Doctor Who review: Rose Tyler and Pete discover life after death in Ghost Machines

The third episode of Rose Tyler: The Dimension Cannon not only features disturbing ideas, but also gives the Doctor Who spin-off some very grounded drama, too.

AK Benedict’s Ghost Machines is in many ways an extremely dark story. Exploring a strange kind of life after death on a parallel Earth, the third episode of Doctor Who spin-off series Rose Tyler: The Dimension Cannon features some considerably disturbing scenes, particularly when machines start talking with the souls of the dead.

But Benedict does more than give us an episode with a creepy idea. She also throws in some very grounded drama, too. Which is quite surprising, considering that the drama deals with the problems of meeting parallel versions of your family.

In this episode, Clive (who’s effectively been the companion in both The Endless Night and The Flood) takes a backseat while Pete Tyler joins his daughter on one of her dimension jumps. Except, as the episode reminds us, Rose isn’t his daughter. Rose’s father died on her Earth, killed in a traffic accident – which, as they discover, is something that has also happened to the Pete Tyler of this world, too.

AK Benedict gives the cast some really meaty scenes, as she explores exactly how weird meeting parallel members of your family can get. There are some really fantastic scenes that explore Rose’s and Pete’s relationship, and just how complicated it really is.

The cast and director of Ghost Machines (L to R): Robert Whitelock, Camille Coduri, Alistair Petrie, Claire Wyatt, Helen Goldwyn.

(Image Courtesy: Big Finish Productions.)

More from Winter is Coming

• For All Mankind finally gives us information in Episode 405, “Goldilocks”
• Watch a stunning VFX breakdown of The Wheel of Time season 2
• Of course Steve Toussaint (Corlys Velaryon) thinks Eve Best (Rhaenys Targaryen) should rule Westeros
• Confirmed: The Last of Us season 2 will air in 2025
• Final season of Star Trek: Discovery will have “a lot of action, a lot of adventure, a lot of fun”

Basic sci-fi, grounded drama

For example, we’re reminded in a big way that Pete Tyler – the one that we’re used to – never even had a daughter, and he only met Rose when she was an adult already. He had no hand in her growing up, or even her conception. So it’s difficult for him to act as her father, sometimes. This is a very grounded way of exploring an idea as popular in sci-fi as parallel worlds, and gives us a wonderfully fresh take on these two characters.

Naturally, both Billie Piper and Shaun Dingwall throw themselves into these scenes, and it pays off brilliantly. You get the strong sense that they’re both uncertain about their lives, and whether they are really working as a family or whether they’re just making do.

But it’s not just these two who give great performances. Camille Coduri also stars as a parallel Jackie, one who’s only just lost her Pete. Again, Coduri gives another brilliant performance as Jackie, one that feels familiar but also distinctly different. I also need to mention how fantastic Alistair Petrie is as the extremely slimy character of Wallace. The more you hear of him, the more you grow to dislike him, which is exactly what you want from this character.

Ghost Machines feels like the darkest episode yet in Rose Tyler. Considering it’s a story that features machines suddenly attacking everyone, it also feels surprisingly grounded, too. It’s another extremely successful episode in this series, and a brilliant story by AK Benedict.

Do you enjoy sci-fi mixed with some very real drama? What are the best examples of such a mix? What are the worst examples? Let us know in the comments below.