Attack of the Cyberwoman

Obviously, I don’t know (yet) whether or not it’s a good or a bad thing but, certainly, one of the most interesting developments of the “Doctor Who” universe, in its spin-off series “Torchwood”, is the introduction to television of the first Cyberwoman. The female of the species has already appeared in comic strip form, gracing the pages of “Doctor Who Magazine”, and, in a few weeks’ time, is set for even greater stardom in Chris Chibnall’s “The Trouble with Lisa”, the fourth episode in the show’s opening season. If you read the synopsis in my previous post, the storyline does sound a little like the “Doctor Who” episode “Dalek”, or even “Paradise Towers” from back in the late Eighties, with Ianto (Gareth David-Lloyd) fulfilling the role of billionaire collector Henry van Statten (Corey Johnson). As the face of the Cyberwoman has been left unmasked, the suggestion is that, as Christopher Eccleston’s sixth episode explored the feelings of the inhabitants of Skaro, “Lisa” will be an exploration of the emotional side of the Cyber race. Excellent! To begin with, she has a name. “I, Robot”, anyone? But, if you’re going to borrow, borrow from the best and “Dalek” is the finest single episode story of new “Doctor Who” to date.

Cast in the role of Cyberwoman Lisa is Caroline Chikezie. She is probably best known to television viewers for her role as Elaine Hardy in season three of “Footballers’ Wives” but, following a little research, I realise I’ve already seen her in Channel Four’s teen drama “As If” in which she played Sasha Williams. Caroline has also appeared in a two-part “Holby City” and an earlier episode of “Casualty”. She is not without SF credentials, however, having appeared on the big screen as Freya in last year’s “Aeon Flux” in which she does appear to be carrying something not dissimilar to a Cyber gun, circa “Earthshock”. I’m guessing RTD saw her in this role and thought of her for the part in “Torchwood”. The revealing nature of the Cyber costume also suggests that RTD is after something akin to Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) in “Star Trek: Voyager”. Maybe the production team should cast Caroline as a regular!