The following review contains major spoilers for 2.06, “The Interstellar Song Contest.” Detailed episode recap is also available.

In the all-new episode of Doctor Who, “The Interstellar Song Contest,” which dropped hours ago on Disney Plus, the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Belinda (Varada Sethu) arrive on the Harmony Arena Space Station where they are hosting the galactic music competition filled with entertainers from around the universe. Belinda, who up until this point has been keen to get home as soon as possible, decides to stay for some fun, but unfortunately it becomes a night she won’t soon forget when they must battle to survive the event that could kill a whopping three trillion.

This week’s episode was a really fun one. From the fantastically crazy array of alien species to the brightly colored costumes, to the outrageous original music (I think I’ll probably have “Dugga Doo” in my head for awhile), the over-the-top spectacle was grand, like a Met Gala on steroids. It definitely showed how much money Disney is putting into the production, and it really worked well in this instance. As an American, I may never have seen Eurovision, but I appreciated that they got Rylan Clark to be the host of the fictitious expanded event and even had the hilarious Graham Norton appear as a hologram. I could easily imagine how it could become something like this in the distant future. In addition, it’s neat that the episode is airing the same day as the final part of the real counterpart.

As much as the episode was extravagant, at its heart it is a story of revenge and how that can create a cycle of violence when one genocide almost causes three trillion deaths across the galaxy. I found it interesting that it caused such a reaction in the Doctor, causing him to continue the cycle as he started to torture Kid (Freddie Fox). This generation of the Doctor has been very emotional from the beginning, although usually in the form of him shedding tears. To see him this angry was a change. It also shows how connected he is to Belinda and how strong their bond has become that she was the only one who could stop him. We have not gotten to see enough of that bond this season, so it was really nice to see, including witnessing the other side of it, when for the first time she was able to let loose and enjoy the adventure.

Then there is also the relatable story of a group of individuals being treated as less than because of where they are from, and it was interesting to note that the shot of Hellia before they burnt the fields looked pretty similar to Earth.

There were some great lines as well, such as when Mike (Kadiff Kirwan) said that it would take someone who was an insane genius to save that many people and the Doctor simply introduces himself. I also loved when the Doctor literally called out the campiness when he realizes he flew through space on a confetti canon.

I also appreciated that there were more references again in this episode to previous points in the series with the callback to gravity being called mavity, which started in “Wild Blue Yonder” with the Doctor (David Tennant) and Donna (Catherine Tate) meeting Isaac Newton (Nathaniel Curtis). It actually makes me wonder if this seemingly inconsequential thing could become an important change in their reality, considering the name of the upcoming season finale, because I feel like this definitely could have caused a ripple effect of some kind.

Speaking of callbacks there are a couple others. For one, the doors to the Harmony Arena looked extremely similar to the Pandorica to me (that was also connected with an exploding TARDIS as well, and at least according to Google AI the episode “The Pandorica Opens” mentioned the Interstellar Song Contest though I haven’t gone back to the episode yet to confirm this yet) Then, not only do we get to see Susan Foreman, the Doctor’s granddaughter, played by the same actress who played her back in the very beginning of the series in 1963, Carol Ann Ford, we also have the reveal with Mrs. Flood (Anita Dobson) and the return of the Rani. While I do question there being a second bi-generation, it does make some kind of wacky parallel sense. I love that this season is really made for fans and the series expects you to have either seen the original series or to do your research. This definitely wasn’t the first time, considering the various Gods of Chaos that have appeared since the series came to Disney Plus.

It’s not just the mid-credits ending that was unexpected. Before that, the TARDIS seemed to explode. While the Doctor could clearly survive it, could Belinda? Although they have killed companions before, I don’t see it happening so soon, but I am curious how she survives, let alone how the whole planet somehow survives for that matter.

The biggest question though that I have after the episode is if Gatwa’s Doctor will survive past this season. Unless the writers leave a really big plot hole, which I can’t see happening, Mrs. Flood made a point of saying that her double-brainstem froze, which is lethal for a Time Lady, which therefore clearly suggests that the Doctor is due for a regeneration soon. I did find it interesting he got a nosebleed from the Delta Wave, because we usually don’t see him injured like that. If that does happen, it will also be the first time it was kept secret and not announced well in advanced, which although I don’t necessarily want to see Gatwa leave, I would love to be surprised about it for once. Only time will tell, and I for one can’t wait to find out.