Doctor Who Series 11 Episode Review

Battle Of Ranksoor Av Kolos - Review

Finally, it's time to review the finale of Series 11, and close the book on what has been the most polarising series of Who ever, and has left a bitter taste in the mouths of many fans.

Warning: Full Spoilers for Series 11 as a whole.

A satisfying finale needs to both wrap up a series' ongoing plot and resolve characters arcs.  Series 3's "Last of the Time Lords" doesn't just resolve the recurring "Vote Saxon" plotline, it also allows for Martha to leave the TARDIS having realized that she has grown beyond her need for the Doctor to love her.  Series 6's "The Wedding of River Song" doesn't just reveal the exact nature of River's relationship to the Doctor, it also examines how the Doctor's ever-growing bravado has actually become a danger to the universe he tries to protect.

Showrunner Chris Chibnall's vision of a series of mostly stand-alone episodes, free of mythology and returning monsters, certainly breathed new life into Doctor Who's stable of writers.  Pete McTighe's "Kerblam!" and Ed Hime's "It Takes You Away" are stunning in their originality, Joy Wilkinson packed a number of interesting ideas into "The Witchfinders," and Malorie Blackman and Vinay Patel's respective episodes spoke to their cultural backgrounds, opening the Whoniverse to a more diverse audience.  However, without much in the way of an overarching plot, the Series 11 finale, "The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos," had little to resolve.

One of the few recurring storylines in Series 11 is how Graham and Ryan's relationship changes, after the loss of Grace in the premiere.  Not surprisingly, the finale features would-be warrior leader Tzim-Sha, the Stenza who was partially responsible for Grace's death in "The Woman Who Fell to Earth," and several minor plot points are paid off.  Ryan's knack for pushing buttons leads him to discovering a map into Tzim-Sha's fortress; Ryan admits that he loves his "Granddad," a moment that effectively underlies Ryan's begging Graham to "be the better man" and not kill Tzim-Sha in retribution; and Graham finally earns a fist bump from Ryan.

Without more to resolve, the finale creeps along.  Over half of the episode has passed before Tzim-Sha's dastardly plan is revealed – – he is exploiting the reality-altering powers of the Ux to pull entire planets out of orbit, trapping the worlds inside stasis crystals – – leaving a scant 22 minutes for the finale's second and third acts.  The pacing of the episode's first half seems intentionally slowed, as if Chibnall realized the thin plot couldn't support a full episode. Why does Paltraki not remember his name or the purpose of his mission? Why is Tzim-Sha's identity initially hidden by a mask? Why does the neural balancer take so long to restore sanity?  Because all of this stretches out the first act to fill the episode's required runtime.

Notably, the idea that Ranskoor Av Kolor "transmit[s] violent, psychotropic waves throughout its atmosphere – – the type of waves that mess with your brain, distort reality, [and] change moods to the extreme" is underdeveloped and inconsistently portrayed.  In the episode's protracted first act, the plot device prevents the narrative from moving too quickly; however, once inside Tzim-Sha's fortress, the psychic effects of the waves are only briefly referenced. After they remove their neural balancers, the Doctor says everything is "getting fuzzy" and Yaz winces, but everything returns to normal the moment the neural balancers are replaced.  The Doctor even makes light of the situation, saying, "Do you mind if I get those back? A bit headache-y, now." The two are never portrayed as being in danger, as described in the first act. The script creates an obstacle for the characters to overcome, only to reveal that the challenge wasn't really a big deal to begin with. It's a shame really, as the idea could have provided some interesting fodder, instead of being merely filler.  How are the waves created? Are they a byproduct of the Ux's ability to reshape reality or an aspect of a possibly sentient planet?

The lumbering plot of "The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos" is especially frustrating because several novel ideas are introduced and then completely ignored.  For example, this is the second episode in Series 11 to present religious fervor as the underlying cause for evil acts. "That creature took advantage of your faith!" the Doctor tells Andinio.  What is the series trying to say about religious dedication? It's difficult to discern. The initial conversation between the two Ux reveals an understanding that faith requires belief despite a lack of proof – – understanding in the absence of knowledge – – but there is a lot of pseudo-religious jargon as well.

