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‘Doctor Who’ gives a fresh take to a common episode theme. (via @bbcdoctorwho on Twitter)

TV Review: The Doctor becomes the patient in Sunday’s episode of ‘Doctor Who’

The “spaceship on fire” story has been done countless times before in Doctor Who. The Doctor and crew find themselves on a spaceship that’s under siege by an alien force, picking away at the ship’s crew as they try to stop it. What makes “The Tsuranga Conundrum” stand apart from other similar Doctor Who stories is its focus on the rich cast, with the invader merely being the catalyst for these people to work together.

Minutes into the episode, the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) and her companions are injured in a mine explosion on an alien scrap planet. They come back to their senses aboard a spaceship that serves as a 26th century ambulance until they arrive at the intergalactic “hospital.” Soon after that, the ship is boarded by a Pting, a small and crude alien creature that isn’t carnivorous, but devours all other forms of energy, specifically targeting the ship’s energy core of antimatter.

When all hell breaks loose, it is a disoriented and physically compromised Doctor who steps in. She and one of the two (real) doctors on board the ship, Astos (Brett Goldstein), have a long yet fluid dialogue in which Astos gradually convinces the Doctor to act with more sympathy and rationality.

Amid the chaos is a subplot involving the pregnant patient Yoss (Jack Shalloo), a humanoid from a race where both males and females can give birth. The other doctor, Mabil (Lois Chimimba), and the two male companions Ryan (Tosin Cole) and Graham (Bradley Walsh), are involved in a hilarious yet surprisingly heartfelt mission for Yoss to safely deliver his baby. That also provides new context for Ryan’s strained relationship with his own father, giving the character another layer of depth.

The rest of the cast is more closely tied to the central conflict: Eve Cicero (Suzanne Packer) and Durkas Cicero (Ben Bailey-Smith), a celebrated heroine and her brother who also serves as her engineer. The two deal with issues of trust, comparison and sacrifice, telling a beautiful story of both sibling rivalry and love. As is often the case, it is only Yaz (Mandip Gill), the Doctor’s female companion, that lacks any real development, usually relegated to the task of asking questions to gather exposition.

By telling both a gripping story with a pressing conflict and providing an exceptionally deep and diverse cast, “The Tsuranga Conundrum” does more with its runtime than many two-part episodes of Doctor Who manage. The stories of siblings coming together over a conflict and of a father coping with the birth of an unwanted son (albeit in an untraditional manner) are stories familiar to the human experience, but are told in a new and fascinating way through the sci-fi setting. 

Although some episodes succeeded more than others, the first half of Doctor Who’s 11th season has already introduced us to breathtaking planets, heart-stopping scenarios and endearing characters. Chris Chibnall, the series’ new showrunner, is turning the second half over to new guest writers for the rest of the season, save the finale. With such a strong setup, it is exciting to imagine where and when these new writers will take the Doctor and team TARDIS.

@JosephStanichar

js080117@ohio.edu

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