2nd Opinion: “Fugitive of the Judoon”
JC and Gustaff give their takes on the fifth episode of Series 12.
JC’s Verdict – An incomplete jigsaw
And there I was thinking “Fugitive of the Judoon” was going to be just another run-of-the-mill mid-series adventure with a silly returning monster. How very wrong I was! Now where on Earth should I begin?
I’ve always preferred the scarier monsters, so I wasn’t a huge fan of the Judoon when they first appeared in Doctor Who way back in 2007 (how has it been that long?!). I can’t say my opinion of them really changed after this episode. Still, I was impressed with the visibly upgraded animatronics, and I did laugh when they killed the jerk of a shop keeper and the old lady who both strangely lacked any semblance of a natural reaction to humanoid rhinos suddenly descending on Earth. Fortunately, the monster-of-the-week end up taking a back seat to the more intriguing mystery at the heart of the episode.
Yes, let’s talk about the titular “Fugitive,” or “Ruth”, or the Doctor as it was shockingly revealed. Chibnall really has been mining Doctor Who’s Greatest Hits this year, hasn’t he. Now, we seemingly get his version of the War Doctor. Unfortunately, I actually had Ruth’s grand reveal spoiled beforehand (thanks, Radio Times!), so I lost out on the big surprise. In many ways though, knowing it from the start allowed me to appreciate all the little clues along the way.
There was a rumour long before Series 12 aired, and the spoiler-free gist of it is that it would majorly change Doctor Who history. I dismissed it at the time (it sounded like nonsense), but this episode goes some way towards validating what I read. I’ll reserve judgment until we know exactly where “Ruth” fits in the Doctor’s timeline, but I share the concerns of many fans that this could mess with the canon, if not handled correctly. I really hope Chibnall has given this factor due consideration…
As for Jo Martin’s performance, unlike John Hurt who came with legendary acting credentials, I hadn’t seen Martin in anything before this. With Ruth, I found some of her scenes misfired, but as the Doctor I was more impressed. Despite Chibnall’s assurances, I’m not 100% convinced she is who she says she is though. She made several actions that were decidedly un-Doctor-y, with more violent tendencies and an attitude to boot. Admittedly, it was fun to see her making fun of Thirteen. She was certainly a more dominant presence and did make Jodie Whittaker seem small by comparison (in both senses).
However, I enjoyed seeing Whittaker’s Doctor pushed, more fearful and on her toes. I did find it odd that both Doctors didn’t compare more notes, and just let each other go at the end instead of attempting to solve their quandary together. But they’d be no ongoing mystery otherwise, I suppose. I’m not even going to talk much about the companions this week because once again they’re relegated to the periphery. Plus, we had an actual great companion return to remind us of the “good old days”.
Yes, it’s wonderful to finally see Captain Jack back. However, I feel it should’ve been even better. In an episode that introduces another hitherto unseen Doctor, you really didn’t need Jack there as well. After a decade off-screen, he deserved a full episode to reintroduce himself (I would have gladly sacrificed “Orphan 55” for that purpose). As it was, his scenes felt more like a short charity skit, and one that had nothing to do with the rest of the plot (just a tease of a future storyline). It even robbed the character of meeting the Doctor. And with Chibnall saying there’s no more Jack this year, it makes that all the more disappointing. One thing is for sure though: In mere minutes John Barrowman’s charisma and energy truly showed up how utterly bland the current companions are by comparison.
There’s not really a lot to say about the two other main guest stars. Though his role was technically important (as a Doctor’s companion), Neil Stuke’s Lee didn’t really get to do a lot except act as a red herring, and then get promptly killed. Ritu Arya’s Gat was okay, if a bit pantomime.
“Fugitive of the Judoon” is an incomplete jigsaw of an episode. As such, it’s hard to give a full verdict, as it’s clearly just a piece of a much bigger story. The best thing I can say now is that, as a set-up, it’s intriguing, and I want to know more. Something I wasn’t saying with Series 11. I just hope Chibnall delivers on the answers satisfactorily.
