Matryoshka

I enjoyed it, but left me severely disappointed. I feel like this story works incredibly well on paper, but unfortunately neither Sullivan nor Cross are charismatic enough to carry this episode’s A plot. Ultimately what I’m most disappointed in is this, because they weren’t super captivating companions in Storm of the Sea Devils either. There was a relationship further delved into in World’s Apart, but as their dynamic developed into this second boxset, I realized it’s not really working for me. A central beat this season seems to really be building is Naomi’s growing sense of self and realization of her own capabilities. This has been present in all three episodes, but and Harry’s purpose for Naomi’s storyline is to encourage her as she solves the Toymaker’s “riddle’s three.” I have not listened to their later adventures with the 7th Doctor and 21st century UNIT, so perhaps I could get more out of them if I had. The impression I got was that their 4th Doctor Adventures was the ideal introduction to them.

Tom is on top form though. His performance is often unpredictable and engaging. Every interaction he has with Harry has felt odd, since on Tom’s side it’s just like season 12, but I don’t think this new actor is capturing Ian Marter’s charisma in the slightest. Tom’s interactions with the Toymaker are really interesting, and given the latest season of the show, I was more alert to, but also just interest in the newest actor to play the Toymaker. While I don’t think she did anything unique with the role, the scale of the godlike Toymaker against Tom’s wit and unpredictability is always interesting.

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

Previous Story: Worlds Beyond (Unreviewed)

This is probably the first story I didn't like in Series 13. It just feels like a rehash of the original Toymaker story without the parts that made the original interesting. This story also has the downside of being overshadowed by The Giggle. I know that when they were recording this The Giggle probably wasn't even an idea in RTD's head but regardless I think it's really set the bar for the Toymaker.

Annette Badland's Toymaker is quite generic in my opnion and lacks that otherwordly godlike feel that Michael Gough and Neil Patrick Harris capture in their respective stories. Still, all the actors in this are great, especially Christopher Naylor as Harry Sullivan. He's easily my favourite part of these stories. Tom Baker is also as delightful as usual and it feels like he gets better with age.

Again, this would probably be a better story for me if it had released long before The Giggle, I went into it with a certain expectation for the Toymaker that just isn't fulfilled in this story.

Next Story: The Caged Assassin