Doctor Who: Flatline

This review contains spoilers for the Doctor Who episode in season 8, “Flatline.”

I absolutely loved this episode. I thought it was clever and the both the Doctor and Clara had character development but stayed true to their past characterizations. The episode was funny but also intense at times and the supporting characters and actors were all great and diverse.

My favorite part of this episode is it featured Clara (Jenna Coleman) sort of as a female Doctor. During the transition between the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) and the Twelfth Doctor (Peter Capaldi), there was a lot of debate on whether a woman could play the Doctor. While many welcomed the idea, many others said that the Doctor was a role that could only be played by a man. I think this episode showed that is not the case.

Clara was fantastic running around with the sonic screwdriver and psychic paper while the Twelfth Doctor was stuck inside a shrunk Tardis. She was able to play the role as quirky and fun, as the Doctor does, but also make tough decisions in intense moments.

BBC, Flatline Promotion Picture. Source

I do wish that it had been Clara to force the aliens off of Earth instead of the Doctor, but I did think the Twelfth Doctor’s speech was a great call back to David Tennant’s first episode as the Tenth Doctor in “A Christmas Invasion.”  Both speeches featured a passionate declaration of Earth being defended and protected by the Doctor… all versions of him.

The last conversation of the episode between Clara and the Doctor was very interesting and a little unusual, although unlike in “Kill the Moon” I think it fit with the overall characterization. I’ve seen a lot of people trying to decipher what the Doctor meant when he told Clara “You were an exceptional Doctor… But goodness had nothing to do with it.”

I think this quote shows how the Doctor is still questioning whether he’s a good man, as has been a recurring theme throughout  this season. I also think that he was able to watch more objectively this episode from the Tardis as Clara made the tough decisions that are usually his responsibility, some of which caused deaths of innocent people.  I’m sure this theme is going to come back in the finale episodes of this season.

Overall, I loved this episode. It was a great sci-fi story that was unique and interesting.