Doctor Who — Series 15/Season 2 - Episode 1 — “The Robot Revolution” — A Review

*Spoilers*

11th April, 2025: “The Robot Revolution”.

Anybody reading this post possibly knows I’m here.

Possibly.

It’s another random post on another random blog: whose owner and writer is mildly frustrated at the amount of time his copy of Safari takes to load up his content.

That’s possibly beside the point.

Regular readers will know two things.

One?

I’m bad tempered.

Two?

I’m a Dr Who fan.

One who — at the time of writing — has been reviewing classic Dr Who series, The Savages, for the past few weeks.

I hope you enjoy my reviews.

I’m going to start reviewing the new series of Doctor Who, tomorrow: when the first episode, “The Robot Revolution”, airs.

I’ve started this post early … ?

As I’ll be baby-sitting — if “baby” is the right term for a fourteen year old! — my nephew, tomorrow day-time.

So … ?   We — or possibly just he — will be making a video and uploading it to his YouTube channel.

Feel free to subscribe: to both his and mine.

By the time that’s done, and he’s headed home?

I’ll sitting in with “The Robot Revolution”

And should be able to let you know what I thought by Sunday, 13th April.

Come back the: and let’s talk about it … 

~≈👨🏿‍⚕️≈~

Doctor Who — Series 15/Season 2 — “The Robot Revolution”.

12th April, 2025.

Part One: The Summary.

Episode 1 — “The Robot Revolution” — show us a shot of the sky.

Then gently pans downwards to show us Alan Budd (Jonny Green) enthusiastically talking about a distant star to his girlfriend, Belinda Chandra (Varada Sethu).

Revealing, much to Belinda’s embarrassment, that he’s spent quite a bit of money on having the thing named after her.

The scene shifts to seventeen years later: where the now adult Belinda is a trained nurse at an unnamed hospital, heading back to the flat share she calls home.

Only to find a few things out.

• There’s very little in the fridge.
• Her flat mates are noisy.
• Large, heavily armed, unfriendly robots seem very keen to make her acquaintance …

~≈👨🏿‍⚕️≈~

The situation is only made worse, when the Robots get Belinda to their home world, the strangely named MissBelindaChandra One.

The planet … ?

Is ruled not by the humanoid MissBelindaChandrakind, but by the robots who have kidnapped her.

Those robots?

Want Belinda to become the planet’s Queen.

Belinda’s not impressed.

Getting forced into being a monarch, at gunpoint, doesn’t sound good.

And that’s only where her problems start … 

~≈👨🏿‍⚕️≈~

Part Two: Observations.

Now … What did I make of “The Robot Revolution”?

And did I notice anything … ?

Let’s start with “Did I notice anything?”, shall we?

Season one of Ncuti Gatwa’s era had eight episodes of very good TV: complete with elements I found familiar.

The landmine in “Boom” that recalled a scene in Genesis of the Daleks, the old man in “Joy to the World” who knew a pair of women living near Saint Paul’s Cathedral, shape changing aliens in “Rogue”.

There’s possibly more.

So … ?

I went into “The Robot Revolution” expecting something similar.

I wasn’t disappointed.

After all the rocket ship the robots use looks like the mutant offspring of Flash Gordon’s rocket ship and a V2 missile, the time fracture plot point that seems directly lifted from the 4th Doctor-era City of Death, and finding, finally, at the episode’s climax, that the Earth has gone missing?

Lifted directly from “The Stolen Earth” and “Journey’s End”.

That missing planet is, I think, going to be a key point for the whole season: especially as Belinda explicitly tells the Doctor to get her home.

There’s other things in this episode.

At one stage?

We see the Doctor and Belinda helping various injured soldiers: with Belinda specifically asking the Doctor if a soldier’s dislocated shoulder was similar enough to human ones for her to be able to treat it.

Then learning that the big difference between humanity and Missbelindachandrakind is that the latter have what the Doctor calls a ‘pasculum’: an organ that — in Chandrakind — has the combined functions of the human liver and kidneys.

From the very little I know?

It’s the first time we’ve heard about an alien species’ medical details in Doctor Who.

It’s a minor piece of world building, a minor piece of character building … but hopefully ones that gets kids watching asking what on Earth a kidney’s for.

That’s a genius piece of writing, I think.

~≈👨🏿‍⚕️≈~

Part Three: More Observations.

There’s other things in the mix.

It’s somewhat rushed … but we see that Alan — Belinda’s former boyfriend — is very linked to the plot of this story.

And accused of coercive control by Belinda.

It’s not something made an issue of, in the episode: but I can only hope it raises the issue, and gets people talking.

Another thing … ?

Belinda destroys the AI generator, destroys Alan, by touching her copy of the certificate to his.

And creating a destructive explosion that kills her former boyfriend, and almost kills her.

That scene … ?

Reminded me a lot of classic Jon Pertwee story, The Three Doctors: the resolution of the story hung on the Second Doctor’s recorder being made of matter …

And destroying an anti-matter universe, when taken out of a protective force field.

I’m very aware there’s been rumours that Omega, the villain of The Three Doctors, is supposed to return in this series.

But couldn’t tell you if they’re true or not: couldn’t tell you if that scene is a hint of a returning villain … or just the reddest of red herrings.

We will have to see what happens in the final two episodes.

The first of which — “Wish World” — is due to air on 24th May, 2025.

The date the Doctor is due to return Belinda home.

~≈👨🏿‍⚕️≈~

Part Four: Final Thoughts.

So … what did I make of “The Robot Revolution”?

Of an episode that introduces a new companion, and re-introduces the Fifteenth Doctor?

“The Robot Revolution” is a great piece of work!

Whilst the robots of the title aren’t necessarily the most menacing thing on the block, they do the job they’re supposed to.

Act as menacing henchbots to a potentially nastier piece of work in the shape of Alan, the AI Generator.

And, whilst his controlling relationship with Belinda is possibly underused in the episode — that is possibly more appropriate in an EastEnders story arc — it, and the medical details raised, could make for handy talking points.

It gives us a leading character — Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor — who seems far more restrained than he did in his opening series: that’s something I liked, as I felt Ncuti’s performance in his first season was a touch flamboyant.

It also shows us a new companion who is is not only asks questions, and use her knowledge … but who is also prepared to quietly, but very assertively, tell us and the Doctor, what she wants.

To go home.

Frankly?

I’m looking forward to the rest of this series.

And am going to be back for episode two, next week.

~≈👨🏿‍⚕️≈~

Part Five: And Finally.

With all that said … ?

Thank you for reading — and/or watching — this review.

I hope you’d like to see more from me.

With that in mind?

I’ll tell you now that I’ll be watching the next episode of this season — “Lux” — on the 19th April of this year: and will hopefully have the written and video reviews up on the following day.

I’ll be watching the fourth and final episode of Classic Dr Who series, The Savages, next week: on the 16th April.

I’ll have my written and video reviews of that up by the 17th April.

I’ll hopefully see you then.

Episode 1 — “The Robot Revolution”.

★★★☆