In this week’s episode of Doctor Who titled “Orphan 55,” the TARDIS fam is headed on holiday. Last week and the week before, the Doctor (played by Jodie Whittaker) and her friends Graham (Bradley Walsh), Ryan (Tosin Cole), and Yaz (Mandip Gill) were terrorized by the Master. The Master is the Doctor’s oldest friend and nemesis, and him coming back was a wild adventure. It only seems fair that the fam gets a little rest and relaxation. However, is that ever the case in this show? This article contains spoilers, so please read no further if you have not seen this episode.
The TARDIS fam goes on holiday
This episode opens with the Doctor and Yaz cleaning up a mess from what looks like a huge tentacle. I wish we got the backstory on what happened there! Graham finds six coupons that allow them to win a free holiday at a luxury resort called “Tranquility Spa.” Graham puts the coupons together, and they teleport immediately. Once there, they end up all splitting up to enjoy the all-inclusion of this resort. Seconds later, something is already going wrong. Yaz finds herself by the pool with a sweet older couple named Benni (played by Col Farrell) and Vilma (played by Julia Foster). Ryan ends up trying to get something from a vending machine when something ends up inside of him.
The Doctor lets him know it was a hopper virus. What is a virus doing in a luxury spa? Thankfully, the Doctor has “hopper virus training,” and helps Ryan recover from the side effects of having it inside of him. His legs gave out, he sneezes out the virus, and has to suck his thumb until his hallucinations stop. All guests now have to assemble to their master station as there is a supposed routine drill happening. However, spa security seem to be searching for something dangerous.
What is actually happening in Tranquility, aka Orphan 55
Of course, the Doctor has to investigate. She finds someone sneaking into a “linen cupboard” that needs a lot of security codes. This is definitely not a linen cupboard. The Doctor uses the psychic paper to get through this super-secret door. The psychic paper looks blank to us, but the Doctor is able to put any sort of credentials she believes will encourage others to help her in any way she needs. The Doctor had to list off a few titles before she got to the one the employee of the spa actually saw and believed. Here is a great article on how psychic paper first came about in this show.
Something is attacking the guests. In my opinion, these are the scariest monsters I have seen in Doctor Who. The spa is being protected by an ionic membrane. Why would a spa need to be protected? Graham meets a mechanic named Nevi (played by James Buckley) and his son Sylas (Lewin Lloyd) and asks for their help. Meanwhile, whatever is attacking the guests is chasing Ryan and his new friend he met named Bella (played by Gia Ré) into the steam room. The Doctor tells her friends to meet in the “linen cupboard” to stay safe. Graham, Yaz, Vilma, Sylas, and Nevi make it in. Benni is nowhere to be found. Ryan and Bella are still in the steam room. Then, the Doctor builds a new ionic membrane to get rid of the creatures. An ionic membrane is something that keeps unauthorized lifeforms out of the spa.
Kane (played by Laura Fraser) is the one in charge of Tranquility. She leads everyone out of the building and lets them know that these monsters are “locals.” These locals are called Dregs. Next, the Doctor discovers they are on a fake vacation. The atmosphere on the outside of the spa is completely uninhabitable. Orphan 55 is the name of the planet. An orphan planet is a planet left behind by its previous inhabitants.
The terrifying truth of Orphan 55
As it turns out, Kane built the spa on Orphan 55 so she could try and rebuild the planet. All she cares about is money as it seems. Kane is leading them to find Benni in Nevi’s truck out on the planet itself in the heart of the Dregs. We learn Benni has been captured by the Dregs, and they continue to follow and look for him. Later into their drive, the Doctor figures out these Dregs are adaptive creatures. This is how they lived through nuclear winters and can stay alive on the orphan planet.
Their “completely knackered vehicle” can’t move. They head out on foot next, and soon they are surrounded by Dregs. Like I said before, these monsters are terrifying. Everyone hides in the truck, and we hear Benni outside with the Dregs. Benni proposes to Vilma through the walls of the truck but is then killed. The Dregs pound their way into the truck, and everyone gets out from the bottom. They head for underground tunnels. In these tunnels, we find out the Kane is Bella’s mother, and Bella is angry. Kane did not even recognize her own daughter. Bella and Ryan end up transported away while everyone else is running from a Dreg that followed them.
The tunnels reveal a terrible truth: this was Earth. The Doctor is able to read the mind of one of the hibernating Dregs (we find out later that it’s the leader) and sees the horrific disaster that Earth became. Dregs are what happened to whatever humans were left on the planet that did not die or evacuate…
Orphan 55/Tranquility is evacuated
Bella has plans to blow up Tranquility up top. Down in the tunnels, Vilma sacrifices herself so the rest of them can getaway. As the Doctor runs out of air, she uses the oxygen coming from the dormant Dreg. This is the same one she used to see what happened to the planet. Kane saves the Doctor from the clutches of the Dreg as everyone climbs back up into Tranquility. Bella and Ryan are reunited with them. The leader of the Dregs calls out to the rest of them on the planet, and they are closing in on the spa.
The Doctor knows that the Dregs hate oxygen. That is the key to keeping them at bay long enough for an escape. A little peep of a plan is all the Doctor needs to save Sylas, who ran away from his dad and get to the teleport. She nicknames the alpha “Wheezy” which lightens the stressful mood just a bit. “Wheezy” walks into the trap she set. The only way it will live is if it keeps the Doctor and Bella safe so it can thrive off of its carbon dioxide levels.
Sylas is helping his dad create enough fuel for the teleport. Bella’s bombs blow up Tranquility. Nevy and Sylas teleport first. Kane comes back and fights alongside her daughter so the TARDIS fam can escape. They made it.
Thoughts on this episode
“Orphan 55” was a heart-pounding, stressful, and exciting episode from start to finish. From the moment the Doctor and her friends stepped into their all-inclusive holiday to the time the episode ended, there was never a dull moment. The Dregs are by far the scariest monsters I have ever seen. Jodie’s performance as the Doctor was sensational. She had some brilliant lines such as, “If I had crayons and half can of spam, I can create you from scratch.” (Forgive me if that isn’t the exact quote.) Watching Graham worry about Ryan is always so sweet, but seeing him this scared made me feel exactly the same. In the end, the Doctor telling us to “Be the best of humanity” was perfect. We need to take care of the Earth. It’s a gift. If we don’t, then we saw what happens!
Doctor Who will return Sunday, January 20 at 8:00 pm.
Fan Reactions
Orphan 55. I really enjoyed this one.
Great monsters, great cinematography (as always), really good plot and, for me, Jodie Whittaker _felt_ like the Doctor in this story.
For me, this was quintessential #DoctorWho
— Omega (@my_omega) January 13, 2020
Couldn’t look away!! This episode was so intriguing and intense and I loved it!!! #doctorwho
— Court (@Court_rankin) January 13, 2020
Wow, this is the best episode of #DoctorWho I've seen in a while. I absolutely loved every minute of it!! @DoctorWho_BBCA pic.twitter.com/n8fW11DLHK
— alina (@jackiesjersey) January 13, 2020
For more Doctor Who coverage:
Doctor Who Spyfall Part Two Leaves Us with More Questions than Before
Doctor Who “Spyfall” Series 12 Premiere Made for a Happy New Year
Doctor Who’s Jodie Whittaker is charming American audiences
