{"id":5628,"date":"2016-06-08T08:00:59","date_gmt":"2016-06-08T15:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=5628"},"modified":"2016-06-08T00:37:12","modified_gmt":"2016-06-08T07:37:12","slug":"mark-watches-doctor-who-s09e10-face-the-raven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2016\/06\/mark-watches-doctor-who-s09e10-face-the-raven\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Doctor Who’: S09E10 – Face the Raven"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the tenth episode of the ninth series of\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>, a familiar face is accused of murder. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For nonconsensual drugging.<\/b><\/p>\n

Goddamn it,\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>.<\/p>\n

I think most of us have complicated feelings towards Clara Oswald. It was hard to define who she was as a character when she had such a weird story back when she was first introduced. Truly, this is not the first time that Clara has died, and I still wonder if it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the last time. Series eight helped to solidify her as a character separate of the Doctor to some extent, but she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always existed in relation to the people around her. She lost Danny last series, but joined the Doctor again during \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Last Christmas\u00e2\u20ac\u009d with the two of them on equal footing. I say that because there have been moments this series where Clara and the Doctor were very close to being like the same person. Hell, the Doctor even\u00c2\u00a0warned<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0Clara that there was only room enough for one Doctor in the TARDIS.<\/p>\n

Which I now see as foreshadowing. Clara tried to come up with a solution to Rigsy\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death sentence by using Doctor logic. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the easiest way for me to understand this. But what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the greater meaning of it? That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hard to tell because this episode is only part of the story. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d\u00c2\u00a0like<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0to analyze it and discuss Clara\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death, but what if she comes back in the next episode or in the finale? Will that dilute what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen here?<\/p>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know! But \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Face the Raven\u00e2\u20ac\u009d does have a lot of interesting ideas, as well as the return of Rigsy, one of the best parts of series 8. Rigsy is now a parent, and I can see how that change made it even more stressful to learn that the tattoo on his neck was a countdown to his execution. The dude has a newborn daughter! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s agonizing to watch him in this scenario. Jovain Wade plays Rigsy as being in a state of perpetual concern, though, and my heart swelled at the idea that despite that Rigsy is the sweetest guy ever, HE STILL WANTED TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR HIS ACTIONS. He obviously didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to die, but he never let his ego cloud his judgment. If he had actually killed Anah, he wanted to be accountable for his actions.<\/p>\n

RIGSY FOR PRESIDENT or PRIME MINISTER or SOMETHING.<\/p>\n

I am also intrigued by Me, who reappears here as the mayor of a town of alien refugees, which is one of the COOLEST ideas this whole show has ever given us. I WANT MORE OF THIS NEIGHBORHOOD. SO MUCH MORE. I love that we see villains like the Cybermen being helped by the Ood. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the Judoon and a Sontaran and an Ice Warrior, and they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re all living separate from their own people.\u00c2\u00a0Together<\/i>.<\/p>\n

That doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean that everything is perfect. Even though Me wants the best possible existence for these forgotten and lost beings, she institutes a system of rule that is cruel. Yes, she knows that she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s dealing with a number of species who are \u00e2\u20ac\u0153prone\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to aggression, and there needs to be an enforceable rubric so that this place can continue to exist safely. But when someone is executed by the Raven for stealing medical supplies, it doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel like justice. It feels like hell.<\/p>\n

Which makes me wonder what sort of deal she made. We learn only some of the particulars \u00e2\u20ac\u201c that the mystery was faked to lure in the Doctor so that Me could get a guarantee of safety for her refugee camp \u00e2\u20ac\u201c but we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know who she made it with. We don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know where the Doctor is being transported to, nor do we know why she needed the Confession Dial. So I want to examine Me as a character further, but I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know what role she might play in the next episode or two. She was desperate to protect her camp, but why pay this cost? Why was it worth it for her to hand over the Doctor?<\/p>\n

This brings me back to Clara. Oh, Clara. You know, even if I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m unsure where this story is headed, I can certainly appreciate the performance we are given by Jenna Coleman in this episode. Clara is portrayed so nobly here. She accepts her death, and she urges the Doctor to eschew the revenge he will inevitably try to get on her behalf. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an emotional sequence because we all know she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s right. We know for certain that the Doctor doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t fair well alone. We know that when he is angry, he becomes inconsolable. Uncontrollable. A force not to be reckoned with, but one you survive by\u00c2\u00a0getting the hell out of his way<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Clara dies so she can be brave, so she can give bravery to the Doctor before he faces whatever is next. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not my favorite departure, if this is indeed Clara\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s last appearance. I still feel like the major flaw in how her character\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s written is that she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a reflection of everyone around her, not of herself. But I know I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll miss Jenna Coleman, whose comic timing, beaming smile, and immense talent were absolutely what made\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0enjoyable these past two series.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Face the Raven\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded\u00c2\u00a0here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– I am now on Patreon<\/a><\/b>!!! MANY SURPRISES ARE IN STORE FOR YOU IF YOU SUPPORT ME<\/a>.
\n– I\u00c2\u00a0will be at numerous conventions in 2016! Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features for Mark Watches will be Death Note<\/em>\u00c2\u00a0and\u00c2\u00a0Neon Genesis Evangelion<\/em>. On Mark Reads, Diane Duane’s Young Wizards<\/i> series will replace the Emelan books.
\n<\/b>-\u00c2\u00a0Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"