Gustaff’s verdict – Two hits and a miss!
Approaching this review, I’m of two minds. On the one hand I want to give the episode a fair rating based on the entirety of its contents. On the other, it feels uneven given that the third act plays such a prominent role. If I could divide the episode in half, I would. But I can’t…so I won’t.
“Fugitive of the Judoon” continues to fall into the various pitfalls that have plagued this season so far. This week the David Tennant nostalgia episodes we’re recycling are “Smith and Jones” and “Human Nature”, with a bit of “Utopia” thrown into the mix. Oh, and Torchwood: “Sleeper”. Lots of “Sleeper”! Unlike most of the episodes this season, and while most of the events in this episode do feel copy/pasted from the aforementioned stories, “Fugitive of the Judoon” at least feels like its trying to entertain as much as possible with as little education as it can muster.
The direction is good, the acting is on point and the characters feel real. Ruth, before the reveal, feels like an organic person I can relate to and sympathize with. Not only that but the subtle foreshadowing scattered throughout the episode as to her true identity adds a certain rewatch quality to the episode.
The locations also helped deliver a fresh feel to the copy/pasted actions the Judoon carry out. It’s also clear that nobody in the writer’s room could come up with a storyline other than the ‘seek fugitive, catalogue non-fugitive’ one “Smith and Jones” implemented. Please go listen to Big Finish: Judoon in Chains or “One Mile Down” for some flavour and Judoon variety. On the same note it was still nice having the Judoon back again after so long.
For the fifth week in a row the companions are rendered utterly surplus to the story. Heck, this episode even goes one step further by having Jack Harkness systemically remove them from the A-plot so that they can’t interfere with the Doctor and Ruth. Did you notice how the Doctor even forgets she has companions as soon as they are abducted?
This is such whiplash that it almost feels as though the episode is acknowledging their uselessness in a meta sort of way. Please, if you don’t have anything for the companions to do, make the episode a companion-lite one. Even Yaz who is an actual officer of the law (allegedly) gets passed over when it comes time to distract the Judoon. This was the perfect opportunity to make her add something worthwhile to the plot, but the episode just drops the ball.
It was tremendously nostalgic and fun seeing Jack Harkness back. John Barrowman pulls the rug from underneath everyone else he’s in a scene with and I genuinely want him to come back again. His scenes are entertaining, wonderful to watch and his energy is unmatched. On the same note I will criticize the episode for having the balls to bring such a beloved character back, but having the gall to make him nothing more than an exposition dump for a future episode, and NOT having him interact with the Doctor. Last week I said not having Anjli Mohindra back as Rani was the biggest missed opportunity in recent memory, but this week snatches first place easily.
The Ruth Doctor reveal, as well as everything leading up to it was excellently handled. The interactions between the two are interesting to watch. There are some genuine emotions present that make you feel for both characters…
…but interfering with Doctor Who mythos by strongly implying that Ruth is a pre-Hartnell Doctor and that there may exist an entire regeneration cycle that we haven’t seen before goes above and beyond. Steven Moffat barely got away with sneaking one hidden incarnation in a cycle, that while it didn’t break continuity, it certainly stretched it to some degree. If not for John Hurt’s stunning performance, the decision could’ve backfired.
Making her a potential precursor to William Hartnell feels deliberately spiteful and disrespectful not just to those fans who have supported the show since its inception, but to Hartnell’s memory as well, who is documented to have been tremendously proud of the fact that he was the First Doctor. That I feel is the root of any divide this decision is sure to bring.
Stray Observation:
There’s a reason why each episode of this era proves to be extremely divisive amongst fans of the show. The production crew, with all their knowledge and years of experience in the showbiz industry, seem incapable of grasping the most basic formula for success: Do whatever you have to do to get more viewers WITHOUT alienating the viewers you already have. In the words of Nardole: It’s the second part people normally get stuck on.
