Behind the Scenes | Dot and Bubble | Doctor Who 

Kudos to Callie Cooke and her performance. I went from finding her annoying to hoping she'd learn to live better after her escape, to hating her after she gave up Ricky and the episode's final scene and wanting the slug monsters or the Dots to get her.

very glad Russell deliberately told a story about racism in the future. Often when these dramas address racism and it's done in the past or in a period setting people like to wash their hands of it "thank god we're not like that now" when the reality is racist attitudes are still very prevalent.

Technically three villains: the slugs, technology, and racism

The only thing thats rough about this is on the re-watch you are definitely rooting for the slugs....

"My cheekbones looked really good" sir you have been graced with perhaps the greatest cheekbones in the known universe, no lighting can make them look any less than impeccable

The puppeteers are getting WORK this series!

This must have been the episode that made Mille cry. Her tears while the Doctor begged them to let him help seemed genuine. The director didn't put any focus on it, her crying wasn't even in focus. Heart wrenching episode.

This episode was filmed on my uni I did a watch party and we all cheered whenever we saw the campus

The outfit the Doctor has in this episode is so iconic, I hope this becomes the frequent revisit like how 12 had his favorites.

This series is getting progressively better. I am Black and as much as I disliked Lindy, I think there was a moment of pause/reflection/change in her. Her stare down with the doctor shows fractures of a different person in her. I think the Doctor did save them with an idea that runs counter to their own. He seeded an idea in her that I think will carry forward. While this episode appeared in absolutes, the fracture at the end made it so much more. This series is complex, great, emotional. So glad Davies is back doing this. And the music selections are great!

Justice for Ricky September! We definitely saw the fury of the Timelord by the Doctor at the end of the episode.

The actress for Lindy was phenomenal. One of the best Doctor Who episodes I’ve ever seen.

The real monsters are the people in Dot and Bubble. Lindy I was expecting her to change but she gets worse. And the ending? That physically hurt. Also Ncutis first scene to film from what I understand.

Ncuti's acting in this episode. Just incredible.

Just finished watching the episode, and I was not expecting to end like that, it really shocked me. At first I thought Lindy was just an annoying person, but after she killed Ricky, I couldn't stand her. Callie Cooke did a really good job It was so heartbreaking seeing The Doctor breakdown like that. Even when they were horrible to him, he still wanted to help. Ncuti Gatwa was amazing in that scene.

Ncuti Gatwa is VERY quickly becoming one of my favourite Doctors, he is PHENOMENAL and that scene at the end?! Wow... my heart broke for the Doctor, it says a lot about how compassionate he is that despite how VILE and racist Lindy and her friends are that he was still willing to save their lives, Lindy especially who is just the WORST, not only is she racist but she murdered her so called love interest just to save her own life and she didnt even have the decency to admit it... I don't think I've EVER hated a character more, and now because of her and her friends' prejudice they are all doomed to die. The slugs were right! And the Doctor didn't deserve to be treated that way... what a fantastic performance from Ncuti, and the fact it was the FIRST scene he filmed?! Wow!

This episode. Everything was on another level. Things are not what they seem. But that end scene. I just want to hug the Doctor 🫂

Looking back there's so many details that made it really obvious how racism was the fuel of this episode. Lindy didn't know the Doctor and Ruby, but when the Doctor tried to call her she immediately swiped him. When Ruby appeared later, Lindy sulked but she stayed and listened. As soon as she found out the Doctor and Ruby were together, she complained even more. You also realise, like a smack in the face, how everyone else is white and the Doctor is the only black character.

Boom, 73 Yards, and Dot & Bubble are just great DoctorWho episodes! They feel familiar, with all the flavor and weirdness we've always loved about Doctor Who, but they ask new questions, and answer them in ways that feel classic and new at the same time. This season is really hitting its stride! Can't wait for more! Bravo!

Shout out to the director for the last two episodes. So gripping thanks to that direction

This was the BEST episode in a decade, thank you RTD and the whole crew and cast, it is a masterpiece

I think this is the first NuWho episode where we see the characters outdoors in a futuristic city - every other futuristic city it's been indoors (or in a tight alleyway in Gridlock that I think is supposed to be underground) e.g. Hell Bent is set in the desert then once they get to the city it's all indoors. Anyway what I'm saying is I'm really glad we got to see the entirety of a place like Finetime, and I'm glad the production managed to fold the harsh Welsh weather into the worldbuilding.

Through absolutely no fault of her own beyond how great she is at acting, Callie Cooke makes my eye twitch. LMAO this episode will stick with me for years to come. Seriously, the commentary at the end of it is worth the price of admission alone.

This was such a great twist in the end. I did not see that coming. But once she said it, it hit me that every character except The Doctor was white. It hit like a stone falling on my chest. I wonder if I did not notice because I, myself am white? (which makes an even larger impact on me).

this episode was FANTASTIC!! the commentary, the sets, the costuming. and the. the TWIST at the end? Ncuti's acting was AMAZING because his breakdown was spectacular. I'm so impressed.

