Welcome back Doctor and welcome back East Coast Who fans. Season 10 is finally here with the episode "The Pilot" and I was psyched for it. Then once the episode was over, I said to myself, "I hope it gets better". It wasn't that the episode was bad, it just wasn't memorable. No one is going to look back and say "The Pilot" was my favorite Dr Who episode this season". It was just bland. I know not all Dr Who episodes have to be memorable, but I honestly forgot what happened the following day and had to re-watch it. Also, some of you are going to say that I need to look at the episode has a part of a bigger story. I believe that you need to view each episode as a whole and not part of a bigger story. Some of the best episode of the new series have been stand alone stories like, Blink & Time Heist.
There were things I greatly enjoyed. I think Pearl Mackie who is playing Bill Potts is going to be a great companion and I'm looking forward to what see brings to the series. Some people might complain that her character is a homosexual, but I think it's great that Dr Who is so inclusive to different people. There's someone for everyone on the show. Hopefully, you are not one of those homophobic people who dislike her just because of her sexuality. I am also very happy that Matt Lucas is back and part of the team. I think the shows works best with 2 companions and the Doctor. Matt Lucas can provide the humor, while the Doctor can focus on saving the day.I also always enjoy the little nods to Classic Who like seeing the photo of the Doctor's granddaughter, Susan, the mug contain the old sonic screwdrivers and the return of the Movellans. The Movellans have not be seen on TV since the 1979 episode "Destiny of the Daleks". A lot of new Who fans, probably had no idea what they were and I hope we to get to see them again in another story this season so that new fans can learn more about them. When the Doctor decided to take the Tardis to the Dalek & Movellan war to elude the water-Heather, it got me thinking about other famous wars in the Dr Who universe. There was of course the Time War (Daleks vs Time Lords), Daleks vs Movellans and Sontarans vs the Rutans (a very underrated war). If you can think of any other Dr Who Wars, let me know.
The reason why I have such a lukewarm feeling about this episode is that it seemed like a hodgepodge of other Dr Who episodes except not as good. The water-Heather is very similar to "the Waters of Mars" creatures. The Doctor being chased by a monster through time and space was done in "the Chase" and finally the Doctor as a teacher has been done most recently in "Human Nature". It just seemed like a lazy Dr Who episode to me.
I give "The Pilot" a 2 out of 5 Tardis's. If it wasn't for the debut of Pearl Mackie, it would have been even lower. I still have hope that we will have some gems this year.