Caves and Twins: Let’s Kill Hitler

Doctor Who’s back! With the second part of Series Six, which has been split in two for reasons that’s absolutely aren’t anything to do with money or ructions among the production team or Moffatt’s schedule.

Four episodes into the Silence/River story arc and there’s at least some manner of closure. But was Let’s Kill Hitler The World at War or was it Allo Allo?

Caves

The regulars – I have doubts about Alex Kingston as River Song sometimes, mainly because the lines are occasionally terrible and the character is a bit annoying, but the main trio are excellent and have great chemistry

River Song – I quite liked the set-up of who River becomes, with the diary and archaeology.

Twins

Everything – That sounds a bit glib and unfair but I think the biggest problem with this is that it’s just a massive ball of confusion, with story arcs going back several years in some cases.

Somehow, it’s still not clear how, the Silence are involved as is the eyepatch lady and in the midst of everything our heroes are in Hitler’s office – for no other apparent reason other than it’s clearly supposed to be a kerrayzee thing to do – while miniaturised war criminal hunters are stalking around in a shapeshifting robot with the aim of torturing the Fuhrer.

No doubt a breathless review in DWM will laud it all for that very reason – bonkers! – but coherent storytelling that doesn’t require an episode of Confidential to explain it all seems to be in short supply at the moment. The Silence, the killing of the Doctor, the reason for River being in prison – it’s still all ongoing and I’m bored of it; it feels like Doctor Who is in danger of collapsing under the weight of its own mythos and how pleased it is with itself.

I don’t think these stories are actually poor but they aren’t easy to follow and require an increasing effort to keep up with that. The ‘story arc’ episodes in this series have left me cold – and I’m a Doctor Who fan.

Mels – Like Ace but worse. And a swerve that was pretty flippin obvious.

Funny regeneration – Firstly, River seems to experience regeneration as orgasmic, which is a rather tedious little touch if totally in keeping with Moffatt’s tics, then we get the trademark ‘whacky regeneration’ acting and music. Bleh.

Another non death – Tiresome; decreasing returns; and feels lazy

Hitler – I’m prepared to go along with it but really? Doctor Who meets Hitler? Dangerous territory.

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