TV Review | Doctor Who: “Kerblam!” by Pete McTighe

Another week, another newcomer, another timely and politically-charged script. Doctor Who’s back and it’s on fire.

 

Pete McTighe’s “Kerblam!” packs all the punch of its title, and more besides, as it satirises the future according to Amazon and takes the viewer through just about emotion in the screenwriters’ playbook. “Kerblam!” wears its humour and its hazard on its sleeve, but its onomatopoeic handle is particularly apposite when it pulls the rug out from beneath viewers with its frequent twists and misdirections, or smashes them over the head with its sudden pathos. Kerblam!

“You’re just making sounds now...”

The episode’s subject matter is particularly unsettling as we approach Black Friday and our annual online orders supernova; it’s a triumph of scheduling, as well as everything else. Parts of the story put me very much in mind of this year’s supremely disquieting X-Files episode “Rm9sbG93ZXJz”, which played upon the same sort of fears, but of course here McTighe’s story has a much more nuanced and ambiguous punchline than Shannon Hamblin and Kristen Cloke’s did. Indeed, “Kerblam!” is television at its most thoughtful disguised as television at its most crude, its well-observed script stirring up classic corporate techno-fear with its left hand while its right reminds us of the real root of all evil (which is a recurring theme for this year, it seems).

Even in a season populated by such revered actors, the cast of “Kerblam!” still manages to stand out. Household names like Jodie Whittaker’s fellow Broadchurch alumnae, Julie Hesmondhalgh, and comedian Lee Mack certainly deliver performances worthy of their repute, although for me it was the two youngsters who really shone. Claudia Jessie imbues her down-at-heel but eternally optimistic character, Kira, with a spirit so inspiring that when the Doctor comments upon it, she’s only giving voice to what the audience is already thinking. Meanwhile, Kira’s would-be suitor, Leo Flanagan’s bog-cleaning Charlie Duffy, gives a convincing and layered performance that on occasion threatens to steal the whole show.

Above: In defence of the 2:1 - the four members of Team: TARDIS really need the trendy super-wide aspect ratio if they want to have a chance of sharing a shot together.

McTighe’s incredibly adroit storytelling also does a terrific job of serving all four members of Team: TARDIS in equal measure, which is quite a feat given the size of the gang, and doubly so when you consider the time afforded to the supporting players. Whittaker’s Doctor mercurially leads the charge, while the rest of her gang pursue their respective avenues of investigation. Yaz is paired with Mack’s memorable everyman, Dan Cooper, and once again serves as the episode’s heart, while Graham takes on janitorial duties with Charlie (and thus the critical exposition). Ryan, meanwhile, enjoys his strongest outing since “Rosa”, as the story’s warehouse setting and physical challenges force him to address both his feelings about his vocation and his dyspraxia head-on. It’s quite ironic that one of the greatest strengths of “Kerblam!” is that it’s a masterclass in people management.

I’m also incredibly taken with the episode’s look, which to the production team’s credit favours authenticity over spectacle - at least for the most part. Warehouses will always have a certain functional aesthetic, I reckon, and much the same probably applies to clean and light corporate lobbies too. When the design does need to appear more technologically advanced, though, “Kerblam!” convinces effortlessly, with its trademark Kerb!am Men and their ‘TeamMates’ straddling that fine line between retro-chic company poster boys and convincing future tech.

Best of all, though, “Kerblam!” has the one essential ingredient that sets the most memorable Doctor Who stories apart from the good but largely forgotten ones – and in this case, it’s bubble wrap. Taking the mundane and infusing it with menace has been a signature of the series over the years, and McTighe has arguably taken the concept to another level here with his pliable plastic packing material that goes... KERBLAM!

The new series of Doctor Who airs on Sunday nights on BBC One and this episode is available to stream or download on BBC iPlayer in the UK, where the preceding 152 episodes are also currently available. A series pass is available from iTunes for £23.99.