I AM TORN 🫣 Doctor Who: Season 1 Finale Review (The Legend of Ruby Sunday & Empire of Death) 

What did you think of the finale? 👀

Congratulations meeting DT, that's so nice! Ruby's mum reveal definitely feels like it wasn't totally planned at the start. I agree that the lack of loss felt unsatisfying. I felt that way on first viewing of The Giggle too, but on subsequent views I've been invested in both episodes more. I thought maybe Sutekh was so invested in Ruby because of the Eye of Horus - a ruby of the sun god. But that wasn't confirmed so idk. I agree about Kate, she's so much more interesting this last year. I pretty much agree with you on everything lol. I think with the spoon thing it needed to be metal that was real and not remembered, I think that's why he couldn't use anything from the remembered TARDIS. He needed material that was directly from the real world.

Love how Christel completely forgot about space babies in her ranking

Hi Christel, I think it would be great to look back on the past year as a whole, not just the past season, and how well it bodes for DW's future. I think it'd be great to get some insight from kids or older newcomers too, because for all of the criticisms of Empire of Death we had, there also those who probably thought it was the most epic hour of TV ever. But whatever you do next, I'll sure you'll keep up the good work.

Please, keep doing more DW content for youtube! I love to hear you talking about it and your opinions. I would be great to see your impressions revisiting past seasons

So cool to see you and DT together! And yes, I want more content from you here on YT, please!

Good to have seen you again on the podcast, great video and review

I both love your reviews and am so thrilled you got to meet DT! Maybe do reviews of the ones you love as your rewatches (from the whole time not just the new season).

Very interesting that at the readthrough during Ruby & Louise's reunion there were flakes of snow in the coffee shop that didn't appear in the episode ❄️ - Source: "Ruby's Reunion: From Script To Screen | Behind The Scenes | Empire Of Death | Doctor Who" on the official RU-vid channel

Have loved your reviews of this season, thanks for putting them together - you do such a good job! Need you back on that podcast or the fan show mk 2! BUT … where’s Space Babies on your ranking list?!?! lol

First off, in regards to the spoon, the Doctor said that he needed REAL metal, not just memories of metal which is what was in the remembered TARDIS. Now about the episodes, love that they addressed the TARDIS anagram and the name Susan which was the main ongoing fan theory and then making it a huge red herring. Honestly, I thought having it be a red herring was fun. My issue with it is that it means that for most of past 1, the characters are doing almost nothing that actually moves the plot, outside of finding something weird about the TARDIS, which was going to happen anyway. It’s to the point where part 2 almost holds up on its own without part 1 at all. Part 2 wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t great either. Maybe the upper end of ok? My biggest criticism is that, because of the red herring, there was quite a bit of wasted time in part 1 and that meant less time to breathe in and take things in and flesh things out part 2.

Kate might be getting a call from UNIT HR about their policies regarding romantic entanglements with subordinates. 😄

It's funny in your boom review you mentioned moffat doing the same things. This season was basically Russell doing the same thing again.

Fully agree with you on Ruby’s mum. RTD said in unleashed that the story isn’t over and people are ignoring it

I think I largely agree with you. Even tho I watched the episode late and had seen a spoiler that Sutekh was back, it was an amazing reveal literal goosebumps. Also amazing redesign of Sutekh. The way they built up Susan Triad to potentially be Susan granddaughter and then the twist at the end (pun not intended… or maybe it was🤔) was great as well. My main (only, really) complaint about it is the simplicity of the threat. Like, simple literal death being the massive thing that they have to combat in the finale seems too simple, and seems too simple to be the crowning glory for a villain as evil and conniving as Sutekh. Even tho it’s possibly a bit more generic, if he’d killed a lot of the universe and then kept the rest in some form of torment/torture, (admittedly very equatable to The Master in series 3 and Davros in series 4) it would have had a lot more impact and gravitas, because it would have hit the emotions more. He could have still had his “empire of death” (and thus also delivered that killer line) without it being so literal and destroying a lot of the tension. I also agree with you regarding the quick resolution of the story with Sutekh getting dragged through the time vortex, it was funny but destroyed the scale of it all, and it also, in combination with everything that had come before it, felt like a very underserved “final” end for such a villain as Sutekh. So much so that I wanna write a Sutekh return and pitch it to Russell myself 😂. That being said, the concept of even memory itself dying and the doctor’s anguished scream at it all was amazing. Overall, pretty damn good, but definite room for improvement

