I didn’t just like Like, I loved Like! This is a pretty excellent 6/Peri adventure that’s part mission of diplomacy, part overthrow the regime, part social media satire, a very funny and lively script by Jacqueline Rayner, a ton of giggles courtesy of all the fake ads that play, some interesting ideas about using this system to your advantage, things to say about race and immigration and closed border mentalities and all sorts of things, and of course excellent performances from Colin & Nicola. Sound design is really good in this box, there’s a couple of extreme transitions that are very cool, and all the ads too. An easy 4/5, maybe even higher after a think!

This is part of a series of reviews of Doctor Who in chronological timeline order.

Previous Story: The Headless Ones

'Death by public opinion.'

I can definitely see why someone might dislike this story, it's very on-the-nose in it's commentary and can easily come across as "old man writer complaining about technology" however I genuinely really like this one. It feels quite Black Mirror-esque and it's absolutely one of the most fascinating planets I've seen in Doctor Who in a while. Just the way the society works here feels really well thought out.

The idea that the Doctor and Peri are here as ambassadors for the Yoblans and need to convince all of society to allow them to land feels almost like the plot of A Christmas Carol (the Doctor Who one). It's really interesting to see a society where public opinion is in control and even the governor of the planet has to suck up to the people and can't make any controversial decisions for fear of death.

The sound design of this story is really great, from the constant notification sounds in public areas to the little advertisements in between every scene. It's the kind of thing that should be annoying but it's done in a funny enough way that it becomes enjoyable. Overall, I really like this one

Next Story: The Vanity Trap