Doctor Who: The Vanquishers Review - 4 Ups & 9 Downs

And you thought three companions was too many…

Try ten.

The Doctors gang this week consists of: Yaz, Dan, Vinder, Bel, Joseph Williamson, Karvanista, Kate Stewart, Jericho, Claire and Di. If that sounds like too many characters to possibly give anybody any screen time, that’s because it is, and everyone suffers for it. We’ll cycle through some of the biggest victims of this overcrowding now, quick-fire style:

Yaz and Dan do almost nothing for the entirety of this episode, being relegated completely to the background. Dan should be pretty used to this, given he hasn’t been relevant since episode two. He actually has less bearing on the plot of this series than Di from Liverpool, which is hilarious.

Joseph Williamson is no longer needed, and is immediately sent through a door that removes him from the plot. At least he gets a Hollywood Handshake for his trouble. We suspect some of his scenes may have been cut, as we never did see Dan’s flash-forward from Once, Upon Time come to fruition. Bit shoddy, that.

Vinder and Bel are completely robbed of a suitably touching reunion, being given around thirty seconds for the moment their entire story has been building towards. Vinder is also conveniently cut off before he can explain who The Grand Serpent actually is. On the bright side, I think we’re all glad that they didn’t turn out to be The Doctor’s parents.

Finally, and perhaps most egregiously: the absolute disrespect that this episode showed to our girl, Kate Stewart. Chibnall brings back this fan favourite to have her stand around in some tunnels for the whole episode, say nothing of any worth, and have her hero moment overshadowed by Vinder. It’s almost as if she was bought back for pure nostalgia, but Chibnall wouldn’t do that, would he? I mean it’s not like he’s done this before…