I think, and other people have also said it, this season has been all about giving meaning to relationships and things we give special meaning. Ruby's biological mother may be an ordinary person, but what she means to Ruby is hugely important. And you see the Doctor give meaning to objects like intelligent gloves, rope, etc. And add a bit of mystery and magic to that, fits in perfectly with all the magic infused content on Disney+ where I watch Doctor Who these days. It's a way of showing what is important to us, makes it more meaningful.

So glad you had a great meeting with David - that picture is so cool! Loved this video - totally agreed with everything you said… Nice to see at least one considered, critical , upbeat and positive review! So much negativity out there at the moment! Would love to see more vids like this - and loved your in depth Ace jacket video - so maybe some deep dives like that, about Who stuff you like, would be fun… Keep up the good work! 😃

I just think someone could make a funny skit about so much of Doctor Who has become, "Fill-in-the-Blank is coming, they're coming, get ready, it's going to be so bad" for an entire season, then one 5 second scene where the New Big Bad finally arrives, then a bunch of filler, then another 5 second whimsical technobabble solution, then the end.

I think there's a throw away line about needing metal that's not from the memory tardis. It's a really nice scene, but does feel contrived. I mean, besides jamming it into the screen, we don't know what the problem was that he solved.

I agree with needing more humour and lightness. I loved Rogue sm and we had some really depressing episodes this season. The Doctor and Ruby have great banter. I want to see more of their awesome dynamic next season, no more doctor light episodes please. Awesome video.I agree with many of your criticisms. My faves were Rogue, The Devil's Chord the Church on Ruby Road and the Legend of Ruby Sunday. Please do more youtube videos. Reviews for DW episodes or maybe reaction videos?

Shockingly I got Sue Tech about two weeks before space babies in a r/doctorwho theory

OMG how cool to meet David Tennant and he knows who you are! That's soooo cool

RTD has already confirmed (in the commentary I think) that Mrs. Flood's story will unfold next season. So she will probably not play a big part in this years christmas special. And about the spoon, the Doctor said that he needed something real so that the Tardis could stabilize. All the stuff in the Tardis was just a memory and not really real Also you forgot Space Babies in your ranking 😂

Awesome review

David Tennant's a massive fan himself. He probably watched The Fan Show.

Had to search this video up on ur channel to find it ? Didn’t appear on my subscriber list

As well as the Theresa May dance, there's another PM dig, in suggesting the current PM, isn't authorised to visit UNIT.

Would love to see you review the classic series

I agree there should have been an actual cost.

love your content so more please!.

I agree with your review pretty much entirely - the reveal of Ruby’s mum was totally underwhelming considering how much they’d built it up - including RTD himself - over the last few weeks (months?). And the pointing - I cannot believe that that was the original intention for that scene; otherwise, like you say, the sinister way she points, the cloak, the reason for the pointing. It just doesn’t make sense, at all. I can understand it a bit more now that the dust has settled, but when I was watching it and after the previous episode it just felt like there has to be a massive reveal of who her mum was, so to just have it be…drumroll…Louise…I actually truly don’t think I’ve ever felt so hyped one moment and disappointed the next, ever. You left Space Babies off your list! I think that was my least favourite.

Hey Christel you missed Space Babies in your ranking, would love to know where it is for you

I can see why this episode was so divisive it could be argued the Toy maker was stronger because it took 2 doctors to defeat him. I feel he was secondary to the Ruby story. But I think we've just seen RTD activate the biggest reset button ever. Planets/Characters killed off could return "Oh side effect of taking God Dog for a Walk" Mrs Flood has now worn the same outfits as Romana. Rory. Clara. Her ominous speech at the end looked like Christmas but there were no decorations up in Ruby's house. So the Snow connection has to be the link between her and Millie's Limited return in Series 2. Dobson said on the red carpet in series 2 who Mrs Flood is and her plans are revealed. I'm gutted we are only seeing Millie in a limited form in series 2. She is amazing and considering it was only 8 episodes its like we hardly know her. Quite a few people have questioned the outfit Ruby's mother was wearing, I think Mrs Flood is the monk and picked Ruby up for the reason of changing the timeline. It would make more sense the hooded cloak, The backstory of the monk would tie in with how Mrs Flood was talking when she knew the end was coming. Then when restored she called the Doctor "Clever boy" where have we heard that before ? The monk would jump in and out of the Doctors timeline without a 2nd thought.

