Editor’s be aware: The beneath recap accommodates spoilers for the Physician Who Season 2 premiere.
Physician Who is again for a brand-new journey with a brand-new companion and a complete season forward of misadventures as a mysterious power stops the Physician (Ncuti Gatwa) and Belinda (Varada Sethu) from getting again dwelling. Whereas the primary episode of the season is a superbly wonderful entry within the franchise, with a barely convoluted plot made murky by some extra heavy-handed components, “The Robotic Revolution” is price a look ahead to the present’s wonderful new companion and one other stellar efficiency from Gatwa. Written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Peter Hoar (The Final of Us), this episode takes the viewer alongside for the journey as nurse Belinda Chandra is kidnapped by killer robots and brought to be forcibly married to what they imagine is an AI generator.
Whereas the plot itself isn’t significantly groundbreaking within the grand scheme of Physician Who, the true spotlight of “The Robotic Revolution” is Sethu’s efficiency, introducing us to this season’s companion. Taken in opposition to her will to be “the queen of outer area,” Belinda is as charming and type as she is daring and confrontational. She rolls with the punches of this wild journey in a means that feels significantly relatable at this level in human historical past, making the very best out of an unbelievable state of affairs. In an episode that doesn’t fairly know what it’s attempting to say at occasions, we instantly know who Belinda is and the way she matches into this world. Reasonably than joyfully becoming a member of the Physician after being dazzled by his life, Belinda has already clocked the extra harmful and reckless points of his life. Nonetheless, they’re drawn collectively by circumstance anyway as destiny forces them to take “the great distance spherical” to get dwelling.
‘Physician Who’ Introduces an Glorious New Companion in “The Robotic Revolution”
“The Robotic Revolution” opens with a flashback to Belinda on a date with an ungainly, barely unbearable younger man named Alan, who’s gifting her a star for her birthday. Presenting her with a certificates naming the star “Miss Belinda Chandra.” When Belinda asks if it must say “miss,” her date — who may be very specific about just about all the pieces she says — asks if she’s married, and, provided that she’s not, the miss stays. Finally, she accepts the reward and the 2 share a reasonably cringeworthy (for Belinda in addition to the viewers) kiss earlier than we bounce again to the current day. In 2025, the Physician touches down within the TARDIS proper outdoors a hospital, and inside, we observe Belinda via a condensed episode of The Pitt, or somewhat, her each day job as a nurse. She’s form and affected person, treating numerous accidents and mishaps with grace earlier than she clocks out with out ever operating into the Physician. In the meantime, he’s frantically looking for her for causes unknown, going so far as to pester the opposite workers and even by accident shutting down energy to the entire constructing when he sonics the pc, which can’t be good for a hospital. Again at Belinda’s flat, we be taught that she lives with a number of roommates with whom she isn’t significantly shut.
When she’s lastly sleeping, a rocket lands in her yard and a pair of campy-looking robots break down her door and kill a neighbor’s cat to let her know they imply enterprise. They’re right here for her, to take her away as queen of the planet “Missbelindachandra.” Nonetheless, in case you strive to determine how or why the robots, and even the Physician for that matter, knew to come back get her, you could find yourself in a paradox loop. Even within the face of lethal robots taking her off the planet, Belinda is daring and unafraid to talk her thoughts, letting them know that what they’re doing is ridiculous from the bounce. As they take her away, we see that Anita Dobson’s Mrs. Flood is her neighbor too, wanting hilariously nonplussed as Belinda is taken away. And sure, she continues her pleasant fourth wall breaks with an ominous warning to the viewers, so in case you’re asking, no, we really didn’t see her, wink wink.
On the rocket, Belinda continues to protest in opposition to the ridiculous circumstance she’s discovered herself in, suggesting that the robots really go get Alan Budd, the person who purchased her the star, revealing that she hasn’t seen him in 16 years. Whereas they’re touring, time goes a bit wibbly-wobbly, and the identical occurs for the Physician, who’s following them within the TARDIS, already realizing the place to go, because it’s later revealed that he arrives on the planet a complete six months earlier than Belinda and the bots. Lastly, as soon as they land, Belinda is greeted by a human, or a member of the humanoid species that lives right here. On the floor, her new buddy, Sasha 55 (Evelyn Miller), welcomes her together with their “robotic overlords,” however beneath her breath, she delivers a plea for assist earlier than taking Belinda to the throne room.
