Doctor Who Methadone

"The Wedding of River Song"

2011-10-07T13:48:00.001+01:00

For the first time since the programme’s return, there has been a change to the format of the season. Gone is the epic two-part finale but, it appears that the length of a story does not necessarily affect its epicosity (sic)- it is amazing just how much Moffat manages to include in a single episode that is not even an extended one, without making the story seemed rushed. The pre-title sequence is the utterly dazzling one that we have come to expect from Moffat- Earth where all of history happens at once, where pterodactyls swoop around Hyde Park, cars are hoisted aloft by Montgolfier balloons and Winston Churchill rules the Holy Roman Empire from Buckingham Palace. Like "The Big Bang", time has been damaged, but in a fascinatingly different way that shows the sheer imaginative sweep and power of Moffat’s writing. It doesn’t stop there, of course- The Silence are back with a vengeance and are as menacing as ever and we are treated to carnivorous skulls (which will linger in nightmares for years to come) a particularly deadly form of chess and the reason why they are all wearing eye-patches.

Despite all this, the characters still drive the plot. Amy and Rory search for a man they only know from memories that should not exist, because they resolutely remain the same people in this Tralfamadorian version of reality. There has always been something tragic about Rory, but when ‘the man who dies and dies again’ is about to do so again, he is saved by the woman who will always be his wife, saving him from his tragedy. River is the psychopath who has fallen in love with the Doctor- in true psychopath style, she is willing to let reality go hang if it means not completing her mission at Lake Silencio. Symbolically, the Doctor and River are the opposite poles of this meta-reality and, while some need the love of a good woman, the Doctor’s future and, indeed the very concept of a future, requires the love of a bad one. Darvill and Gillan are as utterly awesome as ever and Alex Kingston yet again proves that River Song is one of the most welcome additions to the Whoniverse ever. Ian McNeice makes the most of his role as Churchill and we have engaging supporting roles for Simon Fisher-Becker as Dorium Maldavar and even a fantastic cameo from Simon Callow returning as Dickens. I sincerely hope that Madame Kovarian is still alive in this reality, played with delicious menace by Frances Barber. Our hero is as awesome as ever, but the sense of the Doctor marching willingly into the arena is ever present- triggered by receiving the news that the Brigadier has passed away in a beautifully written and touchingly performed scene. Moffat manages to make a story based on incongruity, discontinuity and clash of styles work very well and director Jeremy Webb is equal to the task, helped, as he is, by a Herculaean effort from the production team.

Of course, the Doctor escapes his fate. Some might see this as a cop-out but, truth be told, the only way for it not to have been would have consisted of our hero actually biting the dust. It is great that the Teselecta was used rather than the Flesh (a clear red herring). "The Wedding of River Song" is a glorious end to another fine season. Questions have been answered, but questions remain- who hijacked the TARDIS and made it explode? Is the fall of the Eleventh what it sounds like? However, unlike other telefantasy series, the questions are only a small part of Doctor Who. At the end of the story, the Doctor is a mysterious wanderer in time and space, who has adventures, helps the people he meets and defeats the bad guys- which is what the show we know and love is really about. The oldest question will never be fully answered, I think- and it matters not one jot!

"Closing Time"

2011-09-30T12:23:00.002+01:00

There has been a sense of impending doom throughout this run of Doctor Who and we know that the Impossible Astronaut will soon rise from Lake Silencio. However, as was the case the last time he knew the end was approaching, the Doctor won’t go without a farewell tour. Before he sees the Alignment of Exedor, he decides to catch up with an old friend...

Gareth Roberts always brings a real sense of joy to his Doctor Who scripts and, indeed, the first thing that must be said about "Closing Time" is just how much fun it is. The story is simple, yet satisfying, with the immediately appealing prospect of a Cyber-warship that crashed on Earth millennia ago being reawakened, and Roberts weaves elements from stories as far apart as Doctor Who and the Silurians and "Rose"- the disappearance of Shona is very similar to Rose’s discovery of the Autons. Even the denoument is satisfying, despite the ‘love conquers all’ solution being used again. However, the heart of the story is, again the Doctor’s relationship with Craig. Before, he helped Craig find the love of his life, now he teaches him that he has what it takes to be a father. The story is full of the great lines one expects from Roberts, but there is a real depth to the characters and the way that the Doctor can talk to Stormageddon/ Alfie about being old and showing him his first glimpse of the stars in the same story as the Doctor tasting a piece of chalk and comically frightening a woman in a changing room would be bathetic in the hands of a lesser writer, which Roberts is anything but.

James Corden again makes Craig a thoroughly likeable and real character- I’m sure his abject terror at the responsibilities of fatherhood have been felt by most young fathers. There is a wonderful supporting role for the inimitable Lynda Baron in her third appearance in the show and I must say that Holli Dempsey’s reaction to being shushed by the Doctor is hilarious. Matt Smith plays with helicopters, bonds with babies and makes kissy-face at Craig (I hope, for Daisy Lowe’s sake, that his real one is better) and is astonishing. But, of course, that is no surprise.

After the virtuoso shows in the directors’ chair in recent weeks, Steve Hughes opts for a more basic approach which works very well with the material. The scenes in the Cyber-lair are atmospherically shot and the only real flaw is that the attack on Craig in his house could have been mounted better. however, with great scenes such as the Doctor and the planetarium and the fantastic scene where Craig is almost converted more than make up for it.

On his own, after briefly seeing Amy and Rory and deciding to leave them be, The Doctor is soon off to keep his appointment in America and we find out (as if we needed to) who the Impossible Astronaut is, in a coda that rounds off a story that is, without the slightest shadow of a doubt, the best Doctor Who story to feature the Cybermats!

NEXT: "The Wedding of River Song"

"The God Complex"

2011-09-23T11:46:00.002+01:00

Toby Whitehouse’s previous script for Doctor Who was "The Vampires of Venice", a very enjoyable, yet somewhat lightweight tale and it is not surprising that it was a last minute replacement. The story it was replacing was this one and, it has to be said at the start, that lightweight is the last word that can be used to describe "The God Complex". It works as a condemnation of religion- faith is what feeds the monster, moreover, that faith has to be ‘converted’ for it to be used: the deity devours its worshippers. It works as an affirmation of religion- faith is part of what is best in us. It also dispassionately looks at what a post-religious society might do with its gods when they are no longer needed. There are concepts that could form the basis of their own stories- the Tivoli, who are the most conquered race in the Galaxy and, consequently, one of the oldest, because their cowardice has become real strength. Even the title works on more than one level- the Doctor has his god complex but the hotel itself is a literal God complex. However, like the all of the best Doctor Who stories, it can be enjoyed on less cerebral levels, including the simplest and most important one- as a scary tale of a monster that stalks the corridors of what looks like a 1980s hotel.

Whitehouse's dialogue is beautiful, profound and funny. The characters are well written and excellently performed. Amara Khan is instantly memorable as one of the greatest companions the Doctor never had, Rita (incidentally, also the name of the character she played in The Darjeeling Limited). She is smart and funny, but her belief is that they are in Hell (incidentally, the word ‘Jahannam’ is also used by Arabic speaking Jews and Christians and derives from Gehinnom/Gehenna which... oh, look it up!) Dimitri Leonidas is given some of Whithouse’s most chilling monologues and performs them with aplomb. Gibbis, the Tivolian is performed with cringing perfection by David Walliams. These performances are expertly marshalled by Nick Hurram who pulls out all the stops, with split second shots, superimposition and great use of sound and imagery- the scrape of the flaking gypsum from the monster’s horns, the superimposition of 'praise him', the room full of laughing dummies. There must have been shot coverage of feature film proportions for the scenes to work and the cinematography again is sublime. The truly astonishing thing is that, despite the obvious influence of Kubrick’s The Shining, at no time does "The God Complex" seem like merely a homage/rip-off- it takes the imagery and puts its own spin on it.

The regulars continue to excel. Rory will probably be the last to go as his pragmatism seems to be his protection and Arthur Darvill continues to astound, as does Karen Gillan. Matt Smith effortlessly plays the Doctor’s conflict- things are clearly going out of his control and he must continue alone. It is easy to compare making Amy lose faith with the similar scene in The Curse of Fenric, and the more manipulative Doctor seen in "The Girl Who Waited" would seem to support this- however, this is, as we've come to realise, an older, kinder Time Lord.

This is a bona fide classic, a tale that will open itself to new interpretations with each viewing and, if it is a kind of sequel to The Horns of Nimon, it has to rank as the best sequel of all time!

NEXT: "Closing Time"

"The Girl Who Waited"

2011-09-16T17:17:00.001+01:00

One of the themes that Steven Moffat loves to explore is the perception of time travel for the outsider, those who are left behind, a theme which is blatant in "The Girl in the Fireplace" and a clear subtext in "Blink". Time travel puts lives out of synch, which can be hard for both the time traveller and his wife. Since Moffat took the reins of Doctor Who, we have had Rory, waiting 2000 years for Amy and now it’s Amy’s turn. The story takes us to the planet Appleappacia, where a plague has meant that billions of lives have to be kept in quarantine in different time streams and pressing the wrong button in the lift can mean being separated from your loved one for decades. However, while this story and "The Big Bang" are about love, the aspects of love (damn that Lloyd-Webber!) explored are subtly different, resulting in a very different story. "The Big Bang" was about a love eternal, but "The Girl Who Waited" is about what makes that love eternal. Amy and Rory’s love is so simple, yet so profound, that it can survive a jump in the time tracks and means that the dilemma for Rory, when he has to choose between the fifty-something and twenty-something Amys seems real and the older Amy’s desire to cling onto that version of her life is also believable. This is Tom MacRae’s return to Doctor Who after 5 years and, to say that this story is more sophisticated than "Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel" is something of an understatement. The ideas are strong enough to stand on their own, but it is the dialogue which truly sparkles. Amy’s description of loving Rory is utterly wonderful, one of the all-time great speeches in the history of the programme. It is another great example of a story with no real villain, but no less intriguing for that. The very power of the story means that we can forgive the few flaws- how can anyone not say 'press the green button'?!

Nick Hurran’s direction is utterly sublime, with slow cross-fades and seemingly random cutaways- he is known, mainly, for directing romantic comedies, funnily enough, but he is the absolute master of this story. The visuals are stunning, especially the Lewis Carroll-via-Tim Burtonesque Garden, and the inspired use of the magnifying glass screen. He manages to make the Handbots look both scary and funny, something which extends to his mastery of mood for the whole story. Great moments abound- Rory's vandalism of the galaxy's greatest treasures in order to save his wife, the older Amy's look at the Earth before she ceases to exist. This is a story where the regulars are the only real characters and all of them have great material to work with. Karen Gillen has great make-up for the older Amy, but it is the performance which absolutely sells it. Arthur Darvill is not to be overshadowed, however and, although our leading mad is placed more in the background, Matt’s stamp is very much felt, especially the expressiveness in his face, which speaks volumes.

"The Girl Who Waited" is another example of how Doctor Who can be bold, challenging, funny and touching- all in all, something of a triumph!

NEXT: "The God Complex"

"Night Terrors"

2011-09-09T11:12:00.002+01:00

There are two words which immediately spring to mind upon watching "Night Terrors"- "Fear Her". Like that previous story, it attempts to convey the terrors that lurk in a child's bedroom once the lights go out. However, there are clear differences in execution. "Fear Her" was unable to use its intriguing ideas to create a successful story, whereas "Night Terrors" manages to integrate its concepts into a satisfying plot. The disadvantage is, of course, that it does feel like an attempt to do "Fear Her" properly- and, while “Night Terrors” is certainly the better story, its ideas aren't as ambitious as its predecessor- the Tenza isn't as original a concept as the Isolus. Mark Gatiss has never reached the same standard as he did with "The Unquiet Dead", but he is an excellent writer and there is always great dialogue and Gatiss’s real enjoyment of the story and, indeed, the programme, to goes a long way. In addition, although the concepts aren't as ambitious in “Night Terrors”, the ones they do have are used more effectively- repression, parental expectations versus the actual development of the child, a child's need for validation- are handled expertly.

"Night Terrors" has, to its advantage, the finest showing yet from Richard Clark in the director’s chair, helped by Owen McPolin’s stunning photography- the shadows dancing in torchlight, the sombre earthiness of the former council estate. The peg dolls are chilling creations and the scene where Purcell turns into one will live on in the nightmares of quite a lot of children, as the magical scene where the Doctor brings George’s toys to life will enchant them. Clark gets great performances out of everyone- I get the impression that Jamie Oram is not the greatest child actor in the world, but Clark brings out his best. The key guest star is Daniel Mays, an actor who has never failed to completely inhabit his character, and is awesome here as a father who is concerned and a bit terrified- as many young fathers are. We also have the inimitable glower of Andrew Tiernan as Purcell, the landlord, a small, yet effective role. This is, of course, great material for our leading man and Matt is reliably wonderful, as are his companions.

