Scarecrow-88 Our first real episode with Peter Capaldi is a nice introduction to him, I think. I think the episode itself is merely okay (in Victorian London, a cyborg who has taken so many human parts since its construction it is now more human than robot could be a threat to the Doctor and Clara), but it does a wonderful job, I believe, of commenting on the backlash that might have resulted in an older actor's casting of a treasured sci-fi character that had been portrayed previously by three much younger actors. Clara is (obviously, and why wouldn't she?) having a hard time adjusting to the new face (and age?) of the new Doctor that has "replaced" Matt Smith. She just doesn't know if she can get used to Capaldi's Doctor. I felt that this episode does a swell job of showing a "babe introduced to a new world out of the womb" in how frenetic and confused Capaldi acts to his surroundings right after his regeneration change. I think a regeneration is a traumatic event that truly changes the Doctor as he behaves, looks, and reacts differently with each transformation; it takes time (and why wouldn't it?) to adjust to such a change. So we see the Doctor gradually become more comfortable in his new skin while Clara herself must slowly embrace who this man now is. Who could expect that any companion can just brush aside the man they have become so fond of and close to for this new man with such a different face and disposition? There's a scene where it appears Capaldi leaves Clara to be killed by the lead cyborg harvesting human organs (it even kills a dinosaur that had caught the Tardis in its mouth, which stuck in its throat bringing it in time with the Doctor to Victorian London!), and she must orchestrate a means of protecting herself in dialogue with it. The banter between Doctor and companion has always been a thing of value I place on this long-lasting show. Chemistry between them can make or break the series. Sometimes casting is great and other times perhaps not so. I think the 80s was a down decade in that regard. But I think the 2000s (Piper, Gillan, and Coleman) certainly hit it out of the ballpark. Matt Smith's era was especially worthwhile in the relationships of Doctor and companion. I loved seeing how the companions became often so vital in how the Doctor succeeds against his foes, and their rapport during trouble enhances the excitement of scenes where the adversaries (and dangers that come with them) come close to vanquishing them. "Deep Breath" brings back characters seen previously in Victorian London: the lizard-alien, Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh), her wife, Jenny (Catrin Stewart), and butler, Strax (Dan Starkey). They all help the Doctor against the lead cyborg's army of unemotional robots in form of Victorian humans in an old ship that has been disguised as a restaurant. Missy, later to be determined as the female version of The Master (an old Who adversary), has welcomed the lead cyborg to her "paradise" for "him". The Doctor kept mentioning how the cyborgs remind him of something else (cybermen?) and knowing that really is telling due to how both Missy and the cybermen later factor greatly in a key episode towards the end of this season with Capaldi's version of the "man in the blue box". Neat makeup effects for Peter Ferdinando's half-human/half-robot as half his face is human while the other half shows all the mechanics working within him/it. Smith's call to Clara from Trenzalore, appealing to her virtuous nature regarding helping Capaldi, is a sweet, emotionally potent moment that allows her closure and a renewed interest in continuing on despite the regeneration taking away the man she cared for so much.

jc-osms The curtain raiser for Peter Capaldi's tenure as the Doctor in truth for me didn't do a lot more than that. I could have guessed that the first half-hour would contain little more than some "getting-to-know-you" exposition as the Doctor finds his post-regenerative bearings, which of course means irrational behaviour, emotional outbursts and an identity crisis the latter of which only gradually resolves itself as the story progresses. As well as Jenna-Louise Coleman's Clara's accompaniment as the "impossible girl", more familiar faces are also present in the forms of Madame Vastra, her same-sex wife Katie and their hilarious Silurian sidekick Strax as ever, wielding subtlety like a flying mallet. Eventually the doctor saves the day against the cyborg enemy and with a welcome cameo from Matt Smith, by the end, both he and Clara have something to build on for their adventures to come.For me the problem though was that there was little sense of danger to the Doctor, even as he fought with the Cyborg leader high above London. There were some neat touches in the script, like the scene where the Doc and Clara are surrounded by clockwork assassins, a daring same-sex near-kiss between Vastra and Katie plus, being Scottish myself, I enjoyed Scottish-born writer Moffat's employment of a Scottish Doctor, using some vernacular-ish Scottish phrases complete with accent to match, recalling of course David Tennent's successful stewardship of the role two Docs ago.In this scene and character-setting episode, there was a sense of something being held back although there may be an intriguing back-story emerging concerning the mysterious Missy which I hope will eventually pack a punch. For now the story here was the equivalent of early-round sparrings; we can only hope for some knockout episodes further down the line.

gregory_quinn Totally a question of my age (58), I'm sure. The episode went totally over my head, found it overwrought and incomprehensible. The production values are amazingly good as are the special effects (gone are the days of "Doctor Eyes" against a blue screen. I'm afraid I prefer drama that's vaguely comprehensible, and liked the old Hartnell, Troughton and Pertwee doctors. Sorry, didn't think much of Capaldi - I'm sure he's a great actor otherwise. Shows how out of touch I am with public thinking, but to me the show takes itself too seriously. Hoping there'll be a retro version of Doctor Who that I'll be able to relate to.

masonbingley2000 I didn't know what to expect at first but I was very shocked to see Clara not wanting to be a part with the Doctor. Her and Strax are hilarious together which gives lot's of laugh out loud moments. The episode is very chilling and frightening. A great start to Peter Capaldi's era. The Clockwork Droids were super and scary but not like old times. Great CGI. Sometimes it can become long winded but the script is fierce and frightening! Overall, it is a must see episode but the title song is quite weak for Doctor Who. And a good look into future episodes. Clara is fantastic and portrayed very well by Jenna. Super skills!