[infobox style=’info’ static=’0′]PREVIOUSLY ON DOCTOR WHO: The Doctor and Clara ventured into a place no one has ever dared go before. A place of absolute darkness: the insides of a Dalek! They joined up with soldiers from the space station “Aristotle” to discover what was wrong with the sick Dalek, and found themselves fighting even more than they expected! We were also introduced to Danny Pink, a teacher at Coal Hill Elementary, who has grown quite smitten with young Clara, and has a past as a soldier that he does not wish to talk about. And now…[/infobox]
“ROBOT OF SHERWOOD”
Written By: Mark Gatiss
Directed By: Paul Murphy
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We are immediately thrust into this episode as Clara reveals to the Doctor that she wishes to visit Sherwood Forest and meet the legendary figure known as Robin Hood! The Doctor, though, tries to push the thought out of her head because he believes Robin Hood only exists in fiction as a literary character.
Of course, that all changes when the Tardis lands in Medieval England, is struck with an arrow, and a man in a green tunic proclaiming himself to be the real deal himself emerges from the woods. Right off the bat, Capaldi won me over with the look on his face as soon as the arrow connects with the Tardis.
A look of total and complete shock. Like if your favorite childhood toy was suddenly destroyed right in front of you. Priceless!
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Robin Hood declares that his intention is to take the mystical blue box from the Doctor, as one man’s property is another man’s treasure. The Doctor, however, immediately informs the Earl of Locksley that he will NEVER get even one hand on the Tardis. A duel ensues, with Robin’s chosen weapon a sword, and the Doctor’s choice a…well, a spoon! Seriously, if anyone else were to pull a spoon out in a swordfight it would seem weird.
But this is the Doctor we’re talking about! The Doctor wins the duel, and soon after, he and Clara are introduced to Robin’s group of rogues, which Clara recognizes as the Merry Men! While she is completely star-struck with the new people in front of her, the Doctor has entered investigative mode, collecting blood and hair samples WITHOUT their consent!
This is a perfect example of the clever wit that Mark Gatiss likes to infuse into his stories. Clara finds out that Robin is looking for his Maid Marian, and hopes to one day reclaim her. While all of this is going on, the Doctor has decided that everything has to be fake, and the weather seems to be off for the season that its supposed to be set in. Too sunny and green.
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The Doctor, Clara, and Robin all attend the archery contest being put on by the Sheriff of Nottingham, which we all know showcases Robin in the guise of Tom the Tinker, get to the final round against the Sheriff, and splitting his arrow.
This time, however, instead of earning the Golden Arrow prize, the Doctor injects himself in the hopes of getting the threesome captured so he can infiltrate the Sheriff’s inner circle.
He does so, but instead of being taken away by regular guards, he finds that the guards are, in fact, robots! Man, Capaldi sure does seem to always be dealing with robotic beings in these first few episodes.
First the self-repairing robots in Victorian London, then the Dalek, now these guys. I have a feeling this trend is going to continue. The trio are thrown into the dungeon, where Robin and the Doctor continuously banter back and forth over just how to escape, much to the chagrin of Clara.
Honestly, Capaldi really did shine in this scene. It showcased perfectly how the Doctor feels that he always has to be the smartest, most clever man in the room. And for this Doctor, he really does get angry if he’s not.
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Clara gets taken away to a meeting with the Sheriff, while Robin and the Doctor finally figure a way out. Robin tricks being ill while the Doctor gets the dimwit guard to check on him. Classic stuff!
Of course, once they’re free, the Doctor immediately finds something that catches his eye. Clara, on the other hand, gets the Sheriff to tell her all about how he witnessed a space ship crash, and wants to use all the gold that he can get his hands on to repair the ship, fly to London, and take over the Kingdom.
The Doctor is able to figure out that the ship fell back through time from Earth’s future after trying to find the Promise Land. So this is the third episode in a row where we’ve heard about this “Promised Land”.
The one which seems to be run by a woman named Missy, who apparently considers the Doctor to be her “boyfriend”. And any of this sound familiar? Robots with a broken ship who wish to repair it so they can find the Promised Land? It should, as that’s basically the same thing the self-repairing robots in “Deep Breath” were doing! Stranger by the minute!
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The Doctor realizes that the ship is disguised as the castle, and the robots are blending in as the guards. However, the ship’s engines are leaking radiation, which is causing everything around them to look like Sherwood Forest. Robin Hood is shown pictures of the many different versions of himself throughout time.
I especially loved the quick shot of Patrick Troughton in full Robin Hood gear! The Sheriff arrives, Robin and Clara escape by jumping through an exploded wall, and the Doctor is retained as a prisoner. Clara is forced to tell Robin all about the Doctor and what his plans are.
Meanwhile, the Doctor realizes that there is not enough gold in the area to help the robots build the gold matrix they need to get their ship working again, and should the Sheriff try to use it, the resulting explosion will blow up half the country! Robin returns, duels with the Sheriff, who then falls into a vat of melted gold and dies.
The trio, along with the Merry Men, are able to escape the ship as the robots take off. Robin then fires the golden arrow into the ship, which gets into space and blows up, saving everyone. After saying their goodbyes, the Tardis dematerializes, and left standing in its spot is Maid Marian, who the Doctor had found before leaving.
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Summary
The main thing I can say about this episode is that you can definitely see Mark Gatiss written all over it! The episode is filled with all of his clever wit and superb storytelling, and it really did set itself apart from the previous two. Peter Capaldi really opened up here with his new take on the Doctor, showcasing more anger and aggression towards Robin while they are captured then we’ve seen him give us so far.
Even when he’s stealing hairs and blood from the Merry Men WITHOUT their approval, he has a look of disdain and intrigue, because as we all know, the Doctor hates it when he’s proven wrong, as we are shown when he first tells Clara that Robin Hood only exists in a fairy tale, yet here he is right in front of them.
I also really loved the interaction between the Doctor and Clara when he point-blank asks her “when did you start believing in things that can’t be?” and she quickly retorts “Don’t you know?” Every week, she sees less and less of what Matt Smith was and what Peter Capaldi IS.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this episode, and it left me with many new questions. Why does the Doctor keep encountering robot-type enemies who are searching for the “Promised Land”? What exactly is this “Promised Land”? And who is this Missy??? I know we’re only three episodes in, but I hope we can start getting SOME answers soon. Until next time…