In the end, the factors that lessen the impact of "Night Terrors" are things that have nothing to do with the execution of the story- the fact that it was moved to later in the series means that Amy and Rory do not refer to Melody once, which is odd in a story dealing with a young family. And, as must be said again, the spectre of “Fear Her” haunts the story. Together, "Night Terrors" and "Fear Her" could form the ultimate reading of Doctor Who as a childhood experience- George and Chloe both reach out to an unknown power to help them, the parents have trouble understanding their children. Most importantly it is the examination of the Doctor as childhood hero. Both "Night Terrors" and "Fear Her" try to speak to the child behind the sofa- and it is that child who is the best judge of them.

NEXT: "The Girl Who Waited"

"Let's Kill Hitler"

2011-09-02T18:18:00.001+01:00

...and as the nights lengthen, Doctor Who returns with the appealing prospect of a darkening sky outside when you watch it. "Let's Kill Hitler" certainly has an attention-grabbing title but, thankfully, Moffat gives Hitler little more than a walk-on part and concentrates on the meat of the story- because, despite the many hugely entertaining accoutrements that the story possesses, this is the story of how Melody Pond became River Song. One question raised in "A Good Man Goes to War" is very swiftly answered- Melody can indeed regenerate, and the question over whether one can regenerate into another ethnicity is answered, as if it needed to be (the fact that there are people who can accept that regeneration can change height, dentition, bone structure, ear-lobe pattern, eye colour etc, but make an issue of race is a bit odd, to say the least). In any case, before Alex Kingston returns, we are given the entertaining character of Mels, the childhood friend of Amy and Rory that we never saw before (did she insert herself into the time-line?) Nina Toussaint-White plays her as a wild child, with a seeming lack of responsibility that may be something more. With a winning smile and a semi-automatic, she hijacks the TARDIS, taking her to Berlin in 1938 where, in a tussle involving Hitler, she regenerates into the familiar form of Alex Kingston.

It is truly wondrous how Moffat’s arsenal of tricks are used to build real character. We have the wonderful montage where we see Mels growing up alongside Amy and Rory. It is a funny and charming sequence in its own right, but it shows us how Melody consciously sought out her parents so that she could be brought up by them- the parental roles that Amy and Rory take fulfill more than comedic purposes. It turns out that Melody was bred as the Doctor’s bespoke assassin but, as in "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead", it takes one whisper to change all that and Melody’s first act as River is to give her remaining regenerations to save the Doctor- just as her last act will be to give up life itself for him. Moffat conveys all of this in scenes that are exhilarating and fun, yet no less deep and affecting.

As for the other accoutrements, we have the wonderful idea of the Teselecta, a craft that can disguise itself as a person that is in the service of an agency that seeks to punish the evil by literally giving them Hell in the last moments of their lives. Richard Senior’s sterling work in the director’s chair brings many nuances into an already nuanced script. The scene where the Teselecta takes on the form of a Wehrmacht officer, there are shades of both Terminator 2 and The Numskulls- something which seems ridiculous and yet works beautifully. The antibodies in the Teselecta are wonderfully low-tech in their execution, yet no less effective- but they do not reflect a poor production by any means, with a great reconstruction of 1938 Berlin and very confident special effects.

Senior, of course has a wonderful cast to work with. Darvill and Gillan continue to astonish, but it is the two time travellers who romp home with the prize. Alex Kingston’s performance is outstanding, lighting up the screen with every scene. However, the star of the show is not to be outshone. He is as funny as he ever was, but the scenes where the dying Doctor is crawling towards the TARDIS in order to save his friends shows what an incredibly powerful actor Matt is.

There is a danger of "Let's Kill Hitler" losing its way amidst its byzantine intricacies. The point is, however, that it doesn’t, with Moffat proving that plot does not have to be at the expense of character and vice versa. We know the characters more and our appetite is whetted for revelations that are to come- and judging by the form so far, we are in no danger of disappointment.

NEXT: "Night Terrors"

"A Good Man Goes to War"

2011-06-14T12:37:00.004+01:00

This series of Doctor Who has decided to do something different so, for the first time, we have a mid-series cliffhanger. As we have come to expect from Steven Moffat, the story starts with a dizzying sequence of scenes where the Doctor destroys a cyber-fleet just to make a point. We also have vignettes that range in location from Victorian London to the planet Zarathustra in what looks like a 41st century version of War and Peace. The Doctor is calling in some of his debts and all hell will break loose...

The quest of the Family Pond is a staggeringly exciting one, and contains the usual funny and moving dialogue we have come to expect. However, although heart of "A Good Man Goes to War" is the hunt for Amy and her daughter, the mind of the story is somewhat different. In all the far-flung and exotic locations that we see throughout the episode, we do not see the Doctor himself for the first twenty minutes of the episode. But we hear about him and we see what he leaves behind him so when he finally appears, nearly half-way through the episode, we know why an army has been raised against him, not to attack, but to defend. If "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang" was about the Doctor as story, then "A Good Man Goes to War" is about the Doctor as a legend and how legends change. Angels become demons and demons, angels and the word Doctor has come to mean 'great warrior' in some parts of the universe. Of course, the Doctor has been many things, from determined idealist to detached manipulator. He is the Lonely God and a madman with a box. However, Moffat has a very clear idea of what the Doctor should not be and the Doctor has been heading that way for some time. He has trailed devastation in his wake and it is not only the evil that see that as a threat. The entire realisation of the army is excellent- in their spare time, the clerics train themselves to recognise the psychic paper, a random sign at the start has a picture of the sonic screwdriver with the warning ‘1. It’s not sonic 2. It’s not a screwdriver’.

The fact that all of this is told in a hugely entertaining adventure proves how masterful Moffat is. Lest we forget, the story also contains contains two of the most endearingly bonkers, yet irresistibly ingenious characters the programme has ever had- a Sontaran nurse (gene spliced to cope with...er...every nursing need) and a Victorian Sapphic Samurai Silurian swordswoman (played with smouldering saurian sexiness by Neve McIntosh) fighting crime with her trusty maidservant. We also have the Headless Monks, serving the Papal Mainframe herself, chanting attack prayers armed with lightsabres from Hell.

Matt Smith is astonishing yet again. The Doctor's rage almost seems to embarrass him, yet its effect is potent. Arthur Darvill is masterful as an ordinary man who has reluctantly become a legend himself and Karen Gillan's portrayal of a defiant mother is utterly convincing. Frances Barber relishes her role as the chief villain in the story and there is great support from the entire cast, including Danny Sapani as Colonel ‘Runaway’ Manton and Christina Chong as Lorna Bucket, who joined the Church/Army just to meet the Doctor again.

Peter Hoar has a hell of a lot to visualise and a large cast to manage, but he copes with the challenge magnificently constructing scene after memorable scene. The whole production is fantastic, from Demon's Run, with its Death Star like bays to Zarathustra’s utterly convincing battle field, realised for less than two minutes. Everyone behind the scenes deserves a big hand.

It ends with, seemingly, everything lost. But Melody has returned grown up- for that is who River Song is. I am slightly disappointed that I guessed this (although I did think that Jackson Lake and Adelaide Brooke were involved!) but not very much so. Questions remain, of course- is she part Time Lord, and was the little girl in "The Impossible Astronaut"/"Day of the Moon" her? If so, did Madame Kovarian succeed in creating the ultimate weapon? It's going to be a long summer...

NEXT: "Let's Kill Hitler"

"The Rebel Flesh"/"The Almost People"

2011-06-03T15:22:00.001+01:00

"Fear Her", Matthew Graham’s previous Doctor Who story is a story that is seen by a significant number of fans as the worst episode broadcast since the programme’s revival. While I do not rate that story quite so harshly, I must admit that I was a bit worried about what his next offering would be like. Thankfully, while there are some problems with the story, "The Rebel Flesh"/"The Almost People" is far superior to its predecessor. The concept of The Flesh is a very strong one and it is used well to explore concepts of identity and, yes (spit) ‘what it means to be human’, without the boneheaded clichés that that sort of aim usually resorts to. At first the story seems to be a throwback to the base-under-siege stories that were so ubiquitous in the Troughton era, even down to the character types; in particular Miranda Cleaves, the authority figure who obstructs the Doctor. The motivations of the ‘gangers’ in particular, could also have been explored further. There are attempts to correct this, however, such as Cleaves’s ganger being used to comment on the motivations of the character, which is some compensation.

The cast, however, manage to make their characters seem far more lively than they are on paper. Marshall Lancaster is as endearing as he was in Life on Mars and Sarah Smart is both endearing and chilling as Jennifer. Jimmy is a character composed of pure cliché, but Mark Bonnar puts in a very soulful performance. Raquel Cassidy is a very subtle actress, but here she clearly has a ball, chewing the scenery without seeming ridiculous. Amy is very good in this, but she is overshadowed by her two leading men. Rory’s fight for human decency is valiantly portrayed by Arthur Darvill and Matt Smith astonishingly ascends to yet another new level- the scenes of the Doctor with his ganger are fun and give Matt plenty to work with, which he does with aplomb.

Overseeing all of this is Julian Simpson and, despite a few editing hiccups, he puts in great work. He is more than equal to conjuring the kind of imagery the story needs and he produces some of the most frightening images that the programme has had to date- the wall of eyes, the sudden cut to the half-formed gangers. There a strong influence from The Thing, with all of the shape-shifting doubles running around and the transformation of ganger-Jennifer into a terrifying monster succeeds in giving Thing-style shocks for a family audience- no small task, especially when one compares it to similar scenes in "The Lazarus Experiment", which are nothing like as scary.

"The Rebel Flesh"/"The Almost People" overcomes its problems to become a very enjoyable Doctor Who adventure. The Doctor saves the day, of course, but he had an ulterior motive all along. Amy, is not Amy and, as her ganger dissolves, she wakes up in a tiny white cubicle, with a very familiar eye-patched woman looking through a hatch at her. To her horror, she realises that she is about to give birth...

NEXT: "A Good Man Goes to War"

"The Doctor's Wife"

2011-05-20T15:12:00.002+01:00

I must admit, I had some mixed feelings when I heard that Neil Gaiman was writing an episode of Doctor Who. I am not an aficionado of comic books, so my only exposure to Gaiman was the TV series Neverwhere and the film of his graphic novel, Stardust. What I found was that the worlds that Gaiman creates are absolutely intoxicating, but the stories that he tells in them are not. However, his inventiveness goes a long way- despite some narrative shortcomings, Stardust is one of my favourite films of the past few years- and the setting he creates for this story is idiosyncratic indeed- a living planet called ‘House’ that lures Time Lords to its surface to devour their TARDISes, making patchwork servants out of the bodies of the lost, all while existing outside the universe precisely not in the way that a small soap bubble clings to a large one. However, the weird setting is hjust the canvas for the story, which is based on a very strong idea- an idea that had been long overdue for airing- what if the TARDIS could talk to the Doctor?

What Gaiman and Moffat construct is a story that tells us more about what happened when the madman first found his box. It gives us the first other TARDIS we have seen this century and it finally answers a question about regeneration that has been whispered for decades. However, it is what is at the heart of the story which dominates it. It is a story about the longest relationship the Doctor has ever had, one that will only end with the death of one of the parties involved. The Doctor understands himself more clearly and, perhaps, his purpose is clearer as well. It is this which makes a story that contains numerous references to the series’s mythology and a barrage of technobabble so successful, working even with non-fans. The emotions in the story ring true, which makes all the difference and, after the technobabble is done, the solution is simple, yet brilliant.

The performances are perfect- the very talented Elizabeth Berrington plays Auntie and is ably supported by Adrian Schiller as Uncle. However, it is the wonderful Suranne Jones who captivates as Idris/the TARDIS from the moment she appears, effortlessly getting the most out of Gaiman’s time-bending dialogue and making her sexy, funny and impossible not to fall in love with. Matt Smith’s performance is very special indeed here- the Eleventh Doctor is not as traumatised by the Time War as his two predecessors, but the pain is still there. His controlled rage at losing his hope for the survival of other Time Lords is wonderfully played, as is his answer to Amy’s contention that he wants forgiveness. More crucially, we see this Doctor cry for the first time and the look on Matt Smith’s face makes him seem older than Hartnell. We must not forget the sterling contribution from the former Mr Kate Beckinsale as the voice of House (I wonder if they momentarily considered Hugh Laurie?). Amy and Rory continue to work well, their relationship strong enough to have tolerated bunk beds.

The production is practically flawless, directed with aplomb by Richard Clark. The visualisation of leaving the universe is done simply, yet so effectively and the scenes on House are very atmospheric. The sheer joy of the jerry-made TARDIS chasing its cousin is matched by the shocking scenes set in the TARDIS corridors- the scene where Amy finds Rory’s desiccated corpse amongst graffiti that says KILL-AMY-DIE-AMY- is very strong stuff, yet not inappropriate.

