I feel like Orbis is kinda the Eighth Doctor's version of Trenzalore: the place he defends for hundreds of years and is willing to die for, and I really liked that we got to see Eight in a Time Of The Doctor-esque setting. There were some really heavy hitting moments, like when the Doctor tells Lucie that 'Sometimes people don't want to be saved, sometimes, it's time to die, you should respect that', an (in my opinion) incredibly profound line that really shows how committed he is to the planet. I enjoyed the other aspects of the story as a whole (although the ending was really depressing), and I'm hoping this leaves an impact on the Doctor-Companion dynamic over the rest of the series (shooting the Doctor probably won't do great things for the Doctor's friendship with Lucie I'd assume, and he's 600 years older).

love the idea of aquatic themed aliens and a lot of the stuff with 8 on the jellyfish planet is really cute. unfortunately the episode is tanked when the main villain is introduced – she is fat and transfem and these two things are disrespected and made fun of constantly, including by the eighth doctor himself. really disgusting – not sure i can ever completely forgive briggs for this one.

Orbis was a great start for series 3! I really enjoyed it.

While it was another Eighth Doctor gets amnesia story, I think it worked. It was interesting seeing him 600 years later where he finally settled down in a new life. There were also some great Doctor moments in here too.

Also, shout out to Sheridan Smith for some amazing acting in this one, I think this is the first of the EDAs that I really felt moved emotionally.

Con: The jellyfish and crab (?) people were a bit weird, and the voice effects were a bit silly, but I do think they were effective for the story.

Recommended! Looking forward to the rest of series 3.

This is a weird one, and not in a bad way.

Orbis picks up immediately where we left off, with Lucie getting a nasty visit from the Headhunter. They've got access to the TARDIS; bad news is it's apparently leaking time waste and destroying the vortex, a side effect of the Doctor's absence.

Like Sisters of the Flame, we get a more vulnerable, more serious Lucie, and it works well here too. Sheridan does a good job selling her dismay at the Doctor having forgotten her, while still mining some good comedy out of the situation. Olsson is still strong as the Headhunter, and she's back to being very sinister and cryptic. Her true scheme is hinted at at the end of the story and we'll see who's she's really working for by the end of the season.

The Doctor is a little out of his depth here, having gotten amnesia (again) and been stuck on Orbis for 600 years! McGann turns in a fun performance, giving us a Doctor who's lost, but perfectly content with his new life tinkering with new inventions and living with jellyfish people.

The people of Orbis themselves are charming, just very sweet, innocent people, especially our one-off companion Selta, played very well by Laura Solon. It's very fun to imagine these people as literal giant jellyfish, wobbling awkwardly as they follow the Doctor around.

Next we have the Molluscari, our villains, who are - delightfully - some kind of giant oysters with pincers. The sound design really shines here, as we get the Molluscari clicking their pincers and clapping their shells to cheer for their leader. It makes for more fun imagery. The leader, Crassostrea, is our antagonist, played by Andrew Sachs, who turns in an immensely entertaining performance. This is one villain who's just silly and fun in the best ways. Also, his female organs are growing in. Good for her!

A nice, vivid story that ends in sheer horror, Orbis is a great start to the season.

4.5/5

Quite a well-written, fun, interesting story having The Doctor be holed up on an alien world for 600 years with a new companion and a new lease on life, almost being a different incarnation all together and this is all explored decently well with also having a nice, fun, well-functioning plot. Good stuff!
Sadly, however, the story hasn't aged terribly well with it having The Eight Doctor's Adventures' second instance of outright transphobia; having the main villain be a trans woman whom everyone treats as ridiculous for claiming to be a woman, misgendering her constantly, having her be a take on the transgender/crossdressing serial killer trope and using outdated terminology, like, "Used to be a man", which all seems double-y offensive seeing as Paul McGann is openly very supportive of trans folk.
So trans folk out there, stay away if you're not in an exceptionally good place right now, however, if you are in an exceptionally good place right now (go you!) like I am (I'm also trans, not just bragging) you can enjoy this, and just roll your eyes or grit your teeth at the transphobic comments as a sign of the times, the same as we do with racism in Classic Who.
7/10