Face the Raven

"Face the Raven" is the tenth episode of the ninth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 21 November 2015. It is written by Sarah Dollard and directed by Justin Molotnikov. This episode presented the rare death of a companion, in this case Clara Oswald as played by Jenna Coleman.

Joivan Wade reprised his role as Rigsy from "Flatline" and Maisie Williams returned for her third episode in the series. This episode also featured a passing return of the Judoon, the Ood, the Ice Warriors, the Silurians, the Cybermen and the Sontarans.

Plot

Rigsy contacts Clara through the TARDIS' phone, asking for her and the Doctor's help. They arrive at Rigsy's flat in London, finding he has settled down with a wife and newborn daughter. He has no idea of the origin of a tattoo on the back of his neck that is counting down towards zero, and lacks any memories of the previous day's events; his mobile phone is also cracked and data from the previous day wiped. The Doctor scans him with the TARDIS, discovering he had contact with aliens in the last day, and is due to die when the countdown reaches zero. Though the Doctor feels there's nothing he can do, Clara insists that he try. Assuming the presence of aliens hiding in London, the three look for a trap street where they might be hiding. They eventually come across it, aided by a flood of memories that Rigsy recalls once the TARDIS is able to restore the data on his mobile.

Within, they find themselves among several aliens, using a misdirection system to both hide the street from the average humans, and to make themselves appear human to each other. The aliens are led by Ashildr, who acts as mayor among the group. Ashildr, still going by the name Me ("The Woman Who Lived"), explains the aliens here are refugees, and that Rigsy had been sentenced to death for killing Anah, a two-face Janus female; he was injected with Retcon to forget what happened, and then given the time to say goodbye to his loved ones; the tattoo is a Chronolock that leads a Quantum Shade, appearing normally as a Raven, to its bearer and kill them when the mark reaches zero. The Doctor and Clara believe that Rigsy had been framed. Ashildr allows them to investigate, but tells them they have to convince those that live on the street of Rigsy's innocence to keep the tense truce between the various alien species that live there.

Clara learns that the Chronolock can only be removed either by the person that placed it, or transferred willingly to another. Believing she is protected by Ashildr's assurance of her personal safety, Clara takes Rigsy's Chronolock without anyone else's knowledge. The Doctor discovers that Rigsy had called for the Doctor when he was found in the street the previous day, and believes that Ashildr was trying to contact him and lead him here. They speak to Anahson, the daughter of Anah who is forced to dress as a male to hide her ability to see the past and future, and confirms that Me had to fabricate the mystery to bring the Doctor to her. They go back to where Anah's body is being kept for return to Janus, but find it is a stasis chamber instead, with a keyhole to deactivate it within a recess on a control panel. The Doctor comes to believe that the TARDIS key will unlock it, and proceeds to use the TARDIS key on the keyhole: the panel traps his arm temporarily to place a metal band on his arm and take his TARDIS key while Anah is released, alive and well. Ashildr arrives, and explains that the band is a teleportation device, a means to send the Doctor away to keep the peace on the street, and asks him for his confession dial before she activates it. When she goes to remove the Chronolock from Rigsy, Clara's transfer is discovered and Ashildr regretfully tells her that she had arranged the first Chronolock with the Quantum Shade, assuring it of a soul which only she could break with no intent of anyone dying. By accepting Rigsy's Chronolock, Clara broke the terms of that contract and there is nothing that can be done to save Clara.

The Doctor threatens Ashildr, demanding that she save Clara, but Clara begs him not to be angry. She spends her last moments with the Doctor, asking him if he is proud of her for her bravery before warning him that he will be alone and that she does not want him to avenge her, making him promise that no-one else will be harmed as a consequence of her actions. After tearfully bidding the Doctor farewell, she goes out to the street to face the raven alone, and dies in front of the Doctor. The Doctor warns Ashildr that Clara's message was intended to protect her, and to keep out of his way. Ashildr then activates the teleportation band, sending the Doctor to an unknown location.

In a post-credits scene, Rigsy is seen painting the exterior of the abandoned TARDIS as a flowery memorial to Clara.

Continuity

The Doctor once again consults his response cards, first seen in "Under the Lake", in "an effort to be nice" before breaking the news to Rigsy of his impending death.^[1]

Rigsy is injected with Retcon, a substance introduced in the Doctor Who spinoff, Torchwood, to cause those that take it to lose their memory of meeting Torchwood and having alien encounters.^[2]

Among the disguised aliens living on the trap street are a Sontaran, Judoon, an Ice Warrior and an Ood caring for a Cyberman.^[3]

Clara mentions having a romantic relationship with writer Jane Austen. In "The Magician's Apprentice", she even calls her "a great kisser". Earlier in "The Caretaker", the Doctor disputes with Clara about when Austen wrote Pride and Prejudice.^[4]

Ashildr asks the Doctor for his confession dial, first seen in "The Magician's Apprentice" and retrieved by the Doctor in "The Witch's Familiar".^[5][6]

Clara mentions her deceased lover Danny Pink, saying that if he could face death (as he did in "Death in Heaven"), then so can she.^[7]

As Clara entreats the Doctor not to take revenge on Ashildr, she tells him "don't be a warrior.... be a Doctor". This is the same plea she made to the Eleventh Doctor when he planned to destroy Gallifrey to end the Time War in "The Day of the Doctor".^[4]

Outside references

As they prepare to investigate, Clara suggests that she and the Doctor employ the good cop/bad cop interrogation method, with her as the 'good' cop. When the Doctor asks why he can't play 'good cop', Clara says that his face won't allow him.^[8][9]

Production

The read through for this episode was on 28 May 2015 and filming ran from 8 June to 25 June.^[10]

Cast notes

Joivan Wade originally appeared as Rigsy in "Flatline" in Series 8. Maisie Williams featured as Ashildr/Me in "The Girl Who Died" and "The Woman Who Lived". Robin Soans appeared as Luvic in The Keeper of Traken in Season 18.^[11] Simon Paisley Day made an appearance in "The End of the World" from Series 1.^[12]

Reception

The episode was watched by 4.48 million viewers overnight in the UK, a 19.9% audience share.^[13] It received an Appreciation Index score of 84.^[14]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Rotten Tomatoes (Tomatometer)	81%[15]
Rotten Tomatoes (Average Score))	8.4[15]
The A.V Club	A[16]
Paste Magazine	8.5[17]
SFX Magazine	[18]
TV Fanatic	[19]
IGN	8.4[20]
New York Magazine	[21]
Daily Telegraph	[22]

The episode received highly positive reviews from critics. Jim Shelly, writing for the Daily Mail said that "Jenna Coleman was no Billie Piper. But her farewell episode was one of her best."^[23] Patrick Mulkern's review for the Radio Times was more critical, stating that the episode was "at best, pedestrian. It’s mostly dull and uninvolving."^[24] In the Independent Jon Cooper praised the show, describing it as "A heady mixture of science fiction, Gothic whodunnit and emotional rollercoaster, it doesn’t just leave you breathless – it leaves you wanting more."^[25] The Rotten Tomatoes consensus of reviews was at 81% with an average rating of 8.4 out of 10. The consensus reads: "'Face the Raven' delivers the much anticipated departure of a beloved Doctor Who character in a farewell handled admirably by both Coleman and Capaldi."^[26]

References

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Twelfth Doctor

• "Face the Raven" at the BBC Doctor Who homepage
• "Face the Raven" on TARDIS Data Core, an external wiki
• "Face the Raven" at Doctor Who: A Brief History of Time (Travel)
• "Face the Raven" at the Internet Movie Database