Review by RCR contributing editor, Hayden Black, follow him on Twitter @HaydenBlack!
A powerful and unsettling Doctor Who episode that tackles racism head-on shouldn’t leave a dry eye in the house. The Doctor and Gang are taken by the TARDIS to Montgomery, Alabama in 1955, drawn there because of some weird energy that shouldn’t exist in that time and place. They quickly find that there are things far more real and scary than Daleks there – and they’re called racists.
Basically, a white supremacist from the future called Krasko (it’s always the sodding mentally-ill white supremacists, and I call them mentally ill because they are delusional and paranoid, two hallmarks of mental illness) wants to change time so that Rosa Parks never rode the bus and thus didn’t kick-start the Civil Rights movement. We’re not sure why but we can all assume he’s just another delusional lunatic.
It really puts things into perspective too – especially now when, thanks in strong part to Trump and a complicit Republican party – racism is rearing its head loudly again. Rosa (the episode and the woman herself) reminds us what it takes to be a hero and how more people need to be taking a page from that book.
The team are put to good use in this episode, written by first-time Doctor Who scriptwriter Malorie Blackman and shot in South Africa, with each playing a crucial role in a time and place where people of color were seen by many as third-world citizens. And, crucially, in a series not known for confronting sensitive issues head on, this episode handled it pretty well. It’s also extraordinary to think that this episode takes place in 1955 – and only eight short years, in 1963, would come the debut of the actual Doctor Who program itself. Think about that; that was the world Doctor Who was born into and even then it showed how progressive it was with both the first female producer and a gay Asian director at the helm. And here it is now, over 50 years later, still being progressive and still teaching us, young and old.
So back to the story. Krasko, who has a limiter implanted in his brain preventing him from physically killing people, (who remembers Gan?) tries to change history, but is instead sent further back into history (so we’ll be seeing him and the results of his other time-meddling later on). Krasko looks like he’s taken his cues from watching Grease and unfortunately has the depth of a small tub of brylcream. It’s a shame he’s not written well and I hope they change that up for his inevitable return.
Rosa is arrested, and we’re shown the power of Mrs. Parks’ actions decades later. She was as much a hero then as she is now and will be tomorrow. We’re also treated to a song called Rise Up by Andra Day that also plays us out over the closing credits – something we rarely see.
This was a special episode. A strong woman is what society needs right now and a female time lord is just what the Doctor ordered.
About Dr. Who
Montgomery, Alabama. 1955. The Doctor and her friends find themselves in the Deep South of America. As they encounter a seamstress by the name of Rosa Parks, they begin to wonder whether someone is attempting to change history.
The further adventures in time and space of the alien adventurer known as the Doctor, a Time Lord/Lady who can change appearance and gender by regenerating when near death, and his/her human companions.
WATCH MORE
The Thirteenth Doctor: http://bit.ly/TheThirteenthDoctor
Regenerations: http://bit.ly/DWRegeneration
Title Sequences: http://bit.ly/DWTitleSequences
Review by Hayden Black
Hayden Black is the award-winning British star/writer/producer behind Goodnight Burbank (“Better than 99% of the stuff on TV” – USA Today”), the first-ever scripted half-hour comedy series made for Hulu and then licensed – the day it premiered – by Mark Cuban for his cable channel HDNet. Goodnight Burbank and his other original online work – including Abigail’s Teen Diary & The Occulterers – have won Webby, iTunes and Yahoo awards, been viewed in the multi-millions, and taught in college courses.
