A small glimpse in the first doctor on its own.

This story is set on a junkyard of a robot planet, where robots with any kind of malfunction get dumped. Until the doctor comes along and starts a revolution.

It’s basically the long-form characterization of the First doctor done in a miniature version. Turns out that really works.

This doctor is always defined by his learning. Not in the traditional knowledge sense (although he does plenty of that), but emotional learning. He has a vision on the world that needs to be challenged every now and again. Which leads to him growing.

So that’s what happens here. The doctor is in the junkyard and tries to break free using a machine made of found parts. He does not realize that those parts belonged to machines in the past, and that those machines had lives. He has basically made a solution out of body parts from their point of view.

He realizes the error of his ways, and changes his methods by accepting help from those around him. Bringing leadership and skills they did not think of, but learning to be kind and respectful to them in the process.

It’s just great. It shows what he has learned, but that he is still learning. We get a glimmer of him internalizing his lessons, while we stack on some new ones. It’s what this doctor does best.

The story has some small flaws besides this. The establishment of the world and Frankie the robot is a bit too long, and the doctor enters the story pretty late, but well, it is not that bad when the story is only 20 minutes. It’s far from a dealbreaker.