Everything Wrong With Doctor Who - The Reality War (Part 1) | DoctorWhoSins

Added: 2026-06-03

[00:00:11]The Men Who Fell to Earth finale began with a previously montage that built hype for the episode.

[00:00:17]Well, here's a 13-second repeat of the cliffhanger instead.

[00:00:22]The episode title evokes a much greater conflict than what actually occurs.

[00:00:30]>> Welcome to the time hotel.

[00:00:31]If you'd like to come with me, sir.

[00:00:34]>> The Doctor is seconds away from death, but sure, go ahead and waste time saying this, Anita.

[00:00:41]Main character gets saved in the nick of time cliche.

[00:00:46]Obvious stunt doubles.

[00:00:50]>> He had an actual magic door. A little too late.

[00:00:53]>> Mrs. Flood stops this from being the first R-rated Doctor Who episode.

[00:01:00]It turns out Ruby wasn't in danger at the end of the previous episode as the cliffhanger gets resolved with a nice handy reset of the entire day.

[00:01:11]>> One more day to go. It's May the 24th tomorrow?

[00:01:14]>> I know I'm nitpicking, but considering most characters are British, it really bugs me how they refer to dates the American way. So, starting here, I will give a sin every time this happens.

[00:01:28]Unnecessary flashbacks to a character who appeared only 5 months ago, and I'm pretty sure the vast majority of the audience will recognize.

[00:01:39]>> It's May the 23rd again. May the 24th never arrives. It resets. It gets to midnight, and then it all clicks back to 7:00 a.m. on May the 23rd. It's done it hundreds of times.

[00:01:48]>> Two May the 23rds and one May the 24th.

[00:01:53]>> [music] >> Also, it turns out the cliffhanger doesn't matter as not only does the day reset, but it's already happened hundreds of times off screen.

[00:02:05]>> [sighs] >> Hold on. Does that mean everything we saw in the previous episode has happened hundreds of times over then? Because the episode gave no indication of this and it's highly unlikely that the Rani would want to repeat that big expositional speech she gave to the doctor.

[00:02:26]There was some logic to how the time hotel worked in the Christmas special, but now doors can literally be opened anywhere.

[00:02:34]>> If you ever get there because this place is in trouble.

[00:02:39]>> Right on cue, the time hotel starts malfunctioning the very second Anita mentions it's in danger.

[00:02:48]Oh great. Thanks for reminding me of another terrible Doctor Who series finale.

[00:02:55]Anita shares a scene with the Daleks and yet the 15th doctor never gets to meet them.

[00:03:02]Also, I think this is the only appearance of the Daleks in the entire 15th doctor era.

[00:03:11]Anita's relationship with the doctor seemed to be purely platonic in the last Christmas special, but this episode retcons it to imply that she always loved him.

[00:03:22]>> I ran straight from that to Ricardo. So, all's well that ends well.

[00:03:27]>> Oh, so Ricardo was a rebound shag then.

[00:03:30]That's nice.

[00:03:33]>> Says that portal was the time hotel December 2024. You were supposed to follow him everywhere.

[00:03:40]>> All right, I had Christmas off.

[00:03:42]>> I swear this exchange only exists to explain why Mrs. Flood wasn't in the Christmas special. The date has nothing to do with the episode.

[00:03:53]>> We are the same person.

[00:03:55]>> Thanks for the reminder, Mrs. Exposition.

[00:03:59]>> Can't wait for another midnight.

[00:04:01]>> We don't have to. The Seekers have fixed the location.

[00:04:05]>> There.

[00:04:06]>> Well, that's convenient.

[00:04:09]The Doctor and Anita enter Poppy's room off-screen, no doubt to save visual effects money.

[00:04:17]>> And I have a daughter.

[00:04:19]>> But she isn't real.

[00:04:20]>> How dare you?

[00:04:21]>> She's right, though.

[00:04:24]>> I have been in the halls of the Goblin King. I have stood in the palaces of the Daleks. I have entered the caves of Satan himself. But what has happened here, in this tiny little bedroom in the middle of suburbia, is bigger than anything.

[00:04:33]>> Cringe.

[00:04:36]Needless to say, long and dramatic moment of the Doctor walking to the kitchen.

[00:04:42]Because he can't go a single episode without changing his outfit, the 15th Doctor randomly and magically changes his clothes.

[00:04:52]Also, this would have been much more impactful if the 15th Doctor actually had a definitive costume and didn't change to an outfit that was only briefly seen in the series opener.

[00:05:06]>> We've had a baby.

[00:05:08]>> In a single day?

[00:05:09]>> [laughter] >> Belinda's taking suddenly having a child surprisingly well.

[00:05:15]It's not the reaction I would have if I'd learned I'd had a child without my consent.

[00:05:21]Aw, couldn't the Flinks have remained trapped in the crate?

[00:05:25]It's not as if he contributes anything to the rest of the episode.

