"Time Heist"

Although, I like both of Stephen Thompson's previous stories, the main reason they succeeded was due to the production, rather than the script - "The Curse of the Black Spot" in particular was rather lacklustre. So, although I was not wary of this story in the way I used to be wary of a Chris Chibnall script prior to "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship", I did have some trepidation. However, like Chibnall's archosaurian runaround, the one-line pitch of the story is irresistible and (perhaps due to Steven Moffat's co-writing credit) the puzzle-box nature of a heist plot is executed without the half-baked plot twists that characterised Thompson's earlier work. We are thrust into the story with a teaser than gets the viewer instantly hooked and the cogs of the plot keep turning throughout. There are a few things which could have been more fully explained, such as the nature of the mind link between the Teller and Madame Karabraxos - however, these do not stand in the way of how the plot develops.

The key thing that elevates this above Thompson's previous efforts are the characters. The Doctor's partners in crime Psi and Saibra are well defined characters who are given clear motivations and the appealing performances by Jonathan Bailey and Pippa Bennett-Warner flesh them out fully - I hope they make the return that the story seems to promise. Madame Karabraxos and her clone are brilliantly brought to life by the wonderful Keeley Hawes, radiating classiness and icy sadism. Douglas Mackinnon again does sterling work in the director's chair, giving the break-in sequences a real sense of tension, supervising editing to bring out the time-bending aspects of the plot and giving us some real scares. The fate of the poor shill who is the first on-screen victim of the mind-erasure is truly shocking. The production is of a very high standard, and stunning alien vistas are used judiciously and it was only after I had watched the story that it dawned on me that the corridors were the same corridors with different lighting and that there was only one Teller costume. Speaking of which, the Teller is a masterpiece of design and, under Mackinnon's direction manages to both be genuinely frightening and (later) sympathetic.

This is the type of adventure that would have fitted well with any Doctor since Eccleston, but Capaldi immediately makes it indubitably a Twelfth Doctor story. When he believes that Psi and Saibra are dead, he obviously feels the loss, but doesn't let it get in the way of what he has to do. Psi even gives a fresh reason as to why he's called the Doctor. However, his 'payment' for his part in the heist is the rescue of a creature that has only tried to kill him. This man might be different, but he's definitely still the Doctor. Clara isn't given as much to do as in previous weeks, but Jenna Coleman continues to shine.

"Time Heist" is tremendous fun throughout, a great romp for all the family!

NEXT: "The Caretaker"