The Pilot, the pilot episode of season ten, while solid overall, has some definite rough spots. To start with, the new companion, Bill Potts (played by Pearl Mackie) to me feels much less interesting than previous main companions and whose main characterization is that she is a lesbian is something we are beaten over the head with so often during the course of the episode, it becomes tiresome. Eventually, her other qualities are explored throughout the season, but for now she doesn't have much going for her other than she smiles when she doesn't understand something instead of frowning - which would have been interesting if they had at least explored that a bit more. But alas, it seems the writers decided her being black and lesbian was sufficient.
That said, the production value is quite good and the story is mostly enjoyable - the cameo by the Daleks was a particular delight! Nardole is entertaining and The Doctor evaluating Bill as companion material is fun. The villain, though, is unfortunately rather lackluster, basically being an evil puddle and feels like a cheap rehash of the villains from The Waters of Mars special from Tennant's run. Even so, it is sufficiently creepy and seemingly unstoppable as The Doctor and Nardole try to figure out what it is, why it took the form of Bill's latest crush (who also felt a little shoehorned and undercharacterized - only thing interesting about her was the star pattern in one of her irises, which had nothing to do with anything), why it was even after Bill, and ultimately how to escape it. It's a fun ride overall but the lazy characterization of the new characters key to the episode brings it down a notch. 8/10
That said, the production value is quite good and the story is mostly enjoyable - the cameo by the Daleks was a particular delight! Nardole is entertaining and The Doctor evaluating Bill as companion material is fun. The villain, though, is unfortunately rather lackluster, basically being an evil puddle and feels like a cheap rehash of the villains from The Waters of Mars special from Tennant's run. Even so, it is sufficiently creepy and seemingly unstoppable as The Doctor and Nardole try to figure out what it is, why it took the form of Bill's latest crush (who also felt a little shoehorned and undercharacterized - only thing interesting about her was the star pattern in one of her irises, which had nothing to do with anything), why it was even after Bill, and ultimately how to escape it. It's a fun ride overall but the lazy characterization of the new characters key to the episode brings it down a notch. 8/10