Face the Raven? I’ll launch the thing with the whole bells and whistles like it was the QE2; I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time. I hope you feel lucky that this is written and has an editor look it over. Otherwise, I’d be on a ten-hour rendition of “Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead” with every bit of flare you could put into the funeral of evil people, like Margret Thatcher. This means only one thing and one thing only, Maisie Williams is back for another episode as Me, happy days! Oh, and Clara was killed by that Raven at the start of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

It is a bit of a returning special, as it focuses on the return of Rigsy from “Flatline,” meanwhile, a collection of aliens join in too. it is one of only two episodes of Doctor Who that Sarah Dollard has done, and despite this one having Clara, even focusing on her with the whole death and all, I prefer this one. At least in “Face the Raven,” unlike “Thin Ice,” Peter isn’t so focused on getting his sonic screwdriver back that he lets a kid die. Mostly known for period dramas, Dollard hung around the late ’00s shows like Merlin and Primeval as script editor, as well as writing for Being Human, and odd comedy thing You, Me and the Apocalypse. She has recently focused on adaptations, such as Bridgerton or A Discovery of Witches.

The concept of the tattoo on the back of Rigsy’s neck counting down is an interesting visual, though inspired a bit by Chris Chibnall’s toolbox. Luckily, it isn’t locked to 42 minutes to contrive itself into the episode’s time limits, but is similar enough in the scope of what it is trying to do, add a ticking clock. What I keep returning to in my head is that it isn’t a bad episode, but it isn’t an episode I’d return to on purpose with a regular rewatch. It is slow and plodding, even with ideas such as trap streets or the aliens of this completely hidden street in the middle of London that would never fit where it does without outside intervention. I wouldn’t call it the most remarkable.

The episode hams up Clara as the most special and magical person, though unlike Yaz she actually has some character. It also uses a dull mystery we’re not given enough pieces to even begin putting together. On its own it is a fine, not so fantastical episode of Doctor Who. There is something to it but nothing special. Putting it together with the rest of the series thus far and the overall run with Coleman and Capaldi, I still don’t think of it as anything special. I know Steven Moffat’s idea for Clara was that she was to be something otherworldly, the Doctor’s best friend, someone so brilliant you want to be that person. I just want to kick her into the sun along with everyone else on my kick-list.

What makes me like the episode, other than Sarah Dollard’s reasonable writing, is simply the fact we get a good episode as a result of it. Not just a good episode, easily one of the best in Peter’s entire time as the Doctor. This aired in 2015, his first series was in 2014, there was one (terrible) episode in 2016, with his final 13 coming in 2017. The two best episodes from Peter’s era, both written by Moffat, came only weeks apart from each other. One of them comes as a result of this very episode’s meandering plot to draw out Clara dying in the end.

That is the problem here. There is a mystery, a bit of set-up and puzzle pieces to be moved about, but it all feels fairly standard in terms of Doctor Who. Not just because I watched this back in 2015, however. The stolen glances at Letitia Wright’s (yes, before Black Panther) Anahson, the series of protected villains of previous stories in a hidden village run by mayor Me, and who could simply be the villain of the piece. Unlike “Smith and Jones,” another episode with a hint of mystery to begin with, “Face the Raven” lacks something gripping. Maybe it is because, unlike dullards that actually view Clara for what she’s meant to be, I just see her as a crap companion and another example of Moffat having trouble with female characters.

As I said, I enjoy how Dollard wrote the episode, but it isn’t leaving me wanting more from Clara. “Doomsday” left me sad about Rose leaving, “Last of the Time Lords” leaves me wanting more of Martha. I understand Donna’s run and get that at the end of “The End of Time – Part Two” she can’t come back, but at the very least she’s happy. Then at “The Angels Take Manhattan” I still love and adore Amy and Rory, but even at the end of their run, it was running a bit thin on their purpose. Bill gets one of the shortest sticks, but at least when she dies (or becomes puddles) she’s with her girlfriend from the first episode. When Clara is dead I’m left with the bit from Top Gear, where they said if any of them died they’d announce it on the program and continue on with “Anyway!”

If I had to pick anything good from the episode, it had to be the aliens in Diagon Alley. Judoon is shrouded to look like human cops, Ood as medical professionals, and actually a mechanic for a Cyberman who looks like a wounded army man. Everyone’s second favorite kind of potato (after baked) appears as big balled men instead of the short stature of the Sontarans. I kind of hoped that would have been used more, even as a background thing having a Dalek appear for a second. Equally, casting Simon Paisley Day as Rump and making him a werewolf instead of a Crespallion as he was before, was kind of a missed opportunity.

Ultimately, it is a fine episode with a rather pedestrian mystery that was tracing paper-thin if you had two eyes with reasonable vision. It was more of a slow bus ride to the next place we’re going rather than crash-landing the TARDIS into our next adventure. By far a waste of time for having Maisie Williams’ Ashildr/Me, with her two prior episodes being solid episodes with enough interesting info on the character. At least we can move on from this and never hear about Clara again, right? Oh, that’s right, Clara and the old man were bezzie-mates, pleating each other’s hair and talking about who they like. At least when Peter is jumping off the tower next time to commit suicide, it is a good episode.

Phenixx Gaming is everywhere you are. Follow us on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Also, if you’d like to join the Phenixx Gaming team, check out our recruitment article for details on working with us.

Phenixx Gaming is proud to be a Humble Partner! Purchases made through our affiliate links support our writers and charity!

Doctor Who "Face the Raven"

6

Score

6.0/10

Pros

• YAY! Clara is dead.
• All the aliens shrouded to look human, sometimes failing.
• A nice couple of returns.

Cons

• Such a dull ending to Clara's story.
• The mystery is rather easy to see through.
• Williams' Me final story isn't as great as it could be.