I’m really
enjoying the current series of Doctor Who.
I'm a
big fan of Peter Capaldi - primarily for his performance as the wonderful, yet
terrifying Malcolm Tucker - but aside from the odd episode here and there, it
wasn’t until this series that his Doctor found its stride for me. When I
heard of his casting in the role, I was delighted (he was an inspired choice),
yet I can’t help but feel he was unfortunate in taking on the part when he did.
Every idea has
its natural life and eventually, these things can run out of steam, which generally how I felt about the last few series. It was just a case of poor timing
that Capaldi should come in at the point he did when the revamped Who seemed to
have used up most of its tricks; there are only so many rejigged battles
against Daleks and Cybermen before things started to feel a little samey.
Yet it’s with the
current series that things have really kicked into gear, which is a shame as
it’s set to be Capaldi’s last. Finally, the story-lines are strong enough to do
that exceptional bit of casting justice. The dynamic between him and new
companion Pearl Mackie is very complementary, with the brilliant Matt Lucas thrown
in as an added bonus.
The sad thing is
I don’t want to see Capaldi’s Doctor partially defeated, which is likely to be
the case if he’s set to regenerate. I love his sense of strength and menace and
don’t want it challenged. No-one beats Malcom Tucker; them's the rules.