[00:05:30]Speaking of not contributing, welcome back Rose Noble, who appears purely so that the Doctor can make a comment about Conrad's world not including trans people.

[00:05:42]This is now two series finales in a row that Rose Noble has contributed nothing to the plot of. So, let's give this another sin.

[00:05:52]And let's give this a third sin as UNIT is continuing to employ teenagers.

[00:05:59]>> Neat. Neat. Anita, you should stay there. Keep that door open. Keep the real time flowing, honey.

[00:06:03]>> Anita is used as a door stop for the rest of the episode.

[00:06:08]>> Bone beasts are creatures from the underworld that can do reality to life.

[00:06:11]They create friction. And the friction creates these agitated atoms. That sounds a little bit select anti-matter.

[00:06:15]These are great. Feeding off the atoms.

[00:06:16]>> I appreciate that the episode tries to explain what the bone beasts are, but it makes zero sense and doesn't even address why they're made of bone.

[00:06:33]Abrupt change in music.

[00:06:36]Also, music reused from series 10.

[00:06:41]Pointless scene of Shirley saying good morning.

[00:06:46]>> Happy May the 23rd.

[00:06:47]>> Also, May the 23rd.

[00:06:51]>> We had all UNIT personnel bio-chipped, so we know where they are. We only have a 10-mile radius.

[00:06:56]>> What's the point of being implanted with a tracking device if it only works in a 10-mile radius? What happens if someone gets in trouble 11 miles away?

[00:07:07]Also, isn't it an invasion of privacy to have a chip in your neck that tells your employer where you are?

[00:07:15]The bio-chips somehow allow the UNIT personnel to snap out of the wish.

[00:07:21]Rocket-powered wheelchair.

[00:07:29]I don't want to be mean to a disabled actor, but this performance isn't good.

[00:07:37]To save even more visual effects money, we don't see the rocket-powered wheelchair in action.

[00:07:44]There is enough money for a Back to the Future rip-off though.

[00:07:48]This is the last time we see any of the characters from the dispossessed camp, meaning the plot line from the previous episode goes absolutely nowhere.

[00:07:59]Awkward cut as Ruby leaves.

[00:08:03]Instead of parking outside like a normal person, Mel takes her Vespa up God knows how many floors of the unit tower to make a dramatic entrance and be a health and safety hazard.

[00:08:16]Also, instead of heading straight to the unit tower, Mel wastes time perming her hair.

[00:08:23]>> This should be the best day of my life.

[00:08:26]Another Time Lord, it means I'm not alone.

[00:08:29]>> Are we seriously doing the Doctor no longer being the last of the Time Lords thing again?

[00:08:34]Does the Doctor not remember all the times Time Lords have returned since 2007?

[00:08:41]While this exchange could have been better, I like that the episode acknowledges that the Rani and Mel have history. So, for that, one sin deducted.

[00:08:52]Mrs. Flood somehow knew she would be walking down steps when she teleported in.

[00:08:59]>> It took a lot of planning spying on those two. Cor blimey, look at that police box. And pinning it all down to May the 24th.

[00:09:09]>> This makes no sense.

[00:09:13]Also, May the 24th.

[00:09:16]>> But I was [music] brilliant.

[00:09:19]>> The Rani sends Mrs. Flood away before she can give a proper explanation for her plan and appearances over the past two series.

[00:09:29]>> My father fought Omega back in the 1970s, said he was a Titan, called him the Mad God.

[00:09:35]>> Kate brings up her father again.

[00:09:38]>> We're sterile.

[00:09:39]>> We are infertile.

[00:09:41]>> I personally find this a genuinely interesting addition to Time Lord mythology. So, for that, one sin deducted.

[00:09:50]>> Sometimes I think that's what bi-generation is.

[00:09:53]And life will try anything [music] it can to survive.

[00:09:56]>> Nope, I'm not buying it. It still doesn't explain why bi-generation has happened twice in the past 2 years when it's supposed to be a myth.

[00:10:07]>> That genetic explosion here it didn't kill us, but it roasted us and sterilized us. Extinction is taking a bit longer, that's all.

[00:10:15]>> Hold on. I thought this genetic explosion was due to the Master's actions in series 12. If that's right, then why are the Doctor and Rani acting like the Time Lords have always been infertile?

[00:10:28]And how does the Doctor even know this?

[00:10:32]>> So, Poppy came out of the wish?

[00:10:34]Like an accident?

[00:10:37]>> Well, yeah. Wasn't this obvious?

[00:10:40]It's not as if you had sex with the Doctor and then forgot.

[00:10:44]>> She's not real. She's made of hopes and dreams and wishes.

[00:10:49]>> That is every child.

[00:10:51]>> Cringe.

[00:10:53]>> Stand with me, Doctor.

[00:10:56]And set a new race of Time Lords up on high. Or stay down here with the beasts below.

[00:11:01]>> The Rani wanted the Doctor dead at the start of the episode, but now wants to work with him.

[00:11:07]Okay, then.