"The Doctor’s Wife" is one of the most satisfying stories the series has yet produced and one I heartily recommend!

NEXT: "The Rebel Flesh"/"The Almost People"

"The Curse of the Black Spot"

2011-05-14T00:53:00.000+01:00

After the dramatic encounter with the Silence, we are due for a break and we see the TARDIS trio appear on a 17th Century pirate ship becalmed on the ocean. The Siren of legend marks the sick and wounded with a black spot before disintegrating them with a touch. It’s a recipe for adventure on the high seas with a yo-ho-ho... but, it seems, no-one actually says that.

"The Curse of the Black Spot" certainly has swashbuckling, treasure, storms and ghost ships, but the piratical stereotypes have been dialled down a notch- the Doctor has to ask for more raucous nautical laughter when he is made to walk the plan. The script has a scattershot quality that works both for and against it. The Doctor again (refreshingly, in my opinion) knows nothing in advance about the adversary- the Doctor’s catchphrase for the episode is, rather wonderfully, ‘Please ignore all my theories up to this point’. However, some aspects of the plot don’t quite work- smashing the mirrors will just mean lots more smaller reflective surfaces. Also, the volte-face in the Doctor’s thinking, when he realises that the ‘cursed’ have not been killed is incredibly random- all we needed was one scan with the sonic screwdriver and one extra line from the Doctor to make it work so much better. The CPR of a regular character is fast becoming a modern cliché and Rory’s knack for cheating death is beginning to rival the Doctor’s. The explanation of the Siren owes something to "The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances", but is different enough to not make us feel ripped off.

As usual, thankfully, the production goes a long way to distract the viewer from the plot shortcomings- the period detail is as flawless as we have come to expect from the BBC and the shoot in Cornwall (not far from where The Smugglers was filmed) adds real atmosphere. Jeremy Webb directs with a barmy energy on the pirate scenes and with an icy clinicism elsewhere. The performances are excellent. Hugh Bonneville is brilliant as Avery and is ably supported by his crew (incidentally, none of the pirates have even a hint of a West-Country accent, let alone giving it the full Robert Newton). It is good to see Lee Ross working on a Steven Moffat project again. In the key role of the Siren, we have Lily Cole, Karen Gillan’s rival for the title of ginger über-babe. Her naturally otherworldly look is perfect for the role and she makes the Siren a striking addition to the Who bestiary. The regulars go from strength to strength, with Amy swashbuckling with the best of them and Rory having a bigger role this time. Matt Smith’s wild performance makes the shortcomings in the plotting seem deliberate, which is no mean feat.

Stephen Thompson’s script could have done with a couple more drafts, but the story remains enjoyable throughout, one factor being, as I said aeons ago, that pirates are great. Arrr. We are also left to ponder things which are certainly parts of the season arc- the forbidding form of the eye-patched Frances Barber and Amy’s seemingly quantum pregnancy...

NEXT: "The Doctor's Wife"

"The Impossible Astronaut"/"Day of the Moon"

2011-05-07T02:43:00.002+01:00

The opening story of a new series of Doctor Who has certain expectations. A light-hearted adventure that gently eases us into an exciting new season of time-travelling fun. This is what we get to some extent- we have the Doctor being silly at various points in history before having a picnic with his friends before the credits roll. Then, an Apollo Astronaut appears in the lake and the Doctor is shot dead in a way that certainly answers the question about how to kill a being that can regenerate. The cosiness is gone and, as River promised in "The Big Bang" everything seems set to change…

It seems odd that the programme has not done an epic two-part season opener until now, considering how well "The Impossible Astronaut" and "Day of the Moon" work. The roots of the story are clear- Christopher Nolan’s Memento and The X-Files amongst others. Despite this and the first American location shoot, the story remains Doctor Who to its very core. Moffat also introduces us to a very scary new race of monsters- The Silence, whose existence has been intimated since "The Eleventh Hour"- indeed, I wouldn’t be too surprised if there was more to “Silence in the Library” than meets the eye (to coin a phrase). Like the Weeping Angels, the Silence challenge subjective idealism- the Weeping Angels can only move when they are not observed. The Silence can only be remembered when they are observed- in a way that would make Berkeley run screaming back to Kilkenny. As with "Forest of the Dead", Moffat uses the very structure of visual storytelling to emphasise this. The markings on Amy’s face increase in number with every progressive shot. Scenes progress to the punchline while missing the setup. More than any other story so far, there are gaps in the narrative- the brilliant cliffhanger to "The Impossible Astronaut" is only resolved well into "Day of the Moon" in a rather indirect fashion. We are never told on screen why the Doctor is imprisoned and his companions hunted. We don’t need to, however, because it should be obvious by the end. Moffat realises something that some less imaginative observers of the programme have either forgotten or never realised- that children like gaps that they can guess or fill in themselves. Indeed, as a youngster, I would create my own version of the next episode before I actually saw it- one should never underestimate the imagination of a child.

This is not to say that the story is inaccessible- it still engages, helped by many great lines ranging from the funny to the poignant- River realising that the most important man in her life is slipping away from her is very effectively brought out. The 1969 setting is used to great effect and Nixon gets a very fair hearing- it is becoming increasingly clear that it was not that he did what he did, but that he was caught doing it that damned him. This gives a clear framework to the unsettling mood and prevents the story becoming too inaccessible. The threat of the Silence is conveyed excellently and the Doctor’s solution is simple, yet ingenious, as his best plans usually are. There are a good many questions unanswered at the end, but I doubt if they will remain so.

As said before, the show shoots for the first time in yer-actual US of A, and the stunning locations available in the country are brilliantly utilised. Toby Haynes shoots with epic flair, but does equal justice to the creepy, funny and intimate scenes and, crucially, the discontinuities that Moffat’s script demands. He is backed by a stunning show from the entire production team. The filming in the awesome Valley of the Gods is breath-taking and the special effects are fantastic. The Silence are very effectively realised with a mix of prosthetics and CGI adding to their impact as one of the most effective of monster races.

The performances are first rate- Mark Sheppard is brilliant as Canton, and Stuart Milligan is a pleasant surprise as Nixon- thankfully he isn’t too overwhelmed by prosthetics. Matt Smith continues his masterful tenure in the title role and Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill continue to impress. Alex Kingston remains utterly electrifying as River Song and I can’t wait to see her return.

The story ends with the little girl on the streets of New York dying, and subsequently regenerating. Steven Moffat is definitely committed to taking his version of the programme into a totally different direction from RTD’s vision. We have, perhaps, been made too comfortable, and whatever happens, I’m sure it will be worth it.

NEXT: "The Curse of the Black Spot"

"Space"/"Time"

2011-05-07T02:29:00.001+01:00

Perhaps the only good reason for watching Red Nose Day in 2011 was this pair of skits featuring the TARDIS crew. They do what precious little else did that night- made me laugh, without even resorting to spoofing itself, which is why I’m reviewing it here. Like "Time Crash", it’s a barrage of technobabble stitched together with fantastic lines, brilliantly shot and acted.

Comic Relief is a good cause and it was refreshing to see something that was worthy of it.

NEXT: "The Impossible Astronaut"/"Day of the Moon"

"A Christmas Carol"

2011-01-21T00:59:00.005Z

Our sixth Christmas with the Time Lord is the first to be helmed by Steven Moffat. In keeping with his view of the programme as a ‘dark fairytale’, we have him doing a version of the most famous Christmas story since the first one. As I said a year ago, Victorian Christmases seem to be the most Christmassy of all, and a lot of this is due to the fact that the festival (as the Anglophone world knows it) was a product of the Victorian era and Charles Dickens’s reading of it in particular. Of course, the use of Dickens’s novella has to be a conscious reference- the Doctor has met Dickens after all- but Moffat has to take this very familiar story and make it seem fresh. Does he succeed? Well...

A (typically) awesome pre-titles sequence brings up to speed. The ship that Amy and Rory are honeymooning on is diving into the deadly atmosphere of a human colonial planet. The ship will crash, killing all 4,003 people on board. The only person who can save them is Kazran Sardick, the man who can tame the sky with the machine that his father built and he, alone, can operate. However, this power has given Sardick complete control over the planet and it is clear from the start which part in the story Sardick plays, for he is, to coin a phrase, a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner. The Doctor has to convince Sardick to turn the machine on. He could, of course, do that by defeating him as he has done with scores of enemies in the past, but a moment of restraint and mercy convinces the Doctor that there is something more to Sardick. Scrooge was not beyond redemption, after all and so the Doctor must save the day by making Sardick a better person. To do this, he changes Sardick’s past intertwining his life with the life of someone who was just a frozen face and a recorded message- Abigail Pettigrew.

The Christmassy vibe is stronger than it has ever been before, but, as with Dickens, it is the redemption of the character that is at the heart of the story. Like Scrooge, Kazran’s lack of empathy is rooted in the pain of the past. To start with, it is his wholly unloving relationship with his father, but the Doctor gives him someone else to love, in the shape of Abigail. There follow a wonderful sequence of Christmas Eves and it seems that Kazran’s heart warms- only for it to be broken and for bitterness to join coldness in the adult Sardick. Amy, as the ghost of Christmas Present, tries to appeal to his better nature by showing him the faces of those he will allow to die. Sardick is closed to all salvation and is resigned to dying afraid and alone- until Christmas Yet-to-Come shows him the ultimate vision. Such a clever reinterpretation of Dickens would not have worked had Moffat not understood the meaning of the original work so thoroughly. The dialogue practically sings ’In nine hundred years of time and space I've never met anybody who wasn't important.’ The world which he builds is intoxicating- a planet where fish swim in the air, ranging from minnows gently nibbling at your ear, to sharks who will have you arm off, and where face spiders hide in the bedrooms of children.

Moffat’s script is expertly realised by Toby Haynes, lending an awesome sweep to the cityscapes and cloudscapes, but making the scenes in the young Kazran’s bedroom the irresistible blend of danger and intrigue that children love. Haynes invokes the spirit of A Christmas Carol, but is not afraid to invoke other things, from the not-very-subtle, yet joyous Jaws references, to the wonderful shot of the Doctor standing outside the teenage Kazran’s window, waiting to be invited in, which screams Peter Pan. We are so buoyed up by the spirit of the thing that nothing seems ridiculous or out of place- when a sleigh is pulled across the night sky by a shark, we are lost in wonder, not incredulity. The performances are perfect and, as expected, the fantastic Sir Michael Gambon is fantastic as Sardick, showing the coldness, amorality and the warmth that leads to the redemption of the character perfectly. In many ways, Sardick is as much the lead as the Doctor and it is good that the actors playing his childhood and teenage self (Laurence Belcher and Danny Horn respectively) are so good. As Abigail, we have Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins. She is well up to portraying the role and when her beautiful voice soars, accompanied by Murray Gold’s wonderful score, the effect is magical. Amy and Rory are sidelined, somewhat, so it is up to Matt Smith to carry the show with Gambon and when the two of them are together, the effect is electrifying. It is testament to his success in the role that I cannot imagine David Tennant in this story. The Doctor is not just the Christmas Ghosts to Kazran, he is ‘the Raggedy Doctor’, ‘The Fireplace Man’, but in a way that does not seem like a repetition of Moffat's themes.

I am not sure, but this magical hour of television could be my favourite Christmas with Doctor Who yet, another piece of fantastic festive fare from Cardiff!

NEXT: "Space"/"Time"

"The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang"

2010-07-02T15:26:00.005+01:00

Ever since Steven Moffat was announced as showrunner, speculation was rife as to how he would continue to tell this story of a madman with a box. One subject that would crop up in discussion, is what a Moffat finale would be like- a trip into disquieting horror, a fiendishly clever puzzle-box of a plot, a spectacular showdown. What we got was better, even than this- a story that emphasises why the new teams in front of and behind the cameras are well up to the task, proving that they can forge their own style whilst still making the same programme that we know and love.

Moffat immediately grabs our attention with a dazzling opening that brings back many of the guest stars of the season making it probably the most star-studded eight minutes in British television history. From throughout human history the warning comes: the Pandorica is opening, the TARDIS will explode. The Pandorica is located underneath Stonehenge, which is being guarded by a Roman legion, with one very familiar centurion. When we find out that the Pandorica holds the most feared being in all the cosmos, it was obvious who the only candidate would be, even before the Doctor describes it, ‘soaked in the blood of a billion galaxies... One day it would just drop out of the sky and tear down your world.’ The Pandorica is a prison, but it hasn’t taken delivery of the prisoner yet- the Daleks, the Cybermen, the Nestene, the Sontarans and all the others have come to the same conclusion- the Doctor will destroy the Universe and the only way to stop him is to imprison him for all eternity. the Roman soldiers, including Rory, are Nestene duplicates and as Rory and Amy tearfully reunite, his Auton body kills her. The Pandorica opens, the Pandorica closes. However, the TARDIS has already gone critical and as Rory cradles the body of his beloved, the stars explode as the Earth swims alone in emptiness. The plot for "The Big Bang" seems obvious- resurrect Amy and rescue the Doctor, which is indeed what we get- in the first ten minutes for, as we have come to expect, Moffat makes the second part start slightly askew. We are presented with a reality where the universe consists of the Earth and little else, where penguins lived on the Nile and the orb in the sky is the TARDIS exploding. The Doctor breaks all the rules in this diminished reality to save his friends and take the Pandorica into the TARDIS so that he can restart the Universe.

