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Doctor Who kicked off its new season with “The Robot Revolution,” a conceptually adventurous and visually stunning episode that reminds us of the show’s classic appeal—though at the cost of some missteps along the way. The episode is a introduction for the Doctor’s new friend, Belinda Chandra, played by Varada Sethu, and joining up with Ncuti Gatwa’s tireless charming Doctor to travel through time and space.
Belinda’s entry into the Whoniverse is anything but ordinary. She’s a pragmatic, no-nonsense nurse whose life is flipped upside down when robots take over her home, crown her planetary queen, and whisk her away in a spaceship. This scenario taps into the kind of wish-fulfillment fantasy Doctor Who does so well—what if that “name-a-star” novelty present actually did pan out? What if that star had developed into a planet now in need of your presence?
Sethu excels in her performance. She plays the role with a no-nonsense attitude tempered by warmth and wit. Her cynicism about the prospect of time travel (“Timey-wimey? Am I six?”) is a sharp foil to the Doctor’s mad optimism. The chemistry between Gatwa and Sethu is already nicely established, with promise of an intriguing dynamic for the new season.
But the episode itself does not quite work. Much of the running time is devoted to introducing the new companion—exposing the Tardis, defining the Doctor’s two hearts, and giving Belinda a chance to acclimate to the sheer absurdity of it all. That leaves less room for a decent plot. The story climaxes too early, relying on last-minute exposition and turns that have not been established, so the payoff comes across as hasty and unfulfilling.
A bigger problem is the episode’s dive into political commentary, which falters. Doctor Who has never shied away from dropping big ideas into its scripts, but here it goes in so forcefully that characters end up spelling the message out rather than having faith in the story to make it happen. It’s a clumsy addition for an episode that starts out with such whimsy and light potential.
Despite that, the central Gatwa/Sethu pairing succeeds, and even a rocky premiere can be forgiven if what comes after is worthwhile. Doctor Who remains bold in theory and likable in practice—even when the parts don’t fully coalesce. With the Tardis due to appear in 1952 Miami this week, there’s every expectation this season’s actual journey has just begun.
