User Reviews

Series 10 of Doctor Who sure is following the tried and tested path, isn't it? As with Series 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, our opening three episodes have seen one set in the present, one in the future and one in the past. Finishing up the three this time around is "Thin Ice", courtesy of Sarah Dollard who also penned last series' breathtaking "Face the Raven". The early positioning of this episode means Dollard is handling a very different kind of story than what she gave us back in 2015, and so "Thin Ice" is hardly going to be quite as memorable in the long run.

That isn't to say it's a bad episode though, because it most certainly isn't. In what may be some of the most extensive production design the show has seen in quite a while, "Thin Ice" finds the Doctor and Bill inadvertently arriving at the last Frost Fair in the 1800s. A massive party set atop the frozen Thames, all seems well for a while until glowing lights start appearing below the ice and a child is sucked under the surface. As per Doctor Who tradition, an investigation begins.

If last week's "Smile" was focused predominantly on Bill and how her and the Doctor's relationship will grow, "Thin Ice" rests more firmly on the Doctor's shoulders. Like most good Doctor Who episodes, though, the perspective still belongs to Bill - we learn about the Doctor through her eyes and her mind. After witnessing the child's saddening demise, Bill is unsurprisingly traumatised and the Doctor's indifference bothers her. "How many people have you seen die?" she asks him. He's lost count. "How many people have you killed" comes the follow up. He doesn't want to answer.

When Peter Capaldi was announced as the twelfth Doctor, we all expected a more closed off character. Lately the show has been doing a stellar job of expanding this standoffish-ness into something a bit more accessible, and "Thin Ice" continues this trend well without sacrificing the sternness we've come to enjoy from Capaldi's Doctor. He won't lie to Bill to make her happy, but he knows the truth will make things even worse. Not answering her question is just about all he can do to keep them on the right track.

The episode soon dives under the ice in a sequence perhaps a tad too ambitious for a show of this budget, but once we're back on ground level again "Thin Ice" begins to soar. Dollard's script admirably refuses to sidestep the racial and societal issues of the time, addressing them in focused and even surprising ways. As well as looking at racism, "Thin Ice" takes a stab at poverty and industry, but the episode never loses focus amid all the themes floating around. Dollard's script brings a lot to the plate, but doesn't lose control of what it's saying.

The Doctor's mini speech on humanity and how we should measure it was an effective moment, perhaps strengthened by its brevity. What he's saying here - that we don't look at humanity via industry and that species' are defined through their handling of the less privileged - shouldn't require a mass of words and big, complex sentences. The moment is simple, concise and thoughtful - it's a real treat.

Ultimately, much like "Smile", "Thin Ice" is marginally undone by its conclusion. The episode gets very chaotic in its final act and it eventually gives way to some choppy editing and a few character decisions that don't feel entirely earned - the Doctor making Bill decide their plan was very reminiscent of "Kill the Moon," only not as thought out. Still, there's nothing here overwhelming enough to destabilise an otherwise strong episode.

The Doctor and Bill's relationship remains this season's highlight, heading down slightly darker territory here but still retaining a sense of fun and loyal companionship. For the most part, "Thin Ice" is appropriately balanced with its plot and its character work, made even more engaging through its impressive production design. For the third season in a row, Doctor Who is on strong footing for something great. Here's to the end of act one, let's hope act two is just as good.

Grade: B+

www.morrismovies.co.uk

Doctor Who's classic trifecta of opening 3 episodes has been made present once again - each of the 3 episodes is either in the present, past or future. In this case, Peter Capaldi's Twelve (or Thirteenth) Doctor and Pearl Mackie's Bill are travelling to the past - although unintentionally.

'Thin Ice' feels like a normal episode of 'Who', complete with monsters, one off characters and a previously unseen backdrop. The backdrop in question is London, 1814 during the last freezing of the Thames and there's a sea monster living under the ice! All sounds very classic who already!

Straight off the bat, we can see how good the production design on Who really is - the costumes, the sets, everything looks genuine and really well made. The CGI has also come a really long way since 2005 with the only exception being a brief underwater sequence.

The writing is also very good here (same writer from the 'Face the Raven' episode) with social issues such as class - and more importantly - race being bravely pushed into the limelight.

There are three separate scenes where race is addressed. Less than five minutes in and Bill is worried about her skin colour being a problem due to the time period; later on she presents her surprise at how many black people there are around, to which the Doctor remarks "History is whitewashed' - one of many examples of the writing in this episode reflecting current affairs with subtlety and wit.