As soon as there, Sasha 55 shares a glance with the Physician, who’s gathered with a number of different residents. Reasonably abruptly, the robots inform Belinda that she’s there for a royal wedding ceremony to the good AI generator — although what precisely it’s producing on this planet in addition to devastation and chaos is unclear, however I suppose that tracks so far as AI turbines go. Belinda naturally resists, questioning why “all the pieces on this planet is so silly,” however earlier than the robots can take her away, the Physician, who’s now the planet’s historian, presents to elucidate issues to their new queen. He reveals that the robots can’t hear each ninth phrase and tells her that he and the rebels are literally about to overthrow the machines. Mayhem erupts and the Physician jumps into motion to guard Belinda, whereas Sasha 55 and the opposite rebels interact their overlords in a firefight. Sasha 55 insists that Belinda can belief the Physician, even insisting that as quickly as he will get Belinda dwelling, the 2 of them will jet off on their very own journey. In that second, it turns into alarmingly clear that Sasha 55 is marked for demise, getting eviscerated proper in entrance of Belinda simply seconds later. The Physician will get them out and destroys the teleport machine behind them.
Belinda Chandra Is not Your Common ‘Physician Who’ Companion — And That is a Good Factor
On the insurgent base — which can really feel acquainted for followers of Sethu who additionally performs a member of the resistance on Andor — a younger man calls for that Belinda higher have been definitely worth the lives they misplaced in that firefight. Belinda, who hasn’t had a say in any of this, insists that none of that is her fault earlier than providing some phrases of consolation to the Physician as he briefly mourns the lack of yet one more buddy. The Physician offers Belinda her personal Chekov’s gun when he gently switches off a small cleansing bot that had adopted them via the teleport for worry of it main the killer robots to their base.
Belinda instantly begins serving to sufferers, falling simply into the talent she is aware of and loves by serving to individuals who want her. When she mentions she’s meant to be beginning a brand new shift on the hospital on Monday, the Physician is out of the blue reminded of Mundy Flynn, the Anglican Marine from the 51st century Sethu performed in Season 1. Within the second of quiet, the Physician and Belinda get to know one another higher, bonding over their shared need to assist folks and admitting they make a “fairly good workforce” as “simply the Physician” and “simply the nurse.” The Physician offers Belinda just a little little bit of a crash course in alien life, displaying her his two hearts and making a pleasant Kylie Minogue reference, as a result of the Physician is at first a Kylie stan.
Collectively they dig into the thriller of “The Robotic Revolution” and try and make sense of the very paradoxical nature of the story. Finally, they notice that they’ve the identical certificates the robots have, giving themselves one other Checkov’s gun with the data that if the 2 objects had been to the touch, it will create a sophisticated space-time occasion of disastrous proportions. They dig additional into the timey-wimey thriller of a time fissure in area that’s at the very least partially answerable for the state of affairs they’ve discovered themselves in. In the meantime, one of many rebels continues to present Belinda a tough time, and the struggle rages on outdoors, making her really feel the burden of all of the lives misplaced in her identify. Whereas the Physician and the opposite rebels proceed to analyze what precipitated the robots to start out attacking folks 10 years in the past, Belinda goes forward and fires that first Chekov’s gun by turning the cleansing bot again on so she will flip herself in. When the robots arrive, the locals are enraged and prepared for a battle, however Belinda reveals she did this to guard them, going willingly to marry the AI generator if it means the robots will cease killing folks.
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“The Robotic Revolution” Loses Its Which means by Making an attempt To Do Too A lot
Within the inside sanctum of the AI generator, the Physician tries to persuade the supreme chief to take him as a substitute of Belinda, promising the omnipotent machine that it will make a a lot better match with him. The Physician’s pleas are rejected instantly, and it’s made clear that he’s merely there to look at because the planet’s historian. Belinda is unhappy and scared however resolved in her mission to avoid wasting the planet, insisting that when she’s gone, they are going to cease the struggle and depart what quantities to “her folks” alone. She tells them they’ll drop the “miss” although and simply keep in mind her as Belinda, to which the AI asks if she’s married. Sadly, that is additionally when the plot begins to resemble one thing akin to Swiss cheese, because it’s revealed that the AI generator isn’t an AI in spite of everything, and it’s, in reality, Alan Budd, the misogynist boyfriend who purchased Belinda the star.
