The Lie of the Land
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| 272 – "The Lie of the Land" | |||
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| Doctor Who episode | |||
| File:Doctor Who Series 10 Episode 8 The Lie of the Land.jpg Promotional image for the episode | |||
| Cast | |||
Others
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| Production | |||
| Directed by | Wayne Yip | ||
| Written by | Toby Whithouse | ||
| Produced by | Nikki Wilson | ||
| Executive producer(s) | Steven Moffat Brian Minchin | ||
| Music by | Murray Gold | ||
| Series | Series 10 | ||
| Running time | 45 minutes | ||
| First broadcast | 3 June 2017 | ||
| Chronology | |||
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"The Lie of the Land" is the eighth episode of the tenth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Toby Whithouse, it was broadcast on 3 June 2017 on BBC One. It is the third and final of three loosely connected episodes called "The Monks Trilogy".[1]
Synopsis
The Monks are rulers of the Earth, and appear to have been on Earth for millions of years, guiding human development. Bill and a few others are aware of the truth: the Monks have only been present on Earth for six months. Those who hold this view are imprisoned for "memory crimes". The Doctor appears on television praising the Monks' guidance over humanity.
Bill keeps herself grounded in reality by imagining that she is talking with her long-dead mother, based on pictures the Doctor gave her. Nardole, also aware of the truth, locates Bill and helps her to find the prison hulk where the Doctor is thought to be a captive. Inside, after a team of commandoes swarm inside, the Doctor tells Bill he is cooperating willingly with the Monks, believing that humanity was doomed without their guidance. Bill becomes distraught and shoots the Doctor, who appears to begin regenerating, but quickly stops. The entire scenario is revealed to have been a test by Nardole, the Doctor and the team, to make sure Bill was not under the influence of the Monks.
At the university where the Doctor and Bill work, they enter the Vault to talk to Missy, who says she has encountered the Monks before. She confirms the Monks maintain control by broadcasting a signal containing the false history to their subjugated victims through the numerous statues they have built across Earth, enabled by a psychic link through the person who originally gave "consent", and that she defeated them during her own encounter by killing that individual. The implication is that Bill must die as the one who gave consent on Earth.
Believing there is another solution, the Doctor, Bill, Nardole, and the commandoes infiltrate the Monks' pyramid in London so that the Doctor can hijack their broadcast with his own mind to break the psychic transmission. In the central chamber, the Doctor attempts to link his mind to the controlling Monk, who after a struggle overpowers the Doctor. Bill intends to sacrifice herself, linking her own mind to the Monk's despite the Doctor's protests. The Monks' broadcast is replaced with images of Bill's mother, which the Doctor recognises is a strong and loving memory in Bill's mind. Humanity wakes up from the Monks' lies and revolts against them. The Doctor, Bill, and Nardole watch as the Monks abandon Earth. Sometime later, the Doctor and Bill find that most of humanity have no recollection of the Monks. In the Vault, Missy expresses remorse for those she has killed.
Continuity
In images showing the Monks' aid to humanity, clips from the stories "Blink", "Nightmare in Silver" and "Into the Dalek" are shown, as well as several still images from past episodes of the new series.[2] Magpie Electrical, which first debuted in "The Idiot's Lantern" and recurs throughout the revival series, is shown as the shop where Bill watches one of the Doctor's broadcasts.[3][4]
Outside references
Missy briefly plays selections from Eric Satie's Gnossienne No. 1 and Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer" on her piano.[2]
Production
The read-through for "The Lie of the Land" took place on 11 January 2017. Filming took place, alongside the subsequent episode "Empress of Mars", from 16 January to 22 February 2017.[2]
Filming
In Missy's initial scene, the visual of her eyes superimposed over a panning shot is an homage to a similar scene from the 1996 film.[2]
Broadcast and reception
The episode was watched by 3.01 million overnight, the tenth series' lowest overnight. This was due to the episode being placed directly against the Britain's Got Talent finale and the "Champions League Final" [5]
Critical reception
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| Rotten Tomatoes (Tomatometer) | |
| Rotten Tomatoes (Average Score) | |
| The A.V. Club | |
| Entertainment Weekly | |
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| TV Fanatic | |
| IndieWire | |
| IGN | |
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| Daily Mirror | |
References
- ^ Hogan, Michael (20 May 2017). "Doctor Who: Extremis, series 10 episode 6: the Doctor meets the Pope". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
- ^ a b c d "The Lie of the Land, Series 10, Doctor Who - The Lie of the Land: The Fact File - BBC One". BBC.
- ^ "Doctor Who: The Lie Of The Land geeky spots and Easter eggs".
- ^ "Did you spot a recurring Doctor Who Easter egg in The Lie of the Land?".
- ^ "The Lie of the Land - Overnight Viewing Figures". Doctor Who News. 4 June 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
External links
- "The Lie of the Land" at the BBC Doctor Who homepage
- "The Lie of the Land" on Tardis Wiki, the Doctor Who Wiki
- Template:Brief
- "The Lie of the Land" at IMDb