Day 287 — October 14th 2021
Kinda Parts One and Two
Kinda — Part One
I moaned a bit in the last story about Adric becoming a less likeable character in the Davison Era, and I think a lot of that has to do with the way Davison’s Doctor Who behaves towards him. It’s like having Romana back, where almost everything he says to the boy is a bit rude. I quite liked it in yesterday’s episode when he had to knock some sense into the boy, but here he’s seemingly just having a pop at the kid for no reason. If anything, it comes across as though he’s trying to show off and impress Tegan, and doesn’t appreciate Adric getting in the way. Having already snapped at Adric for ‘wandering off’ (when he’d only gone about three feet away) he lets rip when the boy inspects the Survival Unit;
Doctor Who: ‘Adric.’
Adric: ‘Yes?’
Doctor Who: ‘There is a difference between serious scientific investigation
and meddling.’
Adric: ‘Yes.’
Doctor Who: ‘Isn’t there!?’
Adric: ‘Yes!’
I seem to recall that by the time we reach Earthshock and Adric makes the decision that he wants to leave I couldn’t help but sympathise with him — and moments like this make me think I’ll be feeling the same way this time around.
It’s especially galling because Doctor Who is unfailingly polite to everyone else he meets! When he first rocks up at the Dome and convinces them that instead of placing him under arrest they should give him some breakfast it’s brilliant. He’s got a kind of easy charm which I don’t think the last few Doctor Whos have had. You sort of want to be friends with this version of Doctor Who. Just as long as you’re not Adric.
Everything seems to be pulling together nicely for this one. The sets are impressive, both in terms of the exterior jungle and the interior of the Dome. I always remember the Kinda jungle as looking good but then find myself disappointed when I first catch sight of the flat studio floors, but it’s only a momentary flash of disgruntlement, because before long you can overlook them to see just how impressive it all is. I’m especially fond of the little vines growing up the outside of the Dome which can be seen through the window of Todd’s office. It’s little touches like these which help to make it all feel more thought through and real.
And then there’s the crew of the Dome, who are some of the most well-realised characters we’ve had in ages. I knew we were onto a winner when we opened the story with one member of the crew playing a prank on another — it’s just not the kind of thing you often see in the series but it helps to make them feel all the more real. By the end of the episode I feel as though I’ve got a good handle on all three of the crew, and because of that Hindle’s rapid decent into madness feels believable and earned, even though it’s happened at lightning speed.
8/10
Kinda — Part Two
Simon Rouse’s performance as Hindle is a really interesting one, because on the surface it shouldn’t work in the slighteset. It’s no less over-the-top than any of the ones I called out in Season Seventeen, and that should make it stand out all the more because everything else in this production is taking things far more seriously than in that season — the leading man in particular. Somehow, though, the tone of his performance is judged perfectly, so instead of becoming a ridiculous opportunity for overacting it comes down on the side of being genuinely scary. Even the cliffhanger moment to Part One, in which he declares that he has ‘the power of life and death over all of you’ manages to tread the line just right.
He’s the absolute highlight of the story for me, and the moment he breaks down fully on realising that Sanders has returned to base is fantastic, calling for his mummy and begging her to get rid of his superior. What’s interesting me the most is that we’re already at what feels like the furthest point of his madness. I’d not expect him to snap like this until at least the end of Part Three, so I’m keen to see where his character — and the story — goes from here.
It’s also an interesting new spin on the ‘Base Under Siege’ format, which feels like a welcome attempt from the programme to move forward with its storytelling, after Four to Doomsday often felt like a bit of a throwback to the 1960s. Usually it’s the base commander who goes mad and falls apart, but it’s much more interesting to see it happen here with someone genuinely dangerous.
This episode on the whole ramps up the tension and the scare factor. I’ve seen people say that the ‘dreamscape’ sequences with Tegan were proper nightmare fuel for them when they saw this story go out at the time, and I’ll admit that I raised an eyebrow at that during Part One. They’re interesting, of course (and a chance to see Lou Beale is always welcome), but I found them more esoteric than frightening. But then we reach the final moments of them here in which Tegan offers out her hand and screams as the snake tattoo slithers from one arm to another… yeah, I get it now.
A scream is responsible for the other scariest moment of the episdoe, and that’s the cliffhanger. They spend several minutes building up the tension of what might be inside the box and Hindle demanding that they open it. When they finally do and instead of seeing the contents we focus on Todd’s ear-splitting scream… ooh, that’s a good cliffhanger. I’m really keen to move on and watch the next episode, which is always the mark of a good one.
9/10
