Doctor Who: Deep Breath: Blu Ray Review

Doctor Who: Deep Breath: Blu Ray Review

Rating: PG
Released by BBC and Roadshow Home Ent

So, here it is - the introduction of Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor.

Only just recently broadcast on TV, this release showcases the introduction of Peter Capaldi to the TARDIS after his brief introduction at the end of the Christmas special.

It's your traditional regeneration story as the Doctor tries to reconnect with himself and deal with a problem or two - this time, it's set in Victorian England (eerily and brilliantly re-created by film-maker Ben Wheatley behind the director's lense, who brings a creeping sense of dread) and sees the Doctor trying to work out what's going on with a dinosaur loose and a series of spontaneous human combustions, all the while involving the fan faves Paternoster Gang of Strax the Sontaran and Madame Vastra and Jenny (to no doubt help transition the newcomers of the show who're used to a younger doctor).

Deep Breath is an odd mix, if I'm honest. While Capaldi owns the role from the moment he's on screen (all madness, anger, rage and general uncertainty) some of Steven Moffat's writing doesn't quite hang together; assistant Clara spends a lot of the time sulking about the regeneration where previous series have shown that she's been aware of regeneration and what it does (a logic that's hard to get past) and some of the menace of clockwork robots falls apart under close scrutiny. An introduction of a season long arc induces more of an eye roll than an excitement - but there's still time to see how that plays out.

To the credit of all involved, this Doctor was supposed to be a darker affair, a more fractious and morally greyer one - and to Capaldi's credit, by the end of the episode, for the first time, I don't know what kind of Doctor he is. But I do know that he owns the role, and deserves his place in the time Lord pantheon.

Deep Breath is not a fantastic regeneration episode but as a taster to the new series, it's got hope for a new direction written all over it.

Extras: Behind the scenes, cinema intros and the show that saw Capaldi unveiled as the new Doctor.

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