These are some of the things that happen in the story. It is not, however, what it is about. It is a story about the memories that form our personal pasts. It is about how events do not make history on their own, but rely on how those events are recorded and told. It is about an imaginary friend being as important as a real person. It is a story about stories. The stories that the episodes tell are what bind the narrative together- the Myth of the Pandorica, the Legend of the Centurion, the Rageddy Doctor. Moffat’s writing is sublime with wonderful dialogue- ‘We’re all stories in the end. Just make it a good one, eh?’ and even a cheeky steal from Robin of Sherwood. There are still good jokes, such as the Doctor’s brief fez-wearing phase, but the drama is there in a tale of friendship, love and self-sacrifice. The plot is complex, but fortified with emotion. Many people criticised RTD’s ways of ending his stories (wrongly, in my opinion) and I would like to think that this is the reason why the resolution of the story is via the biggest reset button the programme has ever done. However, as anyone who really understands fiction knows, there are no inherently bad plot devices, just bad uses of them, and Moffat shows that the reset button can make for great drama, if the story is good enough. The stories are all channelled by Amelia Pond to save reality as we know it, and it is a simple cliché which saves the universe- ‘something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.’ In a joyous moment, Amy’s imaginary friend arrives at her wedding. It was probably inevitable- a cosmos without The Doctor scarcely bears thinking about- but the sheer wonder of the moment is overpowering. Moffat wanted to make Doctor Who as a dark fairy tale- he succeeds admirably.

Calling the shots immaculately is Toby Haynes who gives the story a suitably epic feel. There are almost too many memorable scenes to list, but special mention must be given to possibly the greatest scene involving a Cyberman, that channels Indiana Jones, The Thing and Evil Dead 2 to great effect. There are also the spectacular scenes of the spaceships over Stonehenge, the Dalek begging River for mercy, the beautiful unlocking of the Pandorica. The quieter moments are also expertly handled with the help of a fantastic cast. We have startling performances from Arthur Darvill (who makes a triumphant and very welcome return) and (as expected) Alex Kingston, as well as the return of the adorable Caitlin Blackwood, but it is the regulars who stand out most. Karen Gillan is front and centre for many scenes and she attacks them with relish. As for our leading man- wow. Whether running around with a fez and a mop or bellowing at several fleets of spacecraft, Matt commands our attention throughout. The quiet scenes show him at his best, investing them with great power- when he says to Amy that she will not need her imaginary friend when she had her family, I very nearly cried (but obviously, I didn’t. I am a man, after all). This is one of the greatest performances in the role to date and I hope that all the naysayers are silenced.

The Moffat era has started in fine form with an excellent season. Unexpectedly, although the cracks have closed, the mystery of the Silence- and who is responsible for taking over the TARDIS- are questions still unanswered, not to mention the truth about River. The next series can’t come fast enough.

NEXT: "A Christmas Carol"

"The Lodger"

2010-06-18T12:21:00.003+01:00

With a production block of only 13 episodes, there was no need for a ‘Doctor-lite’ episode this year, but it is clear that the notion of doing an episode that looks at the Whoniverse from a slightly askew angle is something that has become an integral part of the programme. It is interesting that the premise of this story- the Doctor must pass himself off as human- is very similar to the premise for "Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood"- with radically different results. "The Lodger" presents us with Craig Owens, an ordinary Essex lad who is so madly in love with his friend Sophie, that he cannot see the obvious signals that scream the fact that she is also in love with him. He only barely notices the mysterious and very fast-growing piece of dry-rot on his ceiling and the odd noises from the man upstairs. Not to worry- he has a new flatmate in the shape of a slightly weird man in a bow tie...

Gareth Roberts tells a wonderfully sweet story about two people in love, while the Doctor tries (and mostly succeeds) in passing himself off as a normal bloke- playing football, watching telly etc, but trying not to attract the attention of the thing upstairs. It is a paean for following your dreams at the expense of the apparent comfort that can stifle the soul. Roberts’s script has a real understanding of what makes people settle for second best. ‘I don’t see the point of (insert place here)’ says Craig a couple of times, but we don’t condemn Craig for it. The story is chock full of great lines and hilarious situations, as we have come to expect from Roberts, but this is also his warmest script for the programme- in fact the weakest element is the science-fiction aspect, with the threat raised by the machine upstairs being rather too rushed in its unfolding to have much effect, and I think that the perception filter is becoming something of a catch-all explanation.

James Corden is excellent as Craig, making him eminently likeable and very, very normal. Corden is a fine actor who has a lot of detractors due to two bad projects he did (his admittedly appalling sketch-show and Lesbian Vampire Killers, which I have not seen) but put in a great performance in The History Boys on both stage and screen. Here, he displays the qualities that made him a star. Daisy Haggard is sweet as Sophie and the two of them have a great chemistry. Dancing around them like a mad goblin is Matt Smith, in his best performance yet as the Doctor. Whether collecting junk at midnight or telepathically bonding with cats, he is mesmerising. Matt’s performance is both instantly recognisable as the Doctor and credible as a stranger who could merely be a slightly oddball human. This is, helped by Catherine Morshead’s inspired direction, making it seem slightly reminiscent of an episode of Spaced where Tim's fantasies are real. The comic and dramatic beats are expertly handled and there is, of course, the football match which, like the cricket match in Black Orchid is a sublime sequence- ‘Football’s the one with the sticks, is it?’

So the Doctor defeats the enemy and brings two lovers together. It seems everything is fine- until we see a crack behing Craig’s fridge and Amy finds a velvet box that is uncannily familiar...

NEXT: "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang"

"Vincent and the Doctor"

2010-06-11T15:27:00.001+01:00

It seems the done thing to knock Richard Curtis nowadays. This is the man who has pretty much defined the British romantic comedy, a genre that critics are notoriously unforgiving with, plus he is, of course, very successful at what he does, which is offensively un-British. Speaking for myself, I have not been that enamoured of his more recent work, but it must be remembered that this man wrote for Not the Nine O'Clock News, co-created The Black Adder and wrote The Tall Guy. To this list must now be added "Vincent and the Doctor", a story that, I am sure, will rank as one of the best Doctor Who adventures of all time.

The story is simple- the Doctor notices a monster peeking out of the window in Vincent Van Gogh’s The Church at Auvers, so he travels back with Amy to help Vincent defeat it, even though only Vincent can see it. However, the story is only secondarily an adventure- it is, first and foremost, about Van Gogh. Vincent is not a madman by our standards- what he had would be manageable nowadays- and Curtis does not make him a figure of fun- there is not even the hint of an ear joke. The reason Vincent can see the monster is because he sees things like no other person has seen them before- colours swirl and coalesce into vibrant noumenal patterns in his mind to such a point that subjectivity and objectivity have no meaning. He sees the monster, because he sees what is there, not just what his eyes tell him. However, in a world before antidepressants, Van Gogh is tormented by despair that saps at his very being. Curtis’s depiction of Van Gogh’s depression is very moving, making it accessible to children as well- the Doctor’s summing up of what makes up a life is easy to follow, yet beautifully written. This is helped in no small way by Tony Curran’s performance. Despite, seemingly, never being out of work, Curran has never really been given the chance to shine, something which has been rectified here- possibly the finest performance of his film and television career and one of the best ever guest performances in Doctor Who. Curran vibrantly brings to life the unpredictability and passion of the artist in a performance that is worthy of a straight biopic of Van Gogh.

The production is a of the fantastic standard we have come to expect. Obviously, the cinematography owes something to Van Gogh’s style and Director of Photography Tony Slater-Ling makes this one of the most beautiful pieces of television I have ever seen. My misgivings over Jonny Campbell’s directorial ability have totally evaporated, with him constructing scene after memorable scene that makes the story more magical as it goes along and I must be predictable in drawing attention to the magnificent scene where Amy, Vincent and the Doctor are staring up at the sky, which slowly turns into The Starry Night.

The regulars continue to excel. Matt Smith shows the Doctor at his most barmy and his most compassionate with practically everything in between and the tender bond between Amy and Vincent is beautifully realised by Karen Gillan. The other major supporting role is Bill Nighy’s Dr Black. Nighy (who has been a favourite candidate for the role of the Doctor since the late nineties) brings an irresistible blend of authority and lovability to the role that works brilliantly with the regulars and Curran.

The end shows the Doctor proving to Vincent that his name will last forever, that his life will have been one that made an indelible mark. This scene should have been cheesy and manipulative; instead, it is utterly gorgeous and Curtis rounds the story off in the best way it could have- depression is not logical and Vincent Van Gogh, in the knowledge that he would be acclaimed as one of the greatest artists who ever lived, took his own life. His genius will last forever, but so will the sadness.

This is a glorious story, one which reminds me of the great historical of the Hartnell era. It is as gorgeous, evocative and moving to viewers now as Marco Polo must have been in 1964- and I can think of no higher praise than that.

NEXT: "The Lodger"

"The Hungry Earth"/ "Cold Blood"

2010-06-04T17:32:00.002+01:00

As you can imagine, I was not looking forward to a Chris Chibnall two-parter. His previous effort, "42", was a thoroughly lazy script, rescued only by Graeme Harper’s phenomenal direction. However, Chibnall is physically capable of writing good scripts- his Life on Mars episodes are very good and, although his showrunning and episodes for Torchwood were terrible in series 1, he improved in series 2. In any case, "The Hungry Earth"/ "Cold Blood" had the added attraction of featuring the return of the Silurians, one of my favourite ‘monsters’ on the programme.

Reading the basic storyline did not fill me with hope. Just as "42" was a basic rewrite of Planet of Evil, "The Hungry Earth"/ "Cold Blood" takes most of its plot elements from previous stories- it’s Doctor Who and the Silurians meets Inferno, meets The Green Death, meets Frontios! On watching it, the way the plot unfolds would be entirely predictable, even if it wasn’t following the story progression of Doctor Who and the Silurians almost to the letter and ending not so much with a deus ex machina, but with a literal pneuma ex machina! It must be said, however, that Chibnall writes with more sincerity than he did last time, which means that we buy into the plotting a bit more, even though the only parts that aren’t hackneyed are by Malcolm Hulke. This is helped by a very strong cast- Eliot, the dyslexic boy who won’t let his disability get in his way, so clumsily worthy on paper, is made into a real person through the endearing performance of Lady Sovereign lookalike Samuel Davies. Robert Pugh is an awesome actor, who puts meat on the very bare bones of his underwritten character and Meera Syal is an absolute delight as Nasreen, a very poorly written character- I am sure I was not alone in secretly hoping for her to join the TARDIS crew.

The Silurians are suitably revamped for the 21st century with a fantastic make-up and prosthetic applications. Although very different from their forebears, I instantly recognised them- although making the eyes and teeth more saurian would not have been unwelcome. However, the revamps work, because the designers remembered something they should have remembered when doing "Victory of the Daleks"- if you’re going to redesign a popular monster, make it look cool. The Silurians are all excellently performed, with all the actors remaining very recognisable, despite the excellent make-up, from Neve McIntosh’s impassioned dual performance as Alaya/ Restac to Stephen Moore’s dignified Eldane. These performances compensate for the fact that the character types are very similar to the original Silurians- we even have the bellicose Silurian killing the peacemaker The only disappointment is that Chibnall seems to be just as clueless about palaeontology as Malcolm Hulke- but Hulke did not have the Internet as a research tool, so Chibnall has no excuse. Chibnall has the Doctor state that they are ‘300 million years out of their comfort zone’, which would make them Carboniferous, on the cusp of Permian- not as unlikely as the Silurian, but still pretty far-fetched and only adding to the confusion. As I said many moons ago, if there is one area of science that the average child will know a lot about, it’s prehistoric life.

Ashley Way gives the story the epic feel it needs and the action scenes are shot with the necessary energy to make them effective and he marshals the great cast with aplomb. The special effects are flawless, with the jaw-dropping shots of the vistas of the Silurian city and the hibernating army, with the entire production team giving their all. Matt Smith is astonishing, yet again, with his kindly, yet somewhat threatening warning to Ambrose about weapons to his grief over Amy’s apparent death. Karen Gillan has to react to the death of her fiancée again and it is to her considerable credit that she makes it look just as convincing as in "Amy’s Choice" yet very different, something which can also be said for Arthur Darvill. I really hope this is not the final end for Rory.

