IT'S TIME TO STOP

Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw are miscast in the BBC and Disney's last joint Whoniverse offering, the bland spin-off 'The War Between the Land and the Sea'

- Ed Power

There’s been quite a boohoo-hoo lately over the future of Doctor Who. The show is widely regarded as the BBC’s biggest franchise. Yet it was an intergalactic flop on Disney+, where global audiences have proved immune to the charms of sonic screwdrivers and monsters made of glorified cardboard boxes. With the Tardis very much in a twist, it was confirmed in October that the BBC-Disney Whovian alliance has run its course. In the end, it was almost as fleeting as Christopher Eccleston's tenure as a Time Lord.

There is, however, time for one final collaboration - a wonkily bland spin-off absolutely nobody asked for in which the Doctor's friends at UNIT fend off his old foes, the Sea Devils. The War Between the Land and the Sea isn't the first attempt at an expanded Whoniverse - as fans of Torchwood (Doctor Who but emo) will recall. That series was the brainchild of Russell T Davies during his first stint at the helm of Who. He now takes another punt on the concept of an MCU for Doctor Who with this dreary, talky extension of the brand.