I quite enjoyed this episode and feel like it balanced the more fun and more emotional aspects of the story well. Something about "Planet of the Incels" is just so comical to me, yet the idea does hold an interesting sort of power within our modern hellscape. (I won't go too much into that here, but if you know, you know). And though I recognize it likely won't age well, nor will the sperm an egg joke, it doesn't detract from the fun of the episode for me.

Now, more on Alan. Video games can often be used to create a disconnect. This is something a friend pointed out to me, along with some real world examples, and I thought it was rather relevant to the review I'm writing. When the robots explain Alan's role to him on Missbelindachandra world, he says that "it's like a video game." I think this commentary is more timeless (always appreciated but not always necessary).

I quite enjoyed the character work in this episode. Every side character gives Belinda and the Doctor the chance to shine, which they do take rather gracefully. Belinda is immediately able to establish herself as her own, independent person who will not easily bend to the Doctor's will, which I find particularly refreshing after watching a long series of companions who are almost always in agreeance with him. I especially love the moment where she tells the Doctor she doesn't need him to fight her battles, and her other interactions with Manny that allow her to stand up for herself. The Doctor's strong personality was also present and prominent throughout his rescue of Belinda, trying to care for her and save the day. His reaction to the TARDIS' return to him was perfect, and his little leg kick after Alan's death showed off his vibrant personality.

Onto another controversial topic from this episode: Sasha 55. I personally think that the Doctor's relationship with Sasha 55 was a great insight into his character; it reveals the loneliness left in his life by Yaz leaving, and the need for connection that creates. My only critique of this inclusion is that I wish it would have been included in a more serious episode so that it carried even more emotional weight.

Overall, I would give this episode a 4/5. It didn't blow me away, but it handled itself well and provided a good opener for the series. I could definitely see myself watching it again.

Season Two (Series 15); Episode One - “The Robot Revolution” by Russell T. Davies

Doctor Who doesn’t excite me anymore. I’m sorry, sorry to myself, sorry to the whole fanbase, but I just can’t care anymore. Doctor Who in its new, frankly unnecessary era, is entirely style over substance, a flashy soap opera with the depth of a puddle in a drought that I simply can not find myself excited about. The Robot Revolution was a competent episode with needlessly glorious visuals that felt as if ChatGPT was told to write an episode of Doctor Who, the bare essentials needed for an episode in a trenchcoat masquerading as the first in a new series. I’m not angry, but I am very disappointed.

Average nursing student Belinda Chandra wakes up to find herself queen of a far off planet inexplicably named after her and ruled by a tyrannical AI supercomputer. With her life and freedom at stake, she has to put her chances in the hands of rebel leader the Doctor if she wants to escape.

(CONTAINS SPOILERS)

Alright, sulking out of the way, what did I actually think about The Robot Revolution? Not much, honestly, this is a very hollow episode. But I suppose we still have a pretty face and what a face it is, this episode is one of the best looking of the new era and that is saying something, given the competition. It’s ultra flashy and incredibly impressive to look at, with not one of the many, highly complicated props cheaply made. If I have to give this era some praises, it would be that it looks utterly incredible but looks aren’t everything.

The one place I did find some genuinely interesting depth was in our new companion, Belinda, who does feel to me like a rehash of other companions still but, once again boasts a good performance and instantly likable personality. I don’t think she works quite as well with Ncuti as Gibson did last season but the idea of a companion genuinely not wanting to be in the TARDIS is a fun concept (that has already been done with Tegan but hey-ho). But even so, she seems so superficially likable at times, like with the obvious self-sacrifice attempt that’s just so mundanely trying to get me to like her when the episode was already succeeding.

And you might be saying, “Speechless, it’s just a fun season opener, don’t take it so seriously”. And, I mean, fair enough, our villains are literally called Missbelindachandrabots for christ’s sake but I have some issues with that. There were a few moments I genuinely chuckled, the aforementioned robot naming convention being one of them, but there’s just something missing for me. A single episode like this is perfectly fine - not for me, but not egregious. However, nearly every other episode in this new era is exactly the same; you can’t expect me to not judge any of them because they’re just goofing off.

Especially when the episode keeps on shoving sentimental bullshit in my face every five seconds. Russell seems to have forgotten how to write emotional beats because he keeps making the same mistakes over and over again. Try as you might RTD, you can not get me to care about a character I’ve only known for five minutes. It also doesn’t help that you do this every, single episode in an identical way, making every single moment like this feel so bland and repetitive. He also can’t write drama anymore, a character will just come up to somebody, be antagonistic out of nowhere and then disappear for the rest of the episode and we’re meant to pretend it meant anything. Emotional beats in this new era are equivalent to the “APPLAUSE” signs they put in live studio audiences.

