ANDREW'S
DOCTOR WHO REVIEWS 
If Smile was a good Doctor Who story then Thin Ice is a
magnificent one. It could well be the best of Capaldi’s entire run and is both
fun, scary, exciting and at times thought provoking. The Doctor/Bill
relationship is spot on here and gets a little more serious, but by the end of
it both have a growing respect for the other.
The Doctor and Bill find themselves in 1814 at the last
great Frost Fair on the River Thames, where an elephant is actually brought
onto the frozen river. Whilst exploring the Doctor’s pocket is picked by a
young boy, Spider (Austin Taylor) who runs out onto the ice with it, when the
Doctor and Bill pursue they are followed by strange lights under the ice.
Before the Doctor can save him Spider is pulled under the ice, leaving only his
hand sticking through it. The Doctor grabs the sonic screwdriver clasped in
Spider’s hand and much to Bill’s disgust seems more concerned about the device
than the boy. She asks him how many people he has seen die and he cannot answer
her.
However, the pair decide to investigate, they get diving
suits and allow themselves to be taken under the ice. The lights are from tiny
fish-like creatures that are the feeding device of a massive serpent like
creature that is living under the Thames. They return to land and discover that
Lord Sutcliffe (Nicholas Burns) has been encouraging people on to the Thames to
get the creature to eat them as he is using its waste to create a wonder fuel
that he is selling.
Sutcliffe tries to kill the Doctor and Bill but is instead
taken by the sea creature, which the Doctor then frees. The Doctor rewrites the
deeds to Sutcliffe’s mansion and turns it into a home for the destitute
children, of whom Spider was one.
When they return to modern day Earth Nardole scolds the
Doctor for evading his responsibilities. When Nardole goes to the vault under
the University whatever is beyond the door knocks on it.
Doctor Who seems to always work well in the 19th
Century, and this is no exception. The whole Georgian/Victorian ethos of
‘progress at any cost’ drives the plotline here, with the odious Sutcliffe
exploiting both the poor of London and the alien sea creature to his own ends.
His eventual ‘hoist with his own petard’ death is very satisfying.
The matter of Bill’s race is brought up here in a very
clever way – the Doctor stating that ‘history is a white wash’ sets out his
attitude to racism in one simple phrase. Then when Sutcliffe begins to use
racist language to Bill the Doctor, to everyone’s joy, punches Sutcliffe’s
lights out. Despite have told Bill to keep control of her emotions it is the
Doctor who cannot control himself. It’s a fantastic moment and one which brings
a smile every time you see it.
The conflict between the Doctor and Bill over his seeming
lack of care about the boy, Spider, is also handled well. By the end of the
story Bill realises that sometimes the Doctor has to make choices that other
people cannot or would not.
As ever, when doing costume drama, the BBC excel and the
scenes on the frozen Thames are beautifully realised – the elephant on the ice
(a historic fact) is another of those great Doctor Who images.
Thin Ice is massively recommended and is a joy from start to
finish and is the middle one of three super Doctor Who stories that feature
Capaldi’s Doctor at the absolute peak of his powers.
NEXT UP: KNOCK KNOCK
© Text copyright - Raving Loony
Productions and
Andrew J. Müller,
Roy Barton
and Shaun Runham
© Photos and Artwork - Andrew J. Müller
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2022
