A fake news invasion.
Spoilers follow for this episode of Doctor Who.
In “The Lie of the Land,” the conclusion to the three-part monk story, the Doctor faces what may be his greatest foe yet: fake news. Truly, it is an enemy we can all fear.
And the episode proves to be a pretty good one, satisfyingly wrapping up the overall story while also charting some new ground, providing more than a couple of thrills and head-fakes, commenting on current events in a not at all subdued way, and further advancing the vault/Missy storyline just enough to keep us on the hook.
The idea of our heroes finding themselves in an alternate reality is a well-worn trope in sci-fi television, going back at least as far as that time Spock got a goatee. And while here the technical whatchamacallits of the scenario makes it less an alternate world than a mind-controlled population perceiving an alternate history, the effects are more or less the same: Bill has found herself six months out from her deal with the monks in the previous episode, with the hideous creatures now masters of the planet as a result. The thing is, the monks are perceived by just about everyone on Earth as benign caretakers who have been with humankind throughout their evolution.
The imagery setting up this world is well realized, especially considering the budgetary limitations of Doctor Who. The uniform, darkish color scheme of the unknowingly enslaved citizens’ clothing mixes well with authoritarian imagery of the monks intermingled with icons of human history, flashing across TV screens -- and those same citizens’ minds -- everywhere, even while the site of giant monk statues standing among the world’s landmarks is striking.
Even the Doctor is seemingly caught up in this whole scenario, broadcasting to the world the importance of the monks and even going so far as to rat out Bill once she finally tracks him down. Of course, it’s all a ruse on the Doctor’s part, but it’s an effective scene when his apparently traitorous behavior leads her to shoot him down. He even regenerates! (Only not really.) Unfortunately, the reason why the Doctor felt compelled to pose as a tool of the monks for six months doesn’t quite land. He’s trying to get the monks to trust him? That’s an awfully patient route for the Doctor to take… awfully patient, and un-Doctor like too.
But of course the real thrust of this story is the fake news parallel, which Peter Capaldi even announces for the cheap seats as he enters the “eye of the storm,” as it were. What’s most scary about this monk storyline, it turns out, isn’t the monks themselves or the world being taken over, but rather the manipulation of the masses that so easily allows the creatures to not just rule, but to alter history itself. David Byrne once said “Facts are simple and facts are straight” before adding “Facts all come with points of view / Facts don't do what I want them to.” Indeed, and this is the world in which the Doctor, Bill and Nardole have found themselves in. Truly horrifying. Can you dig it?
But in the end, it’s Bill’s single, pure (and interestingly enough, semi-fabricated) memory of her mother which is able to defeat the fake news of the monks. The lies, the manipulations, the fabrications can’t win against love, and that message is indeed heartening.
As for Missy, I was as disappointed by the briefness of her role here as I was enchanted by Michelle Gomez’ performance. Her usual playfulness combined with a different sort of edge than we’ve seen in the past; is she really trying to become “good”? Is that even possible? We’ll find out, I suppose, as her story will continue for the foreseeable future.
Some notes:
- So that glimpse of regeneration that we got in the Season 10 trailer was a fake-out after all.
- We get the second Trump reference in as many weeks here, as his face pops up on the monk’s fake news screen.
- It’s funny how Bill’s mom is probably only a little bit older than Bill, but of course that’s what happens when you die: You’re frozen in time forever at that point in your life.
- Nardole has turned out to be quite multi-talented. And speaking of Spock, he even has his own version of the Vulcan nerve pinch!
The Verdict
The monk storyline ends on a strong note, giving us SJW food for thought, a couple of exciting set pieces, and some great, if tantalizing Missy scenes.
New episodes of Doctor Who air on Saturdays on BBC One at 7:25pm and on BBC America at 9pm/8pm Central.
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