As for the story itself, I find everything so utterly bland here. No interesting ideas, no cool moments, no tension, no pacing, f**kall structure. Russell clearly just looked at those phony buy-a-star scams and went “but what if that was actually real” and then tried to spin a whole episode out of it. You know, for an episode where the big bad is an AI, it’s pretty ironic that it feels like one of the most procedurally generated scripts of the whole show. In addition to this, it moves so weirdly quickly. I checked the time after what felt like ten minutes and I was halfway through. There is no building here, no rise and fall of action: it begins, it goes and it stops with nearly no downtime in between plot beats. Because of this, it gave me no time to care. Not one scene impressed me, the rebel shootout was contrived and barely engaging, the bunker scene felt like a checklist of character interactions and the final scene is a lot of talking and annoying dialogue, with the completely unintimidating Jonny Green robot (Oh yeah, Tyler’s actor show up) having a second “it was the wrong anagram” reveal.

You know what, I actually think Russell’s running out of ideas. The companions are all the same, all the tender moments feel copied and pasted, hell, we even get a rip off Gadget from The Waters of Mars here that just goes to prove that he had exactly four series worth of ideas in him. All of this makes me ask, why is it I don’t care? Why is it I’m just not excited anymore? I mean, last season we got a couple great episodes that felt genuine and had actual, interesting character arcs going on. Am I not at least looking forward to any more of those? Not really, everything in the new Doctor Who is just lacking something, a certain charm that made the original RTD series so endearing. Maybe it’s the fact I find the new Doctor so utterly dull, even if Gatwa is a blast in the role. Maybe it's the fact that every character interaction, every emotional beat, every dramatic moment feels so disingenuous and like it's phoning it in. Maybe it's the constant, patronising attempt to make me feel something towards characters who truly refuse to grow and deepen.

I’m sorry if I’m being a downer but just know that I want to like this, I want to be excited to sit down every Saturday for Doctor Who but I’m being honest here and I have to say that I simply can not care. I’m giving The Robot Revolution a very low score and not because it's particularly incompetent but just because it's such an utterly hollow episode and everything I get out of it, I can find elsewhere. This is truly empty TV.

4/10

Pros:

+ Looks utterly incredible

+ Belinda is easily relatable and likable

+ Had moments of some genuinely fun TV

Cons:

- Incredibly superficial and surface level

- The pacing makes the story feel like a minisode

- Has a huge cast of cardboard cutout characters

- Once again, has forced emotional moments

- Absolutely awful main antagonist

I really enjoyed this! Especially after Space Babies irritated me; this feels like a return to form for openers personally.

The premise is incredibly funny, and I love how it was executed! Gatwa and Sethu are amazing, and I looooove Belinda already! Give me conflict! Give me a companion who doesn't take The Doctor's BS, and calls them out on their gross manipulations! And yes, good give me The Doctor's gross manipulations and address them - something 11's era didn't do enough for me with how he treated Clara.

I loved how this episode looked too; especially the robots and how many trippy sequences we had. The time explosion is literally what I want regenerations to look like again, ala Classic Who.

The twist was VERY silly in all the right ways, and it's great how unsubtle its commentary is. I don't care about subtext if I'm having a good time, which I am! Get those incels OUT OF HERE!!

This all being said.... With how fast paced it all was, it was hard for me to feel emotionally invested in the Sasha 55 plot, despite RTD's repeated attempts to make me. I knew her for all of 2 minutes! Why should I act as if she's emotionally important to me, just because The Doctor cried and everyone told us she ruled??? Tbh this ties into my biggest criticism of the episode: none of the side characters really mattered or got to be characters due to the pace. Also Manny was a little much, huh? At least he's very buff..... 

All in all though I really enjoyed and thought the tone balancing was great (again, unlike Space Babies), so I can't wait for the rest of the series!

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

“ROBOT REVOLUTION: A SPARKLING SEASON TWO STARTER WITH A BITE BEHIND THE BOUNCE”

Robot Revolution kicks off Series Two with a bang—and more importantly, with confidence. It’s a vibrant, pacey, and charming reintroduction to the Fifteenth Doctor, and it works far better as a premiere than Space Babies ever did. Russell T Davies embraces the whimsical tone but underpins it with genuine emotional depth, sharp visuals, and just enough mystery to keep us hooked.

QUEEN OF THE ROBOTS? WELL, KIND OF…

The plot is as absurd as it is delightful: 21st-century nurse Belinda Chandra is abducted from her home by a gang of excitable robots who believe she’s their long-lost queen, all because of a star certificate gifted to her by an ex-boyfriend over a decade ago. It’s a daft premise, yes—but one played with enough wit and world-building to become something genuinely compelling.

What follows is a sci-fi romp through Missbelindachandraworld (yes, that’s really what they call it), complete with robot cults, civil war, time distortions, and a surprisingly dark twist involving a toxic ex who accidentally triggers a planetary revolution. It’s wild, but it works.

VISUALLY STRIKING, BRIMMING WITH STYLE

Production-wise, this is top-tier Doctor Who. The robots are toylike but expressive, reminiscent of Smile’s emoji-faced bots, with helpful visual icons that flash across their faces depending on mood or function. The environments are stunning—from the gleaming capital of Missbelindachandraville to the gritty tunnels and battle chambers beneath it.

Time distortion effects early on are particularly well done, and the trippy climax pushes the show’s visual language into bold new territory. Add in sharp editing, strong direction, and a killer score, and you’ve got an opener that looks (and sounds) better than ever.

