Maius Intra Qua Extra

Very spoiler-y. You've been warned. Will post more later when I've had time to think about it.


So, the first part, the actual story, was great. I have a feeling that a lot of it won't make sense when I think deeply about it, but it was fun and tied a lot of things together. Omega was a disappointment, but really, the episode was about the Rani, not Omega. (I was soooo hoping for Peter Davison to walk out of the portal.) I am disappointed that the Rani is gone, but also very happy that Mrs. Flood survived. I honestly preferred her over her new form.

The part after that... First, too slow. Second, boring. That might be a personal preference, since I didn't really buy into the Doctor actually wanting to settle down with a family, so then the extended "You all must remember Poppy" scenes just dragged. I've read conjectures that the episode had been very different but then Ncuti decided to leave, so the end had to be rewritten to lead to Ruby's and Belinda's exit and the Doctor's regeneration. This would be a good explanation for why all of this felt so rough.

Then Thirteen arrived, and that might have been the best scene in the whole episode. She was great, and their interaction was great. No, really, as I'm thinking back on the episode, that's the scene that comes to mind. And that punch in her gut, amazing. Sorry, Thirteen and Yaz.

And the end? I was pretty upset about it, but consider this: The end credits said, "And introducing Billie Piper". Not "And introducing Billie Piper as the Doctor". That's the way it's always been done: even when Thirteen regenerated, it said, "And introducing David Tennant as the Doctor".

So, I say that there are shenanigans here. BP is not actually going to be the Sixteenth Doctor. In the next episode (probably a special, though there isn't one this year Christmas), it'll start looking like she's the Doctor but turns out to be not - perhaps it's Rose trying to come back and landing in the Doctor's body. And thus, I am no longer upset about this.

Now, to just stay calm waiting to hear if the show is renewed for another season...