Finally, and a more obvious instance, the villain of the episode sees Bill and calls her a "creature" to which the Doctor punches him right in the face - this is a very clever callback to an earlier line where the Doctor says "I'm 2000 years old...I've never had the time for outrage".

Another example of the writing being great is where Bill, shocked by seeing a child die, questions how many people the Doctor has seen die. It's an unexpected line in the episode, and is an example of a Doctor-companion dynamic we haven't really seen before. The Doctor's silence in response is all the answer Bill requires, and so she then follows it up with "Have you ever killed someone?" To this, the Doctor reluctantly answers yes and he "moves on", but refuses to answer the next question asking how many people he has killed.

We already know that the answer is in the millions and billions, and we know Bill is unaware of this which gives off such a conflicting feeling. We feel as if we are judging the Doctor for a brief moment - until he says he moves on so no-one else dies. It's a standout piece of writing, and really previews at some of the unique scripts we could come to see more of this season.

And as usual, Peter Capaldi gets to monologue a bit - something he does very well. But you should watch that speech for yourself.

The writing of the episode isn't all as good as this, as overall the plot takes a while to get going, resulting in the final act being rushed. This doesn't help the episode stand out in the mountain of chapters this series has, but it definitely helps it to stand amongst them.

My only other gripes would be a lack of explanation to the origins of the sea monster itself. We don't know where it came from, how it was captured or how long its been there.

Oh and some of the child acting is a bit awkward...

SUMMARY:

Apart from a rushed final act and villain (which can be expected when the episode is slightly slow to get going with the plot), some more than questionable child acting and some missing plot points (where did the sea monster come from? Who chained it up? And how did they accomplish this?), this weeks episode is a promising and fun addition to Season 10 of Doctor Who!

I don't know what the general consensus is for Thin Ice, but I thought it was kind of boring. So far, The Pilot has been the best episode of the series: it had some nice action, really good cinematography, great performances, strong directing, and a compelling resolution. Smile and Thin Ice both pale in comparison and don't quite match the Pilot's level of quality, excitement, or emotion. With both Thin Ice and Smile, the episodes don't have much mystery and almost no tension throughout the entire 45 minutes.

Thin Ice was a pretty good episode. The performances were good, as usual, but like Smile it was too slow for my liking. The Doctor and Bill make a nice team, it feels like nothing really happens until the end of the episode. Sure, Bill learns a bit more about the Doctor, but aside from that there's no real drama in this episode or anything mysterious/intriguing to pull the viewer in for most of the running time. Although most of the episode wasn't very intriguing, the moment when the villain was about to blow up the Thames with Bill still on it was surprisingly good, with the directing and music working seamlessly to jack up the tension. I did think the ending was nice, and I liked how we saw that the Doctor really cares about Bill when he made that speech about how valuable life is, but unfortunately Thin Ice was really only good for a few minutes in the middle and at the end of its running time.

The music was a bit loud in this one. In the Pilot and Smile it fit each episode perfectly and was never too loud, but in Thin Ice it was a bit overpowering at times, even if it helped create a nice atmosphere.

Overall, Thin Ice wasn't bad, but it wasn't very engaging and for the most part it was inconsequential, at times feeling like a mix of the Beast Below and Kill the Moon. I also hoped that Nardole would have a bigger role in this episode. Still, Thin Ice is an enjoyable episode and has a nice story to it, even if it isn't as interesting as it could have been. 6.5 out of 10.

I found Thin Ice to be a very good episode. It builds the characters wonderfully, has a really satisfying resolution, and some great dialogue. I loved the Doctor's speech to the villain, and Bill's reaction to seeing a child die. Capaldi was great, as was Mackie, but it's a pity that Matt Lucas didn't get much screen time. I also loved the sets and the directing.

Thin Ice was an awesome episode. It's too bad there are so many troll voters who can't deal with Bill being a minority and are rating all three episodes so far a 1/10, calling her inclusion an "SJW cringyfest," whatever that means. People are black and people are gay, and it's high time that TV shows, especially Doctor Who, started to represent that.

9/10

The ending of the last episode setting up this one didn't exactly excite me. The sight of an elephant on the Thames seemed rather silly.

But I watched the episode that followed and was particularly impressed. Not only is there a good plot to sustain the lovely quips between Capaldi (who has really settled into the role) and Pearl Mackie, and this episode also asks important questions about who the Doctor really is, and his attitude towards the people he's killed/seen die across the show's 50 odd year run.

This whole 10th series has been a return to form, and this episode is a good example of this.

