“Revolution of the Daleks” is one of the darkest festive specials for “Doctor Who” in recent memory, for reasons that become apparent soon after it started. This severity, by the way, is separate from the current riddle of the Thirteenth Doctor – when we last saw Thirteen (Jodie Whittaker), she was being locked up in an intergalactic prison with almost no chance of escaping. A terrible circumstance, to be sure.
Meanwhile, the loyal “fam” Yaz (Mandip Gill), Ryan (Tosin Cole) and Graham (Bradley Walsh) are waiting for her on Earth without knowing where she has gone or when she will return. This separation affected each of them, some more than others. Soon their loneliness takes a back seat to the far greater threat involving the discovery of another insidious Dalek plan.
On the other hand, the hope of salvation also comes in the form of Whovian’s favorite captain, Jack Harkness, the dashing cheater who travels in the timeline played by John Barrowman.
“Sometimes Jack comes back because Jack – if I can be so frank, not that I’m a defender – but Jack is the gunman the Doctor can trust to do some of the dirty work,” Barrowman told Salon in a recent conversation. . “It’s almost as if Jack was a guilty pleasure, I think, for the doctor, because although there was a period when she didn’t like him, like one of the previous carnations, she came to love him in a sense. But she also uses it as a guilty pleasure, and Jack is very happy about it. So this is the other naughty side of it. “
This affection does not end with the doctor. Barrowman is loved by science fiction fans in general and by Whovians in particular, and based on the expressive excitement the actor exuded during an interview he conducted from his Palm Springs home, the feeling is more than mutual. At that point, days before Thanksgiving, I hadn’t seen “Revolution of the Daleks” yet, so when Barrowman observed, “Everything always seems to be related to what’s going on in ‘Doctor Who’ and what’s going on in society “, there was no way of knowing how true this observation ended up being.
“Doctor Who” has danced with the Daleks many times over the decades, including in Thirteen’s first festive special, “Resolution” of 2019. But this apocalyptic battle begins as the product of a sinister marriage of draconian politics, corporate greed and bargaining. Faustian hidden in promises of “security”. BBC America asked viewers to reveal as little detail as possible about the matter.
In fact, the accidental relevance of the plot to the revolutionary events of 2020 is impressive, especially when one considers that the production of this special was stopped in late 2019. That before the pandemic, before the world marches for civil rights and justice, before a highly toxic presidential election event in America. “Revolution of the Daleks” would seem like an answer to all of that if we didn’t know that the series’ creator, Chris Chibnall, wrote the script more than a year ago.
Gill, who spoke to Salon in a separate interview, said he looked back at the script from the perspective of having lived through 2020 with a bit of shock. If we only considered the plot point in relation to The Doctor’s arrest being seen by a public that is in quarantine, “they will relate to this episode much more than they would have done before this pandemic,” she says. . “We spent so much time away from families and friends because everyone had to. If we spent two months away from our families in everyday life before the pandemic, it was because everyone was busy.”
“Now,” she adds, “we are being told to stay indoors, we want to see people, which is no different than having things taken from us. It happened to Yaz. Like everyone else now, Yaz had his life taken from her. “
Barrowman has been with the franchise since the era of Chris Eccleston, and for him the coincidence of the relevance of the story is nothing new. “A lot of things that happened in ‘Doctor Who’ and also in ‘Torchwood’, I have to say, in a way, foresee something to come. [Russell T. Davies] it was showrunner, I was like, ‘How do you know that?’ Also with Chibnall: ‘How do you know this is going to happen?’ We had no idea that any of this would happen because it was obviously filmed before COVID. “
Still, “Doctor Who” is considered family entertainment, which may be one reason why the series is not usually as serious as other TV titles in the genre. When I bring this to Barrowman, citing “Star Trek” and the revival of “Battlestar Galactica” by Ronald Moore as examples, he points out a fundamental difference between these programs and “Doctor Who”. “They all have political and social things that they write in their stories, but you know what? All of those things have already happened.” He then jokes: “Maybe someone on the show can really go to the future. I’m being silly, but you know what do I mean? I agree with you on that. You don’t get the credit you should. “
One element that is not up for debate is the show’s skillful way of appealing to how its audience is feeling here and now, in a year that has left millions around the world feeling psychologically overwhelmed and emotionally exhausted. “Revolution of the Daleks” brings Yaz along with Jack, and in one remarkable scene he helps her deal with her overwhelming anxiety – something she has in common with many of us. Yaz lives with mental health problems, and the Doctor’s disappearance seriously affects her. “I feel like it’s Jack’s character that gives hope and assurance that it’s okay not to be okay,” said Gill.
Ultimately, the goal of any special “Doctor Who” holiday is to entertain and somehow make viewers feel a little better. Many of them mark a significant change in the Time Lord universe; the same is true for this one. Barrowman hopes that this episode will remind people of what he believes to be extraordinary about “Doctor Who”, that his hero accepts stubborn and good maladjustments in their lives without question.
“I want you to make sure that this is presented as a positive word, misfits,” he said. “People who are different and unique, The Doctor brings them to TARDIS with open arms. And that is why the program means so much to me. That’s why there is a joy behind it, because we are all part of something that is bigger than us. “
Barrowman added: “I hope that when it comes, people will have learned that we have to make certain sacrifices to move on, to make things better. Because, again, when people see this episode, they will see it when they get to TARDIS. “It’s not about yourself. It’s about family and togetherness. It’s about protecting and helping others. And I hope that when you see this episode, you see the sacrifices these characters are making, but the love is still there. The strength is still there.” there. Hope is still there. “
“Revolution of the Daleks” will air on Friday, January 1, 2021 at 8 pm on BBC America.