Doctor Who: Empire Of Death Review - 7 Ups & 5 Downs

Empire of Death is here, and just like that, it's all over.

I don't think I'm on my own when I say that eight episodes simply isn't enough. While we sadly know it will be the same again next year, I'm still holding out hope that we might at least get hour-long episodes, because with the reduced count, we certainly could've done with more time following this duo.

Season 1 got off to a shaky start, before giving us four back-to-back bangers with Boom, 73 Yards, Dot and Bubble, and Rogue, but did the two-part finale stick the landing? Well... ish. It's definitely a grade above Ncuti and Millie's first three episodes, but it falls short of the stellar four-episode run mentioned above, averaging out this season as 'pretty good', when it could've been among the best.

Empire of Death is exactly what we've come to expect from a Russell T Davies finale, and in that respect, it seems you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Let's analyse the epic conclusion to a season of non-stop mystery box teasing, and discuss what worked, and what didn't!

My first up of the week goes to the villain to end all villains, Sutekh, who is played by original voice actor Gabriel Woolf. Added audio effects or not, I'm not sure many of us can hope to have such a commanding and imposing presence aged 91 - what a voice this man has.

We'll get into his defeat later, but its hard to deny that Sutekh is a more than fitting big bad here, with a cataclysmic level of power and an appearance to match. I did briefly rip into the CGI on Sutekh last week, but having spent more time with it here, and being able to appreciate the little details on the design - the cloudy ruby and flaring eyes, the smoke erupting from his nostrils, and the golden collars around his neck that shift with every movement, I think the VFX department did a pretty good job here.

The Bad Woolf is flanked by his cronies, Susan Triad and Harriet Arbinger, and later, poor Mel, and each of these have a screen presence of their own with some very creepy prosthetics - Arbinger, in particular, cuts quite a mean image in her corrupted TARDIS despite a lack of lines.

Lastly, I appreciate how this story adds additional stakes to Pyramids of Mars by showing us the fate that Four saved the universe from by just a matter of seconds. Also, seeing Tom and Elisabeth onscreen for even a second was lovely.