Thin Ice (episode three, latest season) was one of the best episodes that I have seen recently partly because the story was actually coherent even if, as a a friend remarked, Doctor Who episodes are so brief these days that it feels like you are watching the notes for a story rather than the story itself.

Thin Ice was set in 19th century London during a Frost Fair on the river Thames. The river would infrequently freeze over during what has been described as a mini ice age, although the frozen Thames was partly the result of the arches of the old London Bridge damming any ice and stemming the tidal flow of the river. See, Doctor Who historical adventures can still prove educational except that here the frost fairs are explained by a big energy converting fish chained underwater by the Sutcliffe family. Don't go with this explanation in your school essays kids!

The period was nicely evoked while challenging audience expectations of the past. I raised an eyebrow at the prevalence of Black characters, but that, it turns out, was my ignorance. If memory cheats, the memory of History deliberately over looks (a 1769 magazine estimated that there were 20,000 'Negroe' (sic)servants in London. So Bill fitted right in. Except when she failed to know her place and the Doctor felt the need to punch out Lord Sutcliffe in a rabble rousing blow for anti-racism. The sentiments were anachronistic, and, as historians would note 'Whigish' but The TARDIS ,The Doctor and chums are built for the pleasures of anachronism.

There were also echoes of fictional London. A gang of pick pockets(brought to life by an excellent child cast) worked the crowd and hats off to the writer for not over playing the parallels to Fagin's gang of child thieves in Oliver Twist . I have a feeling that the monstrous fish was supposed demolish London Bridge as it fled the scene (which would itself have ended the frost fairs) but the CGI was, to put it politely, indistinct at that point.

Sarah Dollard's script back grounded a lot of the plot mechanics so we are told a lot about the scenario but she avoided the info dumping that spoiled 'Smile'. The fish's poo turned out to be amazing fuel for the furnaces of the Sutlicife family's factories and mills, blah, blah, blah.

Instead a lot of time and space was given to developing the Doctor and Bill's relationship through Bill coming to terms with mortality, again unlike 'Smile' in which the characters mostly exchanged quips. It is sad news that actress Pearl Mackie is leaving the season at the end (will Bill die?). She is a real asset to the show and her character has left her awkward origin story well behind to strike up a relationship with the Doctor that can be, by turns, fun and deep.

The story didn't deliver the creepy unease that Moffat manages although there were scenes that should have delivered that even for adults like me: the huge human eye of the monster and the children being sucked beneath the ice by matter transporting parasitic fish which announced their presence with green bio luminescence. But I value a clear plot with scene to scene continuity more than flashy dialogue, scare moments and great imagery that makes not one jot of sense.

Thin Ice delivered a well crafted tale that had plenty for fans. For some it is a special thrill to see the Doctor & Co. adopting clothing contemporaneous with the period the TARDIS visits. For the mind rather than the eye, there were themes and sub texts (parallels between the enslaved fish and slavery ran just beneath the surface) and nods to the more superficial pleasures of the season arc.

What or who is locked up in time vault? Some guess The Master, some Missy and some the first incarnation of The Doctor (played by David Bradly) who is due to come back in the season finale and Crimbo special.

After three enjoyable stories, I actually seem to care about the answer.

PS.Having read other reviews here, I want to directly address the bonkers claims that the BBC was pursuing a left wing agenda by including a Black cast and that had they wished to do a story with Black characters they should set it it in Africa! (I visibly paled with shock on reading that). Where the script was a little crass, was in calling History 'a Whitewash'. This drastically simplified debates around History as too often the story of Great White Men.

What is the case is that London has been an ethnically diverse melting pot for hundreds of years and this diversity does not usually get reflected in representations of the past on mainstream TV or the popular imagination. A real eye-opener for me was 'The Jewel House', Deborah E Harkness's account of Elizabethan London that points to the contribution immigrants to London made to science through the development of crafts and technology.

There are complex issues around recovering lives that have been hidden from history e.g. the lives of the working class, people of colour and women. But the ethnic diversity of London, now and in the past, is not an agenda. It is reality. Live with it.

Wow! This is mindblowing!!

No explanation to what the creature in the Thames is or what came about, but a good storyline!

The Doctor and Bill are in London 1814 where an ice carnival is happening.

So the TARDIS does land and should check his scanner before going out.

Privilege, scandal, urchins, you name it well written.

So people are pulled into the Thames and are a meal

Why?

The Doctor sees a disappearance for himself , a poor young thief named Spider, and decides to get involved (Typical).