This is a very well made, very enjoyable Doctor Who story. However, again we have a Homo reptilia story (technically it should be something like Anthroposaurus sapiens, but I digress) that covers pretty much the same ground as the original story. Chibnall’s script, although not in the same league as others this year, is far better than his previous one. It is odd to think that the only Silurian story to build on the original is Warriors of the Deep!

NEXT: "Vincent and the Doctor"

"Amy’s Choice"

2010-05-21T13:17:00.002+01:00

Simon Nye’s debut for Doctor Who is based, as many great Doctor Who stories are, on a simple premise- what if we couldn’t tell what was dream and what was real? There is one reality where the Doctor visits Amy and Rory 5 years after their parting, with Amy heavily pregnant and Upper Leadworth about to face an attack by possessed pensioners. In another, the incapacitated TARDIS is drifting inexorably towards a ‘cold star’. Seemingly in control of both realms is a seemingly unassuming, yet ultimately frightening figure of the Dream Lord. Nye presents us with exciting threats in both scenarios, but he uses the story to delve into the structure of the human unconscious- how do our dreams reflect our desires and our personalities? The quiet domesticity of Upper Leadworth is clearly something Rory wants, yet even that is invaded by the type of menace that the Doctor is usually involved with- perhaps the kind of menace that the Doctor needs to operate. The fact that all this is wrapped up in a very entertaining and funny story is fantastic. As befits Simon Nye, there are some fantastic comic touches- Rory’s (truly awful) pony-tail, Amy’s pregnant running and her false alarms, facing death ‘looking like a Peruvian folk band’, the Doctor as Mr Cool, with some excellent one-liners. The shift towards the sinister is very skilfully done, helped, in no small respect, by Catherine Morshead’s direction. Although the camera is rather static, the scenes in Leadworth and the Drift towards the cold star are both impressively handled, with great special effects and cinematography. Crucially, the attack of the Eknodine in the bodies of the old people comes off as both sinister and ridiculous, with shades of Shaun of the Dead and the Father Ted episode "Night of the Nearly Dead". This sets us up for the very emotional scenes at the climax- Rory’s apparent death and Amy’s willingness to risk her death (without a thought for her unborn child’s) to be with Rory again.

The Dream Lord is brought to life by the wonderful Toby Jones, who, wisely, never overplays, making the character funny, yet menacing. His true nature is simple, but, fanboy that I am, I was too busy thinking of the Celestial Toymaker or the Trickster to notice. The Dream Lord is a manifestation of the Doctor’s own darkness, his guilt and self-loathing (how is unimportant- the criticisms levelled at The Space Museum and The Edge of Destruction do not apply here, as the situation is not the most important aspect of the drama). However, the story is called "Amy’s Choice" for a reason- while the desires of the menfolk are obvious, what is it that Amy dreams of, or desires? It is Amy’s choice which, indeed, is the decisive step in solving the crisis. The Dream Lord has many choice words for the Doctor, but in the end it is Amy’s simple ‘Then what is the point of you?’ which is the most devastating criticism of the Time Lord. Matt Smith improves with every episode and Arthur Darvill is hugely likeable. However, it is Karen Gillan who is the biggest standout- her playing of Amy’s grief over Rory’s death is subtle, never going into histrionics- and all the more heartbreaking for that.

Simon Nye is most famous for writing Men Behaving Badly, a sitcom that was far cleverer than it appeared to be, so there were a few raised eyebrows when he was announced as a writer for Doctor Who, just as there were when another comedy writer was announced as a writer. This is a story of real subtlety and sophistication, an absolute joy from beginning to end.

NEXT: "The Hungry Earth"/ "Cold Blood"

"The Vampires of Venice"

2010-05-14T12:39:00.000+01:00

With Amy's hormones seemingly in overdrive, the Doctor has no alternative but to arrange a date for her and Rory, and where better than Venice? However, as the title of the story makes obvious, all is not what it seems. "The Vampires of Venice" sees the return of Toby Whithouse to the Doctor Who fold. Since "School Reunion", Whithouse has created the excellent supernatural drama Being Human, so vampires should be familiar territory for him. Only there are no vampires in the story. There is a mysterious aristocrat who fears the sunlight. There are buxom maidens with severe orthodontic problems. But all is not what it seems with what it seems not to be, for the creatures are not vampires- "The Vampires of Venice", in classic Doctor Who style, takes a horror trope (two actually- the true nature of the ‘vampires’ is very Lovecraftian) and reinterprets it in a science fiction context- this is pretty much a Hinchcliffe/Holmes story for the 21st Century- I love, for example, the reason why the ‘vampires’ cast no reflection. Whithouse tells us the classic Doctor Who tale of the aliens who arrive in a notable time and place in Earth’s history to wreak havoc and have to be stopped by the Doctor. However, there is more to it than this- the alien Saturnynians, though callous in their disregard for the ‘savages’ do not actually want to conquer the Earth- just Venice- Whithouse fills the story with majestic dialogue: ‘Can your conscience carry the weight of another dead race. Remember us. Dream of us.’

However, the story has a problem, in that it has some of the flaws of the Hinchcliffe/Holmes era. There are some glaring inconsistencies in the plot- the sensitivity of the Saturnynians to sunlight varies from slight discomfort to grievous harm, which comes to a head when Amy destroys Francesco using the light reflected from a cloudy sky using a make-up mirror! Like many Hinchcliffe/Holmes stories, there is a somewhat pat solution to the crisis- the Doctor simply turns the evil alien device off! This was a funny solution in "School Reunion", but it just seems unimaginative here. Also, I’m no expert, but I wonder how Venice could have any tunnels? The character writing is effective enough, but the final effect is mainly thanks to a superb cast. Guido’s plight is not that effectively written, but Lucian Msamati puts in a very effective performance. As Rosanna, the queen of the Saturnynians, we have the wonderful Helen McCrory who gives a charismatic, yet very subtle performance.

The production is a triumph, with every scene having fantastic design, great costuming and cinematography, making the episode hugely evocative of the most vibrant city of the Early Modern period. Jonny Campbell’s direction, however, is problematic. Sometimes he assembles scenes with aplomb, but at other times (thankfully only a few) the editing or pacing is sloppy. The pre-titles sequence works, but I’m not sure if it is due to skilful editing to emphasise the awkwardness, or just plain awkward editing.

The regulars are on fantastic form. The interplay between the Doctor, Amy and Rory is well written and very funny, with Arthur Darvill being very likeable as Rory. We see the Doctor confronting an adversary and making ultimatums- just as his previous self does. It is obvious that the Eleventh Doctor does not wear his heart on his sleeve as much as his predecessor, delivering the line 'I'll tear down the House of Calvierri, stone by stone.' with a sinister smile on his face. Whether popping out of a cake or deactivating weapons of mass destruction, Matt Smith remains utterly captivating.

Despite some large-ish problems, the energy and great production values make "The Vampires of Venice" a hugely enjoyable story. Plus, when are a bevy of buxom vampire girls ever a bad thing?

NEXT: "Amy’s Choice"

"The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone"

2010-05-07T14:20:00.003+01:00

The Doctor has had a host of recurring foes in his television adventures, but most of the time he only has to defeat an enemy once. Sutekh, the Drashigs, Magnus Greel, the Malus, Scaroth and the Beast are just a few of the memorable one-night stands the Doctor has had. Until now, the Weeping Angels would have been near the top of the list- "Blink" remains one of the greatest stories the programme has produced in any era and the Angels one of the most chilling race of monsters ever seen on the small screen. It could be argued that a return appearance would ruin the impact of the Angels- but it took very little time for me to conclude that the return of the Angels was nothing short of a resounding success.

The basic plotline of "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone" is simple- the Doctor helps to locate the Angels in a crashed spaceship and get his friends out safely. This is a canvas for Moffat to paint his exquisitely shaded opus. As with his stories in the Russell T Davies era, this adventure is brimming with fantastic ideas and concepts. The squad of soldiers featured in the story are not Army, but the Church which has, as the Doctor says ‘moved on’; trees are cybernetically augmented to form oxygen factories in starliners; Moffat’s ability to build worlds is phenomenal. However, this would be for naught if the monsters did not work- the reason the Angels worked the first time was that they were based on a very strong, but idea. Betray that idea or employ excessive casuistry to circumvent its limits and the impact of the Angels is disastrously dampened. However, Moffat only builds on the ideas- that which holds the image of an angel becomes itself an angel, resulting in a very tense scene with Amy. Building on this, we find that looking into the eyes of an Angel for too long results in an image of the Angel forming in the mind, which leads to the horrifying idea of Amy having to walk through a group of Angels with her eyes shut. The Angels are given a personality for the first time, gleefully sadistic and chillingly psychopathic. As with his previous two-parters, Moffat does not merely rely on the ideas brought up in part one, he brings in more to complement them. A very familiar crack has opened, a crack which destroys time. People approaching too closely are erased from existence as if they have never existed- and even the Angels are terrified. This leads to the dénouement, where seemingly minor things raised in the story come together perfectly- the ship’s failing power, the quirks of artificial gravity- to solve the crisis in a simple way that works without insulting the viewers’ intelligence.

Moffat’s mastery is not just about plot and concepts, obviously. The dialogue is wonderful, ranging from the funny that we expect, to moments of beauty (‘What if our dreams no longer needed us?’) and real poignancy (‘I wish I had known you better’/ ‘I think, sir, that you knew me at my best’). In such a packed story there would appear to be no room for character- yet Moffat, for the first time, has succeeded doing what RTD did deceptively easily- making every character seem real, no matter how minor. This is helped by a very strong cast, including Mark Monero and Darren Morfitt (who was so memorable in Neil Marshall's Dog Soldiers). Even Mike Skinner’s cameo works well. We also have a reliably solid performance from Iain Glen as Octavian.

Directing the story is Adam Smith, who does stunning work throughout. I must draw special attention to the first 5 minutes which is one of the most awesome sequences I have ever seen on the small screen. Smith constructs each scene perfectly. Amy’s encounter with the image of the Angel on the screen is a well-realised homage to Ringu, well worth the eight minutes it takes up on screen. Amy’s walk through the forest of Angels wrings every bit of tension out of the script. The script asks for something that has the potential to be disastrous- we see the Angels move for the first time and it is testament to Smith’s skills that these scenes work magnificently- the first one in particular is a real jump moment.

The story, of course, also has the return of another memorable Moffat creation- River Song. Alex Kingston effortlessly makes her the irresistible character she was in "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" and it is clear that there is more to her than we thought. Matt Smith and Karen Gillan continue to build their fantastic rapport with their best performances yet. The rapport builds to such an extent that we get something that we have never seen before- the Doctor fighting off the ravishes of his companion. The scene is funny and believable in terms of what we know about the character and her situation- Amy is clearly bit more forthright than Martha!

"The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone" is an astounding adventure, destined to become one of the true classics of the programme.

NEXT: "The Vampires of Venice"

"Victory of the Daleks"

2010-04-23T14:21:00.002+01:00

Of all the stories broadcast under the Doctor Who banner this century, none have provoked such contradictory feelings within me as "Victory of the Daleks"- two feelings in particular. The first and most important one is that, more than any other, this is a story that should really have been a two parter. Mark Gatiss is too good a writer to produce a truly bad script and the story is brimming with great ideas and some great lines. The basic plot is very similar to The Power of the Daleks, but Gatiss manages to make this story work on its own terms. However, there is just so much crammed into 40 minutes that there is a danger of some of the plot not sticking. The most obvious example is the ‘Space Spitfire’- we are asked to believe that Professor Bracewell’s ‘musings’ could be turned into workable hardware in less than an hour. If you can keep up, this is an exciting ride, but it would have been more satisfying if the story had more time to breathe.

Another casualty of the pace is characterisation, but there are really only two characters, apart from the regulars. Despite the rush, Bracewell succeeds admirably as a character. This is due, in no small part, to the performance of Bill Paterson, an actor I’ve always admired. However, Gatiss manages to take a clichéd sci-fi situation- a man discovering he’s a robot- and manages to make it work- the simplicity of the scene where the Daleks simply state ‘No, we created you’ is very effective. We are given a situation that could be blandly generic- the Doctor and Amy talking to Bracewell to deactivate the Oblivion Continuum within him- but the fact that they use embarrassment as one of the human feelings that needs to be provoked is very refreshing. Then, we have the historical figure du jour- Winston Churchill. In truth, Ian McNeice doesn’t look that much like Churchill, but his studied performance is hugely effective, easily compensating for the fact that the pace of the script has to make him do a U-turn in his attitude to the ‘Ironsides’ without comment. The regulars are awesome- we Doctor’s attempts to goad the Daleks into revealing themselves by battering one with a giant spanner. We also see him hold them off with a Jammie Dodger- Matt Smith has total mastery of the role. Amy continues to be inventive, intuitive and just plain fantastic.