I was left very cold by this finale, none of it seemed to work for me other than Mel but she’s from my favourite period of the show. The relationship between Ruby and The Doctor felt to me rather undercooked therefore the last fifteen minutes fell flat and there was to much fan service it just seemed to get in the way.

Because the season was so short RTD didn't have the time to build things up like he used to do. The season needed at least 2 more episodes. Having said that, I did really enjoy it.

Maybe Sutekk has fixed the flux

I agree with your points. I was disappointed with the death of Sutekh. I like Ncuti but I am finding him a bit weepy. Overall I would give the season 5/10. Rogue and Space Babies being my least favourite episodes. It's great to see you in long form content because the BBC podcast was awful! You are so much better.

I have really enjoyed the chemistry between Ncuti & Millie however 8 episodes was not enough to make me feel emotional at their temporary departure. We have not seen them together enough in S1 & even when they were in the same episode like "Rogue" they were apart. This change in companion dynamic has come far too early (Should have been saved for S2) when Millie Gibson could have become a very memorable companion, inevitably she will take a backseat once Varada Sethu appears & established with Ncuti. I think Millie will be in a few eps & the finale of S2 & then that will round off her time in a dramatic finale involving her family & Mrs Flood's "Absolute Terror" will come to pass

Just once I would like a season of well written individual episodes with no season arc.

I would've had Rose at least try to run off screen & not see her getting dusted & I would not have shown Carla/Cherry/Mrs Flood being dusted just to keep some mystery there because we know there was 1 unit solider who was told to go to "bunker 17" Why?? Did 15 expect her to survive there?? This whole ep feels like such an unfinished draft

David is fantastic! Congratulations on meeting him! But we've had to miss him at Heroes Dutch Comic Con last weekend because of a change in his schedule. But we hope he'll be able to join us for a future edition. He's a true gem!

I agree about Sutekh being lessened into a dog on a leash. As an old fellow it saddened me because I remember Sutekh in The Pryamid of Mars and what a scary evil creature he was. I also agree that Stolen Earth/Journey's End was very effective. I don't know though whether Donna should have come back into the series or not. I felt sad at the end of Empire of Death. Regretfully I am in the camp of feeling underwhelmed and to some extent used. Loyal DW fans being baited and then without any return. Bonnie Langford has been brilliant and a genuine plus within crazy lot of noise and pizazz. I do have a question: Should DW fans gave to try and justify concerns in their minds? This is why I believe in narratives that have a satisftying and believable resolution. Now that RTD has toyed and teased viewers without any connection in the end, how will we now ever know if he is just putting in cheap little easter eggs (is that what they are called) to entice viewers only to be let down again? Millie Gibson was great. I would also like to see the Doctor be more humourous. A great review and interesting take. Cheers. Where did you rate Space Babies?

I notice Space Babies didn't get a spot on the list. I really think if they had scrapped that one for the sake of telling more story, the finale could have been somewhat satisfying.

I am _really_ not a huge fan of mixing god-level threats to the [insert impressive spacial geographical feature here] into one super group. Let the Toymaker and Maestro be their own thing, the Trickster's gang, the Black and White Guardians of Time, the Beast in _The Satan Pit,_ the Mara, the Eternals, the Gods of Ragnarok, Fenric, the Daemons, the Master of the Land of Fiction, and Sutekh should all be their own things without matching wordplay H. Arbingers, which feels a bit like their club discount card. To do otherwise makes them feel like a low-rent comic book supervillain team. The universe and all of time and space is a big place after all there's room for all of them.

