Doctor Who: Rosa

I have to admit, my first reaction on hearing that Doctor Who was going to tackle Rosa Parks and segregation in 1950s Alabama was trepidation. It's not that the show hasn't tackled issues of equality or prejudice before, but it's usually "disguised" within sci-fi metaphors (like the Silurians being a stand-in for the Palestine/Israel conflict).

Long story short, had they got this wrong then a lot of people were going to be ticked off. Thankfully, it was handled gracefully and sincerely. Like the Vincent van Gogh episode during Matt Smith's run, it's hugely manipulative in what it wants you to think and feel, and yet (also like the van Gogh episode) it still works.

1. The gist of the plot is that a white supremacist from the far distant future has returned to Alabama to prevent Rosa Parks – whose act of bravery has been pin-pointed by him as the beginning of "change" in the world – from taking her famous bus ride.

He's not here to simply assassinate her, but rather to nudge all the events leading up to her refusal to give up her seat out of whack so that the event (and all that it inspired) never happened at all.

2. The first three episodes involving new Doctors and new Companions invariably involve an introductory episode followed by a trip to the future and a trip to the past. This follows that formula, though Alabama in the 1950s is certainly not a place anyone in their right mind would want to visit had they access to a time machine.

And thankfully that wasn't the case (unlike Ten leaving Martha stranded in the early 1900s as a maid). Instead it's the Tardis that deposits them there – either through malfunctioning or by reading the artron energy in the air.

3. Rosa Parks was played by Vinette Robinson, who has not only appeared on Doctor Who before (nearly ten years ago as a completely unrelated character) but certainly deserves a decent role after enduring the Sherlock fandom.

4. The script certainly didn't hold back on the sheer amount of danger Ryan (and to a lesser extent, Yas) faced in this particular time and place. It strikes me that shows such as Sleepy Hollow and Legends of Tomorrow walked a lot more softly when it came to confronting the subject of racism, which is a little strange since they're American-made. (Or maybe that's the very reason they toned it down).

5. "You're not Banksy." "Aren't I...?" Heh.

6. I liked that the gang had to tackle the difficulty of actually trying to find Rosa Parks, since most of the time the show (or any show) just has them accidentally run into whatever character they need at any given point.

7. Here's where the writers put themselves in danger: once the Doctor and Companions realize what the villain's evil plan is, they have to ensure that history stays on its rightful course by keeping everything "intact."

So there are some scenes when it feels like they're inspiring Rosa and micro-managing events to the extent that the participants have no free will – yet ultimately the writing makes it clear that it was Rosa's choice to keep her seat (and for that matter, the driver's choice to call the police).

It was a welcome contrast to what they occasionally pull on Legends of Tomorrow, in which the team attempts to protect a historical figure, only to end up taking their place when things go wrong, thereby removing all importance from the individual in the first place.

8. There were so many weird facial close-ups in this episode. What was up with that?

9. All that said, my heart was certainly pounding towards the end as the gang scrambled to get all the correct details in place. For once it wasn't saving the world that was at stake, but the changing of it.

10. I hate to say it, but Ryan and Yaz still aren't quite clicking with me – and in an episode that affected them on such a personal level, it was Graham's realization that he would have to witness Rosa's arrest and do nothing to help her (especially since she reminded him of Grace) that really moved me.

Still, the episode did what it set out to do: depict a turning point in human history – not a war or an invention or a coronation, but the incredible bravery of a single woman. Was it manipulative? Yes, especially when "Rise Up" started playing. Was I happy to be manipulated? Also yes.