Doctor Who season 2, episode 1 spoiler-free review: "'The Robot Revolution' is an impressive first episode for new companion Belinda Chandra"

2025 is the 20th anniversary of the show that some fans still bewilderingly refer to as "New" Doctor Who. Aside from feeling very old – I remember the days of "do ya wanna come with me?" and Graham Norton's voice interrupting 'Rose,' and the rumors that Adam would turn out to be Davros and, oh, just put me in a home already – it's worth taking a moment to look back at Russell T. Davies' original pitch for the series in which he lays out his vision for what would become the Ninth Doctor.

In the document, Davies describes his take on the Time Lord as: "Your best friend. Someone you want to be with, all the time. He's wise and funny, fast and sarky, cheeky and brave. And considering he's an alien, he's more human than the best human you can imagine. So full of compassion, his heart could burst, and his head's jam-packed with science and art and history… He should also be sexy."

All these years later and doesn't that also sum up Ncuti Gatwa's 15th Doctor perfectly? He swaggers onto screen this season in a tartan top and pinstriped kilt searching for his new companion-to- be, Belinda Chandra, as played by Andor's Varada Sethu – though how and why he is aware of her is a mystery for another day. Unfortunately, she's busy, having been abducted by some hulking red robots who are keen to make her their queen.

Rise of the Machines

It's a pulp sci-fi premise straight out of Flash Gordon or Dan Dare, but as usual Doctor Who approaches it with both irreverence and heart. These very retro robots are funny in both their looks and mannerisms – they even have a cute wee space Roomba – but they're also utterly deadly. The plot is fairly slight, but like much of Davies' Who work there's a core of bitter satire here that becomes more apparent as the episode progresses. There's also a subtle reframing of the Doctor himself, one that reminds me again of that pitch document. Shortly after noting that the Doctor can be sexy, Davies' writes, "Stand too close to him, you could get burnt."

It’s a warning that Belinda would do well to heed. Ncuti Gatwa's Time Lord is as vibrant and charismatic as ever, but there's an occasional chill or steeliness here that feels new and helps to balance out this incarnation's reputation as "the emotional Doctor." Just as Tom Baker could be empathetic one moment and bracingly cold another, or David Tennant could quickly switch between your lovable best pal and a vengeful god, Gatwa’s Doctor is both keenly aware of the deadly nature of his adventures, but also occasionally oblivious to how terrifying this must all be for Belinda.

Not that she needs anybody’s help. A lot of the press surrounding the season has understandably focused on Belinda and how different she is to Millie Gibson's wide-eyed Ruby Sunday, and you certainly get a taste of that here.

A new kind of companion

Right from the off Belinda is smart and funny and warm, just as Ruby was, but crucially, she's also a nurse and it's clear that her more worldly background and experiences in a high pressure environment have made her both tough and a straight talker – not since Catherine Tate's Donna Noble has there been a companion this willing to call the Doctor out on his nonsense.

That's not to say they don't like each other – Gatwa and Sethu have unreal chemistry – but in a character-defining moment here, while the Doctor is busy showing off, she's not paying him attention at all – she's attending to people who need her help. It's a really impressive first episode for Sethu in the role, and very different to her guest appearance as Mundy Flynn is last season's 'Boom.'

'The Robot Revolution' is everything we've come to expect from a Doctor Who series opener by now. It’s big and colorful, with immersive production design that shows off that Disney money more obviously than most of last year's episodes. The plotting is, occasionally, a bit of a muddle, but you get the gist. It's a broadly lighthearted adventure to welcome people back to the series before things inevitably take a more consequential turn in the later episodes.

Don't mistake that for shallowness, though. For all its big red robots and ray guns, there is also a sharper edge and a renewed sense of getting back to Davies' original idea that being around the Doctor is as dangerous as it is joyful. The voyage home begins...

Doctor Who: 'The Robot Revolution' will be released on April 12 at midnight PT/3:00am ET on Disney Plus and at 8am BST on BBC iPlayer, before airing later that day live on BBC One.

For more great new TV, check out our guide to the best new shows coming your way in 2024.