He does get the street children / urchins onside (good writing on social consciousness).

The Doctor decides to get Scuba gear and dive in!!

Underneath is a creature that is chained( why?)

Further exploration to a factory with the help of a circus worker reveals mud brick that can be used as rocket fuel.

The Doctor visit the villain Lord Sutcliff and here comes the action. He fakes Club credential and when Sutcliff becomes ungentlemanly, the fight breaks out and the Doctor and Bill are arrested.

The doctor makes the most compassionate speak and have no effect.

Both the Doctor and Bill are sent to the Thames and the desperation now climbs.

Sonic Screwdriver to the rescue and the man with the tattoo holding the sonic screwdriver is lunch.

The best scene. The Doctor is a servant to humanity and Bill has to give the order.

A decision making moment for the companion that makes this the best episode so far.

Yes for liberation and then the action happens.

Bill and street urchins evacuate the river.

The Doctor works on his side.

Sutcliff decides to blow up the river circus.

Instead the Doctor reroutes the explosives to free the creature.

Game on! Sonic Screwdriver is recoverable.

Sutcliff is that last lunch for the fish.

Love the ending where the urchins inherit the Sutcliffe name.

And that newspaper clip rock.

So what is in the vault?

Historical adventure episodes tend to be a little hit or miss for me in Doctor Who, and this one unfortunately has some pretty big misses. Mostly with the story. The sea creature under the frozen Thames during the last frost fair in 19th century London might sound interesting but the idea never really progresses from there. Also, we are too hurried from one scene to the next to ever really feel like anything important is happening, and most of the characters are rather throw-away, including the villain, who is defeated rather ignominiously.

With that said, the episode still has a number of good points - - decent humor throughout, some touching moments along with good moments for Bill's character growth, and just a generally fun feel to the episode. Bill's uncertainty of being in 19th century London as a young black woman and her anger toward The Doctor for his seemingly nonchalant attitude toward death (especially a child's death here) is both understandable and poignant. Of course, we know The Doctor's side but Bill does not. The issue of race is handled interestingly here, with the sea creature doubling as a metaphor for slavery, and is one of the highlights of the episode, both from a serious and humorous point of view. Unfortunately, most of the rest of the episode, while admittedly enjoyable to watch as a whole, is still rather forgettable. Although definitely better than the previous episode. 7.5/10

As it is a BBC program, you get used to the ultra liberal, PC undertones of this show. Mostly it is fine, and you can put it to the back of your mind, and enjoy the episode, mostly. Though with this one, as with many proper historical dramas the BBC have done, history is being rewritten in order to accommodate their liberal narrative. Bill says about her colour after coming out of the Tardis in 1800's London, and slavery was still around, I thought, wow, they never mention colour, I'm impressed. Then as they were walking, we see plenty of black faces, fine, though dressed in fine clothes and top hats, lovely dresses and parasols, and many black British Soldiers as well. Bill says it's a lot more black than she thought, when the Doctor says the past has been Whitewashed! Ah, righty oh then. History being changed to suit today's liberal attitude. Poor episode, though it was tainted for me anyway.

"It's 1814....slavery is still totally a thing!" Slavery was abolished in 1807 in the UK so will it's still totally a thing in the US at that time, in the UK it is not, so there's a fact check for them. The episode was fine, it was a little bit anti-climactic however. I prefered the lower-rated episode: Smile.

As this episode opens Bill and The Doctor find themselves in London in February of 1814 when the last of the famous Frost Fairs was taking place. At first Bill is worried that, as a black person, she will stand out in Regency London but we soon see that she is far from the only black person around. She is also a little concerned that the tiniest action could have major ramifications; to which The Doctor points out that they certainly did for her friend 'Pete' who has been erased from history… it takes a few seconds for her to cotton on that he is teasing.

As the episode progresses the head out onto the ice to enjoy the fair. A pair of street urchins pick The Doctor's pocket and take his sonic screwdriver. Before he can get it back something below the ice takes the boy leaving the screwdriver on the refrozen ice. Bill is upset that there is nothing The Doctor can do to save the boy and even more upset that he doesn't seem to be concerned… he is more concerned about finding out what is under the ice. It is eventually discovered to be a very large aquatic creature; somebody is holding it captive and harvesting its 'waste products' for fuel. The Doctor and Bill will have to find out who is behind this before more people are lured to their deaths on the ice.

