Believe it or not, Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 6 “The Interstellar Song Contest” reminded me a lot of The Last of Us.
On the TV adaptation of the blockbuster game, which don’t worry, I won’t get into spoilers, there’s a continuous cycle of violence that is core to the show. Hurt people, hurt people. And the cycle keeps going as some who have been rightfully wronged, take it out on others. Some of them deserved it on The Last of Us. Let’s not sugarcoat it. But some didn’t. I see this significant part of The Last of Us in Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 6 “The Interstellar Song Contest.”
In Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 6 You have a race known as Hellion’s who have been systematically portrayed as heathens who the general masses should not have sympathy for. And that lie was perpetuated by a corporation who wanted to fill their pockets. This is a story that we are familiar with in our very own world. Communities have been demonized, and those prejudices remain till this day.
MORE: Need a refresher of the previous episode? Read our review for Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 5 “The Story and the Engine.”
The Hellion named Kid, they were a creation of their circumstances. And they could have turned the other cheek. But life isn’t that sugary sweet sometimes. And I don’t know what I would do if my entire world got burned to the ground and everyone saw me as a literal demonic entity of sorts. (Also, even though I understand how prejudice shapes and changes, Kid was wrong. Just if that wasn’t clear.)
This is where I have a problem with The Doctor themselves in this episode.
The Doctor told Kid that they just wanted to kill and were using revenge as a cover. For a being that has seen the pain and destruction brought on by those who prioritize lining their pockets, I thought The Doctor would have a little bit more empathy. But I also understand that it is hard to have empathy with someone when you think that they killed your current companion. So I understand that The Doctor was in pain. I also understand that The Doctor themselves is in this cycle of hurt people, hurt people. I just didn’t like that little bit of hypocrisy as if The Doctor was better than Kid and Kid was just one dimensional.
MORE: Doctor Who may have already revealed Mrs. Flood’s identity with a not so subtle clue.
By the end of Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 6 “The Interstellar Song Contest,” The Doctor tells Kid about this ice that they now have inside of them because of Kid. And I understand that Doctor Who as an entity is trying to revamp itself. That’s why now on IMDb the show is under “Season 2” instead of it being a continuation of the recent reboot of Doctor Who that started with Christopher Eccleston and ended with Jodie Whitaker.
People who have just started with Ncuti Gatwa, know The Doctor as this vibrant, adventurous, and deeply in touch with their emotions Time Lord. But for those who have watched this show for years upon years, this darkness or ice has always been part of The Doctor. So I’m not sure what the show itself is trying to do with this differentiation besides taking new viewers on a journey while ignoring the old ones.
In the middle of this story of revenge, ice, and revamping of The Doctor is one of the most harrowing scenes that I have ever seen on Doctor Who. And it’s harrowing in a way that’s different from Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 3 “The Well.” That had horror elements to it. Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 6 was harrowing because of that one scene where the shield let up and those tens of thousands of beings were sucked up into space.
MORE: Doctor Who’s biggest Season 2 continuity hole has an easy explanation.
Inside I knew that this is Doctor Who aka the kind of show that wouldn’t kill 100,000 creatures on screen in such a manner. But for a fleeting moment, my heart dropped as we saw the silhouette of the station, being lit up and these tiny specs flying out of it. For a moment there you thought it was debris. But the moment you realize it’s actual creatures or people, this terror fills you as you think of the loss of life.
And again, I knew that everything would be alright by the end of Doctor Who. But that moment of panic, is something I haven’t felt watching a TV show in a really long time. This emotional connection that I continue to feel with this show is truly down to Russell T Davies and Ncuti Gatwa themselves. Doctor Who as a show is meant to challenge you as much as The Doctor themselves is being challenged.
I find myself being challenged with this iteration of The Doctor every week. And while some episodes are hits with some misses, there’s a quality to Season 2 of Doctor Who that is only matched by episodes we had during the David Tennant era. Why? Because of that writing and because of Gatwa’s spectacular acting.
MORE: As we get closer to the end of Season 1, read where it started with Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 1 “The Robot Revolution.”
What comes next for Doctor Who is the destruction of Earth. May 24th 2025. And I think it’s the moment, if I were to theorize a little bit, where things are going to start falling into place. Because while we’ve enjoyed Season 2, there have been so many little things that have been dangling. But unlike other shows, I’m looking at you 9-1-1 on ABC, there is impeccable planning on Doctor Who Season 2.
Now that we know Mrs. Flood is The Rani, we know nothing is a coincidence. There is intention from minute one. And in the words of RuPaul, I can’t wait to see how this turns out.
Doctor Who airs new episodes every Saturday.