A COMPELLING COMPANION: BELINDA ARRIVES FULLY FORMED

Belinda Chandra is instantly compelling—a nurse with a spine, a sharp tongue, and no patience for the Doctor’s usual nonsense. She calls him out when he oversteps, questions his fascination with her, and even challenges him when he takes her DNA without asking. She’s not starry-eyed; she’s practical, self-possessed, and more Tegan than Rose, which is exactly the right energy for a modern companion.

She’s not swept up in the romance of space-time travel—she just wants to go home. But when pushed into the chaos, she rises to the challenge, making tough calls and holding her ground. This isn’t a passive plus-one. This is someone who speaks for herself—and might just speak against the Doctor when needed.

NUCTI GATWA CONTINUES TO SHINE

Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor continues to dazzle: bouncy, brilliant, and bursting with warmth. There’s an intriguing undercurrent here too—he already knows Belinda’s name when they meet, having heard it from someone else. And when he spots her resemblance to Mundy Flynn from Boom, he starts putting pieces together. There’s clearly more going on here, and it’s nice to see the arc seeded so organically.

SCHWUPS AND SYNCHRONISATION

One of the more quietly clever elements is the timey-wimey gap between Earth and Missbelindachandraworld: only hours pass for Belinda, but six months for the Doctor. It’s described as a “schwup”—a delightfully RTD bit of invented jargon that also gives emotional weight to the Doctor’s waiting. This mismatch sets up an early sense of temporal imbalance that’s sure to pay off later.

THE ROBOT REVOLUTION: FUN, FATAL, AND FELINE-UNFRIENDLY

The robot uprising is amusing at first—complete with a BB-8-like Polish Polish Robot (adorable) and a whole vocabulary quirk where robots can’t hear every ninth word (a great sci-fi idea that becomes a vital plot point). But the comedy quickly turns to tragedy. These robots disintegrate a cat (why is it always the cat?) and wage a brutal war, believing themselves to be righteous.

The cause? A miscommunication sparked by Belinda’s ex-boyfriend, Alan, now a reclusive incel-turned-AI overlord calling himself the AI Generator. It’s a sharp turn into social commentary—Alan is both pathetic and dangerous, a man so obsessed with his own inadequacy that he builds a mythos around it and unleashes war. He’s a chillingly real villain, and the smoke-filled, lightning-crackling chamber he resides in adds an operatic flair to his twisted logic.

SOME TROPES REMAIN… BUT MOSTLY WORK

The twist—that “AI Generator” really stands for “Alan”—is one of those RTD red herrings that’s a little too on-the-nose. It’s not subtle, and viewers will likely clock it well in advance. Still, it fits the tone, and the emotional truth of Alan’s villainy is stronger than the twist itself.

THE WEAK LINKS? A FEW BACKGROUND PLAYERS

Not everything hits equally hard. Supporting characters like Sasha 55 (Evelyn Miller) and Manny (Max Parker) are likable but thinly drawn. Sasha dies before we really get to know her, and Manny’s distrust of Belinda never quite factors meaningfully into the plot. The robot voices, performed by Nick Briggs, are surprisingly fresh despite his ubiquity, but even they mostly serve as comic relief or cannon fodder.

THE FLOOD FACTOR RETURNS

And of course, we get a Mrs Flood sighting—this time as Belinda’s neighbour, watching her abduction from a distance. She breaks the fourth wall again before vanishing, setting up her now-confirmed appearances in every episode. Who is she? Still no idea, but the mystery continues to bubble intriguingly in the background.

A FINAL HOOK FOR THE FUTURE

The closing image is a stunner: the Eiffel Tower floating in space alongside the shattered remains of the Statue of Liberty, hinting at the series arc and the unresolved question—why can’t the Doctor return Belinda to May 24th, 2025? It’s a small, quiet mystery that’s likely to snowball into something massive, and it’s an excellent final sting.

📝VERDICT: 8/10

Robot Revolution is fun, confident, and bursting with imagination. It balances whimsy with emotional heft, introduces a winning new companion in Belinda Chandra, and continues to evolve Fifteen’s personality with warmth and mystery. It’s bold without being brash, clever without being convoluted, and stylish without sacrificing substance. A thrilling start to the season—and the best “Episode One” we’ve had in years.

Sometimes you go to Doctor Who for the biting social commentary, the thrills, the horror, the out there sci-fi concepts, the depth to every interaction, how it's building on 60 years of lore.

Sometimes you go to Doctor Who to sit down in front of the telly, throw on an episode, and just have some fun.

The Robot Revolution definitely doesn't do the former of those, but it doesn't need to, it's all in on the latter and works. Is this the best Doctor Who story I've ever watched? No. Is it one that I can absolutely see coming back to, throwing it on when I just want some fun? YES.

A brilliantly fun story that does exactly what I think Doctor Who needed to, backed up by brilliant effects (cosmetic, practical, and CG), a wild premise that's fun from start to end, some spectacular acting, and a cliffhanger that almost has me sad we're not getting a 2 episode premier again.