The episode also begins an interesting discussion on the concepts of fault and blame.  Graham faults Tzim-Sha for Grace's death, but also blames himself for not heeding the Doctor's warning to leave the dangerous construction site.  Graham argues that, because they did not fully end the threat of Tzim-Sha, countless soldiers that were sent to retrieve the missing planets have died.  Because the Doctor chooses non-lethal means of stopping her opponents, villains often go on to murder many more victims. Are these deaths not on her shoulders?  This finale would have been a terrific place to scrutinize the Doctor's non-violent ideology, especially as it seems to shift.

Rather than explaining, say, "Before, you ran off, crazed, with a gun – – never a good idea.  Right now, we are going in with a strategy, prepared. To protect the hostages, I am trusting you with a weapon.  It is a last resort," the episode dismisses the sudden change in the Doctor's dogma with a pithy, trenchant retort.

Perhaps the Doctor's shift in opinion is due to the neural balancers not working as effectively as she expected.  There is evidence of this – – Ryan is queasy, once on the planet's surface – – but the narrative doesn't investigate this further.  It's misfortunate, because that could've provided an excellent opportunity to break down the four central characters and study them in contrast to their normal selves, here at the end of the series.  Instead, the finale's attempts to examine morality are undermined with humor. The scene where Graham admits to Tzim-Sha that he had planned to kill the Stenza warrior, but has changed his stance, devolves into pratfalls – – "You shot him!"  "Yeah, but just in the foot! Just in the foot, just to shut him up! Ah, don't tell the Doctor. She'd be livid" – – undercutting Tzim-Sha's menace.

A notable exception to the script's mercurial approach to its characters is Yasmin, who is again portrayed as decisive, brave, and mature.  While Graham and Ryan spend the episode wrestling with their personal vendettas, Yaz selflessly risks exposure to Ranskoor Av Kolos' psychotropic attacks to protect the Earth.  Note that Yasmin again acts as the Doctor's confidant and sounding board, asking, "But if we don't [disconnect the Ux from the Stenza device, risking their deaths], what happens to Earth?  Their life versus seven billion others?" and that Yaz deduces that the neural balancers are a key part of the solution.

The slow burn of Yaz's character arc has been one of the most interesting aspects of Series 11.  Capable and smart, but yearning to see "more," Yasmin seems to be the prototypical companion. While being related to Grace means that Graham and Ryan are more intrinsically tied to the series-long plot, Yasmin's storyline of navigating the uneasy transition between adolescence and adulthood, and away from one's family to independence and self-actualization, is the more stimulating and thought-provoking.  Despite being the same age as Ryan, she seems vastly more mature – – the premiere contrasts his learning to ride a bike with her training for her adult occupation, for example. It's a curious dynamic, and, hopefully, Series 12 will explore this comparison further.

While the finale may lack closure of the ongoing character arcs – – both Ryan and Yasmin still have unresolved issues with their respective families, and Graham's resolution really occurred in "It Takes You Away" – – "The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos" does deliver a respectable conclusion to the threat of Tzim-Sha.  Chibnall's solution of returning the planets to their orbits via the TARDIS' telepathic circuits not only references this series' "Demons of the Punjab," but also "Boom Town," from Series 1, and the Series 4 finale, "Journey's End." More importantly, it brings this series' narrative arc of the importance of the TARDIS to the Doctor full circle.  Separated from the Doctor in three of the series' ten episodes, the TARDIS has done little more in Series 11 than chauffeur the cast to the time-and-space-of-the-week. In "The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos," the Doctor directly references the TARDIS' placard, stating, "See, the sign on the front: 'we respond to urgent calls.' You looked like an urgent call," tying the blue box to the Doctor's defining mission.

Because Series 11 consists of mostly stand-alone episodes, there is little in the way of plot points or character arcs to resolve in the finale.  The first half of the episode plods along, creating unnecessary plot diversions to stretch the episode's runtime, rather than focusing on the more interesting questions about religious fervor and the concept of fault that are raised, but not adequately examined.  However, the finale continues its thoughtful portrayal of Yasmin and features the TARDIS as intrinsic to the episode's resolution, bringing the series-long themes of navigating family in adulthood, and the importance of the Doctor's blue box, full circle.