Fugitive of the Judoon

Last updated

291 –"Fugitive of the Judoon"
Doctor Who episode
Cast
Others
Production
Directed by Nida Manzoor
Written by
Script editorFiona McAllister
Produced by Nikki Wilson
Executive producer(s)
  • Chris Chibnall
  • Matt Strevens
Music by Segun Akinola
Series Series 12
Running time50 minutes
First broadcast26 January 2020 (2020-01-26)
Chronology
← Preceded by
"Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror"		Followed by →
"Praxeus"
List of episodes (2005–present)

"Fugitive of the Judoon" is the fifth episode of the twelfth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who , first broadcast on BBC One on 26 January 2020. It was written by Vinay Patel and Chris Chibnall, and directed by Nida Manzoor.

Contents

The Judoon search modern-day Gloucester for a fugitive, and the Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) and her companions Graham O'Brien (Bradley Walsh), Ryan Sinclair (Tosin Cole), and Yasmin Khan (Mandip Gill) regulate the situation. The episode sees the surprise return of John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness, and introduces Jo Martin as Ruth Clayton, a character revealed to be a previously unseen incarnation of the Doctor.

The episode was watched by 5.57 million viewers overall, and received positive reviews from critics.

Plot

Filming took place around Gloucester, including Gloucester Cathedral. Doctor Who Gloucester Cathedral 2019 (3).jpg
Filming took place around Gloucester, including Gloucester Cathedral.

While her companions try to get her to talk about her search for the Master (given her assumption that he escaped the Kasaavin realm), the Doctor learns that a Judoon platoon has descended upon Gloucester and put a forcefield around the city in search of a fugitive. The Doctor manages to bypass the forcefield and arrives in Gloucester. Upon landing and unbeknownst to the Doctor, Graham is teleported to a stolen spaceship piloted by Captain Jack Harkness who mistakes Graham for the Doctor. The Doctor intervenes when the Judoon try to attack the apartment of Lee and Ruth Clayton, and stalls them long enough to question the couple and find a hidden box. Lee refuses to answer the Doctor's questions, but he covers the group's escape, turning himself in to the Judoon before being killed by their contractor, Gat, who recognises him as the fugitive's associate.

Whilst the Doctor flees with Ruth to Gloucester Cathedral, Ryan and Yaz are teleported to Harkness' ship, which is now being attacked by its rightful owners. When Harkness learns the Judoons' forcefield prevents him from teleporting the Doctor, he is forced to ask the Doctor's companions to tell the Doctor to beware of the "lone Cyberman" and to not give it what it wants. He is forced to teleport due to the ship's anti-theft attack system while Graham, Ryan, and Yaz are transported back to Gloucester. The Doctor and Ruth are soon surrounded by the Judoon in the cathedral. Ruth reflexively attacks them, forcing them to retreat after ripping off their commander's horn. With Ruth unable to explain herself, she reveals Lee sent her a text before his death that leads them to a lighthouse where she grew up.

There, the Doctor finds a TARDIS buried outside under a blank gravestone. Ruth, meanwhile, enters the lighthouse and, breaking an alarm box, is engulfed in energy which restores her memory. Ruth then reveals her true identity as a version of The Doctor. With neither remembering the other, the Doctor assumes Ruth to be an unknown past incarnation while Ruth believes the Doctor to be a future version of her, and reveals that she used a chameleon arch to hide herself from her former associate Gat. Ruth's TARDIS is then taken aboard the Judoon ship, and the Doctor and Ruth confront Gat, who is revealed to be a Time Lord with orders to retrieve Ruth. Against Ruth's orders, the Doctor introduces herself, and shows Gat a vision of the destroyed Gallifrey that she saw, confirming that Ruth and Gat are in her past, though she cannot remember them. Gat is killed when she fires a sabotaged weapon confiscated from Ruth.

After the Doctor is dropped back to Gloucester by Ruth, she is reunited with her companions, who relay Harkness's message. Confused by recent events, the Doctor senses that something is coming for her.

