‘Doctor Who’ season 8 finale review: Nick Frost, Father Christmas, and Clara – The Doctor’s ‘split’

Tonight, “Doctor Who” season 8 came to a close with the excellently-named “Death in Heaven,” which was largely themed around one simple thing: A showdown. The Doctor and the Master finally showed off, and it was just about everything that you wanted, and then hopefully something so much more.

The biggest highlight to us was strictly the presence of Michelle Gomez in this enormous role. The Master was spectacular, and her showdown with the Doctor was something else as the two traded wits. Plus, themes of the season came back and then some. We saw questions of morality, and whether or not Peter Capaldi’s character is a “good man.” That question was raised all over again.

By the end of the showdown, we were almost sad that the Master was going away, given that the chemistry between her and the Doctor was electric. With that being said, seeing Danny Pink playing a role in her demise was delightful.

The, the sadness. Danny basically gave his life to help another, and then Clara, afraid of striking down the Doctor after he shared his good news coming home, lied about his return.

Now, we are left with an interesting cliffhanger. Will Clara ever reveal the truth to the Doctor? Will he ever make it home? It felt like he was going to, prior to the sudden appearance of Nick Frost’s Father Christmas at the very end of the episode. That is the tease that we’ll be waiting until Christmas Day to find out more about.

At least “Doctor Who” is going out on a heck of a high note for now. Grade: A-.

What did you think about “Death in Heaven” as an episode? Share some of your thoughts right now with a comment, and head over here to get some further news on the Christmas Special and much more. Also, you can sign up to get some further TV updates on all we cover via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo via BBC.)