The Halloween Apocalypse has quite a lot on its plate (or perhaps, to be more seasonally appropriate, in its jack-o-lantern candy bucket). It has to establish the stakes and characters for this new six-episode arc, introduce a new companion in Dan, attempt to finally define The Doctor and Yaz's relationship, deal with the fallout from last season's arcs, and also be an entertaining episode of television.
Does it succeed?
I would say it mostly does. It does the things mentioned above with varying levels of success, but is generally exciting and enjoyable. This slightly off-kilter but generally positive nature is well demonstrated by the first item listed above: setting up the season's stakes and characters, something it ends up doing far more than may have been expected. It does so by spending the majority of its runtime establishing story threads that are not necessarily crucial to the "Dan/Karnavista" plot, and exist more to be followed up in the next five episodes. Almost all of these introductions are very strong, in my opinion, but I'm not entirely sure they were all necessary.
The introduction of the villain Swarm is generally strong (and, to be fair, very necessary to the episode's plot). His escape scene is a bit by-the-numbers, but his powers are immediately intriguing, and the performance by actor Sam Spruell is as chilling as the ice that initially coats the character. His scenes with the Doctor, too, are promising, and it should be nice to have a villain who gets to be properly developed over a series of episodes.
I also really liked the introduction of Vinder, who already appears to be a promising character; Jacob Anderson has a great screen presence, and I'm excited to learn more about his background.
Some of the other setup felt very unnecessary, however; none more so than the appearance of the Sontarans, which, while I greatly enjoyed their brief scene, felt completely unnecessary, and really ought to have been saved for the second episode. Just imagine watching this premiere as a new viewer - the Sontaran scene would've made absolutely no sense, in an episode that otherwise mostly focused on establishing new characters and conflicts.
Time will tell regarding the introduction of Claire, too, which felt equally unnecessary but in a much more pointed way. Given most fans knew the Weeping Angels would return, the decision to have them appear in the first episode is a clever one that allows them to maintain their shock value. The brief Angels scene is brilliant, and gives a great reminder of what makes them such a chilling threat. Claire is already an intriguing mystery, one of many that are set up in this story, and it's exciting that the season (so far) seems to be tightly constructed, with a clear plan going forward.
To continue with the topic of introductions, I quite liked John Bishop's performance as Dan in this episode. The character does admittedly need more fleshing out - currently he's quite reminiscent of Graham and Donna (two pretty great companions to resemble, admittedly) but lacking in either's depth. The foundation for the character established in this episode is good, though, with a strong performance and some cracking dialogue, much of which was shared with Karvanista, who was another delightful addition.
I also enjoyed the way the episode clearly established the dynamic between the Doctor and Yaz, showing how they have become an airtight team, yet one with cracks growing over the Time Lord's refusal to trust and open up to her companion.
Finally, I quite liked the fact that the series didn't simply abandon the (very convoluted) story arc of Season 12, but will instead explore it further (some might say fix it), with The Division being heavily featured and the Doctor's discovery in The Timeless Children still clearly weighing heavily on her.
This episode admittedly doesn't fix some of the Chibnall era's most frequently mentioned problems (lack of spotlight/clear characterization for the Doctor, overuse of the Sonic Screwdriver, some clichéd dialogue, etc.). I can understand if these disparate parts may not have come together into a cohesive whole for some, but I actually thought the whole episode fit together nicely. The tone is consistent - ominous, frightening, hurried. There's a great mix of high-adrenaline and quieter moments, with some stunning visuals (and a few that felt very reminiscent of the RTD-era), but overall I had a blast watching it, and am excited to see where the story leads.
Does it succeed?
I would say it mostly does. It does the things mentioned above with varying levels of success, but is generally exciting and enjoyable. This slightly off-kilter but generally positive nature is well demonstrated by the first item listed above: setting up the season's stakes and characters, something it ends up doing far more than may have been expected. It does so by spending the majority of its runtime establishing story threads that are not necessarily crucial to the "Dan/Karnavista" plot, and exist more to be followed up in the next five episodes. Almost all of these introductions are very strong, in my opinion, but I'm not entirely sure they were all necessary.
The introduction of the villain Swarm is generally strong (and, to be fair, very necessary to the episode's plot). His escape scene is a bit by-the-numbers, but his powers are immediately intriguing, and the performance by actor Sam Spruell is as chilling as the ice that initially coats the character. His scenes with the Doctor, too, are promising, and it should be nice to have a villain who gets to be properly developed over a series of episodes.
I also really liked the introduction of Vinder, who already appears to be a promising character; Jacob Anderson has a great screen presence, and I'm excited to learn more about his background.
Some of the other setup felt very unnecessary, however; none more so than the appearance of the Sontarans, which, while I greatly enjoyed their brief scene, felt completely unnecessary, and really ought to have been saved for the second episode. Just imagine watching this premiere as a new viewer - the Sontaran scene would've made absolutely no sense, in an episode that otherwise mostly focused on establishing new characters and conflicts.
Time will tell regarding the introduction of Claire, too, which felt equally unnecessary but in a much more pointed way. Given most fans knew the Weeping Angels would return, the decision to have them appear in the first episode is a clever one that allows them to maintain their shock value. The brief Angels scene is brilliant, and gives a great reminder of what makes them such a chilling threat. Claire is already an intriguing mystery, one of many that are set up in this story, and it's exciting that the season (so far) seems to be tightly constructed, with a clear plan going forward.
To continue with the topic of introductions, I quite liked John Bishop's performance as Dan in this episode. The character does admittedly need more fleshing out - currently he's quite reminiscent of Graham and Donna (two pretty great companions to resemble, admittedly) but lacking in either's depth. The foundation for the character established in this episode is good, though, with a strong performance and some cracking dialogue, much of which was shared with Karvanista, who was another delightful addition.
I also enjoyed the way the episode clearly established the dynamic between the Doctor and Yaz, showing how they have become an airtight team, yet one with cracks growing over the Time Lord's refusal to trust and open up to her companion.
Finally, I quite liked the fact that the series didn't simply abandon the (very convoluted) story arc of Season 12, but will instead explore it further (some might say fix it), with The Division being heavily featured and the Doctor's discovery in The Timeless Children still clearly weighing heavily on her.
This episode admittedly doesn't fix some of the Chibnall era's most frequently mentioned problems (lack of spotlight/clear characterization for the Doctor, overuse of the Sonic Screwdriver, some clichéd dialogue, etc.). I can understand if these disparate parts may not have come together into a cohesive whole for some, but I actually thought the whole episode fit together nicely. The tone is consistent - ominous, frightening, hurried. There's a great mix of high-adrenaline and quieter moments, with some stunning visuals (and a few that felt very reminiscent of the RTD-era), but overall I had a blast watching it, and am excited to see where the story leads.