Production

Development

"Fugitive of the Judoon" was written by Vinay Patel, who wrote an episode of the previous series, "Demons of the Punjab", as well as by showrunner Chris Chibnall. [1] [2] An early version of what became Fugitive of the Judoon had been discussed as early as March 2016, in the very first writer's room sessions of Chris Chibnall's era as showrunner. Regarding the story’s origins, Vinay Patel remarked, “I have a real affection for cathedral cities… The idea of aliens in a lovely, genteel, prestigious British cathedral town feels very Who-y”. [3] As writer Vinay Patel was already friends with director Nida Manzoor, this influenced his writing process: "it was fun being able to write what I could to suit what I knew to be her strengths and interests." [4]

Casting

Jo Martin.jpg
John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness at Cardiff Bay (cropped).jpg
"Fugitive of the Judoon" introduces Jo Martin as a previously-unknown incarnation of the Doctor, and ends the ten-year hiatus of recurring companion John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness.

Jo Martin appears as a character named Ruth Clayton, [5] [2] later revealed to be a previously unknown incarnation of the Doctor. Martin is credited as Ruth and with an "introducing" credit as the Doctor, as previous new incarnations of the character have been since 2005. [6] Neil Stuke was also cast, and the episode featured the Judoon. [7] [2] Further cast members were announced in Doctor Who Magazine #547 in early January 2020. [2] The episode featured the return of Jack Harkness played by John Barrowman, after a ten-year absence from the series. Barrowman's appearance was not publicised prior to broadcast. Russell T Davies, executive producer and lead writer of Doctor Who between 2005 and 2010, receives on-screen credit as the creator of the Judoon and Jack Harkness. [6]

Filming

Some scenes were filmed at West Usk Lighthouse West Usk Lighthouse.jpg
Some scenes were filmed at West Usk Lighthouse

Nida Manzoor directed the third block, consisting of the fourth and fifth episodes. [8] [2] Filming in Gloucester took place across 22 May and 23 May 2019; Gloucester had previously been used as a filming location for the 2008 special "The Next Doctor". [9] Scenes in the interior of Captain Jack Harkness's spaceship were filmed at Clifton Cathedral, Bristol. [10] [11]

Broadcast and reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Rotten Tomatoes (Tomatometer)100% [12]
Rotten Tomatoes (Average Score)8.25/10 [12]
Review scores
SourceRating
The A.V. Club B+ [13]
Entertainment Weekly A− [14]
Radio Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [15]
The Independent Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [16]
The Telegraph Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [6]

Television

"Fugitive of the Judoon" aired on 26 January. According to The Daily Telegraph , the BBC had withheld press previews of the episode until only a few hours before it was to air, indicating that there were significant revelations and surprises within the episode which they did not want to have spoiled. [6]

Ratings

"Fugitive of the Judoon" was watched by 4.21 million viewers overnight, making it the sixth most watched programme for the day in the United Kingdom. [17] The episode had an Audience Appreciation Index score of 83. [18] The episode received an official total of 5.57 million viewers across all UK channels. [18]

Critical reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes calculated a 100% approval and an average rating of 8.25/10 from 18 critics. The website's critical consensus reads, "Doctor Who's twelfth season takes a hard left turn for the better in the surprising and delightful 'Fugitive of the Judoon'." [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Time Lord</span> Fictional alien species in the Doctor Who universe

The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' main protagonist, the Doctor, is a member. Time Lords are so named for their command of time travel technology and their non-linear perception of time. Originally, they were described as a powerful and wise race from the planet Gallifrey, from which the Doctor was a renegade; details beyond this were very limited for the first decade of the series. They later became integral to many episodes and stories as their role in the universe developed. For the first eight years after the series resumed in 2005, the Time Lords were said to have been destroyed during the Last Great Time War at some point in the show's continuity between the television movie in 1996 and the show's revival. In 2013, the 50th anniversary special "The Day of the Doctor" concerned this supposed destruction and their eventual survival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Harkness</span> Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who and Torchwood

Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. The character first appears in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and subsequently features in the remaining episodes of the first series (2005) as a companion to the series' protagonist, the Doctor. Subsequent to this, Jack became the central character in the adult-themed Torchwood, which aired from 2006 to 2011. Barrowman reprised the role for appearances in Doctor Who in its third, fourth, and twelfth series, as well as specials "The End of Time", and "Revolution of the Daleks".