[00:11:10]This scene contained around 6 and 1/2 minutes worth of exposition and lore.

[00:11:17]Also, throughout the entire scene, everyone besides the Doctor and Rani just stood around doing nothing.

[00:11:26]>> The chronon beam will pull Omega out of the Undervault.

[00:11:29]>> Obvious ADR to explain what the beam is doing.

[00:11:34]22 minutes into the series finale and we're finally getting some action.

[00:11:40]The UNIT Tower now has a wheel, just like a pirate ship.

[00:11:46]Susan Triad manages to build a fully operational zero room in just 9 minutes.

[00:11:54]The UNIT Tower fires cannons, just like a pirate ship.

[00:11:59]>> It's meant to meet you, Belinda. It's all for this.

[00:12:03]So that Bobby can live.

[00:12:04]>> Nah, I don't buy it.

[00:12:08]Belinda, the main series companion, gets locked in a room and doesn't contribute to the plot.

[00:12:16]Also, Belinda could be in the zero room for hours and yet UNIT couldn't be bothered to give her a chair.

[00:12:24]Rose injects Ruby through two layers of clothing.

[00:12:29]>> What do we do?

[00:12:30]>> Can I punch you? Yes, you can.

[00:12:32]>> Kate somehow hears this.

[00:12:36]And now the UNIT Tower turns, just like a pirate ship.

[00:12:40]Why didn't RTD just set this battle on an actual pirate ship?

[00:12:46]Even with an increased Disney-funded budget, the show still manages to make this flying sequence look goofy.

[00:12:55]>> Keep your wavelengths connected. [music] >> Okay, the hard cut to the absolute silence inside the zero room was pretty cool.

[00:13:10]One send deducted.

[00:13:13]The teleport conveniently takes Ruby to the very room that Conrad is in.

[00:13:19]Also, Conrad not only knew that Ruby would teleport in, but exactly where too.

[00:13:27]Awkward camera zoom in to show how Conrad's dad is a sensitive subject to him.

[00:13:36]>> Heartbeats. A double heartbeat.

[00:13:39]>> The Rani's have the daredevil power of being able to hear heartbeats through doors.

[00:13:46]Instead of allowing the audience to stay present in each big moment of Omega being freed and Ruby and Conrad's confrontation, the episode keeps cutting between them, diminishing the tension of both scenes.

[00:14:02]And here's the moment where the episode loses 99% of the audience.

[00:14:07]Omega is now a giant CGI mummy that doesn't even slightly resemble how he looked in the classic series.

[00:14:17]This also means that for two series finales in a row, the big bad is an iconic villain from the classic series that's turned into a huge CGI beast.

[00:14:28]Come on, RTD. Where's the originality?

[00:14:33]>> He is the my God.

[00:14:35]>> I will become the God of time.

[00:14:39]>> Oh, and he's yet another god, too.

[00:14:42]I don't know about anyone else, but I'm getting really bored of all the god-like beings now.

[00:14:49]And let's give this a fourth sin for introducing a fourth villain into a finale that already has way too many characters and things going on.

[00:15:00]Continuity error. These two shots of the Rani don't line up.

[00:15:06]The Rani stops being a threat not even halfway into this episode.

[00:15:13]Worse than that, she gets eaten, meaning we're highly unlikely to see Archie Panjabi play the role again.

[00:15:22]The Doctor steps forward to help the Rani after she's been swallowed.

[00:15:28]The Rani's time ring not only conveniently doesn't get eaten, but it rolls straight towards Mrs. Flood allowing her to escape.

[00:15:39]Speaking of, Mrs. Flood also exits the story and stops being a threat barely halfway through the episode.

[00:15:48]Adding insult to injury, her final line is a two Rani's reference.

[00:15:53]>> So much for the two Rani's.

[00:15:55]It's a good night for me.

[00:15:59]>> Let's add another sin for how poorly used Mrs. Flood was in the episode.

[00:16:04]After being teased across two series, she ended up being relegated to basically the Rani's sidekick.

[00:16:13]>> What is your intent?

[00:16:15]>> I am free to feast upon this world.

[00:16:21]>> Omega's plan is simply to eat everything.

[00:16:24]Boring.

[00:16:27]The man who opposes violence and guns violently uses a gun.

[00:16:33]Also, the vindicator, which is a device that sends out signals across time, conveniently also functions as a space gun.

[00:16:44]Bonus sin for RTD being a hypocrite.

[00:16:47]He turned the sonic into a TV remote because he didn't want kids to view it as a gun, and yet he is quite happy to have the Doctor literally use a gun.

[00:16:58]>> I wish you to be happy.

[00:17:01]>> [music] >> Wishing Conrad to be happy makes him disappear rather than simply feel happy.

[00:17:11]Also, of all the things Ruby could wish for, she chooses this.

[00:17:16]Really?

[00:17:19]Omega is defeated just 3 minutes and 34 seconds after first appearing.

[00:17:29]>> [music] [music]