and I liked the Doctor's immediate ridiculing of the idea of going to see a fictional character. Fictional so we thought. The moment the Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS and an arrow stabbed his time machine was magnificent! There he was in all his glory. Robin Hood, face to face with the Doctor. What more could you ask for! Clara's arrival from within the TARDIS was just sumptuous as she had changed into a stunning red dress, trying her best to fit in with the 1190 setting. Looking as gorgeous as she did, I think she'd fit in just about anywhere. The Doctor doing battle with Robin with a spoon was maybe a tad silly but I loved the elegance Capaldi oozed in knocking Robin off the ledge and into the water. But then rather humorously the Doctor took a bit of a soaking himself! Clara being introduced to Robin Hood's merry men was fantastic and it was nice to see her genuinely chuffed and just having fun. Knowing what she'll face with this incarnation of the Doctor in the immediate future, the fun and laughter was nice to see. The Doctor refusing to believe what he was seeing was very Carnival of Monsters-esque, especially after the mini scope reference, only this time he'd be proven wrong. Granted that it was just a bit too sunny for Nottingham, but Robin and all his merry men were very much alive and real! A baffling thought but that's what we got. And I loved it. Why can't fiction exist in a fictional universe such as the Whoniverse? It's just beautiful. The Sheriff of Nottingham was a superb villain and I liked how he and his knights were the ones out of time. Ben Miller played the Sheriff so well and if the Master/Missy ever does shift back her sex then he's the perfect man to play the iconic arch nemesis of the Doctor! However he was occupied with the role of another synonymous arch nemesis - Robin Hood's! The archery competition for the golden arrow was great fun and I loved the revelation that the Doctor actually cheated to split Hood's arrow. Peter Capaldi was once again superb as the Doctor and I've said it many times before but his voice is just astounding for the role. I don't think there's been a more perfect voice for the Doctor than Capaldi, not that I've ever thought about before but the accent and authority the Twelfth a Doctor has just oozes a man in charge. The relationship between the Doctor and Robin throughout was just brilliant. Exactly how I'd imagine it really! Oneupmanship at its finest. The moments when the pair were locked in the cell along with Clara were just marvellous. The escape was a nice throwback to The Smugglers as well. Speaking of past stories, I liked the references to The Crusade and Deep Breath. I think I remember mentioning in my original blog entry six months ago that I approved highly of the Doctor acknowledging the series arc of the Promised Land. Obviously he won't see Missy, who didn't appear here, but that'll leave us to have one of the greatest and most shocking cliffhangers in the show's history. The Robot Knights were great and I liked how very robotic they were in design. Shooting out of their face was quite something too! The way most of them were destroyed in the castle was excellent. The dinner meeting (of sorts) between the Sheriff and Clara was wonderful and I loved how the latter used her good looks and flirtatious capabilities to get the information she wanted. The Sheriff's reaction to finding out that Clara had no story was fantastic. I liked the idea of the castle being a disguise for the ship and the fact that it needed all the gold it could take to repair the engines and see it on its way into orbit. The slavery at work nicely captured the essence of the Sheriff as I imagined the legend. The fight on the ledge between the Sheriff and Robin was wonderful with Robin using the Doctor's trick used against him to send the Sheriff into a pot of gold. Quite literally. The Sheriff was no more. The Knights continuing with the ship's take off was good and I liked how the trio of the Doctor, Clara and Robin managed to shoot the golden arrow into the ship, giving it the extra push required to get into orbit before the engine's reached critical and the ship blew up. The goodbye moment was a nice touch to an overall lovely episode! Homage to Patrick Troughton was paid and I love how the legend of Robin Hood is in fact reality in the Whoniverse. 

Rating: 9/10