Doctor Who 8×03 “Robot of Sherwood” – Review

No damsels in distress! No pretty castles! No such thing as Robin Hood! The Doctor might have to take that back after meeting him in this week’s Doctor Who…

“Your choice. Wherever, whenever. Anywhere in time and space.”

In the TARDIS, the new Doctor is scribbling on a chalk board. He asks Clara where she wants to go, anywhere in the universe, and she says “to meet Robin Hood”. And then they do – he did exist! It’s a straightforward but enjoyable opener that sets up an enjoyable forty-five minutes.

After lots of episodes, it’s hard for Doctor Who to find new things to do. Journeying in miniature inside a Dalek was one of them, and gave us last week’s excellent story. A story in which the Doctor meets a ‘celebrity’ from history who is, in fact, fictional is another. He’s met Queen Victoria, Agatha Christie, Winston Churchill and Richard Nixon, but Robin Hood didn’t actually exist! Or did he?

Instantly that sets up a really fun, probing dilemma at the heart of this adventure. But to say it is fun alone is to diminish it – there are abrupt deaths that maintain a darkness from Capaldi’s previous episodes and the questioning as to what is a hero and what is a legend gives it more gravitas.

“Do people ever punch you in the face when you do that?”

Peter Capaldi continues to be brilliant, of course. The Doctor’s masculine rivalry with the hero of the hour is a very Doctorish aspect that we have not yet seen from Capaldi, who clearly relishes the chance to explore it. The description of him as a “desecrated man-crow” is both slightly accurate and brilliantly funny but my favourite moment is when he and Clara are reunited at the climax and he’s just like, ‘are you all right?’, no hug. We haven’t had a Doctor for decades who wouldn’t hug their companion in that situation, and that’s really interesting. Then there’s his little comedic jump when Robin’s arrow slams into his TARDIS is great. This is out-and-out Silly Doctor, saving the day by fighting with a spoon. Capaldi finds the right balance, though – he isn’t too silly.

The script, on the other hand doesn’t always. It’s my only big gripe with Robot of Sherwood. Humour always has a place in Doctor Who, but some of this is genuinely funny (“He soiled himself”) but sometimes it’s too whimsical. In that sense, this episode would be more befitting Matt Smith. You can imagine his stroppy childish assertion that Hood is fake, his being put out as he was more ‘boyfriend’-like material, and his friendship with him later. All the Doctors need a bit of silly in them but generally I prefer my Capaldi-Doctor when his lips are sourly pursed.

But on the plus side Jenna Coleman sparkles, again, and it’s a pleasant surprise to see the script doesn’t reduce her to Damsel In Distress, which would have been easy given the setting. Plus she’s surely the only person in the world who can pull off a medieval costume? “Had a bag of crisps this morning thanks” is a highlight.

Tom Riley is a delight as Robin, a suitable sparring partner for Capaldi, and he shines especially in the scene in which he talks about the sadness behind the laughter. He instantly wins you over, as a hero should. I would have liked to have seen his Merry Men fleshed out slightly more, but characterisation is still a huge step up from last season.

Meanwhile, Ben Miller is a revelation as the Sherriff of Nottingham, not cartoony or overblown as he could have been. Another actor known for his comedy, he is surprisingly malicious in the episode, as his feast stand-off with Clara shows.

“I’m not a hero.”

The robots are a good, simple enemy with a strong design. In fact, it’s all well-designed, and refreshing to be seeing a Medieval setting in a series that has come to over-rely on Victoriana for its fix of the past.

Unfortunately, around the half-way mark, the episode begins to flag, feeling a bit directionless until we discover the villain’s backstory. The set-piece of the archery contest at the castle is impressive and fun, but the scene becomes a bit messy in its construction. Having said that, I’m still grateful the pace is no longer rushing! The story picks up, however, and it ends as it starts – with a sword fight! This has been Mark Gatiss’s finest Doctor Who script to date.

Final verdict

The story is all wrapped up very neatly. It’s lovely that the Doctor reunites the lovers at the end and makes his peace with his fellow hero. And then he and Clara fly away. This has been a nice, linear, classic story for Doctor Who, with no intrusions from the overarching story of the series. Not every story can or should be the end of the universe – these are the stories that make Doctor Who, Doctor Who.

Questions, Comments, Concerns…

• Is next week going to be as scary as it promises to be? Hope so!
• When do we get to see Danny Pink again….?
• Who is Missy and is it the real heaven?? Not that that was particularly addressed this week, but it’s still in the back of our minds…