Andrew Gunn keeps up with the pace of the script with a very polished production. The ‘Space Spitfires’ might have been brought into being a bit too soon, but the sight of the most iconic aeroplane in British aviation history, dogfighting with a Dalek saucer is breathtakingly wonderful. The period detail is as wonderful as it was in Moffat’s own trip into the Blitz five years ago and the design is excellent- with one exception. I am afraid that I must join with the vocal minority who do not approve of the new Daleks. I am not against a revamp for the Daleks in principle- the original revamp for "Dalek" was absolutely perfect- keeping very close to the Raymond Cusick originals, yet adding little touches here and there. The Dalek Supreme in "The Stolen Earth"/ "Journey's End" was also a great piece of design. These new Daleks seem a bit too plastic, a bit too vacuum formed and the multi-coloured ‘paradigms’ do not help the look. The worst thing, however, is their backs- they look like Daleks who have gone to seed on port, cigars and Stilton. This is a great pity as the ‘Ironside’ Daleks look great. The scene where the Ironsides bring a new generation into being and willingly accept their own destruction by their offspring would have been a very powerful scene, were it not for the fact that what we see are some very cool Daleks being exterminated by a bunch of bootylicious wannabes. Some fans have been scathing about the design, calling it as bad as Colin Baker’s costume. This is clearly an overreaction, but the effect it has on the story and, indeed, on the Daleks as a whole, is great. Indeed, this is the only time this century that a piece of design work has ever been unsuccessful and I sincerely hope that Steven Moffat reconsiders.

There is much to enjoy in "Victory of the Daleks", but it has problems it cannot solve, despite the considerable talents of all involved. Spread out over two episodes, it could have been genuinely great good enough to counter the negative impact of a failed attempt to revamp one of the most iconic pieces of design of the modern era.

NEXT: "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone"

"The Beast Below"

2010-04-16T15:16:00.003+01:00

The Earth has been ravaged by solar flares (presumably the same as those in The Ark in Space) and mankind has fled the planet in ships, such as the Starship UK. When the Doctor and Amy land there, it is a seemingly happy, somewhat nostalgic ship but there is a dark side. The plotline of the Doctor finding the dark truth behind society is not new, yet it offers so much scope for variation that its return is welcome in the shape of this very enjoyable story. Steven Moffat again takes a simple, creepy idea and makes it a threatening presence throughout the story. The Smilers are reminiscent of fortune telling machines in fairgrounds, their painted expressions stirring disquieting feelings in many. They sit as judges (in both the legalistic and Simon Cowell sense) and their Janus-like heads have two faces, but three expressions. These are the figures that terrify children- as the Doctor says, it is a police state, where the menace is everywhere, known to all, but discussed by none- everyone knows about the This is what the Doctor and Amy set themselves up against, but it is not the enemy. The Beast is, in fact a Star Whale that has been enslaved to propel the Starship UK. However, police state or not, the population is entitled to know about the enslavement of the Star Whale and the opportunity to protest; but they are also given the opportunity to forget they ever learnt the truth, for if just 1% of the electorate protest, the Whale will be freed, dooming all- so, of course, everyone chooses to forget. This is a simple, but very effective observation on politics- as the Doctor says, after 5 years, the electorate forget what they’ve learnt. It is also an astute observation on human nature- all healthy adults must have empathy, but if there is too much, the soul is mired in guilt. Moffat’s script is full of the expected humour and conceptual ingenuity, but this is a story driven by empathy, by subtle understanding of behaviour. This is how the Doctor discovers there is a problem and how Amy solves it. More on that later.

Andrew Gunn marshals a very confident production, with Starship UK being brought to life very impressively. Scenes are shot and edited with great care- a nice touch is the effective way that we discover Amy’s decision in the voting booth. Visual and verbal influences from Star Wars and Discworld work very well in the story and the effects, although not perfect, instil the correct feelings of wonder. The guest performances are first rate, from experienced performers such as Terence Hardiman (forever the Demon Headmaster for a generation of children) to excellent child actors, especially Hannah Sharp as Mandy. The main guest star is Sophie Okonedo who makes Liz 10 a blast to watch. I love the way that Liz 10’s accent has become more cockney-fied over the years- had the Doctor come a century later, she would probably have a Jafaican accent (or ‘Multicultural London English’ as phoneticists boringly call it). Okonedo is, obviously, an awesome actress and she clearly enjoys the part.

However, it is the regulars who come off best, both in the way the parts are written and played. The Doctor clearly likes Amy, but he is more guarded with his companion than his previous incarnation. Even when Amy broaches the subject of other Time Lords, his manner does not reveal any emotion. One personality trait that was obvious in "The Eleventh Hour" was his impatience and this ties in with another- he doesn’t like information being hidden from him, which results in him threatening to send Amy home. However, when the Doctor is faced with an impossible dilemma, it is Amy who solves it by thinking of something the Doctor didn’t even consider, saving him from commiting an act of murder. Evidently, the Doctor needs someone to stop him more than ever.

Matt Smith continues to impress. There were shades of Colin Baker in "The Eleventh Hour" and there is some Troughtonesque hand-rubbing here, but Matt is clearly taking the Time Lord into new territory- his rage at the dilemma, at the horrors that his favourite species sometimes commits is both archetypaly Doctorish and unique to Matt. Karen Gillan is just as fantastic- Amy clearly has a very subtle and sensitive mind and I love the way that her first scene with Mandy is played like a Doctor/companion scene.

There are some rough edges- the nature of the Smilers and the Winders are not explored as fully as I would have liked, for example. However, this is a story with much to offer both adults and children and is great fun- what more could you want?

NEXT: "Victory of the Daleks"

"The Eleventh Hour"

2010-04-09T14:46:00.002+01:00

There is a threat against the Earth and only one man can save the planet. This is a sentence that can describe many Doctor Who stories, but in this one, the familiar plot helps anchor the viewer, for the rest of the story is suffused with the unfamiliar- a brand new Doctor, brand new companion, brand new everything. There is a new hand at the tiller in the shape of Steven Moffat, who wrote some of the best stories of the Russell T Davies era. It is immediately obvious that Moff-Who has a slightly different feel from RTD-Who, without jarring the viewer. As with Moffat’s previous scripts, something mundane becomes something to fear- in this case, the crack in the wall in the bedroom of a child- a crack that opens to reveal a vast Cyclopean eye. The basic plot is simple- a prisoner has escaped through the crack and the captors, the Atraxi, want him recaptured at any cost- but the Devil, as always, is in the details. Steven Moffat gleefully plunders his own previous Doctor Who work, from "The Girl in the Fireplace" to his excellent short story "Corner of the Eye", but it is to serve a greater purpose. With a new broom sweeping clean, the audience needs a new identification figure and we are given that in Amelia ‘Amy’ Pond. Like Reinette in "The Girl in the Fireplace", the Doctor is a figure from her youth. However, Amelia belongs to a more rational, touchy-feely world, so her night of wonder results in years of therapy. So when she suddenly finds her imaginary childhood friend stalking around her house, her feeling is not one of wonder, but of disappointment and mistrust- the Doctor has to convince her, and, indeed, us, that he is the man we hope he is.

And, he suceeds. Matt Smith had the daunting task of following the most popular Doctor since Tom Baker (and, in my opinion, the best one since Hartnell). As far as I was concerned he had me from the second he clambers out of the toppled TARDIS, with a look on his face that could illustrate every non-scientific definition of the word ‘mercurial’. This is followed by a brilliant sequence where the Doctor (like Tigger) discovers what foods he likes. This immediately tests Smith as an actor, having to give the same reaction in different ways. By the time he is eating fish-fingers dipped in custard, we know this Doctor well enough- far less patient than his predecessor, but with the same sense of fun. People always try and see the actor’s predecessors in a Doctor’s first story and, for the first time, there is a hint of Colin Baker, only with an infinitely superior writer and director at the controls. Like Patrick Troughton and Peter Davison before him, Matt Smith drags us out of our mourning for his beloved predecessor- Matt is Doctor Who!

Amy is given the most detailed back-story of any companion to date, but the vitalising spark is the wonderful performance by Karen Gillan, being very sassy and clever, but struggling with her impractical clothing throughout. Gillan can work wonders with the smallest change of expression in her beautiful face and it looks like we are in for another great companion. I must also mention the wonderful performance by Gillan’s cousin Caitlin Blackwood as the young Amelia. There are a plethora of great guest performances, although it’s odd that performers of the stature of Nina Wadia and Olivia Colman have such minor roles. Colman, in particular, is one of the most physically versatile actresses in the world (she can play anything from an irresistible sexpot to a sour hag, with only minimal make-up) and I would love to have seen her in a larger role- but it was good to see her nevertheless. Patrick Moore makes a well-judged cameo (something he’s invariably good at) and the rich, distinctive voice of David de Keyser is heard as the voice of the Atraxi. The always delightful Annette Crosbie will hopefully return alongside Arthur Darvill’s Rory.

Steven Moffat has assembled a new stable of directors and Adam Smith helms shooting and actors with aplomb. Although the pacing as frenetic as it was in the RTD era, there seem to be fewer shots, as befitting the setting in a small village, rather than London. Andrew Smith creates scenes of tension and beauty, from Amy’s encounter with Prisoner Zero to the adorable scene where Amelia waits for the Doctor to come back. There is also the best use of a lens flare that I have seen for years. The production values are excellent, although the CG creatures seem a tiny bit unfinished, the imagination shown in the design of the Atraxi ships is laudable and there is, of course, the wonderfully lavish, yet retro, new TARDIS interior.

This is an excellent debut story for Matt Smith. If there is any criticism, it is that Moffat doesn’t quite have RTD’s knack for creating ordinary characters- compare with "Smith and Jones" (still the best series opener, in my opinion). The story is 20 minutes longer than "Smith and Jones", yet we know more about Martha’s family than we do Amy’s friends, by the end. However, the characterisation is more than adequate, and Moffat’s conceptual ingenuity counts for a lot. Matt stamps his authority on the programme with ease, so that we unreservedly accept the moment when he walks through a hologram of Tennant’s face. Doctor Who is back with an era that promises to be fantastic. However, there are questions raised, and as we notice, the cracks in the universe have not been ignored by the TARDIS...

NEXT: "The Beast Below"

'DOCTOR WHO will return in...'

2010-01-21T15:25:00.000Z

Well, that's it- every single episode of Doctor Who seen and reviewed! I've written over 125,000 words, enough to qualify as a good-sized novel. I would like to thank my little sister and tiny brother for allowing me to raid their VHS and DVD collections as well as Jim, who lent me two (or was it three?) DVDs. I would thank Swiss Cottage Library in London, but I did have to pay £1 each to rent Revenge of the Cybermen and Terror of the Zygons- for three days. But I digress. I would also like to thank the ladies and gentlemen at a project with a name not unlike Unsecured Arquebus for their sterling work.

A lot of people (well, some people anyway) have asked if I will continue. All I will say is this: writing one review a week is far less hassle than writing three or four. So it is with pleasure that I say:

NEXT: "The Eleventh Hour"

PPS- Spin-offs

2010-01-20T15:54:00.000Z

After this reasonably detailed examination of the programme we all know and love, it would be remiss of me not to mention the tele-sprogs that Doctor Who has spawned along the way. However, this is not going to be anything like as detailed- I was very close to reviewing the TARDISodes- mini episodes designed for mobile use- but I thought that way madness lies. Suffice to say, these little snippets, written by Gareth Roberts and directed by Ashley Way, were fun little Who-nuggets.

The main Doctor Who spin-off is Torchwood- the further adventures of Captain Jack in Cardiff. Despite having some excellent writers such as J C Wilsher, P H Hammond, Catherine Tregenna and Mickey Smith himself, Noel Clarke (whose excursions into film are highly recommended, damn the critics!) the programme suffered from some very poor show-running from Chris Chibnall. Character development was very shoddy, with characters changing personality according to the dictates of the plot and, for the first series, Chibnall failed to find an original voice for the programme, or even decide what sort of programme it was- the story arc in particular was rushed and poorly thought-out. At times, the notion that this was Angel to Doctor Who’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer was taken too literally- like Angel, Torchwood’s second episode involves a being that uses sex to drive itself. There were excellent episodes ("Everything Changes", "Out of Time", "Adam" and "Captain Jack Harkness" amongst others) there were some truly dreadful ones as well ("Random Shoes", an attempt to ‘do’ "Love & Monsters" written by someone who didn’t actually understand it, springs to mind) There was sex and swearing which, I suppose, is considered to be ‘adult’ by Chibnall. I use Chibnall as my punching bag for one reason- when he left Torchwood, Russell T Davies returned to the controls and the result was the utterly astonishing Children of Earth, a story up there with the very best Doctor Who episodes. Written with real intelligence and wit, the quality of the story is obvious leaps out in every scene. It is so compelling that, despite Peter Capaldi playing a high-ranking, non-elected official, you have forgotten about Malcolm Tucker by the end of the first episode. It was fun and genuinely ‘adult’ and I eagerly look forward to Torchwood’s return.

