History Recap / DoctorWhoS37E8TheWitchfinders

* TruthInTelevison:

%%** Unintentional, but the Doctor's NotSoDifferent speech about everyone wanting certainty, security and to believe people are either heroic or evil is not really true; people are far more varied than that, but ''all'' of the things she listed are traits of paranoia, as is believing that deep down everyone wants these things, suggesting the Doctor [[note]]and possibly the writer[[/note]] has a paranoid streak herself.

* NotSoDifferent:

* RealityEnsues:
** For the first time, the Doctor's new gender works against her as in the time of King James; being a woman automatically means being treated as a second-class citizen and having her opinions ignored. She even complains to this effect.
** Also, the Doctor doing her usual routine of waving the sonic screwdriver around and confusing the people nearby is a ''really'' bad idea when those people are paranoid witch-hunters.
** The psychic paper works on a person to person basis. When the Doctor shows it to Becka Savage, the latter reads it as "Witchfinder General". When the Doctor shows it to King James, however...
--->'''King James:''' Witchfinder General's Assistant?

* ChangedMyJumper: No one reacts to the Doctor and Yas wearing trousers in the 17th century, and no one seems to notice that Yas is wearing a denim jacket 200 years before the fabric even exists.

** Becka believes that King James wrote Exodus 22:18[[note]]in actuality, it was a translation from older source texts and not by the King himself[[/note]] to justify the killing of people who are suspected as witches. The Doctor turns this around on her by bringing up that the Bible ''also'' says "Love thy neighbour" (Leviticus 19:18), which Becka [[{{Understatement}} seems to have neglected]].

* AccentSlipUp: King James uses an exaggerated upper-class English accent for most of the episode, but his (and his actor's) natural Scottish accent slips through a bit during his first speaking scene. [[GeniusBonus Which is entirely fitting for the character, given that James was born and raised in Scotland.]]

-->"Once I have dealt with you I shall go after all your friends."

* NoEqualOpportunityTimeTravel: This is the first episode where the Thirteenth Doctor's new gender works against her, and like [[Recap/DoctorWhoS37E3Rosa "Rosa"]] earlier in the season, this trope is treated seriously. Since the 1600s was a time where women were considered second-class citizens, her opinions are automatically ignored and patronized. Also, the Doctor doing her usual routine of waving the sonic screwdriver around in front of the zombies combined with her gender makes it easy for the paranoid witch-hunters to accuse her of being a witch. The only reason why she survives the ducking stool is because of skills she learned from Houdini.
-->'''The Doctor''': ''(frustrated)'' Honestly, if I was still a bloke, I could just get on with the job and not have to waste time defending myself!

* TheParanoiac:
** King James, in his own words, doesn't trust anyone. He attributes it to the number of assassination plots and betrayals he's been through since he was an infant.

** Also, the Doctor doing her usual routine of waving the sonic screwdriver around and confusing the people nearby is a ''really'' bad idea when those people are paranoid witch hunters.

* StayInTheKitchen: Becka and the Doctor both discuss the trials and tribulations of being a woman in 17th century England. King James ignores the Doctor's opinions on account of her new gender and makes a few condescending and sexist comments to her. Becka Savage also mentions finding her new role as local leader deeply challenging, [[TownWithADarkSecret but then of course, she's not being entirely honest about the local situation anyhow]].

* UnPerson: At the end, King James agrees to the Doctor's request and decrees that Bilehurst Cragg will be wiped off the map, with the villagers made to leave and the name removed from all records, so no one will ever know what happened there.

[[caption-width-right:350:Nobody tell him about {{Twitter}}, or he'll be the second-most obsessed [[Creator/DonaldTrump user]] with witch hunts.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Nobody tell him about Creator/{{Twitter}}, or he'll be the second-most obsessed [[Creator/DonaldTrump user]] with witch hunts,]]

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: After being in the background for most of the episode, Becka's soldiers completely disappear for the last third of the episode, right when they might be useful.

** Unintentional, but the Doctor's NotSoDifferent speech about everyone wanting certainty, security and to believe people are either heroic or evil is not really true; people are far more varied than that, but ''all'' of the things she listed are traits of paranoia, as is believing that deep down everyone wants these things, suggesting the Doctor [[note]]and possibly the writer[[/note]] has a paranoid streak herself.

The one with witches, {{Satan}}, and a [[Film/X2XMenUnited Nightcrawler]].

** Graham mentions early on that he once took a "witch tour" of the area in the modern day, but that he's never heard of Bilehurst Cragg. At the end of the episode, King James decides to {{Unperson}} the town so nobody will ever know about the Morax.

* {{Unperson}}: At the end, King James agrees to the Doctor's request and decrees that Bilehurst Cragg will be wiped off the map, with the villagers made to leave and the name removed from all records, so no one will ever know what happened there.

** Becka saying that if the accused witch floated she was guilty, but if she drowned she was innocent, sounds like another example of the modern mistake of treating the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_by_ordeal#Cold_water ordeal by water]] as an automatic death sentence; in reality, the accused was not required to drown, merely to sink, and they were typically tied to the ends of long ropes so they could be pulled up again if they did (granted, there was still a significant risk of death by drowning or hypothermia, but it was perfectly possible to survive the trial and be declared innocent). However, Becka insisting on drowning or executing the accused makes perfect sense when we find out she's simply trying to silence people who knew too much.

* StealthPun: Since the Doctor is accused of spell-casting, she can be called "Doctor Witch."

* SteslthPun: Since the Doctor is accused of spell-casting, she can be called "Doctor Witch."

* HomoeroticSubtext: King James constantly tries to flirt with Ryan.

* AccentSlipUp: King James uses an exaggerated upper-class English accent for most of the episode, but his (and his actor's) natural Scottish accent slips through a bit during his first speaking scene.

* NoEqualOpportunityTimeTravel: This is the first episode where the Thirteenth Doctor's new gender works against her, and like "Rosa" earlier in the season, this trope is treated seriously. Since the 1600s was a time where women were considered second-class citizens, her opinions are automatically ignored and patronized. Also, the Doctor doing her usual routine of waving the sonic screwdriver around in front of the zombies combined with her gender makes it easy for the paranoid witch-hunters to accuse her of being a witch. The only reason why she survives the ducking stool is because of skills she learned from Houdini.

* TheParanoiac: King James, in his own words, doesn't trust anyone. He attributes it to the number of assassination plots and betrayals he's been through since he was an infant.
** Unintentional, but the Doctors' NotSoDifferent speech about everyone wanting certainty, security and to believe people are either heroic or evil is not really true; people are far more varied than that, but ''all'' of the things she listed are traits of paranoia, as is believing that deep down everyone wants these things, suggesting the Doctor [[note]]and possibly the writer[[/note]] has a paranoid streak herself.

* WitchHunt: Becka is leading one of these against the people of Bilehurst Cragg at the start of the episode.