Summary
- Doctor Who season 14 brings back a familiar Tenth Doctor episode vibe with clever twists and high-concept storytelling in "Boom".
- The ambulances in "Boom" share similarities with the sinister Wire from "The Idiot's Lantern", adding depth to the episode's villains.
- The ambulance interface in "Boom" is a more effective and intriguing villain compared to the Wire, offering a unique and menacing presence.
Season 14 of Doctor Who season 14, entitled "Boom", saw Ncuti Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor take Millie Gibson's Ruby Sunday to her first alien planet. Needless to say, things didn't quite go to plan. Among the episode's drama and spectacle was a callback to a Tenth Doctor episode that has been largely forgotten about.
"Boom" marked the return of writer Steven Moffat, who had previously helmed the show between 2010 and 2017. When The Doctor accidentally stands on a landmine, he must remain still for the rest of the episode, leading him and Ruby to come up with some inventive ways of saving him. Like many of Moffat's best Doctor Who episodes, "Boom" was a high-concept story jam-packed with clever twists. As is often the case with Doctor Who, a key aspect of the episode was highly reminiscent of that of another story in the show's history.
"Boom" Pays Off A Doctor Who Story From Steven Moffat's Very First Episode 19 Years Ago
Steven Moffat's return to Doctor Who means the resurgence of a presence first introduced to the show by the writer in 2005, extending his era.
The Ambulances In "Boom" Are Very Similar To The Wire From "The Idiot's Lantern"
The Two Villains Share A Lot In Common
"Boom" takes place on a war-torn planet known as Kastarion 3. As a way of monetizing war, the universe's biggest weapons manufacturer, Villengard, has developed robots known as "ambulances" that treat any injured person they come into with by killing them, regardless of the severity of the wound. The ambulance's interface, which is one of Susan Twist's multiple Doctor Who characters depicted this season, is a seemingly sweet, grandma-like lady who speaks in a calm voice. However, her wholesome demeanor hides a sinister agenda, a trait that is similar to the Wire from "The Idiot's Lantern".
Like the ambulance interface in "Boom", the Wire presents herself as a harmless, sweet-natured older lady.
First broadcast in 2006 as part of Doctor Who's second season, "The Idiot's Lantern" revolves around the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) and Rose (Billie Piper) traveling to London at the time of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953. There, they encounter a malevolent force known as the Wire (Maureen Lipman), who appears on people's television screens and sucks their faces off as a source of food. Like the ambulance interface in "Boom", the Wire presents herself as a harmless, sweet-natured older lady. The truth, though, is that she's an evil creature from another world.
Doctor Who's Ambulances Are Way More Effective Than The Wire Was
Susan Twist's Sinister Interface Certainly Made An Impression
"The Idiot's Lantern" is rarely regarded among Doctor Who's best episodes, while the Wire is unlikely to top a list of the show's greatest baddies. Despite having some creepy moments, the Wire ultimately feels like a rather hollow one-off villain. This is largely because her motives and origins are never really explained beyond the fact that she needs to feed in order to survive. In contrast, the ambulance interface's motives are both clear and interesting.
As well as Doctor Who, Maureen Lipman and Susan Twist have both starred in the long-running British soap opera, Coronation Street.
Owing to the fact that the ambulance is a robot programmed by Villengard, it doesn't have motives of its own, but instead, its programming represents the company's agenda. Villengard makes money from war, and, as such, they need war to continue. For war to continue, people need to keep dying. Villengard controls all the equipment, from the mines to the guns to the ambulances, meaning that, with the use of an algorithm, they have complete authority over the war, including who lives and who dies. The ambulances, therefore, are only concerned with what's profitable, not patient care.
Overall, the ambulance interface is a more effective villain than the Wire because ambulances are usually seen as a beacon of hope. Twisting them into sinister robots of death is a brilliant idea that's very typically Moffat-esque. Additionally, Twist's subtler performance as the ambulance interface is, arguably, more menacing than Lipman's over-the-top portrayal of the Wire. Meanwhile, the mystery of how the ambulance interface fits into Twist's Doctor Who season 14 story makes the character endlessly intriguing.
Doctor Who
- Release Date
- December 25, 2023
- Network
- BBC
- Directors
- Douglas Camfield, David Maloney, Christopher Barry, Michael E. Briant, Barry Letts, Michael Ferguson, Richard Martin, Peter Moffatt, Pennant Roberts, Lennie Mayne, Chris Clough, Ron Jones, Paddy Russell, Paul Bernard, Michael Hayes, Timothy Combe, Morris Barry, Gerald Blake, Graeme Harper, Waris Hussein, Rodney Bennett, Mervyn Pinfield, Hugh David, John Gorrie
Cast
The Doctor
Millie GibsonRuby Sunday
WHERE TO WATCH
The latest Doctor Who series introduces the Fifteenth Doctor, ed by new companion Ruby Sunday.
- Seasons
- 2
- Streaming Service(s)
- Apple, Britbox, M, Dis
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