Doctor Who: Kerblam! Review

Previous Doctor Who series haven’t shied away from politics (take the Zygon storyline from series nine featuring Capaldi’s incredible anti-war speech), but it's never been incorporated as explicitly as it has this series. Not every episode has bothered; neither The Woman Who Fell to Earth or The Tsuranga Conundrum touched on any noticeably political themes. However, it’s still been more prominent than before. Most interestingly, there appear to be two quite different ways the series has approached this. The first way has been to visit significant historical moments that tie into the politics of the episode. Both Rosa and Demons of the Punjab explore relevant and monumental moments in the past to powerful effect. This approach makes the most sense for a programme centred around time travel and it has certainly proven to be successful. The second way is through sci-fi allegory. This also seems to make sense for Doctor Who as one of the biggest sci-fi shows in the world. However, it also leaves a lot more up to interpretation and risks losing its relevance to reality. Arachnids in the UK, the first episode to use this approach, proved this with a message that only partially landed.

Kerblam! is the second episode to take a stab at allegory. However, it already has an advantage over Arachnids in the UK because a gigantic, mostly automated online retailer isn't exactly miles away from reality. Consequently, I was hopeful that this episode would be more successful and it almost is. For most of the episode, the highly relevant issue of automation is explored in a thoughtful and entertaining way. It's such a shame, then, that the third act messes it up. In a commendable attempt at nuance, the real villain isn't the technology but the people exploiting it. Except, bizarrely, those people aren't the mega-corporations putting profit over people. Instead, it's a protester trying to halt automation by demonising the technology. Of course, his methods are wrong and deserve to be criticised, but the mega-corporations are let off far too easily. At the end of the episode, they just promise to have a majority human workforce with barely a second thought. I agree with the general message that technology isn't the problem but the people who abuse it. Unfortunately, the episode is far too lenient towards the people most guilty of that.

Kerblam! is also relatively weak in the character department. Certainly when it comes to Team TARDIS, very little development occurs in this episode. Unlike Arachnids in the UK, which had some surprisingly powerful moments with Graham, Kerblam! gets far too swept up in its own action. They're all still very likeable, they're just not challenged as much as they have been previously. Ryan's dyspraxia does come up for the first time in a while (and in an appropriate and empowering way) but there's not much beyond that. In another series of Doctor Who this might not be as noticeable, but it's more glaring when character has been this series’ biggest strength. To be fair, especially considering the quality of character development in Demons of the Punjab, it's forgivable that it's set aside for one episode. Plus, the one-off characters aren't bad. The Kerblam workers are particularly endearing and their tragic fates are genuinely affecting.

Fortunately, despite these failings, the episode does work. The main reason for this is because it's really really fun. Pete McTighe's script is just packed with excellent jokes, such as the Doctor calling out her friends’ “robophobia” and the Kerblam system recommending a “mindful moment” when it shuts down. McTighe's superfan status is also evident in the number of references he packs in. To encourage new viewers, callbacks have been kept to a minimum so far this series. This is fair enough, but I still appreciated the return of the fez and psychic paper, as well as an amusing nod to the Doctor's adventure with Agatha Christie. The episode's brisk pace also makes it easier to ignore the flaws as we zoom excitedly through events. Your attention is further grabbed by a plot filled with intriguing mystery and effective twists. Most notably, Kerblam! features another big action set piece that potentially surpasses the opening to The Ghost Monument thanks to an exhilarating, palpable sense of danger.

Despite sci-fi's long history of allegory, series 11 of Doctor Who is yet to tap into that 100% effectively. This hasn't always been the case. The aforementioned Zygon storyline served as an impressively insightful critique of the war on terror and radicalisation. Unfortunately, this series' efforts have been rather muddled. Arachnids in the UK was successful in places and less successful in others, particularly the convoluted point being made by the mutant spiders. Now, Kerblam! gives it a very good go, but messes it up at the end by losing focus on the real problem. Fortunately, the episode is enough fun to overlook that (and the character failings) thanks to its hilarious script, gripping plot and lively pace. Ultimately, Kerblam! is neither the series’ lowest or highest moment so far, providing undeniably enjoyable entertainment that just falls short of its loftier ambitions.