Do more 😀👏

I really enjoyed the finale myself. Seen a lot of griping about this or that online. I think this would have been an extremely risky move, but part of me wanted this to be the first finale where the Doctor straight up *loses*. What we did get though, I enjoyed. It *would* have been really cool for this to be a 3-parter, with the middle episode expanding on what the world looked like post-Sutekh (like that small scene where the Doctor gets the spoon, but for a whole episode)

I'm going to be the grump sadly - I think this season was really weak, and the finale was a mess. Space Babies - was a weak episode and an even weaker season/new-doctor opener Devils Chord - Maestro was miss cast, and the story didn't make sense within it's own logic (Maestro has a strangle hold on the country/planet about music since the '40s....so why is there a functioning record studio in the '60s) Boom - only episode that worked within the internal logic of the episode and explored it's themes. Still felt like a mid-tier Moffett, but the closest to a solid episode. Dot and Bubble - Ignoring the 'reveal', the episode doesn't work as an episode on it's own. The 'reveal' feels like it was tacked onto a draft of an episode they knew was poor in order to make it 'profound' without actually exploring the themes it wants to play with Rogue - Didn't work for me, was a cash-in on Bridgerton hype rather than having an reason for the episode to exist (and considering the writing talent involved, it could have been funnier) 73 Yards - the first 15 minutes was great....then RTD ran out of ideas, and pivoted to an underexplored, uninteresting politics plot that went no where Legend of Ruby Sunday/Empire of Death -just felt like padding, nothing related to other things, there was no setup and pay off, the villain was uninteresting. It was the weakest RTD season of Who - but it's at least an improvement but after the rocky Chibnall years. Ncuti and Millie did a great job - but in many episodes it feels like two students are taking the Tardis for a joyride rather than Doctor/Companion I might dip into next season if i'm told an Episode is good - but this season didn't pull me in enough to watch the next season weekly.

True, it was weird to not have any actual losses. But I feel like this was a kindness for whatever will happen in the next season to end these stories and perhaps what will happen in the two seasons after that that RTD has planned. Yeah I wish that this episode had been two episodes. The first to sit in The Doctor's loss more with them traveling around seeing different places and figuring out a plan and then the actual finale being mostly what this episode was. And yeah I do wish Sutekh moved around more lol. I don't think it would have brought back the Timelords because Gallifrey was already lifeless in present day. It may have killed life in the various pasts and brought those back at those times, but the present day wouldn't have been changed. At least that's what makes sense. Oh yeah XD what Susan's company actually did was a mystery beyond it being some kind of tech company XD. I would like to see Carol Anne Ford return even if it's just that maybe that regeneration has been alive this long and she wants to find the Doctor to then regenerate. But as-long-as CAF does return as Susan at least once, I'd be happy with that. Then she could continue that version of her as she's done in Big Finish. True, I would love a Kate-centered episode or two. And I certainly would love that to be a back-door pilot to a UNIT spin-off sooner rather than later. Yup, this story is certainly two season arc as RTD has said. There is more family and more reveals to come next season ^^. THANK YOU! XD How would anyone know that she pointed to the sign?? XD I mean I guess since that memory changed, it was because The Doctor was there and he (they) would have seen her? But perhaps there could be more to reveal. I mean I think she would have worn the hood because she was a 15 year-old girl giving away her child. She probably didn't want to risk anyone she knew seeing her or anyone else to possibly identify her out of fear. Oh I didn't see that all Mrs. Floods outfits were referring to past companions, I just noticed two of them. Yeah I think she's a god too. Yes, there would be a spoon or another metal thing on the Remember TARDIS, but he needed something that wasn't made of memories, it needed to be real. I would also like more time on earth with the family. Maybe for the next companion? I still think missing out on 6 months of time travel and bonding with Ruby and The Doctor was a bit of a mistake. We missed so many of her firsts! Also, there were barely any scenes in the TARDIS at all! Usually we have a lot of time at the beginning of the adventures and we've had none since they're always already in the adventure. The one thing I would change in future seasons is simply going back to 13 episodes per season. 8 just isn't enough for this show. especially with a new era starting. Shorter seasons always lack character development. But having said all that, I have enjoyed this season a lot. ^^

