Class Episode 6 Review - Detained
- SimplyWho
- Jul 24
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 4
Six episodes in, and Class continues to surprise me in the best ways. Detained is pretty much set in one classroom and concentrates on all the characters trapped in it. And it's really good.
It isn't quite Midnight, but it has a similar vibe. One location, character driven, those characters being turned against each other by an unseen entity. Well, you can see the rock - but you get my point.
This isn't the best episode to use, but one thing I have noticed about Class is it looks good. They obviously gave this spin-off a damn good go.
Sure, everyone has fallen in love a trifle too easily - both Ram and April (kind of) and Charlie and Matteusz. I take all the love with a pinch of salt, this is a show related to Doctor Who after all. People easily fall in love all the time, sometimes over the course of 45 minutes.
The setup to the episode is simple - they are all put in detention, an asteroid (or is it meteor) crashes into the classroom and the gang are now in a kind of time prison. There is no escape, no help from Quill (she put them there in the first place, and no distractions. Five teenagers forced to confront their truths one by one.
The rock compels them to speak their darkest, most brutal thoughts aloud, hurting the other people in the room as they do it. But in doing this, they learn more and more about why they are trapped and how they can get out.
Charlie really comes into focus here. He has been a bit wishy-washy up to this point. Bleating on about being a prince and all that jazz. He is the one alien among them, but he hasn't been a whole lot of help up to this point.
I do enjoy an episode like this - we get to know much more about the characters, something that has been lacking in more modern Who. I never really got to bond with Belinda, she showed potential, but was side lined by the pace of the show. Anyone in UNIT currently is a great example - what do we know about Rose Noble other than the fact she is trans and Donna's daughter? What do we know about Shirley except the fact she uses a ridiculous wheelchair? What about the soldier bloke, Ibrahim? He fancies Kate I guess.
So, finally I got to know more about Charlie. I got to see the actual character. I got to see the guilt he feels just by the fact he wants to use the Cabinet of Souls. It’s uncomfortable to watch, and that’s what makes it so good.
I have unfairly compared this to Stranger Things before, as they were released at the same time, and have kids as the main characters, and have something going on underground or upside down. Now we have saving the day by getting a nose bleed. Come on!
Matteusz also shines. It would’ve been easy to let him just be the boyfriend, but this episode gives him a bit of fire. His tension with Charlie hits hard, and I really enjoyed his little talk about Narnia.
Tanya also gets a moment, and we see all of her insecurities shine through. I suppose shine is the wrong word, but any character is better when they show their flaws and insecurities right?
It's amazing how much Class achieves with so little here. No fancy effects, no monsters on show - just some good old fashioned conflict. Detained might just be the standout of the series so far. It’s bold, it’s honest, and it leaves the group fundamentally changed.
I also liked the ending and the trailer that hints at seeing what happened to Quill at the same time as the detention.
What did you think of Detained? Let me know in the comments below.
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