Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two Blu-ray Movie Review

Parting is such sweet sorrow.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 23, 2017

Is Peter Capaldi actually having fun playing Doctor Who? It sure seems like it more than a few times in this second part of Series 10, though whether that joy is being generated because of an actor becoming really comfortable in his role or because of the fact that the endgame for playing that role is on the horizon might be debatable (and who knows? — maybe it’s both). Because of the kind of random way BBC has split up the Series Ten releases, I attempted to shy away from mentioning some potential spoilers that accrued toward the end of the episodes covered in my Doctor Who: Series 10 Part 1 Blu-ray review. While similarly attempting to shy away from outright details, Doctor Who (Peter Capaldi) begins this set of episodes with the same “affliction” he suffered toward the end of Part 1, and in fact the first episode on Disc One of this set is the second part of a three part arc that starts with the last episode on Disc Two of Doctor Who: Series 10 Part 1 and which concludes with the second episode on Disc One of the set under review. It may be marketing genius, but it may be kind of discombobulating for fans who are actually viewing the series via Blu-ray releases rather than catching broadcasts.

Note: With one notable exception, I've attempted not to post any outright spoilers in the following summary. That sole exception is mentioned in the context of my personal reaction to some events and characters, and is unavoidable, but for anyone wary, simply skip down to the technical portions of the review, below.

With the pre-announced departure of Capaldi after the 2017 Christmas special (obviously not included on this release), there’s a certain bittersweet, even melancholic, subtext to this final batch of episodes, something the writing team perhaps attempts to overcome with some outright silly entries. There are some really fun callbacks to characters or events from previous years (some far back, it should be mentioned), including one rather moving one as the series wends its way toward more than one goodbye. But a sense of humor is never that far beneath the surface in virtually all of these episodes, including the two last ones where certain emotional ploys are taken, to admittedly considerable effect.

There are a few “mini arcs” this batch, including the first two episodes, which see the appearance of a mysterious pyramid which in turn gives way to some mind control efforts on the part of an alien species known as Monks. This purportedly serious aspect is counterweighted by the “silliness” factor, which in this case includes the Pope, the Secretary General of the United Nations, and Doctor Who himself in his guise as “President of the World”. In what might be seen as a foreshadowing of how this group of episodes winds up, certain sacrificial offerings are made by one character, only to be “reset” by the actions of another character (I’m attempting to be somewhat discursive so as to not post outright spoilers, but will only mention that those who watch this group of episodes should pay attention to a certain “mirroring” in events in these first two episodes with those in the last two episodes).

Some of the smartest writing this season involves the “two faced” Missy (Michelle Gomez) and Master (John Simms), who, as the veritable “sides of one coin”, have some amusing dialogue. Some of the soap operatic content vis a vis a potential detente between Missy and Doctor Who is probably unneeded (especially considering how these two particular characters end up). There are some interesting allusions in some of this dialogue to the already announced gender change for the upcoming iteration of the good Doctor. A fun episode that evokes H.G. Wells offerings like First Men in the Moon, albeit on Mars and with Ice Warriors, is indicative of the kind of playful ambience that pervades these last moments with the twelfth Doctor, despite the unavoidable sadness that seems to underlie events at times.

And now we get to the potential spoiler territory, for those of who you have ventured this far. While there’s absolutely no doubt that the emotional tether resonating most effectively this set concerns Bill (Pearl Mackie), in very much the same way (and for many of the same reasons) that Clara’s story did in Doctor Who: The Complete Ninth Series. But the series makes a perhaps potentially hobbling mistake by having Bill’s story intersect with another callback, this time to Mandasian Cybermen. It just may be my jaded sensibility, but despite obvious attempts to wring significant emotion out of a certain transformation Bill undergoes, I personally couldn’t help giggling a little bit every time a character looking like a bad kid’s Halloween robot costume, replete with a “mask” made out of a sock, lumbers into view, something that tends to undercut any supposed tragic angst the viewer is evidently supposed to be feeling.

The hoped for emotional content actually does arrive with a really well done callback to another seemingly tangential character from earlier in the tenth series, one who arrives literally out of the blue to provide a little help for Bill when all hope seems lost. Longtime fans of the series may feel like they’re being manipulated just a little bit too much with the seeming expiration of this particular Doctor Who, only to have him resuscitate (there’s still that Christmas special, remember). That said, those same longtime fans will probably delight in the little “surprise” the closing episode offers.

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of BBC with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This is another generally great looking presentation, with virtually all of the same pluses and occasional minuses I detailed in both the Doctor Who: The Complete Ninth Series Blu-ray review and the Doctor Who: Series 10 Part 1 Blu-ray review. There are some beautiful locations on display this set of episodes, and a lot of the outdoor work offers a sumptuous palette and excellent detail levels. A surplus of extreme close-ups also supports commendable fine detail levels. As with previous seasons I've reviewed, there are some deficits in the CGI elements, with some moments (like the hotel — or whatever it is — that the Doctor finds himself in during the last hospital) looking like a not very well detailed videogame.

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two offers another great sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, one that perhaps ups the ante again to Series 9 levels. A number of larger scale episodes provide nice (and consistent) opportunities for surround activity, including everything from underground cavern echoes to wide open field windstorms. As is almost standard now with this series, "little" moments like the "whoosh" of the TARDIS offers fun if fleeting panning effects. Dialogue is presented cleanly and with smart prioritization throughout this problem free track.

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Inside Looks (1080p; 16:36) offers brief (spoiler laden) EPKs for each episode.

This sole supplement is found on Disc Two of this two disc set.

Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Doctor Who has sometimes been a series that tends to be stronger on "goodbyes" than it is with "hellos", as perhaps evidenced by the introduction of Peter Capaldi himself in the titular role just a couple of years ago. Now that Capaldi is on the verge of making his exit, there's a certain sadness, one that's only increased by additional farewells longtime audience members will be required to make. This set of episodes kind of ping pongs between some unabashedly comic elements and attempts to deliver something a little bit more substantial on an emotional level, and while some of that second element can seem overly manipulative at times, the fact is this Tenth Series builds to an admirable crescendo which should prove cathartic for fans, if not entirely for the reasons they expect (there's that Christmas special, I keep reminding you). Technical merits continue to be first rate, and Doctor Who: Series Ten, Part Two comes Highly recommended.