Thin Ice

I am two thousand years old and I have never had the time for the luxury of outrage.

The Twelfth Doctor

Synopsis

London, 1814. The entire city has turned out for the biggest Frost Fair in decades. But beneath the frozen Thames, revellers are disappearing.

Review

By way of the show attempting a soft reboot for Series 10, Steven Moffat has gone back to the original opening format for the first five series. These would see the Doctor and his companion have a contemporary Earth adventure, followed alternatively by a story set in the future and a story in the past. It’s the first time that the show followed that format since Series 5. Sarah Dollard’s story sees the Doctor and companion Bill travel to the Frost Fair in 1814 on the River Thames.

Travelling to the past, there’s got to be rules. If I step on a butterfly, it could send ripples through time that mean I’m not even born yet in the first place, and I could just disappear.

Definitely. I mean that’s what happened to Pete.

Pete?

Your friend, Pete. He was standing there a moment ago. He stepped on a butterfly. Now you don’t even remember him.

Shut up! I’m being serious.

So was Pete.

Bill Potts and the Twelfth Doctor

Thin Ice feels like a spiritual successor to both The Beast Below and Kill the Moon. This story again shows the Doctor not willing to make decisions on behalf of humanity, but unlike the latter story, he does not disappear. Instead, he does stick around to help his companion through the course of the story. It’s a story that shows just how much the Twelfth Doctor has grown over the course of his incarnation. It is therefore a character-driven story, with the focus being on this development and Bill learning more about the Doctor, rather than having big set pieces. As a result, it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I really enjoy this story. Like The Beast Below, this story features humanity exploiting an alien species, although in this story, they are doing it for profit instead of for survival. Dollard’s story is really well written, whilst it is not necessarily the most action-packed. The story does keep you guessing, thanks in part to Spider’s death on the frozen Thames. For a child to die on screen with the Doctor not making any effort to save him makes it all the more shocking. We also have the mystery around whether or not Lord Sutcliffe is an alien, and the ultimate reveal that he is completely human.

I really like the direction of Bill Anderson in this story. He manages to make the Frost Fair feel bustling and busy during the story. Especially in the scenes where the Doctor and Bill descend to the riverbed, the use of blue lighting really highlights how cold the setting of the story is and creates the atmosphere really well. Anderson also handles the serpent-like creature really well in the story, realising perhaps the limitations of a creature this size, even with the aid of computer graphics. Clear shots of it are used sparingly, which prevented me from being taken out of the story. The production team have worked really hard on making the story feel realistically grimy for the Regency setting, and that’s not just because Lord Sutcliffe is getting rich from the alien serpent’s waste.

I preferred it when you were an alien.

When I was…?

It explained the lack of humanity.

The Twelfth Doctor and Lord Sutcliffe

The story’s villain is Lord Sutcliffe, who has shackled the serpent to the riverbed of the Thames. This has been going for several generations of his family, with the creature being able to impact on the weather, then gaining money from the sale of the fuel, which burns more efficiently than coal. Nicholas Burns does a good job of making Sutcliffe a very odious man with very little screen time.

The other aspect of Sutcliffe’s plan is using the urchins to draw people onto the ice, so that they may be food for the serpent. Of course, some of the urchins end up as fuel, like Spider. Doctor Who has a checkered history with children, but they put in fine performances. It’s a nice chance to see how far the Twelfth Doctor has developed over his tenure in the way that he interacts with children.

If you care so much, tell me how many people you’ve seen die?

I don’t know.

Okay. How many before you lost count?

I care, Bill. But I move on.

Yeah, how quickly?

It’s not me you’re angry with.

Have you ever killed anyone? There’s a look in your eyes sometimes that make me wonder. Have you?

There are situations where the options available are very limited.

Not what I asked.

Sometimes the choices are very-

That’s not what I asked!

Yes.

How many? Don’t tell me. You’ve moved on.

Bill Potts and the Twelfth Doctor

One of the strongest parts of Thin Ice is the chemistry and rapport between Peter Capaldi and Pearl Mackie as the Doctor and Bill. They have some excellent banter in this story, especially in the conversation about the butterfly effect and Pete. It is clear that Bill will not put up with any of the Doctor’s nonsense when she challenges him about his inaction for Spider’s death. This is a story that shows Bill that travelling with the Doctor isn’t always safe and cosy. Whilst she saw corpses during Smile, she did not actually see someone die until this story. Whilst she is temporarily annoyed by the Doctor’s seeming indifference and inability to give her the answers she seeks, it allows her to understand him better. This story does also  tackle the thorny issue of Bill’s race in historical stories. Whilst in The Shakespeare Code, the Doctor advised Martha to walk around like she owns the place, here the Doctor appreciates where Bill is coming from. In his immediate response, he tells her to go the wardrobe to find an outfit that won’t make her stand out so much, and later notes that history is a whitewash. Despite his advice to Bill to allow him to do the talking and that his charm is necessary when meeting Sutcliffe, it is him who attacks Sutcliffe when he verbally abuses Bill.

Verdict: Thin Ice is a solid piece of Doctor Who, which allows for further development of the relationship between the Doctor and Bill. 8/10

Cast: Peter Capaldi (The Doctor), Pearl Mackie (Bill Potts), Matt Lucas (Nardole), Nicholas Burns (Lord Sutcliffe), Asiatu Koroma (Kitty), Peter Singh (Pie-Man), Simon Ludders (Overseer), Tomi May (Dowell), Austin Taylor (Spider), Ellie Shenker (Dottie), Kishaina Thiruselvan (Harriet) & Badger Skelton (Perry).

Writer: Sarah Dollard

Director: Bill Anderson

Producer: Nikki Wilson

Composer: Murray Gold

Original UK Broadcast Date: 29 April 2017

Behind the Scenes

• Spider is one of the few children to appear in Doctor Who to die on-screen.

Cast Notes

• Peter Singh also appeared in the Tenth Doctor Big Finish story No Place.
• Simon Ludders previously played a patient in New Earth.

Best Moment

Well, it has to be the Doctor’s punch to Lord Sutcliffe, who becomes a hissable villain within seconds of coming on screen.

Best Quote

Human progress isn’t measured by industry. It’s measured by the value you place on a life. An unimportant life. A life without privilege. The boy who died on the river, that boy’s value is your value. That’s what defines an age. That’s what defines a species.

What a beautiful speech. The rhythm and…and vocabulary are quite outstanding. It’s enough to move anyone with an ounce of compassion. So it’s really not your day, is it?

The Twelfth Doctor and Lord Sutcliffe

Previous Twelfth Doctor review: Smile

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