[user104658]

Originally Posted by Rob!

Can't say I especially understood what was going on there. With the ratings the way they are, the last thing they needed was a convulated mess on an episode.

Some powerful alien race had been making virtual reality "copies" of the world, including the doctor, to practice invading over and over before doing it for real. It's implied that they've run these simulations dozens, maybe hundreds of times. But this time the virtual reality copy of the doctor realised he could send a message to himself in the real world via his "blind glasses" to warn the real world about the real incoming invasion.

The Missy execution stuff was all just "flashbacks" in the real world. Though I don't think they made it quite clear enough that these storyline were separate and unrelated.

But I didn't find it as convoluted as a lot of previous storyline tbf.