I really enjoyed this episode; largely because I've always been somewhat fascinated by the Frost Fairs… something we are unlikely to see again for a very long time. I enjoyed the way the fair was depicted; even showing the elephant that really was taken out onto the ice during that last Frost Fair. The story itself was pretty solid with a good 'monster' before we learn that the real monster of the episode is very much human. Some may think it was a bit heavy handed to bring up the subject of race but no doubt if no mention had been made similar numbers would be wondering why not… and it is understandable that Bill would have been concerned as history teaching hardly emphasises that there were black Britons long before largescale post-war immigration. I liked the way the creature was depicted; a classic 'sea monster' that hunted in a way that provided some decent tension; I certainly hadn't expected a child to be killed. This part of the story had a nice feel-good ending that led up to a short finale where we were reminded of 'The Vault' and here something inside; something that sounded unpleasant. Overall I enjoyed this historical episode; especially the way it intertwined a science fiction story with real events.

Continuing from where the previous week's "Smile" left off, "Thin Ice", the latest offering of the current series sees the Doctor and Bill in London, in 1814 where the city celebrates the largest Frost Fair in its history. However, the locals celebrating the festivities are being snatched away by an immense sea creature that is chained beneath the bottom of the river. Determined to prevent any more innocent lives from falling victim to the beast, the Doctor with the help of his young companion endeavor to discover who has it chained up and why. Written by Sarah Dollard who wrote series 9's "The Raven", I'm pleased to say that while not a masterpiece, "Thin Ice" continues the up-flow trend in the quality of the series which thus far I'm glad to say is proving to be superior to series 9. Less elaborate in terms of its plot than last week's "Smile", it opts for a more simplistic one with the trope of a human villain behind the plot which has been done befor. Despite this it still makes for a fun, enjoyable romp while still retaining something of a darker edge. It certainly isn't afraid to be a bit daring, with one of the victims of the creature being a young street urchin which I wasn't quite expecting and means Bill who along with the Doctor witnessed the boy's death, struggles to come to terms with and leading to a superbly written and performed moment where her faith in the Doctor is undermined.

We also get to see more of the softer side of Capaldi's incarnation, who is attempting to win the trust of a small group of street urchins seemingly led by Kitty played by young newcomer Atu Koroma, who gives a phenomenal performance for one so young and could potentially be a future star in the making. Displaying compassion and empathy we see a man less reluctant to bond with others, as he quite contently reads a story to the children who he temporarily finds under his and Bill's charge. Pearl Mackie continues to impress as Bill, who as the series is progressing I'm finding myself liking immensely and continues to be spirited and resilient while sweet and caring, the kind of qualities that you want in a "Doctor Who" companion. She is a perfect match for Capaldi's incarnation with the chemistry and the growing relationship between the two being palpably felt when the Doctor makes a noble gesture of trust. A move that cements the faith he is already having in her. This is a man who has previously learned from previous mistakes ie "Kill the Moon", with his behavior neatly contrasting that.

If there are flaws, the story is rather unremarkable and is slightly reminiscent of series 5's "The Beast Below", while Lord Sutcliffe is a rather two-dimensional villain, despite actor Nicholas Burns giving a very solid performance given what he has to work with. Overall, despite these faults, "Thin Ice" still manages to be more than its parts, and although not as clever or imaginative as previous stories it never the less makes for an entertaining, traditional monster story that isn't afraid to dally with the grimmer themes with the story even if it's plot is somewhat hackneyed. And with an intriguing coda which may or may not foreshadow the return of Missy who it has been revealed to return (as is John Simm as his incarnation of Missy/The Master) I await next week's episode, "Knock Knock guest starring David Suchet with bated breath.

So, the Doctor lands in the 1800s and the first thing you notice as a viewer, is the intense level of "diversitywashing" / history re-writing going on. You know, that one that pretends to be on the opposite of the racism and discrimination scale, but doesn't tell you that the scale is a ring and it's touching the other end. As if the polarity of one's reality distortion would matter… If they want to show us different cultures, why not have an episode play in an actual normal African place for a change? If they can make it fake-snow, they can make it fake-sunny too. After all, half the point of watching this show, is for the unknown and insights into other ways of living and thinking. That would've been a lot more fun. But hey, at least it may fulfil this job for Nigerians and people in India, so there's a silver lining. :)) (I don't mean that in a sarcastic way.)

