REVIEW: ‘Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7’ — “Wish World”

Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7, “Wish World,” is written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Alex Sanjiv Pillai. The episode stars Ncuti Gatwa and Varada Sethu, but it also features Millie Gibson, Archie Panjabi, Jonah Hauer-King, and Anita Dobson. In this episode, The Doctor and Belinda wake up in a world where they are married and have a child. Everything is different in this world, but it is May 24, the day the Earth was destroyed.

There is a difficult and awkward start to Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7, mainly because nothing preempts it. The previous episode had no preview clips, so seeing the duo wake up in bed together and kiss is a total surprise. We are all immediately thrown into a new world where everything is different. There’s a ’30s approach to the world, and every character has changed. There are giant skeletal creatures in the sky. Conrad is on the TV constantly, telling stories and looking like a prophet on high. This is all the plan of the recently bi-generated Rani (Archie Panjabi and Anita Dobson).

The story is intriguing and bizarre, with the whole plot dedicated to figuring out how this reshuffle was accomplished and how the Time Lord can reverse it. Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7 has a lackadaisical pace and no energy to speak of. The action is minimal; instead, it focuses on the new world. This two-part season finale starts bringing many storylines and threads together. Even some that may have been considered finished resurface and become important again.

All of those plotlines have led to here. Ruby Sunday’s experience of seeing the future, the pantheon of gods, Mrs Flood, and other threads all find ground here. These lead to countless stories and terrific reveals, especially towards the end of Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7. The exposition is long and grand, and Davies acknowledges its long-winded approach and weaves it into the script.

Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7 features our characters as never seen before.

All of the series’ major characters have returned, all placed within this bizarre world. The first shot of Gatwa and Sethu is startling and unsettling. They’re domesticated and romantically connected. It’s strange seeing the Doctor smooch with his companion. Gatwa terrifically plays with the role. He creates confusion but delights in portraying an extraordinary man turned into an ordinary man. He is John Smith, a famous moniker that The Doctor has used whenever he needs to hide his identity.

John saunters around the place with a swagger, comfortable in his new life. As for Sethu, she’s a housewife and mother. It’s what she’s meant to be, in this world created by a disturbing mind. Belinda starts to break within this reality, demonstrating the breakdown that can come from questioning reality. If you express doubt in the world order, you end up getting arrested and captured.

The other members of the supporting cast return in Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7. The UNIT team and Ruby Sunday all make their reappearance. But like the TARDIS crew, they have fallen victim to the remade Earth. They’re often found in the same place as they were before. But their lives have been entirely turned upside down. Kate Lethbridge-Stewart (Jemma Redgrave) and Colonel Ibrahim (Alexander Devrient) work with The Doctor, but with new roles.

Ruby (Millie Gibson) isn’t as indoctrinated into the new narrative. She wanders around this heavily changed London. She’s not completely unaffected, but both lives converge inside her head. That’s where Shirley (Ruth Madeley) comes in. A seemingly perfect world has been made by an imperfect man.

How much is sacrificed in a world designed for perfection? 

People with disabilities have been forgotten about and cast aside. But by removing them from sight and thought, Davies transforms the group into somewhere Ruby can find help. Davies turns a piece of clever social commentary into a crucial piece of resistance and defiance within the characters.

The villains have gathered and unleashed their master plan. This happened before Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7 began, which is a novel concept. The face of the new world order is Conrad (Hauer-King), the one who expressed disgust and disdain for disabled people in his first appearance. But the idea has come from the mind of the two Rani, one in particular. All of a sudden, the first iteration of the Rani seems harmless.

Played by Dobson, the character first appeared last season as a mysterious old woman who lived next to Ruby. But she knew all about time machines and Time Lords. Because she is one, or a Time Lady to be more precise, she then made a cameo in every single episode of this season, but she was just a vessel for the new regeneration. Now, Dobson is doddery, looking gentle and much less intimidating than before.

Panjabi is much more imposing and terrifying. She’s brazen from the start of the episode, wiping out a whole family in the opening scene. This is extremely surprising and dark. She’s got the perfect amount of gravitas and posturing to play a maniacal villain. The Rani was a famous villain from classic Doctor Who, but had been dormant within the newer eras. So, to get a new incarnation of the character in 2025 is extremely exciting. It’s also intriguing to get an actress of South Asian descent to play the character, considering the name is Indian.

The Rani takes a new form, and she is astoundingly scary.

The production is absolutely incredible. The set design of the Wish World is fascinating and creative. It looks like Fallout or WandaVision. It merges faux Americana and suburbia with pieces of old English stuffiness, too. But there are also giant creatures, skeletons stomping around the city. Inside that, a bone palace has been built—and actually built by the set design team, too.

The Bone Palace is a creepy, macabre headquarters for the Rani’s. All of the costumes are jaw-dropping and gorgeous. There are stunning brown dots and breathtaking dresses. The UNIT command centre has been completely remade, with the team given outfits. Some look odd, but they’re always in a certain get-up. This episode has the first instance of bad CGI when Rani flies towards her palace. It pushes the budget, but it’s not completely immersion-shattering.

Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7 is an odd one. Watching this episode can create a strange headspace because it’s so peculiar in its setting, plot, and structure. It’s difficult to settle into, and the lack of energy makes it uncomfortable and stifles movement. With the protagonists all taken over by the change, there isn’t an anchor to cling to. There’s Ruby, but she’s not involved in the main plot. The Rani is dazzling, but she’s not bouncing off the heroes because they don’t know how to react. However, the ending certainly sets up a cataclysmic finale.

Doctor Who Season 2 Episode 7 is available on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney+ everywhere else.

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