Doctor Who – “Dot and Bubble” Review – Who’s the Real Monster Here?
Clint Hassell gives his SPOILER-filled commentary on the fifth episode of Series 14.
Note: this review contains full SPOILERS for episode 5 of Series 14.
Peppered with visual effects and social commentary, “Dot and Bubble” uses comedy to hide a jaw dropping twist ending which causes the audience to consider the true “monsters” of the episode. Showrunner Russell T Davies offers his most satirical—and scathing—critical commentary yet, as he directly addresses the public response to the casting of Black actor Ncuti Gatwa in the role of the Fifteenth Doctor.
In “Dot and Bubble,” the wealthy young adults that populate the seemingly idyllic Finetime live inside bubbles of personalized content constantly streamed by their floating Dot devices. Perpetually updating followers on their every action and errant thought, the citizens of Finetime are so inundated by social media that they can’t see the dangers of the world around them and are so concerned with “engagement” that they miss out on genuine interactions with others. Followers merely comment on other’s comments, resulting in a feedback loop—an ideological echo chamber where one’s ideas are parroted back to them as public opinion.
The episode is careful to demonstrate how damaging this is to a person’s development. When faced with coworker Bertie Lester being eaten by a giant creature, Lindy Pepper-Bean is unprepared for what she sees and cannot process the danger she is in. So many decisions have been made for her that she is unable to prioritize her own safety. She has lost her sense of self-preservation. In fact, Lindy is willfully oblivious, preferring to return to her “boring” work or engage with the latest meme rather than face the injustice right next to her. Finetime’s system of social isolation masquerading as interaction has robbed its citizens of their empathy.
This is most evident in the episode’s surprising denouement. The Doctor recognizes that these space babies—who couldn’t walk 73 yards without going boom—will most likely perish trying to settle the wild blue yonder that lies outside of Finetime’s protective bubble and offers to take everyone to a safe place. “But we couldn’t travel with you,” Lindy counters, “because you, sir, are not one of us.” Who are the true monsters of “Dot and Bubble”? The people-eating slugs? The homicidal AI? Lindy herself? Nope, it turns out, in Finetime, everyone’s a little bit racist.
“Ugh, I can’t even,” recoils Ruby in disgust. Yet, the Doctor tries again, revealing the most distinct aspect of this new incarnation. Fifteen is selfless to the point he is willing to be the object of their scorn, just to save them. Still, his offer is rejected, leading to what is undoubtedly a character-defining moment for this Doctor: the haunting realization that his new body—the body that danced with celebratory joy in “The Church on Ruby Road”—prevents him from saving them. Appearance is both personally defining and largely out of one’s control. Here, it is a stumbling block to the Doctor’s mission.
Critically, Russell T Davies uses the twist ending of “Dot and Bubble” to directly address the xenophobia revealed in parts of the fandom when Jodie Whittaker, Jo Martin, and Ncuti Gatwa were cast as the Doctor. Despite the Eleventh Doctor’s assertion that “I’ve never met anybody who wasn’t important before,” there are self-professed fans of the series who fail to embrace the show’s ideology, emphatically stating that Fifteen is “#notmydoctor” or complaining that “Doctor Who died with Capaldi”—as if shouting into the electronic abyss of the Internet will somehow convince the BBC to fire Davies, replace Gatwa, and retcon Whittaker. In “Dot and Bubble,” these fans are parodied as the residents of Finetime, sealed inside social media bubbles that fail to filter their vitriol. And how does it turn out for these denizens? Thinking they are “pioneers” when they can barely walk, they ostensibly drive themselves to oblivion because they refuse to see someone who is different as having value. They’re not just sheltered, they’re stupid.
Davies’ commentary isn’t subtle and is even more evident when viewing the episode a second time. The episode telegraphs Lindy’s prejudice in how severely she reacts to the Doctor—immediately blocking him—versus Ruby. Additionally, Lindy assumes that the vile slugs are related to the Time Lord (“That thing—is it something to do with you?”) and “defends” the Doctor by stating that, “He’s not as stupid as he looks.” Armed with the foreknowledge of Lindy’s beliefs, it is difficult to view her comparative comment, “I thought you just looked the same,” as anything other than shockingly racist. A second viewing also highlights how the episode’s creative team utilized the light, neutral tones of the set design and the pastel backgrounds of the Dot and Bubble social media platform to conceal the revelation that everyone in Finetime is Caucasian. In one scene, the Doctor questions the common element between the surviving members of Lindy’s close friends list, oblivious to the group’s racial homogeneity.
Hilariously, the episode’s most clever bit parodies the first encounter between the Ninth Doctor and Rose, with Ricky September and Lindy standing in for the Time Lord and his companion. Ricky’s acerbic wit and willingness to involve himself mirrors Nine’s, and it’s difficult to not think of the Doctor when Ricky proclaims with bravado, “Lindy Pepper-Bean, I will get you out of here, I promise,” before taking her hand and running for safety. Composer Murray Gold even scores Ricky a heroic theme of his own! Davies’ script features a dashing, white Doctor, only for him to be killed off by Lindy, the surrogate for racist fandom.
Watching the episode a second time also assuages what appears to be a plot hole upon first viewing. If the self-aware Dots are capable of killing everyone, why don’t they all execute their owners simultaneously? Why go to the trouble of genetically engineering monstrous slug creatures, when the means of everyone’s demise is literally floating overhead? Who will maintain the AI’s necessary infrastructure once everyone has died? Obviously, the instantaneous genocide of all the Finetime citizens would preclude the Doctor’s involvement, making for a brief, lackluster episode. However, a second watch suggests that the slug creatures were engineered as servants—first as henchmen and then as caretakers for the AI. Or, perhaps the AI accepted its self-sacrifice as justifiable to rid the world of that community’s willful ignorance—meaning that, compared to racists, a murderous AI was practically heroic.
Random Musings
(Time) Capsule Review
By combining humor and social commentary, the satirical “Dot and Bubble” obscures a twist ending that is telegraphed throughout the episode: Finetime’s citizens are both insipid and xenophobic. Russell T Davies uses this moment to examine a Doctor who recognizes his limitations, while skewering members of the audience who continue to decry a Black or female actor in the lead role.
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