THE STORY unfolds to some huge sea creature, whose size can apparently vary from an animal that passes between the narrow pillars of bridges without touching them, over a huge whale/dinosaur that would definitely wreck those pillars, to as long as the entirety of the Thames that passes through London and as thick as 70% of the Thames. Which is held captive by the most stereotypical of 1800s imperialist/industrial nobility. Complete with hat, moustache, henchmen, and comically oversized detonator to push down while angrily clenched teeth. For the purpose of eating poor street children and (literally) shitting out space rocket fuel. Everything in-between was a rather chaotic mess, as usual, with the motto of 'dazzling people with "there's something happening" for lack of anything touching or of memorable relevance'. You are left with a wasted 44 minutes and barely anything but emptiness inside where an impression should be. Talk about thought-terminating clichées!

The only good thing was a bit of nice Doctor-Companion character-development interaction, and "the door" at the end. (Which suggests strongly, that this was a filler.)

THE AESTHETICS are exactly the same as always with such stories. The one's we've seen from Guy Richie's Sherlock Holmes to Star Trek "holo deck" episodes. As if the same costumes have been passed around for generations. Just this time without the usual gritty visual filters. (Remember: It wants to appeal to children.)

ALL IN ALL, there was nothing to leave a lasting impression, except for a mild disappointment in the hate shown by the writers, and mostly by how little it impressed. No matter who you are, or what your views are… this will be the same for you.

But at least, they minimized the risk of "offending" anyone. And that's what it's all about. (Although I'm mildly triggered by them breathing and there being a a sky. Why are you non-breather shaming and mole people shaming?) }And *that* /was/ sarcasm. :}

FINALLY, it looks like the next episode is even going to be worse, with the utterly worn-out "haunted house that eats people" story template.

___ P.S. Dear IMDb: Unamerican English is not wrong, square brackets are not markup, and when I make line breaks, I make them for a reason!

OK, another monster in the Thames. We've been there before. Several times. And this one has somehow been there... forever? How? Why? Who chained it the first time? Why hadn't it moved before it was chained? Why did people chain it rather than kill it hundreds(?) of years ago when it was first 'caught' when they wouldn't have had the means or forethought to check the magical poo of the thing to see if it would be good fuel. Why does it need to eat people? Wouldn't practically any mammal do, given we're all constructed basically the same? This can't simply be brushed off! The monster is your CORE PLOT DEVICE and it NEEDS a reason for being there in a historically highly populated area with intense ship traffic where there is no way in heck it wouldn't have been noticed by now given its sheer size. Even the WORST of the old series tried to give some sort of reason the monster of the week was where it was! And the villain is so one-dimensionally over the top and uninteresting and un-compelling and flat... ugh, I would have preferred a comic villain in the vein of Dr. Evil! And the Doctor in this one... since when does THE DOCTOR sympathize more with the monster that EATS PEOPLE! I don't even know who this character is anymore! If the monster had, I dunno, been sapient and starving and felt sad about eating people but it had no other food... maybe I could accept it... sort of? But as far as we are told, it's just an animal. A man-eating animal. Like ones The Doctor has blown up in many many episodes in the past 50 years. And last I checked, we still tended to kill every man-eating everything anyway. Are we supposed to now feel sorry for the giant python that ate the guy a couple weeks ago? The storytelling is simply preposterous now.

I don't blame Capaldi any more than I did poor Sylvester McCoy... the writers should be ashamed. They get PAID to write this series, and it's as though they're not even trying. I've seen BAD fanfics better than this drivel.

The only thing that will make this episode better is comparing it to the NEXT episode, which is a horror cliché so overdone that the Outer Limits already did it TWICE, and then there was the movie "Monster House". And Doctor Who has ALSO used familiar themes several times. Remember the people disappearing into the fake second-floor flat that was really a space-ship? For a series that can take its characters literally anywhere in the universe in any time... it seems really invested in going nowhere but where everyone has already tread a worn and tired path.

The episode is mostly filler material, a well done (if illogical) CGI monster, an anachronistically diverse Oliver-Twist-like group of urchins, a generic upper-class, capitalist bad guy, and, of course, a "message" (or two or three). The story makes little sense and has the same cop-out ending as the generally despised "In the Forest of the Night". It would have been much more fun if the giant fish had been pooping out starship fuel (like Nibbler in "Futurama") but then we couldn't be proselytized at about the evils of Victorian England and the industrial revolution (on the other hand, we are spared the sight of the Doctor embracing misunderstood aliens in the spirit of intergalactic "Why can't we all just get along?"). Watching Patrick Troughton (2nd doctor) fight robots made out of tinfoil and cardboard boxes is still entertaining but I wonder who, in 30 years, is going to watch the current crop of Doctor Who.