2nd Opinion, Take 2 “The Church on Ruby Road” – I hated it, and then…

J.C. reviews the 2023 Christmas special.

When I first watched “The Church on Ruby Road,” I wasn’t impressed. To be entirely honest, I think I hated it. However, it was Christmas Day, I had consumed quite a bit of alcohol, and I was running low on sleep. So I thought it only fair to give it another shot. Did my opinion change? I think so. Don’t get me wrong, I consider this special far from classic Doctor Who, and I’d rank it among the weaker introductions for a New Who Doctor, but it had its moments.

Russell T Davies clearly mined a couple of classic films for inspiration. If I had to describe this episode in a nutshell, it’s pretty much Gremlins meets Labyrinth meets RTD’s “Rose”, with a dash of Moffat. The Christmas element was admittedly more of a backdrop, with the most traditionally festive parts being the pre-title sequence and the latter scenes featuring the Doctor traveling back in time. Both instances were enhanced by the iconic ‘Carol of the Bells’ and the snowy, old-timey church setting. I do wish the entire episode had captured more of that feel.

Ncuti Gatwa didn’t entirely win me over in his first full episode. His opening narration was fine, but the early characterisation didn’t completely ring true for me. The Doctor isn’t meant to be ‘hip’ and hanging out in nightclubs; he’s supposed to be more of an endearing oddball. Remember the drunk giraffe? Dropping the early scenes and using the ladder rescue as the Doctor’s introduction would have been a much better starting point. Thankfully, Gatwa’s performance improved dramatically in the final third, especially when the stakes were raised after Ruby was erased. The only missing element was a classic Doctor-ish standoff before he took down the Goblin King (and it also seemed ruthless for the Doctor to not even offer them a chance to surrender).

Millie Gibson’s performance as the new companion was solid. She brought a down-to-earth quality to Ruby that made her easy to root for. However, there were some issues: the character was too composed and trusting for a companion on their first foray into this dangerous new lifestyle. Her initial reaction to seeing time-traveling goblins for the first time (we at least can assume) was completely nonchalant, the same as when she and the baby were in danger on the ship. How can a normal person act so blasé about something like that?! Alas, by the episode’s end, Ruby strikes me as a blend of Rose Tyler and Clara Oswald. The latter because there was an element of Ruby being another ‘mystery box’ companion, without too much characterisation yet. I’m hoping she turns out to be more than just a mystery, and not some sort of ‘key to solving everything’…

The goblins, while entertaining, lacked the gravitas of a formidable antagonist. The influence of the aforementioned Gremlins with their mischievous antics was very clear. However, they never really felt like a serious threat like the inspiration, Davina’s ‘death’ notwithstanding. I would have liked to see them cause more chaos across the city. The concept of monsters that feed on ‘chance and coincidence and luck’ was neat, but it needed more development. As for their song, I didn’t mind that and it fit into the episode well, but I was less thrilled with the Doctor and Ruby joining in. Perhaps if the pair fumbled more, giving more of an impression they were winging it, it would’ve helped. As it was, it sounded too clean and rehearsed for the situation.

Compared to the last special, which had a strong pace and energy for the duration, this one didn’t hit the same mark. The episode suffered from inconsistent pacing, with things slowing down to a crawl after the Doctor and Ruby rescued baby Lulubelle. It almost seemed like the episode reached its climax too early, but then RTD had to come up with another one to fill the remaining time.

As for the guest stars: Michelle Greenidge as Carla Sunday was decent and got to showcase some range, but Angela Wynter as Grandmother Cherry felt a bit one-note by comparison. Davina McCall, as the most prominent name, seemed an odd choice for the big draw. I haven’t seen her on TV since Big Brother, and her role here was minimal. There’s not much to say about Anita Dobson’s ‘Mrs. Flood’ other than she’s another mystery waiting to be unravelled. It’s hard to get too excited about that now, and it’s all a bit ‘been there, done that’ at this point. There are only so many likely candidates, and chances are we’ve seen them before. Still, it won’t stop the Rani/Susan/Valeyard etc speculation (again)…

Ultimately, “The Church on Ruby Road” is a Christmas special that’s a bit like leftover turkey; it’s better the second time around, but still leaves you wishing for a bit more. While not the dazzling debut for a new Doctor I had hoped for, it’s not devoid of charm either. I just hope the first episode of Series 14 does a much better job.

Asides

• I’m sorry, but the new Sonic screwdriver is awful. Even calling it that seems wrong. Fourteen’s was the best one in years, and it only got three episodes. I don’t see why it couldn’t have carried over.
• Why does this Doctor change his outfit so often? It was jarring. If some timey-wimey shenanigans are going on (to be revealed in a later episode), then fair enough.
• Just leave the Timeless Child alone, RTD!
• And drop the dumb ‘mavity’ bits too, unless you are going to turn this into a serious plot point.
• How did the Doctor know that destroying the Goblin ship wouldn’t have killed baby Ruby too? Just a bit of a risky gamble, wouldn’t you say?!
• The actor playing Abdul was… Let’s just say, I haven’t seen acting like that since the last Neil Breen flick.
• Seriously, we have to wait until May for the new series? It’s airing closer to summer than spring and might hurt any momentum the show had going up until now. This series was filmed a long time ago now, so I don’t understand why the wait is so long. Perhaps Disney called the shots here?