Doctor Who Series 10: 7 Big Questions We're Asking After 'Oxygen'
1. Is This The Most Political Doctor Who Has Ever Been?
The theme of workers being exploited for profit, as with the
anti-racism message, continues here from Thin Ice. As an even more blatant
attack on capitalism, Oxygen will no doubt have attracted the attention of the
tabloids on both sides of the political divide in the UK, particularly with the
BBC being regularly accused of having both left wing and right wing biases.
Doctor Who has never shied away from social commentary, tackling all kinds of contentious issues from environmentalism to the war on terrorism. Oxygen is therefore not the only time the show has been so open about its real-world political equivalents. Both Thatcherism (The Happiness Patrol) and Blairism (The Sound of Drums) have been effectively satirised in the past.
As a general rule however, the views of its writers are toned down to reflect the diverse audience the program is funded to entertain. We are left with a sufficient degree of ambiguity so as not to cause offence or bite the hand that feeds it. Oxygen is no exception, hence the Doctor’s caveat that the human race will replace capitalism with “a whole new mistake.”
The emphasis on human life being exploited by unscrupulous leaders is very reminiscent of the Robert Holmes satire The Sun Makers. But Holmes’ concern about the burden of taxation was a deeply middle class one. The idea that in a universe governed by corporate business interests, the very air we breathe has to be paid for and individually owned is much more leftist in tone.
What did you think of Oxygen? What questions did it leave you with? Let us know down in the comments.