#definitely not happy about doctor whos first trans guy being a rich racist

[kittycat-nyancy]

new episode of doctor who was alright. not the best, but i'll take it over space babies.

the base "these people are stupid because phone" plot is a bit clumsy and not especially well-meshed with the rest of the episode. however, the ending, i think recontextualizes a lot of it in ways that allow a more charitable reading.

to start with: the "i cant walk" plot. on the surface, it's...pretty stupid. very on-the-nose "father i cannot click the book" type nonsense. it's not even held onto for long - pretty quickly Lindy clearly finds her legs. the uncharitable reading tells me that it was a plot device contrived to make helping her more difficult to keep up tension. the charitable reading tells me that she never really "forgot" how to walk, she's simply so used to the constant handholding that her natural instincts have yet to kick in - but over time, she becomes more confident on her feet, particularly when Ricky steps in, as those instincts do reassert themselves.

with the revelation that these are rich, white racists, their helplessness takes on a new light: a society who have "freed" themselves from the "unacceptable" lessers are no less reliant on their service, having simply replaced them with machines that - spoilers - do not share the human reticence towards violence. any interruption in that service leaves them unable to fend for themselves, and when they're finally shown that they *can* survive without them, it gives them a sense of overwhelming, unearned confidence that allows them to easily reassert their disgust for the service of the lesser.

the cognitive dissonance between that contemptive confidence and the inability to think or act for themselves is something seen time and again in groups used to constant service of their daily needs.

As for the sudden racism part at the end...once again, clumsy. I can see what RTD was going for but it could have been more thoroughly weaved through the episode had he been accompanied by a writer more aware of the nuance that plot thread deserved.