Ncuti Gatwa's performance in that last scene (his only "in person" scene) was phenomenal. Probably one of the most powerful scenes in Doctor Who ever (and my memory goes back a fair way). Showing some real Doctor gravitas. Unfortunately for The Doctor in this story, not everyone wants to be saved...

The end got me. I was about to scream at the screen in frustration.

I love the Doctor being totally in touch with his emotions and his tears!

this was an insane episode blew my expectations out the water

A 'Midnight' Episode. A world with what appears to be good people and then it just takes one bad thing to really see what they are Edit: As a Whovian since Tennant, I know how on-its-own-level Midnight is. It was that pit-in-the-stomach feeling I got when I found out what Lindsey is and how Gatwa's Doctor reacted to the dark nature of humanity that got me thinking of Midnight (Tennant's look of disgust after the hostess sacrificed herself)

past 3 episodes have been amazing, gatwa might be my favourite doctor and that’s HARD to beat. his acting is amazing especially at the end of this episode. keep this up and doctor who is BACK 🎉🎉

As much as I admire every doctor that came before, it is safe to say, Ncuti has earned his spot. Every single episode, his acting is just out of this world. And that scene in the end. Millie's tears in the background, ncuti's frustration that he would still save them despite the blatant racism, and lindy's defiance and absolute conviction in her own actions. My god. I know its sci fi, but this episode was such an actors discourse.

Ncuti has officially had what I call his "Capaldi moment". For Pcap it was the anti war speech in the Zygon Inversion. For Ncuti it was THAT scene. I thought this was gonna be fuller but OMG I was so wrong.

I take it that the ending was the moment that when Ncuti filmed it the crew looked at him and all collectively said "He's the Doctor."

THERE'S ALWAYS A TWIST AT THE END

MILLIE THE MONSTER IS LINDY lol

His smile after he said his cheekbones looked good 😂 So cute <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="197">3:17</a>

Good job Russell seeing the obvious flaw in the discussion about historicals. This sadly isn't just a problem of the past. Rosa had a future villain too. It's depressing, but a perfect warning for the present if we don't start combatting this problem once and for all right now. Ya gotta step out of your bubble and see what others deal with every day. Brilliant episode!

Yk i'm really happy that these behind the scenes videos aren't trying to pretend there's less digital effects than there are actually is, like how Barbie's behind the scenes did. I appreciate the honesty so that we can actually understand and respect the craft of those digital artists along with the practical ones.

The slugs looked so cool!

i think this was my favourite episode so far this season. I totally missed the 'white' thing until she said that at the end.

I will say the costume that Ncuti is wearing at the end is definitely his best as well as his Church on Ruby road costume he should wear them more often

It's like Doctor Who and Black Mirror had a baby in this series.

Watching the slug monsters eating the people was absolutely terrifying! There were few 1950's sci fi movies that had slug monsters, so it's not a new concept, but the way they carried it off in this episode was very creepy and scary!

Having zoom meetings about the making of the episode is kinda ironic :D

This is one of those episodes of Doctor Who that we find out the real monsters are the humans. Amazingly done!

Callie Cooke was really good as Lindy. WTG! Callie. You made and were the whole episode, lol.

The ending got me good because at first I thought it was just about the Doctor not being part of their Fantime society but no it was about his appearence. If they are always that annyoing I can actually understand why the Dots started to hate them and even planned to eradicate them all. If they wanted to learn from their mistake to only live inside the bubble and build a new life I would understand it but they refused the Doctor´s help because he´s different and that´s just being ignorant.

Not being able to walk without the bubble makes total sense. Our visual cortex uses a horizon to balance. They’ve done experiments showing it can take up to 30minutes for a human to learn to walk with an off kilter horizon.

This episode hit me right in the white privilege; I didn't see it coming and I should have but even though I try not to live in a bubble, I *still* didn't realize all the other faces we saw throughout the episode were white until Lindy uttered those words. "Because you, *sir*, are not one of us." Just a reminder that as a white person, the process of rooting out all of the implicit biases and unexamined racism is never-ending. Great episode.

dang I actually thought she didnt want to get saved by the doctor, was because he and ruby arent from the "homeland" and since they thought that the "bigger on the inside" was not real so they tried on their own, but the "cuz ncuti is black" bit went way over my head, wow

I didn’t actually realize that everyone was white until that last scene, that’s when everything Hit me! It really put such a light on the term micro aggressions, as a black women you thing you would be so sensitive to those things but a lot of times they go right over your head until your hit with a not so micro one that has you questioning your reality, like how could I have missed this, but it’s because just like in fine time we want to believe that everything is fine

The end was really heartbreaking

I did NOT expect to be blindsided by this episode the way I was. The story was great, the writing incredible, and the cast absolutely knocked it out of the park. Hand to God, if I didn't enjoy Twelve's attitude so much, this episode would've sealed Fifteen in as my favorite Doctor.

