{"id":7357,"date":"2019-07-24T13:00:48","date_gmt":"2019-07-24T20:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=7357"},"modified":"2019-07-21T14:07:26","modified_gmt":"2019-07-21T21:07:26","slug":"mark-watches-doctor-who-resolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2019\/07\/mark-watches-doctor-who-resolution\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Doctor Who’: Resolution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Trigger Warning: For discussion of grief, genocide<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m so glad to have finally caught up with Doctor Who<\/i>, but I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sad I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have more to watch. It should be apparent at this point that I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m deeply in love with all four of these characters and the stories told for the Thirteenth Doctor. This special is such a perfect place for me to end, though, because it allows me to reflect on just how special Doctor Who <\/i>is to me. The show does feel different, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not just in the casting. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a joy across these eleven episodes since Chibnall took over that is palpable, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear that the people behind-the-scenes are having the time of their lives creating this show. The cinematography, the music, the stories themselves: much of it has changed, but I truly feel it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all for the better. I LOVE IT SO VERY MUCH.<\/p>\n

Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s talk.<\/p>\n

The Greatest Enemy<\/b><\/p>\n

I cannot recall one traditional villain\/antagonist across Thirteen\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s run, and perhaps that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s another reason why this series felt so refreshing. So it was particularly exciting that when the show did<\/i> come around to bringing back a familiar evil, it did so in a way that did not feel repetitive. Hell, I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even figure out that the weird squid creature was a Dalek until maybe half a second before the Doctor announced it. And that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a good thing! I was so trapped in the horror of this thing that had commandeered Lin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s body that I wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t catching the obvious signs. Seriously, while the coloration was a tad different, the Dalek looked just like the creatures out of their shells. And the voice! Oh, that was a dead giveaway, and yet it went right over my head.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Yet even once we know this is a Dalek scout\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthe literal first Dalek to ever make it to Earth a thousand years prior\u00e2\u20ac\u201dnothing unfolded quite like I expected it to. Daleks are agents of genocide and hatred, and that does manifest here. But because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all filtered through Lin, it was so frightening<\/i>. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessarily find the image of a Dalek terrifying, but the creature attached to Lin? Forcing her to do what it wants? Oh, that was definitely a nightmare, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a smart choice from a craft perspective. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the adorable romance between Lin and Mitch that fueled the tension, since I wanted her to fight off the Dalek and reunite with him. It wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have happened if there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d just been a Dalek in its casing trying to take over the Earth by itself. Plus, what a primal source of terror! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the possession trope taken to a strange place, and I loved watching Lin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s slow-burn rebellion. On top of that, Mitch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s interest in the Custodians added another layer of cleverness, since we got more of a look at what had happened back in the 9th century.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But this episode also doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t pull any punches to show just how violent Daleks are. Seriously, so many people die on-screen! And that scene where the Dalek decimates all those British soldiers? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ruthless<\/i>, and I think it had to be. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a threat that hangs over \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Resolution\u00e2\u20ac\u009d: if this Dalek succeeds, it will summon the Dalek fleet. But, as Graham says, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just one<\/i> Dalek against billions of human. It can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be that<\/i> bad, right?\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

WRONG. UTTERLY WRONG. So, we get an incredible sense of the capabilities of this lone Dalek, and I was thinking of first-time viewers during that scene. If there had been people who were watching Doctor Who<\/i> for the first time who caught this, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d know just how serious this was in a heartbeat. And that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s good storytelling!<\/p>\n

The Greatest Disappointment<\/b><\/p>\n

But there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a plot that unfolds parallel to this that I loved even more. Ryan\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reunion with his father was something that was seeded in past episodes, and after both \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It Takes You Away\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I wondered if Ryan would get closure. And did that closure even matter to him anymore?<\/p>\n

This episode answers that with a resounding YES, and some of the most emotional scenes in the entire series are in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Resolution.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole, and Daniel Adegboyega are all stellar here, and they bring the tragedy of Aaron and Ryan to life. I was struck by how empathetic this episode was, both because Ryan was allowed to express his rage and sadness and<\/i> because Aaron was not written as a one-note, antagonistic father. No, this is about a character who made a choice he came to regret. Maybe not immediately, and the passage of time certainly upset Ryan even more. But while I felt the most sympathy for Ryan, I believed that this script gave Aaron a chance to be a whole person as well. He disappointed his son; he abandoned Ryan when Ryan most needed him; and now, he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s trying to return to his son\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s life, but nearly a year since his own mother passed away.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This is the story of someone who made a mistake and then compounded that mistake with further bad decisions and due to other bad circumstances.<\/p>\n

But he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s here. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not running away. And is that enough for Ryan?<\/p>\n

I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t stop thinking about the climactic scene in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Resolution,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d where the Dalek tries to take Aaron\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s life as collateral. Ryan does something he wanted from his father: he was there<\/i> for him. He even says so, and wow, that moment broke my heart? That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all he ever wanted: to know for sure that his dad cared. And so, faced with the idea that his dad will die before his eyes, Ryan risks his own life to save him, to be there for him, to give him a helping hand. (LITERALLY.) Oh, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a beautiful, emotional moment, and the script totally earned it. Forgiveness has to come when the harmed party is ready, and Ryan was finally, finally ready.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I have no idea what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s gonna happen in series 12, but y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. This was such an incredible experience. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sad I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have anything more to catch up on, but that doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not thrilled for what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s next: Sense8<\/i>!!! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been a few years since I finished the first season, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about time that I finish that show off. Onwards!<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Resolution\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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

– The paperback edition of my debut, ANGER IS A GIFT, is now OUT!<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>If you’d like to stay up-to-date on all announcements regarding my books, sign up for my newsletter<\/a>! DO IT.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"