Doctor Who: Once, Upon Time Review - 5 Ups & 6 Downs
9. UP - Familiar Faces
One absolute master stroke of this episode was the decision to have our protagonists appear in each other’s stories - it all felt very inspired by Cloud Atlas. This really helps to sell the idea that time is falling apart, and prompts the characters to question the reality they are experiencing. It gives the episode an eerie vibe, with a surreal, unnerving edge of something not being quite right.
It also gives some fun opportunities for the lead actors to play outside of their usual roles, with Yaz taking the role of Vinder’s stoic commander, The Doctor’s amusing turn as Yaz’s complaining stake-out buddy, and Dan playing the role of his soul-brother, Karvanista. We half expected Yaz and Vinder to be revealed as Gat and Lee in The Doctor’s story, and we’re still not entirely convinced they aren’t.
If we had one criticism, we maybe would have had the characters take on their original forms just a little more than they did.