I Revoo Doctor Who: The Almost People

So, uh, wow. Who'd have thought that last's week's decidedly dull opener had this up it's sleeve? There was only two ways it was really going to pan out: The Almost People would continue to build up slowly and awkwardly without coming to a satisfying conclusion, or it would take the world that it had set up in the first part and just go for it with as much energy as it could muster. Thankfully it was the latter.

Oh hey, guess what: spoilers!

I don't want to say that this really should been a single episode rather than a two-parter, but all the really interesting stuff happened this time around: there were two Doctors, a more even handed analysis of the Gangers, and a genuine sense of tension. The Rebel Flesh kind of looks like it was stretched out to fill the time by comparison, so I wonder if this episode wouldn't have benefited from a shorter runtime. Maybe the Doctor could have arrived just as the Gangers wake up? Or just shortly after?

Speaking of two Doctors: there were two Doctors in this episode! And rather than have this be the main gimmick in an otherwise lifeless 'war' plot (I'm thinking particularly of the awful 'The Doctor's Daughter' from a few years back), the conflict with the Gangers is still the core story thread, with the two Doctors strengthening it, rather than providing a more interesting diversion. I also want to say that the two actors had great chemistry, but they were both Matt Smith. In any case, Matt Smith had great chemistry with himself as always.

It's delightful watching the Doctor have such fun standing alongside himself, ecstatic at the simple joy of a new experience in a way that feels very true to his character. There a number of moments where we see the pain in the Doctor's eyes as he's shunned by Amy, or the rage with which he pushes Rory away, where it seems like the Doctor is going to side with the Gangers in killing the humans, but it's a fake-out. The twist of the episode hinges on an understanding of the core philosophy of the Doctor's character. There's too much love in the Doctor for him to kill the humans, or the Gangers, but the way he acts never feels like it's being conjured up just for the sake of the plot. He acts like he's with the Gangers to earn their trust. He swaps the shoes because he doesn't mind bearing unwarranted prejudice to make a point. Matthew Graham writes a story that demonstrates just how good the Doctor really is, and it never feels cheap or smug about it.

Keeping with that idea, I was also really impressed with how the conflict wound up. In the end, it's not the Doctor who saves the day, but it's humanity, who he helps realise what they want. They don't want to be murderers. They don't want to be monsters. The transformation of Jennifer from sweet young girl to scheming psychopath is not just an excuse for scary monster scenes and violence, but the thematic underpinning of the episode. In the end, the humans and the flesh reject violence because despite what it could achieve, it fundamentally alters who they are.

I'm super hopeful that Matthew Graham will come back and write some more 'Who' in the future, because The Almost People was pretty excellent. The lacklustre nature of The Rebel Flesh stops this being a great 2-parter, but the latter half is definitely my favourite non-Moffat episode of this series.

This was a bit of a short review but I don't really have much to say other than that it was a smart, entertaining and thoughtful episode. Oh, and HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT TIME