The Woman Who Lived Advance Review

Note: Doctor Who TV’s pre-air reviews aim to be as detail-free as we reasonably can while still offering a critique, but as everyone’s spoiler sensibilities are different, we advise you read on at your own discretion.

Following last weekend’s conclusion where the young Viking Ashildr had been made an immortal, we advance forward in time to England 1651. A time when stereotypical Vikings are long gone and stereotypical Highwaymen are on the loose instead. The Doctor soon enough comes into contact with our hybrid girl, but is she a friend or foe after all these years?

The Woman Who Lived welcomes writer Catherine Tregenna to the Doctor Who writers’ line-up. Although as many fans will know she isn’t a stranger to the Whoniverse having previously written Torchwood episodes: “Out of Time”, “Captain Jack Harkness”, “Meat” and “Adam”. As most of those episodes demonstrated, Tregenna has a talent for character pieces and that doesn’t change here.

Indeed the episode is really a two-hander between Peter Capaldi’s Doctor and Maisie Williams’ Ashildr (or “Me” as she now wants to be called). With a focus on character rather than plot, it’s naturally a slower-paced affair with some lengthy dialogue scenes. As with last week, there are moments of a more lighthearted nature, but it’s better balanced out, and occasionally goes to some pretty dark places.

Maisie Williams was a little underused last time around and didn’t have a lot to challenge her acting talents. Thankfully the young star gets to show far more of her range here with the character now having to take on the burden of hundreds more years of living, and the pain and loss that goes with it. This has ultimately led Ashildr to a life of crime. Williams may not always be (deliberately) likable in the role, but importantly you can empathise with her as well.

As many may have gathered now from the lack of Clara in the promotional material, this is a companion-lite episode. She only appears very fleetingly. With Clara’s absence it’s interesting to see Capaldi paired with someone so different and now on the wrong side of the law. It’s a partnership that initially may remind fans of Lady Christina and the Tenth Doctor. But of course this newer duo now share a deeper understanding of what it means to live for so long. The scenes exploring this often bring out the best in Capaldi and Williams.

There’s a villain of sorts. Leandro (Ariyon Bakare) is a fire-breathing cat-like creature with a mysterious agenda. But as with the plot, he really takes a bit of a backseat. This episode isn’t about the monster threat; he’s just there to keep the younger viewers happy.

The only other character of any significance is highwayman Sam Swift, played by Rufus Hound. His role is fairly minor but at least plays to Hound’s strengths as a comedian and even allows him to do a bit of stand-up (with some rather questionable jokes for the family audience).

The direction by Edward Bazalgette is fantastic. With more varied locations than last week, there’s more room for striking shots throughout giving the episode quite a haunting feel at times with its old mansions, forests and moonlit nights. There’s also another great accompanying score from Murray Gold.

This episode might just split fans once again. It’s initially a bit of a slowburner that requires some persistence to fully get into. But for those willing to go along for the duration it does reward the patience. And the final scenes are bound to cause plenty more speculation…