Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

“NEEDLE POINT: MARTHA TAKES THE LEAD”

Much like No Fun at the Fair, this story follows a familiar formula—the companion and the Doctor are enjoying a quiet day before she (Martha, in this instance) notices something strange and decides to investigate. The twist this time is that Martha handles the entire alien encounter on her own, leaving the Doctor as little more than a bystander who drops in at the end to deliver a few quips. While it’s always nice to see Martha take charge, the story’s structure makes the Doctor feel oddly unnecessary.

ALIENS WITH A KNITTING HABIT

The central alien concept is delightfully bizarre: shapeshifting creatures stuck in the form of old women, knitting to regain their energy reserves. It’s a mix of the eerie and the absurd, which Doctor Who often does well. Unfortunately, while the premise has potential, it never builds into anything truly engaging. The aliens pose no real threat, and Martha easily ruins their plans with a simple shove—making the climax feel abrupt and underwhelming.

VERDICT: MARTHA GOES SOLO

A Stitch in Time has a fun and quirky alien concept, but it doesn’t do much with it. Martha getting to be the hero is a nice touch, but the lack of tension or challenge makes the resolution feel too easy. A quick, light read, but ultimately forgettable.

📝5/10

More light fluff but light fluff I *really* liked. The idea of aliens disguising themselves as little old ladies because all little old ladies look the same is great, some fun technobabble on how their knitting is making energy for their ship, and the plot being foiled because the needles touched is the right amount of silly.

The characterisation is also on point here, Martha gets to save the day on her own, and 10 mostly ignores her, so yep, got their season 3 dynamic down perfectly.

I also like the ending with 10 cooing at a baby, and that last line about all babies looking the same is a fun note to end on with just the right hint of creepy for the kids at home reading it.