On the other end of the age-demographic is The Sarah Jane Adventures. In looking at this, we must really start with 1981’s K9 and Company, a jolly bit of rural intrigue with Sarah Jane and K9 foiling a local coven. It was similar in tone to contemporaneous Doctor Who, but with a slightly lighter touch. With its 21st century descendent, the relationship with the parent programme is similar- for example, it is immediately obvious that the body count is considerably lower. However, it is only very rarely that The Sarah Jane Adventures actually talks down to children- the same care in production is lavished on it as with the parent programme and there are, again, good writers writers- but, unlike Torchwood, it is a team of writers who know exactly what kind of programme they are writing for. Elisabeth Sladen is supported by an appealing young cast, making The Sarah Jane Adventures very enjoyable for all ages.

Speaking of everyone's favourite motorised mutt, there is also K-9 which has aired only one episode at the time of writing. It's OK, I suppose, but I'm witholding my opinion until I see more.

PS- David Tennant: the Animated Years

2010-01-13T15:07:00.001Z

As you all know, no doubt, David Tennant also starred in two animated stories, so here, for the sake of completeness is my take on them...

The Infinite Quest

Of all the 20th Century Doctor Who stories to take inspiration from, I would have thought that The Keys of Marinus would be rather low on the list. Yet here we are, with the Doctor journeying to various locations in the search for a cluster of McGuffins. The plot is somewhat shallow, but the locations, at least show a bit more imagination than those in Terry Nation’s scattershot story. Characters change motivation with alarming speed and the dialogue, although it aspires to the wittiness of the best Doctor Who scripts, seems forced. The fact that this was broadcast as a part of the Totally Doctor Who childrens programme shows in such things as the literal space-pirates, which somewhat annoy me.

The Infinite Quest was originally broadcast as 13 parts, each part lasting about 3½ minutes. This gives the omnibus edition a rather choppy feel, which doesn’t help the flow of the narrative. This isn’t helped by the direction- Gary Russell seems to devote all his attention to the big set pieces, but has little idea of how to construct a story visually. There are some awesome visuals on display- the insect like drilling robots, the Mantasphid hive. Unfortunately, the character animation is very static, with the characters having only two or three expressions each. This is a pity, as David Tennant and Freema Agyeman put their all into their roles. Despite the presence of actors such as Anthony Head, Stephen Grief and Liza Tarbuck, the supporting characters are too thinly written and indifferently directed to make much of an impact. This is especially true of the main villain, Balthazar, who, in the hands of Anthony Head, should have been far more memorable.

The Infinite Quest is passable, undemanding entertainment, but contains little of real substance.

Dreamland

The obvious thing to be said about Dreamland is that the animation is- basic. There are myriads of amateurs who could make an animated film of greater quality on their computer with a bit of freeware, so it is disappointing that this is what a monolithic corporation like the BBC is happy with in 2009. Happily, the other aspects of the story are much better. Phil Ford provides a very entertaining script with an engaging plot and some nice dialogue. I am surprised that Roswell has never been dealt with by Doctor Who and Ford manages to mix the atmosphere of The X-Files and 50s B-movies, together with UFO conspiracies (there is a nice new take on the Men in Black) to make a uniquely Doctor Who mixture.

Although the animation is basic, the backgrounds are very well rendered and Gary Russell does a far better job as director than he did with The Infinite Quest. The episodes are 6 minutes in length, with a 12 minute opener, which gives it a more natural flow than its predecessor. Again, there is a starry cast. David Warner is, naturally, fantastic as Lord Azlok and we have good turns from Stuart Milligan, Nicholas Rowe and Lisa Bowerman. In the minor but important role of Night Eagle, we have Clarke Peters (Lester Freamon on The Wire) which was the most exciting bit of casting for me since Derek Jacobi. If there is one flaw in the script, it is that the companion roles- Cassie and Jimmy- are less well defined than usual. However, with only 45 minutes to play with, there probably wasn’t time and the engaging performances by Tim Howar and Georgia Moffett help in rectifying this. David Tennant is great, as he invariably is.

Dreamland is tremendous fun- so much so that you forget the dated character animation and just sit back and enjoy the story.

The End of Time

2010-01-11T15:13:00.003Z

The final adventure of the Tenth Doctor would always have been a significant story in of itself- David Tennant is the only actor to have successfully challenged Tom Baker for the title of most popular Doctor. And what a story it is- two and a quarter hours in length (a six-parter in old money) with cameos from every actor to have played a regular role and the return of the Time Lords. The plot is simple and just about works, albeit with an odd structure. There are a few problems with the script. The resurrection of the Master is presented as a necromantic ritual, a move which could work had the emphasis been different. However, mentions of ‘potions of life’ and ‘the secret books of Saxon’ are a bit too Harry Potter. The plot means that the critical characters of Naismiths are given short shrift in the second episode- a pity, considering David Harewood’s fine performance. The means by which the Time Lords escape, although comprehensible, is in danger of being misread. Donna’s ‘defence mechanism’ seems to have been constructed purely to season the cliffhanger.These are all valid criticisms all raised by perceptive critics of the programme (together with others raised by those who cannot tell the difference between a plot hole and something that they have failed to spot). However, like The Evil of the Daleks, like Logopolis, The End of Time manages to overcome these shortcomings to produce a story of real wonder and excitement.

However, once the Master is properly back after his Voldemortesqe resurrection, we are again blessed with John Simm’s electrifying take on the character. The Master started off being simply an evil opposite to the Doctor, but since The Keeper of Traken, he has become a Time Lord who is physically, as well as mentally 'wrong'. His return in "Utopia" was as a fully fledged Time Lord, but his botched rebirth here leaves him a nightmarish horror- his flesh repeatedly vanishing to reveal the skeleton beneath, able to fire lightning from his fingers; and all the time, he is ravenously hungry, as shown in scenes that must have caused Yuletide gastric discomfort in a few viewers. The relationship between him and the Doctor is as deftly written as ever. Both need each other on a visceral level- the Master instinctively holds the Doctor as he falls from his own assault. However, once he finds out what is returning, he is perfectly willing to let the Doctor die- his visceral feelings were grounded in his own selfishness.

The story starts off by an imposing voice narrating events in a rather florid manner (but who are the ones who have an infinite capacity for pretension?) which reaches a crescendo in the middle of the first episode- to reveal the face of the Narrator. The Master Plan with his Master Race is only a small part of the grand scheme- for the Time Lords have returned. We are treated to Gallifrey on the last day of the Time War- the dome of the Capitol shattered, the wrecks of Dalek saucers strewn around. The High Council are in session and it is clear that these are a grimmer, more ruthless race than we have ever seen before. The Lord President (as the Narrator turns out to be) deals out disintegration for dissent and, as they descend on Earth, bringing the raging inferno that is the dying Gallifrey with them, it is clear that the destruction of the Time Lords was no accidental side effect. Twisted by the Hell that the war had become, they chose to ascend to godhood- ripping space-time apart in the process, as the final act of the war. Davies’ depiction of the final days of the Time War prove that it is an event that should never be explored on screen- how can anything compare to the images in our minds of The Nightmare Child, the Horde of Travesties and, most wonderful of all, the Could-have-been King with his army of Meanwhiles and Never-weres? It should remain a series of images in our head that point to something we can never fully understand. The Lord President is played with relish by Timothy Dalton, arguably the best actor to play James Bond. He is actually named as Rassilon himself by the Doctor, which makes sense- if the Master was brought back as the ultimate warrior, it makes sense that the founder of Time Lord society be resurrected to lead his people- a people who become just as much the Doctor’s enemy as the Daleks. The Time Lords are truly awesome in their power, Rassilon overcoming the Master’s schemes with a flick of his gauntlet (The Great Glove of Rassilon?) but it is clear that they know that the Doctor is not someone to be underestimated, even with something as primitive as a service revolver in his hand.

Euros Lyn is often overlooked as a director, despite his amazing track record. As the revived programme’s longest serving director, it is fitting that he helms Tennant’s finale. The spectacle demanded by the script is easily realized by Lyn, from the stunning scenes set on Gallifrey to the wonderful Star Wars inspired sequence where the Vinvocci ship has to evade and shoot down seemingly every missile on planet Earth. The appearance of Gallifrey is as awesome as it should be (it seems to be as large compared to the Earth as we are to the Moon). Lyn makes sure every performance counts (even in minor roles such as the Visionary and Shaun, we have Brid Brennan and Karl Collins). I must also mention the incredibly likeable Sinéad Keenan as Addams and a cheeky role for the legendary June Whitfield, in the wonderful sub-plot of the ‘Silver Cloak’- Wilf’s network of OAPs who know everything there is to know in London. Then there is the appearance of the legendary Claire Bloom as a woman who guides events to try and help the Doctor. We never find out who she is (or indeed, her fellow partisan, whose face is never revealed) which is for the best- until we do find out, let us revel in our theories.

There is spectacle to be had, for sure, but there is a heart to the story- the relationship between the Doctor and his companion. Here, that role is taken by Donna’s granddad, Wilf. It is great to see his joy in seeing the Earth from space and to feel the thrill he has in finally sharing in the adventures his granddaughter had. It is in the quieter moments between the Doctor and Wilf that the characters really shine. Both are old men, reaching the end of their lives, which means the Doctor is more open, more emotional with Wilf than he has been with anyone else. Wilf’s decency comes through in every scene, from his refusing to be shamed by the fact that he never took a life as a soldier, to the scene where he immediately rescues a man he has never met from being sealed in the Nuclear Bolt chamber, even though it means he gets sealed himself. Bernard Cribbins is wonderful in the role, mixing his natural lovability with a really strong performance.

But he does get stuck, which leaves us with the Doctor. He has prevailed against the Master, against Rassilon and his Glove (and, no doubt, his Key, Rod and Sash). However, the four knocks come- Wilf in the chamber. The Doctor knows that this is why Wilf has figured so often recently- he is the bringer of his Doom. He will not give his life to save the Universe or even Earth- but to save one man. On Mars he was at his most arrogant, speaking in condescension of ‘the little people’. It is for such a little person that he will make the ultimate sacrifice. He rages like an alcoholic Welsh poet, but in the end, in a scene of genuine heart-wrenching emotion, he saves Wilf, while the old man begs him not to. The scene of the Doctor’s irradiation itself is shot simply- it would scarcely have looked different twenty years ago. Although he gets up, it is clear that the regeneration has started. In the short time given to him, he visits his friends- Martha, Mickey, Sarah Jane, even the descendant of Joan Redfern in a series of scenes that have been earned and therefore avoid being self-indulgent. Although he cannot speak to Donna, he does make sure that she is secure for the future, before taking a trip to the Powell Estate in 2005. But his time has run out.

David Tennant has made the Doctor his own in the hearts and minds of millions in a way no-one has done since Tom Baker. He never failed to put in a great performance and, in some stories, he put in the best performance yet in the role. In watching the entire programme from the beginning one thing is clear- William Hartnell finally has his match in this fantastic actor. It is fitting that the Tenth Doctor’s passing nearly rips the TARDIS apart, in a scene that is shot and scored immaculately. ‘I don’t want to go!’ are his last words- and I’m sure that no-one sane wanted him to go either. Matt Smith seems good enough in his short appearance as the end- but he has a hell of an act to follow.

"The Waters of Mars"

2010-01-09T11:21:00.001Z

"The Waters of Mars" sees a return to the ‘base-under-siege’ formula for Doctor Who which, as I said many moons ago, is a very constricting type of story that led to Patrick Troughton’s first full season being rather samey. However, it is soon abundantly clear that Russell T Davies and Phil Ford are intent on doing something interesting with this type of story. We are told that the events that occur on the Martian Bowie Base on 21 November 2059 are as iconic and vital to human history as, say, the destruction of Pompeii. The Doctor knows the names, ages and occupations of everyone on the base, just as well as we know Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin- and he also knows what will happen to them at the end of that day- which is why his catchphrase for this episode is ‘I should really go!’ However, as he said when he was close to the end of another incarnation, ‘Curiosity has always been my downfall’.

