Doctor Who 10.03 'Thin Ice' Review
Doctor Who 10.03 'Thin Ice' Review
The third episode of Series 10, following on from the end of the previous episode. (Are all the episodes going to do this this series? With next starting from the scene at the Vault? See below.) The episode is set at the Last Great Frost Fair, held in London in 1814, on the frozen Thame, where there is more to the Fair than what it appears to be.After the Doctor and Bill arrive, the Doctor tries to get back to the university, but the TARDIS isn't letting him. 'Always looking for trouble,' is a perfect description of the TARDIS's behaviour.
Of course, the Doctor and Bill don't stick around long enough to see the 'monster fish' on the scanner, but the story would have proceded quite differently if they had. In any case, the urchins at the Fair are quite well realised, albeit cleaner than they would have been in reality. But the real character development is Bill's. She seems to be horrified that the Doctor doesn't know how many dead bodies he had seen, and wonders what sort of man he is. It is the death of one of the urchins that spurs the Doctor, and Bill, into action. This leads to the discovery of the monster fish.
The sound effects of that creature were done quite well, making Bill's comment about it's despair quite impactful emotionally. The following investigation of Lord Sutcliff's operation is also quite well done. The way the Doctor counsells Bill about being rational, but reacting impulsively anyway to Sutcliff's racism towards her is quite well written. Capaldi and Mackie (and Burns) acted quite well here.The Doctor's following speech about the measure of Civilisation being how fellow man is treated, rather than progress, is very well written.
This episode is better than the previous episode (the society of the time is represented accurately, racism and all). I definitely recommend seeing it. The end scenes, back at the university are good too. Bill learns that extraordinary events in the past, don't necessarily have an impact on the present, and we learn some more (albeit not much) about what is in the vault. Someone capable of knocking. 9/10.