Based on the previews, I was really unsure how I would feel about this episode. But it ended up being yet another banger after Boom and 73 Yards! I was sucked into this world early on, and Ncuti and Millie were utilized very well despite not being the “main” characters. Callie Cooke put on an excellent performance as Lindy. I went from finding her deeply frustrating to having compassion for her to just-HATING her more than I’ve hated a character in a long time. I appreciate RTD’s decision to write racism into a story about a future society, too. It’s easy to think and we’d like to hope things we’ll be all fine and dandy in the future and those prejudices won’t still exist, but that’s the thing about humans. We don’t develop on a linear path and there will likely always be hate and bias to reckon with. The Doctor’s realization at the end was gut-wrenching, and Ncuti’s performance hit like a truck.

I felt for the Doctor at the end. very frustrating.

It's rare to actually root for the giant slugs and evil AI to kill off the characters, but this episode definitely succeeded (that's a compliment btw)!

That looks exactly like one of Delia's statues in Beetlejuice, the one that grabs her.

This episode had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Kudos!

Anyone else think Ricky was companion material? That death was really shocking.

Damn, the writing this season has been 🔥

I love RTD, he said what about now? Why do you think racism is only in the past? 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

Best episode of the series that I've seen.

Callie absolutely nailed this role. This episode wouldnt work without her.

The big group call where The Doctor gives them all the instructions was when it first clicked for me. I saw their muted reactions to him, and that's when I realized that EVERYONE was white and it was such a gut punch

Thought there might have been a connection with Ricky September & Ruby Sunday, having the same initials…but sadly Ricky gets killed

10/10. The great reveal...was so shocking and brutal. A great analysis about influencers, celebrity, snobbery and racism. I dont know which monster was the worse. The Doctor and Ruby are ace !

#InRickyWeRemember

This entire season is Russell trolling the anti woke crowd. Here for it.

I was taken aback by this episode. so powerful, aspects so reflective of real life today. Brilliantly put together and acted, a masterpiece of television. the lead character Lindy looks so sweet but is in fact a nasty and spoilt young lady, a manipulative liar too. Then there was the racist slur at the end, not something I was expecting but it fitted in well with the character. This series of Dr Who is different, so sad for the likes of Jodie who never had the opportunity to work with such excellent material.

Doctor Who is BACK this series. Brilliant stories, incredible acting. Well done DW team for saving my fave show.

I honestly don't think Ricky would've turned down the Doctor and Ruby. He's seen the home-world destroyed so to be the most intelligent one in that whole dome, reading books and balancing a social life balance away from the toxicity, he would've never gone back to his old life after that. The TARDIS would've been his only way out and THAT WAS TAKEN FROM US!!! :( If the 12th Doctor found out how Ricky got clipped, bro woulda reigned hell upon Lindy for the rest of eternity

Such an amazing episode. As a series of doctor who, I'm waiting for and expecting at least one miss, but damn this season really has just been hit after hit after hit

And yes, I loved Ricky!

I didn't even realize the implication of the ending when I first watched the episode. Ncuti and the rest of 15's crew are in for a hell of a ride wherever the TARDIS takes them 💙

this show has been so beautifully diverse so far that it was genuinely jarring to see an ep where nearly all of the characters were white. even the pastel set dressing hit home how aryan they were, and ruby getting through to lindy when the doctor couldn't was so uncomfortable.

I just watched it and I'm in shock. RTD is genius. The best episode of the season so far.

Preaching direct from RTD''s bubble.

i just watched this ep on my phone hooked into a rokid max headset... ar headset... while going for a walk. must unsettling experience i have ever had

The color transformations after editing is so cool

Gibson unironically saying things are "ace" just as the fictional character Ace did 35+ years ago! 😄

You could tell something was off with Lindy by the way she'd interact with Ruby more than the doctor. I was half waiting for the doctor to call her out on killing Ricky. Excellent performance from everyone.

That whole society wasn't worth saving, they weren't worth getting the Doctor's help.

I still find it all almost a bit over the top, and I still can’t pronounce his name, but I really like this new Doctor 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

I think i wouldn't have hated Lindy Pepper-Bean half as much had it not been for amazing Callie Cooke performance

Cooke made this episode, she was amazing. That was on par with Umbridge as an iconic evil/horrible character.

This season has given me an excitement for drwho I haven’t had for 15 years. I really dropped off halfway through the capaldi years. Moffat’s writing just wasn’t making me… care? I care about this doctor and these characters SO much.

I know I'm going to sound really thick but it totally did not clock with me that when Lindy said, "you're not one of us" to The Doctor at the end that she was being racist. I thought she just meant that he wasn't from her planet.

So excited for the rogue episode can't wait ncuti gatwa performance at the end of dot and bubble he is the awesome doctor ever

the aliens where the real heroes hahahahaha

Brilliant

Best episode this season

Such an amazing episode!!!

why waste tardis fuel trying to save a colony of karens 😂

Gave me total black mirror vibes it was amazing ❤

Yet another fantastic episode, being much more dark than the colourful set first let you think. Very good acting skills from the whole cast. These last three stories have been brilliant, really brilliant.

The dots said "eat the rich" and i felt that

I loved this episode it was up there with blink as my all time favorite

In the end, i kinda sided with the murderous AI and slugs

Nobody talking about the reveal that the homeworld was destroyed?