With every new episode Doctor Who continues to prove that Chris Chibnall was the exact right choice to take over and give the series the fresh start and change of pace it sorely needed. This week, Chibnall shows that he grasps the horror aspect of the series better than Steven Moffat ever did. Or at least as well as Moffat’s episodes in the Davies era did.
‘Arachnids in the UK’ is the most effects-heavy episode of Chibnall’s tenure. The effects might the reason this episode feels a Doctor Who that made so many of us fall in love with the show. Chibnall’s writing takes the opposite strategy of Moffat’s — prioritizing character over plot so that the latter may develop the former. During his run (so far) the visual effects have rarely been the standout moments of series — those moments belong to the characters. While effects are front and center here, This episode retains that focus on character. This is seen most notably with Graham’s grief. However, the monstrous presence of man-eating spiders kept that feeling of danger and urgency moving almost all the way through.
This is the most terrifying episode of Doctor Who in years. No episode tingles my spine quite like Midnight, but ‘Arachnids in the UK’ was a masterclass in tension-building and utter dread. The first scene in the webbed apartment is a testament to such. It’s midday and the room is brightly lit. But the second the Doctor asks “Where’s the spider that did this?” the paradoxical dread of looking for something but not wanting to find it immediately sets in. When Ryan looks under the bed and the spider’s leg moves…NOPE.
I’m not going to lie, this was a tough episode to get through at times. That’s because of how effective the minimalist horror of the spiders turned out, and just in time for Halloween. It was as though Shelob met Aragog’s family and had a party in my nightmares. The story is well-conceived and even almost plausible enough to believe. For once, the threat of Doctor Who was completely terrestrial and didn’t even rely on designing a take-it-or-leave-it alien or creature species to serve as a main antagonist.
‘Arachnids…’ relies on the inherent creepiness of spiders and people’s aversion to them. This makes for some truly shiver-inducing moments. But where any average person would justifiably advocate for killing the spiders to alleviate the threat, it was incredibly satisfying to watch Rhe Doctor stand up for the living creatures that had not done anything malicious or evil. The final moment with the giant suffocating spider in the ballroom was so well done that it had me genuinely sad for the creature I had spent the previous 40 minutes cringing in fear of.
As sadness goes, however, the spider only came in second place. Graham’s subplot about finally going home to an apartment without Grace was utterly heartbreaking. Bradley Walsh continues to be one of my favorite things about the new post-Moffat era, and may soon become one of my favorite ever companions.
We also got a look at Yaz’s crazy family for just long enough before they started to get boring, and the line “You made a very awesome human” is nothing less than classic Doctor. Once again one of the biggest delights is in seeing how the newly christened Team TARDIS defers to the Doctor’s expertise and convinces the average humans around them that she is the one in charge.
Chris Noth played a truly detestable “basically Trump” character, but his cartoonish cruelty worked wonders to alleviate some of the tension. It would have been nice to see his character get some comeuppance, as he leaves the episode rather abruptly, but Chibnall is clearly more focused on fleshing out his principal cast than tying guest appearances off neatly.
Jodie Whitaker continues to climb the ranks of the best Doctors to ever grace the show. Her standout moment, undoubtedly, was in the episode’s closing seconds. Graham, Ryan and Yaz all ask to stay with her on the TARDIS, each with their own reasons for doing so. The Doctor is obviously thrilled, but she can’t in good conscience say yes immediately. She tells them she can’t guarantee their safety, that she never knows what’s going to happen, that they will not return as the same people who leave, so if they want to go, they have to be sure.
For a flicker of a moment we can see the age and centuries of heartbreak on the Doctor’s face. We can see how having and losing each companion has taken their toll on the time lord, and that she wouldn’t trade it for the world. Whitaker absolutely crushes this key moment for every Doctor. Beyond being a perfect Doctor, Whitaker is just a great actress, and she continues to prove her right to be here as the one flying the TARDIS.
Rating: 9/10
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