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| The Doctor presides over a wedding on the eve of tragedy. |
THE PLOT:
After celebrating her beloved grandmother Umbreen (Leena Dhingra)'s birthday, Yaz decides she wants to see her as a young woman, to get a sense of the stories she's not willing to share. The Doctor is hesitant, worried about the risks of Yaz interfering with her own timeline. She agrees, but only after extracting a promise that they will not get involved, not interfere, and will leave after one hour.
When they arrive, Yaz is startled to discover that the young Umbreen (Amita Suman) is preparing to be married - to Prem (Shane Zaza), a Hindu man who is decidedly not Yaz's grandfather. The families also disapprove; Umbreen's mother (Shaheen Khan) believes the union is cursed, while Prem's younger brother Manish (Hamza Jeetoa) does not want to see Prem marry a Muslim.
The Doctor is less concerned with the family drama and more concerned with the date of their arrival: August 14, 1947, the day before the Partition of India: The separation of the territory into the countries of India and Pakistan - which would lead to rising religious violence between Hindus and Muslims who had lived together for centuries. "It's not just the land that gets divided," the Doctor observes. "Tens of millions of people about to be displaced. More than a million about to die!"
The Doctor and her friends aren't the only aliens in the area. They discover two aliens standing over the body of the holy man who had agreed to perform the wedding ceremony. The Doctor identifies them as Thijarians, a race of legendary assassins. Prem has a revelation of his own: He has seen these demons before - In the war, standing over his older brother's dead body!
CHARACTERS:
The Doctor: The Doctor is hesitant when Yaz asks to travel back to see her grandmother. "The wrong word in the wrong moment, you could interfere yourself out of existence," she warns. "Tread softly - You're treading on your own history." She enjoys joining the women the night before the wedding, remarking that she "never did this when (she) was a man." Whittaker is positively radiant when the Doctor officiates the wedding, seeming to genuinely enjoy the scene while still maintaining a hint of the character's awkwardness.
We also get the reverse of these light moments. When she identifies the Thijarians as assassins, she demonstrates an icy fury as she warns them to leave Prem, Umbreen, and the rest alone. "They are under my protection!" she declares, her face practically a snarl. More of this, please! I actually think the friendly, happy Thirteenth Doctor could become downright frightening if something were to really set her off - and I would love to see an episode where that happens.
Yaz: Is stunned to discover that the young Umbreen's life is so different than what her grandmother has chosen to share. She is defiant when the Doctor tries to get her to leave, insisting that she needs answers. For the first half of the episode, she seems to jump at any excuse that might stop Umbreen's wedding. But as she comes to respect the young woman who will become her grandmother, she becomes more supportive, ultimately insisting on staying in a dangerous time and place just long enough to be sure Umbreen is safe.
Graham: Gets two excellent scenes. The first is a welcome conversation with Yaz. Seeing that she is upset at how little she knows of her grandmother's past, Graham reminds her that older people are under no obligation to tell their children and grandchildren everything. He reminds her that the young Umbreen is not Yaz's grandmother yet, and is busy living her life day by day; "It's only later she'll decide how to tell it." The second is a brief but heartfelt exchange with Prem. As the young man, about to be married, reflects on how inflamed his countrymen have become, Graham tells him, "All we can strive to be is good men. And you, Prem, are a good man."
Ryan: Gets a few nice interactions with Graham, particularly when he comments on the older man's singing. He is also the first to voice support for Yaz's decision to stay to make sure Umbreen is all right. Outside of that, he's mostly just present this week.
Thijarians: A part of me would have loved for this to have been a pure historical... But I have to admit, if given the chance I would not remove the Thijarians from the story. They work well within the narrative, their presence creating mystery and tension in the first two thirds, then supporting the theme and mood in the last third. The ending would simply not carry the same punch without their presence, particularly the last shot demonstrating just how many souls have already been claimed by this conflict. Also, the Thijarians are far and away the most interesting creation of Series 11, and very probably the best new alien race Doctor Who has introduced in years. They are well-designed, both visually and vocally, have a genuinely interesting backstory, and can inflict psychic pain on the Doctor - apparently, even when not actually trying to do so. Forget the Stenza - I want to see more of this race, perhaps a full story properly focused on them as assassins.
THOUGHTS
Vinay Patel, a playwright-turned-television writer, is probably best-known for his television film, Murdered by My Father, which tackled the subject of so-called "honor killings." In his first Doctor Who script, he again tackles themes of prejudice and fanaticism. Heavy stuff for a family series... But his script not only connects - It hits it out of the proverbial park.
The Partition of India isn't exactly a well-known topic for Western viewers. Patel's script does a good job sketching in enough of the historical context for us to understand the time and place in which the regulars find themselves, and then studies the effects through the prism of one family. We're given enough context to appreciate the story, with viewers hopefully left with a drive to learn more - maybe even read a book (shock, horror), but if nothing else to at least do a Google search or two.
The guest characters are effective and well-performed, with Umbreen and Prem working both as a likable couple and as good one-shot characters in their own right. I'm most impressed, though, by the characterization of Manish, Prem's radicalized brother. Many scripts would have made him a cardboard villain; instead, he remains a fully-realized human being throughout.
Though he "spends too much time reading pamphlets, listening to angry men on the radio," he is introduced grinning with pleasure at Prem's return, and is genuinely welcoming to the regulars. At a certain point, his attitude becomes sullen and he grows angry and confrontational. Even then, it's clear that he's feeling genuine pain. In his confrontation with the Doctor, he is the one with gun; he is also the one who's afraid, and we can guess readily enough that this situation has slid very far from what he had originally envisioned or intended. At the end, he's as lost as the dead are - and probably soon to join them. It's good writing, well-acted by Hamza Jeetoa, and it makes the episode all the more effective that even its least sympathetic character is recognizably human.
In a season that's been visually strong throughout, Demons of the Punjab stands out as particularly beautiful, with excellent use of location filming. It's also interesting to compare this and Rosa to the rest of the season - Thus far, it's pretty much unmistakable that the episodes set in the past are working a lot better than the space tales and monster stories.
Rating: 10/10.
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