Can You Hear Me?

"Sleep is when they'll come."

Writers: Charlene James & Chris Chibnall

Format: TV

Broadcast: 9 February 2020

Series: 12.07

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, Graham

Synopsis

From ancient Syria to present day Sheffield, and out into the wilds of space, something is stalking the Doctor and her friends. As Graham, Yaz and Ryan return home to see friends and family, they find themselves haunted by very different experiences. Who is the figure calling from beyond the stars for help, and why? And what are the fearsome Chagaskas terrorising Aleppo in 1380? To find the answers, Team TARDIS embark on a mission that forces them to face their darkest fears.

Verdict

Can You Hear Me? was another decent episode to continue along the twelfth series of Doctor Who. I enjoyed this for the most part but in a similar way to Praxeus, I thought the message at the heart of the episode went a little too far and took some of the shine after the actual story which in my opinion a show like this should be all about. There were actually a number of things I disliked about this episode and probably a great deal more than there should be for an episode still getting the rating I give, but that is down to the heart of the premise at its heart that I absolutely loved. I'll start with the negatives and the first one is Tahira. The language used and the way of talking in fourteenth century Aleppo were far too modern and I really don't think they captured the historical period well at all in my opinion. I just don't think she was needed in the episode to be honest and that was reflected with how she pretty much just disappeared once taken out of her own time. I wasn't a fan. I didn't understand why she was targeted along with the Doctor's companions as that just didn't make such sense given the time differential from 21st century Sheffield. One thing I really hated about the episode was how the Doctor obtained grasp of her sonic screwdriver when chained up. That was just beyond the realms of believability and the cut just made it even more unbelievable. Big blunder in my eyes. I also really disliked the animation to explain the Eternals and how they came to be in the position that we found them, which was a big shame because I actually loved the story. Zellin was an outstanding villain and the very definition and personification of creepy. The use of the fingers was very distributing and suited the dark atmosphere of the episode incredibly well. I thought it was very well done and looked great. As did he for a villain! The talk of immortal beings with the likes of the Guardians and even the Toymaker getting a mention was wonderful and I thought it was fun that Zellin was using the dimension of our universe as a board game. He needed to have some fun. I absolutely adored the twist concerning Rakaya and how she wasn't actually trapped between two collapsing planets, but imprisoned. Her appealing to Graham in his mind was very good and I thought the moment the Doctor realises her instincts had been used against her was phenomenal. It's very rare to see the Doctor essentially defeated so that spoke volumes. It was an impressive moment and I just wish more of the episode was focused on the Doctor battling the Eternals. The idea of snatching nightmares and causing more was brilliant and something I could definitely get behind, and I really liked the Doctor trapping them back in their box with their own worst nightmare in the form of the Chagaskas. That was nicely done and tied everything up nicely, but it was just a bit quick for me. Ryan and Tibo's relationship being developed was good and I liked how the former could draw on his travel experiences to not ridicule his mate's admittance of having nightmares. Yaz and her sister having an anniversary dinner was good and I also liked the simplicity of Graham playing cards with his friends. I thought exploring worst fears was good but things did seem to drag on a little towards the end and just seemed to be filling time with the heartfelt Yaz story and Graham confessing his cancer fears to the Doctor. She has tackled death many times, but she had no words of comfort she knew of here which spoke volumes. Overall, a really good episode at heart but probably slightly too long towards the end. 

Rating: 7/10