Doctor Who – “Legend of the Sea Devils” Review – Lost at Sea

Clint Hassell gives his SPOILER-filled commentary on the 2022 Easter special.

Note: this review contains full SPOILERS for the 2022 Easter special.

Despite introducing a classic monster into the revived series and featuring a historical figure whose real-life story could be a miniseries unto itself, “Legend of the Sea Devils” may be the worst episode of Doctor Who since Series 9’s “Sleep No More.”  Poorly written, incompetently directed, and overburdened with lackluster effects, the special completely wastes both its returning villain and its guest cast.

“Legend of the Sea Devils” features a plot that is so twisted and convoluted, it requires an exposition dump at the start of the episode’s third act to be comprehensible to its audience.  The Sea Devils are searching for a piece of technology, the Keystone, so that they can flip the Earth’s magnetic poles and somehow flood the planet.  Ji-Hun discovers the Keystone as part of the lost treasure of the Flor de la Mar and gives it to his trusted crewman, Lei Bao.  Centuries later, Lei Bao’s descendant, Ying Ki, encounters famed pirate Madam Ching.  Ching is also searching for the treasure of the Flor de la Mar, in order to afford the ransom for her crew and two young sons.

Only, none of this has anything to do with Zheng Yi Sao, the real-life Madam Ching, whose actual story—she is history’s most successful female pirate, at one point commanding over 400 ships and perhaps 60,000 pirates—is far more interesting than what is presented here.  Rather than celebrate the significance of a historical character à la Rosa Parks, in “Rosa,” or Mary Seacole, in “War of the Sontarans,” “Legend of the Sea Devils” reduces Madam Ching from a business woman who commanded a fleet, after the death of her husband, to “lady pirate.”  Why squander a historical figure, particularly one with such an interesting story?

The script does little better for any of the episode’s other characters.  Ostensibly written with as few characters as possible, in order to save money on actor’s salaries, the episode is notable for what it doesn’t show the audience.  This has the unfortunate effect of reducing the stakes for the characters within the narrative.  Madam Ching’s quest to be reunited with her crew and children carries little weight, because they are only revealed to the audience via exposition.  The emotional resonance of Ji-Hun’s death is minimal, because we are never shown the life he lost.  The chief Sea Devil doesn’t even get a name, much less a thought-provoking, even sympathetic motivation.  Compared to the Silurian warrior, Restac, the chief Sea Devil is little more than a maniacal supervillain.  The audience is told that the Keystone could be used to flood the Earth, but is only shown the power of the Huasen—a Leviathan-like monster that doesn’t actually figure into the Sea Devils’ ultimate plan.  Without agency or adequate development, the supporting characters flounder, swept along in the current of the episode’s convoluted plot.

Unfortunately, of the main cast, companion Dan suffers the most.  He contributes so little to the plot that the episode is forced to portray him as a swashbuckling hero for killing six Sea Devils, despite the narrative chastising Ji-Hun for murdering the chief Sea Devil only minutes before.  The episode ignores so many tertiary characters that it is genuinely surprising when Dan’s phone call to Diane is returned—a welcome surprise, even if actress Nadia Albina is uncredited.

Just as the episode’s script obscures characters and events in an effort to conserve the budget, the visual effects all seem to service the financial bottom line.  Featuring relatively little on-location filming (Ying Ki’s village and beach being the brief exceptions), the episode is instead entirely composited together via barely serviceable special effects.  Establishing shots feature stock footage of a sunny ocean that is never visible from the deck of either ship.  Rather than elaborately choreographed fight scenes, much of the action is cut around.  The effect is jarring.  Note how the action shots of the Sea Devils attacking the villagers do not match the reaction shots.  It is impossible to follow the motions of the Doctor and her crew as they fight the Sea Devils in the third act, reducing a rousing scene to an incoherent mess.

Further, many of the special effects seem to be included merely to cover narrative holes.  Rather than showing the chief Sea Devil boarding Madam Ching’s ship, he merely apparates into the scene—an ability previously unseen in the Sea Devils, which goes completely unremarked by the Doctor.  How does the chief Sea Devil leap tens, if not hundreds, of feet into the air to land on the deck of the flying ship?  And why does he do this when he can teleport?

The only times “Legend of the Sea Devils” rises above its script and direction are the scenes that progress the Doctor and Yaz’s relationship—and even these scenes are marred because of their placement within the episode.  Yaz seems incredibly self-absorbed to bring up her feelings for the Doctor while she and Dan are in the midst of a world-ending threat.  This runs contrary to her portrayal as a woman who always puts the needs of others first.

Only the scene where the Doctor admits that she wants to date Yasmin, the lights within the Sea Devil’s console room seemingly shifting to a romantic pink in response, is perfectly timed or deftly written.  Note the continued use of color—the lights then shift to an angry red, when Thirteen admits that she can’t date Yaz—and how the scene’s rapidly expiring doomsday clock thematically reflects the Doctor’s lament that, “[A]t some point, time always runs out.”

While the episode doesn’t cover any new ground—despite her fascination with humans, the Doctor is reticent to become too involved as she will outlive any non-Gallifreyan companion—it does find the courage to pointedly portray the Doctor as being attracted to the personality and the character of her lovers, and not their anatomy.  This is the sensible conclusion to draw when considering a species that changes physical forms, and potentially sexes, with each regeneration.  We see the Doctor as the pursuer, as she asks Yas, “Not a bad date, am I?” and formalizing their relationship, asking if the two could “live in the present of what [they] have, while [they] still have it.”  The Doctor loves Yasmin, but, after loving Rose and River, and befriending Donna and Amy, she is aware of the limitations of the human life spans and the inherent risks of traveling inside the TARDIS.  Still, she can’t help but to want to date Yaz, resulting in a heartfelt wish that “I wish this would go on forever.”

Random musings:

(Time) Capsule Review:

Featuring incoherent direction and a script that both ignores the fascinating true story of Madam Ching and fails to develop the reintroduced Sea Devils, “Legend of the Sea Devils” is further marred by a reliance on special effects to cover narrative leaps.  An example of the importance of the following the “show, don’t tell” adage, the Easter special uses exposition rather than flashbacks of actors portraying tertiary characters to convey its story, resulting in a loss of agency for its supporting cast.  Only a scene where the Doctor admits to wanting a relationship with her companion, Yaz, stands out, due to its use of color and thematic mirroring to convey the Doctor and Yasmin’s conflicting emotions.

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