"Smith and Jones" is the first episode of the third series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 31 March 2007. It sees the debut of Freema Agyeman as medical student Martha Jones. Agyeman had previously appeared as Martha's cousin Adeola in the 2006 episode "Army of Ghosts". The episode also introduced Martha's family, her mother Francine, father Clive, sister Tish, and brother Leo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jo Martin</span> British actress

Jo Martin is a British actress. She played Natalie Crouch in the BBC One sitcom The Crouches, which aired between 2003 and 2005. She joined the cast of Holby City in 2019 as neurosurgeon Max McGerry. Martin portrayed an incarnation of the Doctor known as the Fugitive Doctor in Doctor Who.

<i>Doctor Who</i> series 11 2018 series of Doctor Who

The eleventh series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who premiered on 7 October 2018 and concluded on 9 December 2018. The series is the first to be led by Chris Chibnall as head writer and executive producer, alongside executive producers Matt Strevens and Sam Hoyle, after Steven Moffat and Brian Minchin stepped down after the tenth series. This series is the eleventh to air following the programme's revival in 2005 and is the thirty-seventh season overall. It also marks the beginning of the third production era of the revived series, following Russell T Davies' original run from 2005 to 2010, and Moffat's from 2010 to 2017. The eleventh series was broadcast on Sundays, a first in the programme's history; regular episodes of the revived era were previously broadcast on Saturdays. The series was followed by a New Year's Day special episode, "Resolution", instead of the traditional annual Christmas Day special.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirteenth Doctor</span> Fictional character from Doctor Who

The Thirteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who. She is played by Jodie Whittaker, the first woman to portray the character, in three series as well as five specials.

Yasmin Khan (<i>Doctor Who</i>) Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who

Yasmin "Yaz" Khan is a fictional character created by Chris Chibnall and portrayed by Mandip Gill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. In the show's eleventh series, starting with the first episode, Yasmin serves as a companion of the Thirteenth Doctor, an incarnation of the alien time traveller known as the Doctor ; she would part ways with the Doctor in "The Power of the Doctor", the Thirteenth Doctor's final episode, and was the last person with her before she regenerated on her own. She is one of just two full-time companions to be present throughout the entirety of an incarnation's tenure, the other being Rose Tyler who starred alongside Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor.

<i>Doctor Who</i> series 12 2020 series of Doctor Who

The twelfth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who premiered on 1 January 2020 and aired until 1 March 2020. It is the second series to be led by Chris Chibnall as head writer and executive producer, alongside executive producer Matt Strevens, the twelfth to air after the programme's revival in 2005, and the thirty-eighth season overall. The twelfth series was broadcast on Sundays, except for the premiere episode, continuing the trend from the eleventh series. Prior to the eleventh series, regular episodes of the revived era were commonly broadcast on Saturdays. The series was followed by the 2021 New Year's Day special, "Revolution of the Daleks".

Vinay Sunilkumar Patel is a British-Indian screenwriter and playwright. He is best known for writing the BBC drama Murdered by My Father.

"Praxeus" is the sixth episode of the twelfth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, first broadcast on BBC One on 2 February 2020. It was written by Pete McTighe and Chris Chibnall, and directed by Jamie Magnus Stone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fugitive Doctor</span> Fictional character from Doctor Who

The Fugitive Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She is portrayed by the English actress Jo Martin, the first person of colour to play the role.

"The Timeless Children" is the tenth and final episode of the twelfth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, first broadcast on BBC One on 1 March 2020. It was written by Chris Chibnall, and directed by Jamie Magnus Stone. It is the second of a two-part story; the previous episode, "Ascension of the Cybermen", aired on 23 February.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revolution of the Daleks</span> 2021 Doctor Who episode

"Revolution of the Daleks" is a special episode of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, first broadcast on BBC One on 1 January 2021. It was written by Chris Chibnall, and directed by Lee Haven Jones. The episode follows the twelfth series as a New Year’s Day special, continuing on from "The Timeless Children" (2020).

