After an unexpected event in Clara Oswald’s (Jenna Coleman) life, she turns on the Doctor (Peter Capaldi), threatening him unless he does what she wants. But there is much more afoot elsewhere, as the mysterious woman known only as Missy (Michelle Gomez) reveals herself, and the secrets of the Nethersphere.

During TARDISblend 82, we review the giant reveals and massive spoilers from the first part of the Doctor Who finale, entitled “Dark Water.” We also discuss how things came together for this plotline, and speculate on where things may go for next week’s conclusion.

All this and more on the latest TARDISblend!

Doctor Who
Season 8, Episode 10 “In The Forest Of The Night”
Directed by Sheree Folkson
Written by Frank Cotrell-Boyce
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Samuel Anderson, Abigail Eames
BBC America
Air Date: Saturday, October 25, 2014

Beware of the forest. That’s where evil witches with candy houses cook and eat lost children. It’s where little girls are stalked by wolves. It’s where magic happens, and fear lives for those who venture within its confines. It is this fairy tale forest primeval that we explore on last week’s Doctor Who, Episode 8.10 “In The Forest Of The Night.”

The world is suddenly covered in trees that appeared in a single night. Where have they come from? What do they want? Does one of Clara’s students at Coal Hill School hold the key?

The entire planet has become covered with a continually growing forest, invading cities, deserts, and oceans. The Doctor (Peter Capaldi) accompanied by Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman), Danny Pink (Samuel Anderson), and a group of Coal Hill School kids are lost in the invading forest of London as they try to work out what is happening.

During TARDISblend 81, we send a group message to Tree Facebook and discuss the implications of this latest Doctor Who episode, and debate the possibilities after the preview for the two-part finale of Series 8.

All this and more on the latest TARDISblend!

Doctor Who
Season 8, Episode 8 “Mummy On The Orient Express”
Directed by Paul Wilmshurst
Written by Jamie Mathieson
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Samuel Anderson, Frank Skinner, David Bamber
BBC America
Air Date: Saturday, October 11th, 2014

This season of Doctor Who seems to keep turning back to the same question: “Clara, be my pal, and tell me: am I a good man?” Uttered in just the second episode of the season after a turbulent regeneration in the first, her answer of “I don’t know” seemed to echo and replay itself yet again this week. Now the question and the answer are not part of a conversational exercise, but have become central to the question of Clara’s continued friendship with the Doctor.

When Matt Smith’s Doctor said “Rule #1: the Doctor lies” more than once, it all seemed like a humorous technicality. With a pure heart, the Eleventh Doctor could be trusted to let the end justify the means, even if the means involved some purposeful misunderstanding. Now, Clara seems to ponder the full meaning of that statement since the less polished manner of Peter Capaldi‘s Doctor sometimes seems gruffly at odds with his inner intentions.

Doctor Who
Season 8, Episode 7 “Kill The Moon”
Directed by Paul Wilmshurst
Written by Peter Harness
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Samuel Anderson, Ellis George, Hermione Norris
BBC America
Air Date: Saturday, October 4th, 2014

Doctor Who has a long, long history with “the base under siege.” Introduced to the series as a way to save money when the show was forced back into smaller production facilities because of lower ratings in the late 1960s, it provided a way to produce a lot of multi-week serials on a small number of standing sets.

The formula generally includes: the Doctor and companions arrive at a base (or other solid structure) in some remote location, they discover the inhabitants, the base comes under attack, the politics and conflicts among those in the base come to the surface, the Doctor and/or the companions are put in jeopardy, the jeopardy is resolved, and the Doctor uses his unique skills to save the base. Two of the most memorable recent stories of this type are “Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead” and “The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People.” Notice that those stories are two episodes. This one isn’t.