Doctor Who: Series 8 Episode 2 "Into The Dalek" (REVIEW)

written by Mackensie Baker (@mackensiebaker)

I would like to start off by saying this—the new season has been giving me massive bouts of deja vu. Like, seriously. If you saw the last episode, you'll know what I mean. Everything from the sets and the plot lines, to the actual dialogue itself, has felt extremely familiar. And this new episode, with the all-too-exciting title of "Into the Dalek," is just the same. And for those who have not yet seen the new episode, I suggest you take a look at the Ninth Doctor's first run-in with a Dalek, in the 2005 episode simply titled "Dalek." This move is a little tricky, as it ends up seeming like old ideas are being rehashed in lieu of nw material, but I am remaining hopeful that these tendencies of tying up loose ends will explain a few things that have been bothering me about old seasons... So. Here we go. Into darkness.

My favourite part of this new episode was by far the look. What could be more visually interesting to a longtime Who fan than seeing the interior of a Dalek? That is a little too up close and personal than I would personally ever wish to get with one of the Doctor's greatest and oldest foes, but hey, that's just me.

As for the new characters, I am shamelessly intrigued by the introduction of Danny Pink, who is portrayed by Samuel Anderson. His character was laid out for us in the first few minutes, but I still want to see more of him. His and Clara's flirtation, very Barbara and Ian (again throwing us back in time to older episodes), promises some of the romance that has been lost. But it this a good thing or a bad thing? I know many fans who were relieved to hear that Capaldi had been so adamently against the Doctor's flirting with Clara, so will this new romantic interest be welcomed with open arms? I'm still not convinced that a companion necessarily needs to have a relationship. However, Mr. Pink may yet surprise us.

One last point, though. Where exactly did the Doctor develop this all-out hate-on for soldiers? While the Doctor has been shown to detest weapons on multiple occasions, but he has also been known to allow exceptions. In fact, I can recall quite a few episodes with Eleven where he was rather chummy with some gun-toting exceptions. Not to mention his friends at UNIT. So what happened? What changed his mind to make Twelve so absolutely abhor soldiers? Whatever the reason, let us hope he can learn to overcome this, as he overcame much worse in this episode.

Here's looking ahead to the rest of what seems to be a promising first season with our new Doctor! In the Doctor's words, "You've seen nothing yet.