Nida Manzoor is a British writer and director. She is best known for creating the Channel 4/Peacock comedy show We Are Lady Parts, for which she won the 2021 Rose d'Or Emerging Talent Award and the 2022 BAFTA for TV Comedy Screenwriting. She released her debut feature film Polite Society in 2023, which earned her the 2023 British Independent Film Award for Debut Screenwriting.

"War of the Sontarans", prefixed frequently with either "Chapter Two" or "Flux", is the second episode of the thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, and of the six-episode serial known collectively as Doctor Who: Flux. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 7 November 2021. It was written by showrunner and executive producer Chris Chibnall, and directed by Jamie Magnus Stone.

"Once, Upon Time", prefixed frequently with either "Chapter Three" or "Flux", is the third episode of the thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, and of the six-episode serial known collectively as Doctor Who: Flux. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 14 November 2021. It was written by showrunner and executive producer Chris Chibnall, and directed by Azhur Saleem.

"The Vanquishers", prefixed frequently with either "Chapter Six" or "Flux", is the sixth and final episode of the thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, and of the six-episode serial known collectively as Doctor Who: Flux. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 5 December 2021. It was written by showrunner and executive producer Chris Chibnall, and directed by Azhur Saleem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legend of the Sea Devils</span> 2022 Doctor Who episode

"Legend of the Sea Devils" is the second and penultimate of three special episodes that followed the thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. The episode was first broadcast on 17 April 2022 as an Easter Sunday special. It was written by Ella Road and Chris Chibnall and directed by Haolu Wang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Power of the Doctor</span> 2022 Doctor Who episode

"The Power of the Doctor" is the third and final story of three special episodes that follow the thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. The episode was written by Chris Chibnall and directed by Jamie Magnus Stone. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 23 October 2022. The special was commissioned to air during the British Broadcasting Corporation's centenary celebrations.

References

  1. ↑ "Doctor Who Series 12: writers announced". CultBox. 13 November 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Laford, Andrea (9 January 2020). "Doctor Who Series 12: new episode titles, writers and descriptions". Cult Box. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
  3. ↑ Pixley, Andrew. "The Making of Series 12". Doctor Who Magazine 570. Panini Comics. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  4. ↑ "Marketing plans that grow with you". Archived from the original on 3 January 2023.
  5. ↑ "Doctor Who films scenes in Gloucester". BBC News.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Hogan, Michael (26 January 2020). "Doctor Who: Fugitive of the Judoon, recap: the best episode of the series, with surprise returns and killer twists". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  7. ↑ "The Judoon return in Series 12". DWTV. 21 May 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  8. ↑ Laford, Andrea (22 November 2019). "Goran Višnjić and Robert Glenister to appear in Doctor Who series 12 episode". Cultbox. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  9. ↑ Norris, Phil (21 January 2020). "Doctor Who in Gloucester: This is probably the strangest thing you'll ever see in a cafe". Gloucester Live . Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  10. ↑ Cathedral, Clifton (27 January 2020). "Twitter feed". Twitter. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  11. ↑ Bristol City Council (27 January 2020). "Know Your Place". Twitter. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  12. 1 2 3 "Doctor Who - Season 12 Episode 5". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  13. ↑ Siede, Caroline (26 January 2020). "Whoa, tonight's Doctor Who is a game-changer". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  14. ↑ Coggan, Devan (26 January 2020). "Doctor Who recap: Season 12, episode 5: 'Fugitive of the Judoon'". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  15. ↑ Mulkern, Patrick (26 January 2020). "Doctor Who Fugitive of the Judoon review: Chris Chibnall majestically blows a hole in the Time Lord's mythology and I'm loving it". Radio Times . Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  16. ↑ "Doctor Who review, Fugitive of the Judoon: Latest episode echoes vintage Moffat, but surely fans are exhausted of plot twists by now?". The Independent. 27 January 2020.
  17. ↑ Marcus (27 January 2020). "Judoon - Overnight Viewing Figures". Doctor Who News. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  18. 1 2 Marcus (3 February 2020). "Fugitive of the Judoon - Official Ratings". Doctor Who News. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.