My ranking runs thusly: *1. 73 Yards* *2. Dot and Bubble* - 1 and 2 are interchangeable for me. Both are well-executed and leave you thinking about them long after they're over. *3. The Church on Ruby Road* - Great intro for a new Doctor and a new companion. I wish more of the season had this energy. *4. Rogue* - A more formulaic story with exceptional acting, music, and interesting twists although how does a guy who plays D&D not know what 'cosplay' is? And how could a scriptwriter who knows about D&D not know that what the aliens were actually doing is actually called 'LARPing'? *5. The Legend of Ruby Sunday* - Most of my praise of this episode is down to the eerie time window scenes. I kinda hate that all the gods in "God Club" have matching H. Arbingers that apparently get handed out like group business cards. Also, I don't really like that Sutekh is card-carrying member of God Club. At it's core, this is just a build up episode. It also might be a spin-off episode given the number of faces at UNIT most of whom do not contribute much to the overall story. *6. Boom* - This 5 and 7 are all sorta interchangeable for me. My "average" episodes. _Boom_ itself is a fine episode with a very limited set and kinda feels like a Doctor Who dinner theater because of it. I don't know if I really buy the whole cast showing up to the most-visited mine on the planet. *7. Empire of Death* - A bit of a hot mess. I don't agree with most of criticism directed at this episode. The reason for the hood and pointing is the fact it's 2004. There are CCTV cameras all over as evidenced by the VHS recording and the fact that someone was going to have to look and see if they could ID the person who dropped the baby off on the front stoop and so would see mom pointing and have to follow up. Also, none of the clues _ever_ pointed to mom (or dad) being particularly special in any way, they point at Ruby... who is due back next season. The spoon scene is I think mostly there as 'touch grass' scene to show the stakes, and retrieve a bit of metal that isn't just a memory. There's a lot of good in this episode. I'm marking it down this low on the list mostly for pacing and logistical reasons. Love the return to the _73 Yards_ story without this script spoiling any of the mystery shrouding it. *8. The Devil's Chord* - No freaking Beatles music in the Beatles episode!? For shame! You have Disney money and not even a _Love me Do?!_ You had music by Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga and Billie Eilish in _Rogue!_ Jinkx saves this one from being ranked number twelve out of nine. Also, why was this the second (or third) episode and not the fourth or fifth? This comes too soon after Ruby and the new Doctor's intro, so I don't really believe it when Ruby states the Doctor always has all the answers. I guess, six decades later, _The Chase_ remains the definitive Beatles episode. So much wasted potential here. *9. Space Babies* - Why did he save the Boogieman again? There's not any believable reason given and the Doctor has dispatched many a unique monster before. I would have totally bought it if he had even mused out loud about how lonely it must be to be genetically engineered to induce a fear response in everyone around you. Had that happened this one would jump up in my standings by at least a spot. It's not terrible, but _Boom_ is my "average Doctor Who story" for me this season. I guess Christel didn't watch this one. 😉

I definitely don’t think Ncuti is a great fit for the Doctor, honestly. I find him to be flat and boring. I feel they tried to tell us that Ruby and The Doctor were best friends, but didn’t show us. It always just felt forced and I don’t agree they have much chemistry. I won’t miss Ruby when she’s replaced. I don’t know much about Ruby a series on, and I don’t know anything really about anyone at UNIT. There was a lot of talking but none of it was particularly meaningful. I probably won’t watch series 15.

First off, in regards to the spoon, the Doctor said that he needed REAL metal, not just memories of metal which is what was in the remembered TARDIS. Now about the episodes, love that they addressed the TARDIS anagram and the name Susan which was the main ongoing fan theory and then making it a huge red herring. Honestly, I thought having it be a red herring was fun. My issue with it is that it means that for most of past 1, the characters are doing almost nothing that actually moves the plot, outside of finding something weird about the TARDIS, which was going to happen anyway. It’s to the point where part 2 almost holds up on its own without part 1 at all. Part 2 wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t great either. Maybe the upper end of ok? My biggest criticism is that, because of the red herring, there was quite a bit of wasted time in part 1 and that meant less time to breathe in and take things in and flesh things out part 2.