DISCLAIMER: If the review feels very negative to start, please stick it out I promise it's not all complaining. Also note that this is very, very long, but please try to read it all. Thanks.
I have to give Chibnall credit. This is probably his magnum opus. And by that I mean this is the most Chris Chibnall episode of all time and he wasn't even slightly apologetic. Every flaw, every problem previously seen in any Chibnall episode is not only in this episode, it takes front and center. There are no attempts here to tell a well written cohesive story, no. This episode is merely Chibnall throwing in every idea he possibly had for his last episode as showrunner and not giving a care in the world whether or not it works. This is his episode, after all.
Let's start with the dialogue, which here is just so exemplary of every problem Chibnall dialogue has. There are so many scenes here of characters spouting information, not to other characters, but TO THEMSELVES as a means of conveying that information to the audience. Once stook out enough, but it happens many times across the episode. On top of that, the dialogue itself is incredibly on the nose and lacking any subtlety whatsoever. Common Chibnall stuff.
The plot, however, is where things start to get interesting. Basically none of it works, and it all just exists as barely connected ideas that Chibnall wants in the story. Again, he doesn't care if it's cohesive or not. He's here to make this his story, his way. It's almost admirable just how far he sticks to that principle. The Master being Rasputin in 1916 literally adds nothing. He could've enacted his plan in the present day, but he doesn't. Why? Because Chibnall wants The Master to be Rasputin. That's it. Why the heck does the Master bother getting the Daleks on his side? He could've easily just used a similar ploy with the Cybermen to capture the Doctor, why bother with Daleks? Simple. Because Chibnall wants the Daleks in this episode. That's all. Cut them out completely and most of it wouldn't change, and the few parts that would you could easily rework.
A plot point in this episode is that the Master regenerates himself into the Doctor, not only because he is envious of the Doctor but because he wants to sour her name. Ok, cool. But there is no payoff. This is undone just as easily as it is done in the first place, and he doesn't do anything during the time he's the Doctor. Yaz just ditches him on an asteroid while she formulates a plan to take him down (which he falls for because Chibnall says so), comes back for him, enacts her plan, and beats him. There is no payoff whatsoever. He literally spends his entire time as the Doctor sitting on an asteroid before losing because Chibnall needs the Doctor back. But then again, the plot basically still had the Doctor throughout the brief period of time that the Master was the Doctor through the TARDIS AI. A perfect simulation of the Doctor that literally acts exactly like her and serves her purpose in the plot. Convenient. But then again, Chibnall needed the Doctor in the plot for the plot to 'work', but he also really wanted the Master to regenerate into the Doctor, even if nothing became of it. Limits? What's that? This is Chibnall's episode! He must have EVERYTHING he wants!
This episode seems like it's going for some interesting themes at first. Maybe it'll be about Yaz coming to terms about her feelings for the Doctor while knowing she isn't nearly her first companion. Maybe it'll explore the character of the Master and his envy of the Doctor. But nope, those themes and ideas are thrown away the second they start to show the tipsy tops of the hair on their heads. Chibnall can't bother with nuance, after all. Thasmin has no payoff whatsoever here. I wasn't the biggest fan of the ship, even though I appreciated its normalisation of LGBTQ+ relationships with the Doctor. But after how much it was built up to through 'Eve of the Daleks' and 'Legend of the Sea Devils', it feels really cheap to have no payoff at all. I'd even call it close to queer-baiting. Also, can we real quick touch on how Chibnall did hardly anything with the Timeless Child twist? Aside from its minor impact on Flux that could've been reworked, what was the point of this supposedly big twist again? WHAT ARE YOU DOING CHIB-!?
And yet.
And yet with all that said, I liked the episode.
...
I mean it. And it wasn't because of Chibnall's writing. No. It was because of his use of other people's work.
Let's start with the Master. Sacha Dhawan, who carries this episode on his bare shoulders, is amazing here. I always felt like he was holding back in previous episodes featuring him, but here he is allowed to go all loose and I love it. He's enjoying himself so much, and he brings the character's trademark insanity to a full front while mixing with his own charm as an actor. He acts leaps and circles around everyone else in the episode and is by far the best part. He was thouroughly entertaining to watch and almost made you forget how dumb his character's plan was. While he doesn't sell the drama quite as well as the insanity, he does that adequately enough where he always feels like he's dominating.
Madip Gill as Yaz also gives what is probably the best performance she's given in the show, She's nowhere near Dhawan's level, but she actually really tries. She elevates her material and actually manages to convey emotion when she isn't speaking, something Chibnall clearly had no input in. She manages to put more into her character here than is really there and I applaud her for it. Chibnall did nothing for her, and she gave us something. Jodie herself was also pretty good. Not on her best towards the beginning, but her performance really turned around as the episode went on and I think she really tried her best. I enjoyed her in this episode.
Now let's talk about the guest characters, which is a pretty mixed bag. I've actually not yet seen the seasons of Doctor Who that feature Ace and Tegan (I know, I know) but I still like the scenes where they talk to their versions of the Doctor. It was actually really well handled and it's something I genuinely applaud Chibnall here for. These aspects of the episode were clearly his focus, even if he trashed up the rest in order to do so. As for the performances of the two women, they were fine. They were given some really awful dialogue to deal with, but their acting also never impressed me. They showed some enthusiasm though, so that was good.
Vinder's actor clearly doesn't want to be here and I don't blame him. His character added close to nothing. Yaz could've literally just picked up a gun before coming back for the Master and that would've worked. Dan leaves in an awkward scene towards the beginning because apparently Chibnall didn't have room for him in the story. Never stopped him before, but whatever. He comes back in the ending anyway, so what was the point? I think it would've worked better if he left at the end of 'Legend of the Sea Devils', but whatever. I'm actually kinda shocked at how hard I smiled at Graham's appearance. He's by far the best character Chibnall has created and Bradley Walsh is by far one of the best actors the show has ever had. His performance elevates his material extraordinarily and he was a delight to watch. Weird that they couldn't get Ryan back though.
The cameos from the previous Doctors were nice. I wish they'd gotten some of the New Who ones as well. David Bradley is still a great First Doctor, and man did I love seeing Paul McGann. I love his radio stories so much and think he is an absolute delight. The Doctor's regeneration feels a little rushed, but it gets the job done. The climax is pretty well handled, all things considered, despite the terrible writing. I enjoyed the use of the 'Rasputin' song despite it being so on-the-nose. Ashad barely spoke and that was wonderful.
So that was 'The Power of the Doctor'. Did it stick the landing? I think so. I think that if it didn't feel like a Chibnall episode, it would be less satisfying. I'm glad he's no longer running the show, but after all, this era still happened, and I don't think we should forget about it, as bad as it was at times. As I said in the opener, this is the most Chibnall episode of all time. It wouldn't feel right if it was any other way.
But most importantly, even though Chibnall really didn't try in the writing of this episode, what he absolutely did do was try to make it enjoyable. And so did most of the people involved (except for Vinder). They all really tried their best to send off the era on a good note, and I applaud them. So overall, Chibnall kinda suceeded. Not through himself, but he did succeed in his goal. I had fun.
