Doctor Who Series 11 Episode Review

Demons Of The Punjab - Review

Warning: Major Spoilers

More than its new look or its revamped soundtrack, more even than introducing its first female Doctor (a huge change in terms of social impact, but minor in terms of how it affects the show) the biggest change in Doctor Who this year has been in its storytelling.

With each passing week, it's becoming increasingly clear just how different newly-installed showrunner Chris Chibnall's take on the series really is. There's been a seismic shift: as Chibnall himself hinted, his era and Steven Moffat's, while both absolutely valid interpretations of what Doctor Who is and can be, are as distinct as the black-and-white, spacefaring Patrick Troughton stories were from Jon Pertwee's full-colour, Earth-bound tales.

Having passed the halfway mark on series 11, it's clear that Chibnall's Who is less about external threats, and more about the 'demons' inside ourselves. A recurring theme has the 'monsters' revealed as being misunderstood, or merely acting out on instinct rather than malice, while the real enemies have been prejudice ('Rosa'), self-doubt ('The Tsuranga Conundrum'), ego and a lust for power ('Arachnids in the UK'). Perhaps as part of the plan to make the series accessible to a wider audience, it's now less about sci-fi and more about human nature.

At first, it appears as though latest episode 'Demons of the Punjab' might be reverting back to the old format: there are literal bug-eyed monsters with huge walrus-like teeth who move faster than bullets. Director Jamie Childs builds the sense of menace by having these alien 'assassins' barely glimpsed, obscured either in darkness or in mist.

But, affirming the new narrative approach, these are not the true monsters. Again, they're "aliens with compassion... seeking the unacknowledged dead across all of time and space" and the real villain is an angry and confused young man, lashing out at his loved ones.

Some fantastic location work and a gorgeous musical score from Segun Akinola transport us back to the India of the 1940s, with the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) and friends becoming caught up in the Partition of India, the bloody, violent division of the subcontinent into two independent dominions, India and Pakistan (which back then included Bangladesh).

That's more a backdrop than anything else, though: while the wider situation is neatly touched upon by way of snatches of radio broadcasts, this is a more contained episode than most, concerning itself mostly with the plight of Yaz's grandmother Umbreen (played as a young woman by the engaging Amita Suman) and the fate of her doomed fiancé Prem.

Prem is not Yaz's grandfather, which means his execution must be allowed to unfold in order to protect her very existence, a terrific moral quandary for the Doctor and her trio of travellers that 'Demons of the Punjab' wrings a great amount of emotional anguish out of.

Having Prem be destined to die reduces our heroes to the role of mere bystanders, and while 'Rosa' at least gave us a win of sorts, with her sacrifice ensuring a greater victory, the climax here is much less optimistic.

"I will protect you, all of you," the Doctor vows early on. But our leads don't save the day. They can't. Instead, they have to turn their backs and walk away as an innocent man is shot and killed, in order to ensure history stays on its proper course. It's an admirably dark ending: a bitter pill to swallow perhaps, but any other resolution would have felt like a dramatic cheat.

If there's one drawback to having our heroes abide by a rule of (mostly) not interfering, it's that Yaz still ends up as something of a non-participant in an episode that's ostensibly all about her and her family. Despite everything, this still isn't quite the showcase that Mandip Gill deserves, though she absolutely delivers the goods when required.

The episode's other shortfall is, sorry to say, parts of its guest cast. They're far from terrible, but Shane Zaza's performance as Prem is a mixed bag – he nails the character's speech about ordinary people being "whipped into a frenzy to be part of a mob" and how division is often thrust upon us, but at other points is strangely stilted – while Hamza Jeetooa is also occasionally a little flat as Manish.

That means that, while a similar episode in many respects, this doesn't quite pack the emotional punch of 'Rosa' – though it has to be said that Zaza and Jeetooa both impress in their stirring final scene, as their formerly inseparable characters now find themselves torn apart in tragic circumstances.

For any fan still craving a more traditional Doctor-vs-monsters tale, 'Demons of the Punjab' won't scratch that itch. But if you're willing to get on board and embrace this new era of Doctor Who, then you'll find this latest offering a diverting and thoughtful story, one that'll likely be best remembered for its gutsy denouement.

Check back in for Episode 7 next week!