Eve of the Daleks [TV/2022.1.1]

★★★☆☆

  At this point, there's simply no denying how confident Jodie Whittaker has become as her Doctor. Thirteen is the babbling enthusiast we all know and love, and yet in this recent time warp tale with the Daleks we get to see more of the headstrong mastermind she's always carried a part of. She and her friends Yaz and Dan have built up such a fun and trustworthy trio at this point, and they work off one another swimmingly to enact the rather creative plan of using the penultimate loop (because of course, the loop shortens by a minute each cycle) as a decoy to divert the Daleks' attention elsewhere. At the same time, she's still prone to shut off her emotions and keep secrets — something I've watched Whittaker and Chris Chibnall develop with great interest — and it's great to see that the Doctor tries to be more emotionally supportive. When she snaps at Yaz in a moment of desperation and promptly goes up to her to apologize, it was one of those moments where an actor became the Doctor in my eyes. Whittaker's had a multitude of these moments during her tenure, and I'm glad to see her steam's still rolling strong as she reaches her final chapter.

  Of course, it wouldn't be an Eve of the Daleks review without mentioning the fact that they made Yaz's romantic feelings for the Doctor explicit. Finally, it was about time! Mandip Gill, at this point, knows how her character works and portrays her effortlessly, and she sells the awkward lesbian crush pretty darn well (trust me, I've seen a few). Nothing is as euphoric as the final sequence, as the Doctor and co. exit the time loop storage building and watch the fireworks erupt from the demolished structure. The Doctor looks at Yaz, illuminated by bright and beautiful colours, and Dan smiles knowingly behind them both. 

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ  

  Eve of the Daleks continues the Chibnall era tradition of solid Dalek stories, this time focusing more on the Doctor's actions and their consequences rather than the usual extermination malarkey. The guest cast romance bit is neither here nor there, but the Daleks themselves are pretty cool with their Gatling laser emitters. Plus, we get to see more of Yaz and the Doctor, and I consider that in itself an absolute victory.