The Physician says “it’s not AI, it’s AL,” for Alan, and in combining this AI plot with considered one of an incel — and sure, they are saying the quiet half aloud — “The Robotic Revolution” finally ends up not likely saying something significant about both of those real-world antagonists. We’re meant to grasp that Alan is the villain of this planet, and he’s — he instantly began a struggle on harmless folks moments after he arrived and manipulated all the pieces so he could be “the winner.” Nonetheless, he’s additionally painfully welded himself into the robotic mainframe as their chief, and the “each ninth phrase” trick from the start of the episode reveals that he’s in large ache, and he needs assist. The episode nearly makes a degree in regards to the ease with which younger males are corrupted by the web and the devastation wrought on harmless folks when that occurs, however that’s buried beneath a lot the murkier textual content and subtext that the episode really delivers.
Alan calls for that Belinda obey him and be part of him in some form of cursed matrimony earlier than holding out the diploma, making it appear as if possibly he’s asking to be destroyed. The Physician sends the opposite certificates again as much as Belinda with the little helper robotic, and she or he takes it as much as contact Alan’s making all the pieces go all wibbly-wobbly. Inside the space-time explosion, Belinda and Alan look like all ages directly, flashing via their entire lives. Being a sophisticated space-time occasion himself, the Physician is ready to bounce into the blast and pull Belinda out, on the proper age, solely seconds later. Alan, then again, has disintegrated right into a sperm and an egg and is whisked away into nothingness by the small cleansing robotic because it polishes the flooring.
Lastly, the robots apologize now that they’re free from the Alan generator and promise to make reparations to the folks of this planet. The insurgent who had given Belinda a tough time additionally apologizes to Belinda, and he guarantees to honor these they misplaced, beginning by naming the citadel after Sasha 55. Whereas the Physician is thrilled to be setting off on a brand new journey, Belinda stops him in his tracks by insisting he take her dwelling first. She will get the usual, and ever pleasant, “it’s larger on the within” second when she and the Physician lastly board the TARDIS to move again to Earth. Nonetheless, whereas she’s momentarily dazzled by the spaceship and the Physician’s talents, she genuinely simply needs to go dwelling, regardless of the Physician insisting that they’ll take their time since they’ve a time machine. He even thinks they may have been fated to fulfill as he scans her and reveals her the descendant of hers he met in Season 1 — Mundy Flynn.
In contrast to most companions, Belinda isn’t able to set off into the celebrities; she’s seen precisely how harmful and lethal the Physician will be firsthand. She instantly holds him accountable, telling him she’s not considered one of his adventures. It will get via to him, and he units their vacation spot for Earth, on Could the twenty fourth, to get Belinda again in time for her new shift on the hospital — although, if we’re being sincere, she ought to in all probability get some sleep earlier than going again to work. Nonetheless, every time the TARDIS tries to leap dwelling, it seems to bounce proper off that date, refusing to take them again to their desired vacation spot. The Physician can’t determine precisely what’s happening, however he guarantees he’ll get Belinda dwelling even when they may must take “the great distance spherical.” Because the TARDIS whooshes away, the viewers is handled to the wreckage of Earth floating via area — together with Girl Liberty, the Eiffel Tower, the good pyramids, a calendar marked for the twenty fourth, and one other duplicate of Belinda’s star certificates.
New episodes of Physician Who will arrive on Disney+ and BBC iPlayer at 3 AM ET each Saturday.
The Physician Who Season 2 premiere is a superbly wonderful watch, however a barely convoluted plot is made murky by some extra heavy-handed components.
- Launch Date
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December 25, 2023
- Community
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BBC
- Belinda is a superb new companion.
- Varada Sethu strikes the appropriate stability of dazzled and cautious that makes Belinda much more compelling.
- Having the Physician and Companion compelled collectively by circumstance makes the present really feel contemporary and provides a brand new layer to that dynamic.
- Numerous the “why” of the episode is misplaced in a reasonably convoluted plot.
- By combining a critique of AI with a critique of incel tradition, the episode fails to say something significant about both.
- The story itself is a reasonably common story for Physician Who, making it a somewhat mediocre season opener.
