top of page
Search

Doctor Who Series 11, Episode 3 Review - Rosa

  • Writer: SimplyWho
    SimplyWho
  • Oct 24
  • 4 min read

Updated: 4 days ago

What did you think of this episode?

  • Sonic!

  • Good!

  • Bumpy-wumpy!

  • Exterminate!


Rosa is a tricky Doctor Who episode for me to review, because I don't think it's as good as a lot of people say, but I also don't think it's as shit as a lot of moany buggers say.


I like what it’s trying to do, and I respect the intention behind it, but at the same time, there are parts of the execution that just don’t land for me.


The biggest issue I have is the dialogue between the TARDIS team. A lot of it feels so forced, like people explaining themes at each other rather than actually having a conversation. Ryan and Yaz’s chat is the prime example of that. I see what it’s going for, putting modern perspectives against the racism of 1950's Alabama, but it doesn’t feel natural. Nobody talks like that to each other, especially not two characters who’ve grown up in the same city and already understand the reality of racism. It’s clunky writing that undermines the power of what should be an important conversation.


It was my main frustration about this TARDIS team the first time around, and it is still very much here on a rewatch. Ryan gets some god awful lines.


"First black woman to ever drive a bus."


We had the moment that makes you sit up and take notice when Ryan is slapped. Seeing the shock on Ryan's face, seeing him fighting the urge to lay the smack down on the prick, but then he is played as a complete doughnut minutes later. I never quite know what they are going for with Ryan. Is he dumb for a few laughs? Or is he more than that?


I know they wouldn't have taken this episode lightly when they made it. It is done with good intent, and a pure Doctor Who heart. There are some really strong moments, none more so than the episodes climax. I know some people dislike Thirteen being passive in this scene, but to me it feels right. She can’t step in and change history, the horror is that they have to sit, watch and be a part of it. That’s what makes it powerful. The whole team acts their hearts out here, and Bradley Walsh in particular really shines. You can feel the weight of it in Graham’s face, and it hits hard.


Vinette Robinson playing Rosa Parks, sat on a bench holding handbag
@BBC

The villain, Krasko, feels very series 15 to me. By that I mean a white bloke, who is evil, and pretty forgettable. This isn't me saying why are white men being picked on by the way, far from it, white men should be picked on. The planet would be a much better place without white men. #NoKings


But Krasko is just a plot device to keep the story moving. I guess the point I am trying to make is this, series 11 suffers the same as series 14 and 15 does, in that their are no truly iconic villains for the Doctor to face off against. Doctor Who is nothing without a good villain, and a Doctor doesn't truly get a chance to shine until they face a good villain.


One final point, Krasko starts the trend in Thirteen's era of villains with piss poor aim. I guess, ultimately, the episode isn't really about Krasko though, so I will let it lie.


"Don't get off, Graham. If we get off, there's enough empty seats for white passengers. Rosa won't be asked to move. We have to stay on."


Rosa is often talked about as one of the defining episodes of modern Doctor Who, but I don’t think it’s flawless. I'd go as far to say it is a tad overrated. It has a lot of good points, but clunky moments let it down. The end is the perfect example - a brilliant moment seeing Rosa sitting her ground, a huge moment in history, brilliantly acted, that could have been the end, but instead we get some weird thing about having an asteroid named after her. As if that is her legacy?! Rosa Parks. THE Rosa Parks! It's odd!


I wish they scrapped the asteroid bit, and showed that despite improvements, we still have a long old way to go. Maybe I am looking at this from a 2025 perspective because we have gone so far backwards it is untrue. I am white, I am a guy, so I cannot comment on what people may have to put up with, but I see the knuckle draggers protesting outside hotels, I see the hate people are given online, I see that a scarily high percentage of the country I live in is thick as fuck and intolerant of everything.


But hey, if some thick cunts thinks my country would be better off being used as a tax haven for billionaires, whilst the poor get poorer, and the streets are filled with middle aged coke head blokes shouting "oi oi" at any woman walking past Weatherspoons, who am I to argue?


2018 feels like a tolerant utopia compared to now!


Anyway, Rosa was a bold attempt at showing what it was like to be black in the not so distant past, it also showed that we aren't that different today. I think it was done with every good intention, and it should be applauded that they tackled this. For younger viewers especially, I hope it started conversations, made people think, and got them looking into who Rosa Parks really was. If it did that, then it achieved something worthwhile.








What did you think of Rosa? Do you find a lot of the lines in series 11 clunky? Am I completely wrong as normal? Let me know in the comments below.


RATING: Good!

BEST LINE: No, no, no, I don't want to be part of this.


Comments

© by SimplyWho

Powered and secured by Wix

This site is in no way associated with the BBC, Doctor Who or Disney

All opinions are my own

​

bottom of page