Very conflicted writing this review, and it has taken some hours for me to consider and unravel what I think this episode was trying to go for.

First, I think that the fun and camp elements of the episode are handled really well. The setting is brilliant, and the premise works well. Eurovision can be a great bit of fun, and to me, it makes perfect sense to see this play out on such a grand scale. The world is built nicely, and it has markings of something really great and fun. Additionally, its nice to see that they aren't shying away from the darker truths behind Eurovision too, and that they also condemn its sponsors, and it's political stances.

And even when things take a darker turn, I think there's a lot to commend - the tonal changes work well to me. The stark contrast makes it feel even more surreal, and I think there's something fantastic about how strange it feels. There are some absolutely brutal moments in it, which are dark and terrifying.

But its these ideas where I become more conflicted. As soon as we look at Kid's motivation, the politics begin to feel iffy. Particularly, the Doctor's response to this is not handled well. Kid is the victim of a genocide throughout this, and while it's made clear that he should be prevented from committing this terrorist act, the torture he is put through by the Doctor is not properly addressed. The Doctor felt incredibly out of character in his attack there - of course, the Doctor has saved the day, but in this personal torture of the victim of a genocide feels wrong. Here, a lot of the good will for an episode which handled a critique of Eurovision well, is lost.

Furthermore, the interspersed clips of Susan feel very forced in this episode. At this point, its great to see her again, but they took me out of the episode very quickly.

And then we get to the mid-credits scene. And yes, the Rani is back. And its the most rushed introduction ever - this should have been incorporated further into the episode, to give much more breathing space - why was this reveal not in front of The Doctor too? In a split second, the new Rani is introduced and Mrs Flood's identity revealed, and bam - its over as soon as its began. Feeling very tacked on, and incredibly forced.