Doctor Who (Spoilers!) Review: "The Zygon Invasion"

                Shapeshifters are almost always a welcome inclusion in science fiction. Whether they be The Thing, Body Snatchers, or the Changelings from Deep Space Nine, shapeshifters are tremendous in creating instant tension, paranoia, and great drama. The notion that anyone even those closest to you could be an imposter is frightening and an outlet for madness.

                I will never understand why the Zygons, the resident shapeshifters on Doctor Who, never made a second appearance in the classic series. “Terror of the Zygons” was the last in a series of great early stories for Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor and the title villains left an impression not to be forgotten. Luckily “The Day of the Doctor” brought them back to the show and now “The Zygon Invasion” is continuing the arc from that episode in a really thrilling way.

                The episode opens with the ramifications of the peace treaty signed in “The Day of the Doctor” between the humans and Zygons. It’s revealed that Osgood and her Zygon duplicate had been the peacekeepers but after one of them died in “Death in Heaven” (we don’t know which one), a revolution among the Zygons on Earth has begun and they’ve finally broken the ceasefire kidnapping the remaining Osgood in the process. The situation dubbed The Nightmare Scenario catches the attention of the Doctor who comes back and joins Kate Stewart to try and keep the peace. He sets out to find Osgood with a UNIT taskforce while Kate heads off to Truth or Consequence, New Mexico out of a clue in a Zygon transmission encountering a paranoid American sheriff while there (I love the idea that this American town is convinced that all British are reptile people); leaving Britain in the care of her associate Jac and Clara.

This episode and its’ follow-up were written by Peter Harness who penned by far the Twelfth Doctor’s best episode, “Kill the Moon” last series. And this script is really quite impressive too. The story has all the markings of one of the great Earth invasion stories. The suspense is great and I like how the drama manages to work without even having to show an invasion. This episode is all build-up to it and an attempt to prevent it, reminding me of those tense political dramas based around preventing an international disaster. It’s the Doctor and Kate and (to a lesser extent) Clara in the throes of the Cuban Missile Crisis! There are good performances to back up the stakes. Capaldi is great as usual and Jemma Redgrave is exceptional as Kate (I’m so thankful she’s become a recurring character). Jaye Griffiths and Rebecca Front also delivered more than they really needed to in their supporting guest roles. This episode also brought back Osgood, who I remember being fairly apathetic too. Ingrid Oliver’s decent enough in the role and she was a nice tip of the hat to fans in “The Day of the Doctor” but I never really thought she’d work as a recurring character. By “Death in Heaven” she’d pretty much become the new Sergeant Benton to Kate’s Brigadier and I didn’t mind her being killed off. But in this episode, she comes off better. The idea of the duplicates which I hadn’t considered is intriguing, as is her significance to the plot of this two-parter. The character herself still isn’t all that interesting (though I did like the reappearance of the Seventh Doctor’s question mark vest) but there may be potential there after all. They just have to characterize her as less of a fangirl archetype.

The trip to Truth or Consequences and chanting of that name is again a highlight (though maybe too unsubtle) of a couple of the important themes of this series, and there’s also another reprisal of that hybrid thread (Ashildr, now Osgood?). I should note as well that the Doctor playing guitar has not run its course yet, I still kinda like it, but it’s going to get old pretty soon.

This episode was also notable for a darker tone in how it addressed an invasion. Some of the choices were surprising and risky. Possibly my favourite scene of the episode was when a UNIT taskforce is surrounding a church where they believe Osgood is being held. The Doctor and Colonel Walsh are commanding it from afar when what appears to be the mother of one of the soldiers exits the church and tries to talk him out. Though she can’t answer personal questions the distraught son can’t bring himself to shoot her. Eventually more apparent family members of the soldiers come out and the whole team enter the church to talk. When the Doctor and Walsh get into the church through another way they find all of the soldiers vaporized. Setting aside the unbelievable assertion that none of a whole team of trained combatants would be able to not only see through the Zygon disguise but have the courage to do what has to be done, this gripping scene was really dark. It reminded me of that scene from Shaun of the Dead where Shaun has to shoot his zombie mother, and it’s one of those moments that made me astonished to think kids are watching this! It exemplifies the uncertainty of the episode’s scenario and again is treading into that darker territory we seemed promised when Capaldi first took on the show. And though it wasn’t quite as dark as if the soldier HAD shot her and it actually did turn out to be his mother, it’s still very effective! Also effective is that twist where we find out Clara has been a Zygon for most of the episode. I didn’t see it coming but it accounted for why she felt more useful. I liked the twist but I also kinda wished they’d gone further with it. With the revelation this Zygon uprising has been a long time coming I’d have loved to find out Clara had actually been a Zygon the last number of episodes. But this was still a good enough twist, and a part of me wishes the episode ended on it. The ending itself though wasn’t a bad cliffhanger, with Jenna Coleman clearly liking this temporary change as a villain, aiming a bazooka at the Doctor’s plane and saying to him over the phone “Truth or Consequences” a phrase which is very apt as the consequences of his own actions now have the Doctor about to be shot out of the sky.

Oh and he was definitely right. That voice message of Clara’s was very annoying.