By: Mac Marzolini

(Warning: contains lots of spoilers)

The Doctor Who episode “The Caretaker” was not the best of the Peter Capaldi episodes. The plot involved a killer robot stuck on earth and the Doctor trying to get it to where it originated from – it was a bit thin. The Doctor disguised himself as a caretaker
(hence the name of the episode) at the school that his companion Clara works at. Once there, he was to set up little bits of alien tech which would open a door way and send the robot off the earth before it could cause any damage. Simple plan, but Mr. Pink, Clara’s boyfriend, unknowingly ruined the plan by moving the alien tech and causing the robot to disappear for a few days before returning. These few days gave the characters a chance to interact, such as the doctor trying to figure out who Clara’s boyfriend is (originally believing him to be an English teacher with a bow tie). The Doctor later realizes that it is in fact the soldier. The Doctor hates soldiers. The few days also allow Danny to discover Clara’s and the Doctor’s secret…

I found that half of the episode is the traditional alien filled adventure that Doctor Who is known for, but the other half appears to be half East Enders in that it carries much like a soap opera with all the drama such as the Doctor and Danny not liking each other but having to save the world and look out for Clara.

Finally, the robot returns during parents night at the school and the Doctor and Clara have to get it to the tardis where the Doctor is to give it instructions not to kill with the use of some sort of alien voice altering backpack. The backpack doesn’t work in time and Danny saves the day by doing a back flip over the robot, which seems to stop it from ending the world. The plot of this episode is not as intricate as previous episode “Listen” but it is a necessary episode for getting Danny to meet the Doctor.

Peter Capaldi is so far one of the best Doctors with his brilliant acting. The 12th Doctor (13 if you count the war Doctor) is clearly old but has the grumpiness of William Hartnell (1) while having the grandfather- like personality which reminds me so much of John Pertwee (3). Although old, he still has a great sense of humour such as making a reference to how he spent time living with a family of otters until he and River Song got into a fight. Just random out of the blue things that you wouldn’t expect from such an old man only adds to the character of the 12th Doctor.