Doctor Who review: The Very Dark Thing is a strange but interesting exploration of morality
By James Aggas
On a world of singing rivers and unicorns, Bernice Summerfield is about to discover a horrific secret in The Very Dark Thing…
Una McCormack’s episode for Doctor Who: The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield: The Unbound Universe stands out in two ways. Firstly, it is a very strange story, at least at the beginning of it. Secondly, it actually deals with surprisingly major mythology for this universe.
The Very Dark Thing is an episode with a few major surprises, so naturally, it’s not something you want to talk about too much in terms of plot. What I can say is that it very smoothly transitions from being a strange and fantastical story with singing rivers and unicorns into a rather dark exploration of the horrors of war.
There’s a strong focus on morality in this episode, which I especially enjoyed. The world that McCormack depicts doesn’t feature any clear villains, not really. It presents people either doing or attempting terrible things, and explores how they justify it. It also explores how they can be good people in many other ways, at least.
Lisa Bowerman gets a lot to do in this episode, as Bernice takes charge when the Doctor finds himself somewhat distracted.
(Photo: Doctor Who: The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield cast.. (L to R) Lisa Bowerman, David Warner and Sam Kisgart. Image Courtesy Big Finish Productions.)
A strong focus on Bernice
Benny gets a lot more to do in this story compared to the last episode. A lot more. Just as Planet X was heavily focused on David Warner’s Doctor, The Very Dark Thing is undeniably Benny’s story.
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This isn’t just in terms of how much she’s focused on, either. In both tone and feel, this story feels like it belongs to her. This is a story so strange and yet so morally complex that it’s a perfect fit for Benny, specifically.
Which is fantastic. Because as much as it’s labelled a Doctor Who series, it’s Bernice Summerfield herself who’s the real draw here. She’s been living her own life as a leading lady for over twenty years on audio alone. Yes, we do want to find out more about both David Warner’s Doctor and the Unbound Universe itself, but Benny also needs to continue to be a leading character in her own right. So we get a little less focus on Warner’s Doctor, while Benny herself finds out something rather crucial about the Unbound Universe.
Overall, The Very Dark Thing is a very strange episode, especially in the way that it begins. But stick with it, and you end up with something very dark and morally interesting, with plenty of hidden depths. A key episode of Benny’s adventures in the Unbound Universe.
Next. Moffat’s double gift to Big Finish with Clara. dark
What’s your favorite strange or surreal episode of Doctor Who? Which stories do you think have explored morality in a satisfying way? Let us know in the comments below.