The Flood (which seems to be the accepted term for the foe in the story) is, in the style of many memorable Doctor Who adversaries, simply conceived, yet instantly effective and the script uses its threat with an impeccable sense of dynamics, but there is more to the story than a memorable monster. The combination of Phil Ford and Russell T Davies has resulted in a script rich in detail. Even though only Adelaide is given any depth in the script, the characters all seem real people- even Andy, who has all of one scene before he gets Flooded. Conversations between characters give us an impression about what the Earth on 2059- references to a Branson inheritance brings up images of everything from Virgin Inteplanetary to a futuristic Jarndyce v Jarndyce! We also have the first explicit mention of the Ice Warriors, which is welcome and not just gratuitously pleasing the fanboys. Adelaide herself is a compelling figure. Although she is a typically dour base commander, from the start, she is humanised- the message from her daughter instantly shows the warmth in the character. We find out the motivation for her pioneer spirit in a beautiful flashback to her childhood encounter with a Dalek in 2008. The dialogue is suitable evocative- when asked by the Doctor if it was worth it she replies ‘…to stand on a world with no smoke, where the only straight line is the sunlight…Yes. It's worth it.’ Lindsay Duncan is phenomenal in the role (as she has been in practically everything else I have seen her in) giving Adelaide real grit and intelligence, but with a palpable sense of selflessness. All of the Bowie Base members are brilliantly performed- Alan Ruscoe and Chook Sibtain are excellent as the Flood infected crewmen, but I’m sure it is Sharon Duncan Brewster's Maggie who will figure in the nightmares of children, with her horrific ghoulish stare. Graeme Harper continues to prove that a story cannot be bad with him at the controls, making the story seem like the offspring of Silent Running and John Carpenter’s The Thing (together with a nice homage to 28 Days Later). The scenes of the Flood attack are brilliantly shot and choreographed. Scenes which are clichéd become immensely powerful when written by Davies and Ford and directed by Harper. For example, when Steffi faces death, she turns on a message from her children. The message is low in the sound mix and in German (with a Welsh accent, unfortunately!) so the effectiveness of the scene is down to Harper and actress Cosima Shaw, both of whom are fantastic. The special effects are awesome and look fantastic on HD. The realisation of the Flood is phenomenal- leaking water is bloodless, yet gives the faintest impression of haemorrhaging, which is exactly the right way to present a terrifying monster for a family audience. There are a few minor scientific errors, but so what? Who cares that Mars is actually more orange than red? Fires may be impossible in the Martian atmosphere, but burning debris looks great!

However, a very major factor in the story is the Doctor himself. Despite his proclamations, he never goes and it is that which damns him. At the start he is the fun figure we last saw in "Planet of the Dead" and, indeed, declares his intention as ‘fun!’ when asked. However, he is faced with a situation which he cannot alter, as he did in The Aztecs, The Massacre and "The Fires of Pompeii". He once said that the reason he travels is to see history happening in front of him. Here, the grimness of that hits him like a furnace blast. He hears the Bowie crew on his spacesuit radio come up with strategies to survive, only for them all to be dashed. He hears them go down, one by one, hears history being made. And something snaps. In a very short space of time, Adelaide, Yuri and Mia step out of the TARDIS on 21 November 2059- on Earth. The Time Lords are dead- the Doctor is the Lord of Time. Some have wondered why he brought Adelaide, Yuri and Mia to their own time, rather than hiding them in the past or future, but it is impossible that this did not occur to Davies and Ford. The obvious answer is that the Doctor did it because he could- the Time Lord victorious. For the first time we are genuinely scared of the Doctor himself. His justification is frighteningly reminiscent of the Master’s in "Last of the Time Lords"- but only a bit. The Master builds the Paradox Machine to conquer. The Doctor declares himself the Time Lord victorious to save people. However, his chilling talk of ‘little people’ horrifies Adelaide and us and it is Adelaide who saves the future- by her suicide. Horrified, the Doctor turns round- to see Ood Sigma. He has gone too far and knows that the Cloister Bell tolls for him. He is going to die.

I have mentioned several influences for this story, but there is one important one I will now mention: Fury From the Deep. There are many who remember this story as being genuinely terrifying. Listening to it objectively, the terror is there, but buried amongst some interminable longueurs. "The Waters of Mars" is Fury From the Deep as it exists in our imaginations, combined with some incredibly powerful writing, a truly wondrous hour of television.

NEXT: The End of Time

"Planet of the Dead"

2010-01-06T15:39:00.000Z

The first Doctor Who story of 2009 is a simple tale of the Doctor trying to rescue some people on a bus that has travelled through a wormhole. The planet that the passengers arrive on is a barren desert, but he commuters are not alone. A Tritovore ship has crashed, with two of the fly-like beings surviving. But they are not the danger. The planet was once teeming with life and one of the Doctor’s travelling companions can hear the screaming of the planets inhabitants as they died - the danger is a swarm of flying creatures like metallic stingrays who strip planets of anything organic and open wormholes to their next feeding ground- the Earth.

Fortunately, his fellow passengers are more willing to trust him than the last time he was stuck on a bus. The story has a nice, straightforward plot- perhaps a bit too straightforward and not without problems- first on the ‘Why didn’t they just...’ list is why UNIT didn’t just chuck the TARDIS through the wormhole! The commuters are not exactly three-dimensional characters- they are characterised purely by their intended destination rather than anything more detailed. However, the performances manage to compensate for this somewhat. The role of companion is filled by Lady Christina de Souza, an adrenaline junkie with a taste for grand larceny. She is nicely played by Michele Ryan, and she is a resourceful and sparky foil for the Doctor- however it is hard not to see her as being mildly sociopathic. By far the most interesting characters are the UNIT characters. In the Doctor’s absence, they have a new scientific adviser, Dr Malcolm Taylor. Malcolm is a wonderful character, naming units of measurement after himself and making references to Quatermass. This may be another instance of Gareth Roberts letting his inner geek run wild (most kids nowadays would have to ask their grandparents who Quatermass was) but I love him as a character, especially with Lee Evans’s wonderful performance. Although I’m not exactly a fan of Evans as a comedian, when his considerable comic talents are correctly channelled, he is unstoppable. Noma Dumezweni also returns as Captain Erisa Magambo in a performance that refuses to be overshadowed by Evans. Magambo is clearly on the right side, but she is not above pulling a gun on her subordinates for the greater good. She has a hint of the Brigadier in Season 7 about her and, if the Doctor is stranded on Earth again, she would make a good Lethbridge-Stewart for the 21st Century. David Tennant has a last chance to play the Doctor as a fun-loving wanderer and- surprise, surprise- he is excellent.

James Strong makes it all look wonderful and makes sure the actors give it their best. Of course the main production talking point is the move to high definition. The cinematography by Rory Taylor is sublime (for how hi-def Who could have gone wrong, look at the picture on Torchwood Series 1). The special effects are good (although the stingrays look a bit ‘unfinished’) with some great animatronics for the Tritovores and the location filming is great- although I fail to see why they couldn’t have shot it at Camber Sands (or the Welsh equivalent) and used CG matte paintings.

"Planet of the Dead" is good fun, well made with some witty dialogue. It is a bit inconsequential, but there are hints of something dark coming for, as we all know, the Doctor’s song is drawing to an end.

NEXT: "The Waters of Mars"

"The Next Doctor"

2010-01-04T13:40:00.000Z

There is something about the Victorian Christmas that makes it seem more Christmassy than any other type of Christmas. Maybe it's because of Dickens's A Christmas Carol. Maybe it's because such British Christmas symbols as the German Christmas Tree have their roots in the era. This is why it is a genuine thrill to see the Doctor emerge from the TARDIS to be greeted by the sight of carollers, men in stovepipe hats and boys in Norfolk jackets. He is stunned to hear his name being called and rushes to the source- a young woman who, strangely, continues calling for the Doctor, upon which a handsome man, seemingly in his early forties appears. Dressed to the nines in the height of Victorian fashion, he takes control of the situation, brandishing his sonic screwdriver, shouting 'Allons-y!', only then realising that the skinny stranger beside him has done exactly the same thing.

Of course, it soon becomes obvious that this man is not, nor ever will be the Doctor, but a man named Jackson Lake who, in the process of suffering the worst event of his life, suffered dissociative amnesia, a 'fugue'. However, in this case, there was something to replace the memories and personality that had fled- a burst of compressed information about the Doctor. Lake, believing himself to be the Doctor, attempts to live up to 'his' past, with his assistant Rosita, his sonic screwdriver (which is a normal screwdriver) and his TARDIS- 'Tethered Aerial Release Developed In Style'- a balloon! Despite the spectacle of this story, at the heart is the tale of a man in turmoil who has turned to the Doctor for salvation in a way that no-one else ever has. In subconsciously trying to save himself, he has become a genuine hero, not because of the information about the Doctor, but his own innate courage. This is very canny writing by Russell T Davies and is remarkably touching without one being cloying. The story also sees the return of the Cybermen who are up to their old tricks, but with a new, deadlier conclusion. To do this, they need child labour from the workhouses, which leads to the evocative plot of children toiling in the shadow of a vast steampunk machine. We also have the character of Miss Hartigan, a woman clearly born out of her time, whose ambition is enslaved to the Cyber King- a vast Cyberman with the capability of destroying cities and converting multitudes in its belly. Although the Cyber-plan takes second place to the journey of Jackson Lake, it is certainly a diverting plot thread.

The characters are well written and are brought to life by some stellar performances. David Morrisey is outstanding as Jackson Lake in a performance that is both very Victorian and easy for anyone to relate to. The gorgeous Dervla Kirwan is brilliant as Miss Hartigan, whose driving ambition makes her overcome even Cyber-conditioning.

The realisation of the story is sound enough with the scenes of the Cyber-king rising and wreaking havoc being truly awesome. However, director Andy Goddard sometimes takes his eye off the ball- Dutch angles are used so arbitrarily it sometimes appears that the camera was tilted by accident and there are some framing problems. The editing, too is a bit off. However, the cinematographic skills of Ernest Vincze do a great deal towards correcting this, as do the fantastic production values.

Although not 100% successful, "The Next Doctor" is tremendous fun and still way ahead of most 20th Century Cyberman stories.

NEXT: "Planet of the Dead"

"The Stolen Earth"/ "Journey's End"

2009-12-30T13:52:00.001Z

Rose. Martha. Captain Jack and Torchwood. Sarah Jane and Luke. The Daleks. Harriet Jones. This was what we were promised in the teaser for "The Stolen Earth" and it was an increasingly poorly kept secret that Davros was returning. In addition to this, we have the return of Mickey and Jackie and not one, but two Doctors- the phrase ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ springs to mind, but this will be the last regular Doctor Who story until 2010 and so it must have that end-of term feeling of going out with a bang. The Daleks return in a truly spectacular manner- the Earth is moved across space to a location amongst 26 other planets. They do their usual thing of mercilessly subduing any opposition, but this merely incidental. Their ultimate plan is their most ambitious and masterful one since, erm, The Dalek Master Plan. These Daleks were born when Dalek Caan managed to do the impossible and travel back to the Time War. Despite the fact that his sanity was destroyed he managed to bring back Davros himself. Unwittingly taking a leaf from Sutekh’s papyrus, this new Dalek Empire intends to destroy all matter except themselves, leaving them the only life forms in every Universe and every dimension and reality, by using the gravitational fields on the 27 planets to amplify the effects of the ‘reality bomb’. This is a threat that dwarfs even the collapse of the Universe in Logopolis.

The return of practically every recurring character that appeared in the programme since its revival could have resulted in a self-indulgent mess, but Davies knows what he is doing and he understands the characters he has invented and the audience's reaction to them. The webcam session where they all meet is cannily constructed with Rose being an outsider, which probably gave the Martha worshippers a warm feeling inside. It is obvious from Rose's first materialisation that all these characters have changed. Rose spends a lot of time carrying a gun the size of a porpoise. Martha, clad in black, literally holds the key to the destruction of the Earth. As Davros says, the Doctor takes ordinary people and fashions them into weapons. Davies still manages to lighten scenes with some very funny lines- Wilfred's reason for not having a webcam had me in stitches and, of course, even the Daleks know who Harriet Jones is. I also love the fact that the mysterious Shadow Proclamation that has been hinted at since "Rose" is merely a police force, seemingly made up of Judoon and what look like space-age albino versions of the Bennet family from Pride and Prejudice. The cliffhanger is the most thrilling yet and its resolution, although it seems cheap at first, makes sense in terms of the programme's continuity and results in serious plot developments.

Graeme Harper gives this story the epic treatment it deserves with scenes looking incredibly cinematic. He is helped by the most spectacular special effects the programme has had up to this point, from the Dalek attack on the Valiant, to the flotilla of Dalek saucers to the awesome Crucible. Harper makes sure that all the performers are up to scratch. Any quibbles about Piper's performance in "Turn Left" are instantly quashed- Rose Tyler is definitely back with a wonderful performance by Piper. We also see the welcome return of Jackie and Mickey and, I must again heap praise upon Noel Clarke for another moving, yet very dignified performance. However, the best performance is definitely Julian Bleach as Davros. Bleach is definitely Michael Wisher's equal in realising the role, being both cold and calculating and a shrieking madman. The make-up is a fitting update for the character and anyone who wished to know what Davros had under his tunic get the unpleasant shock that they deserve.

This is very much the end of an era, so we are fittingly, given a series of endings that bring to mind Return of the King. We are taken back to Bad Wolf bay again and Rose is left in the parallel universe with the other Doctor. This manages to work because of the deep understanding of the characters that Russell T Davies has. Rose has a selfish streak, but it is proved here that she is not, ultimately, a truly selfish person. However, any emotion that Rose's second departure might have had is eclipsed by the rueful fate of Donna Noble. Of the companions who have travelled with the Doctor, Donna started off with the least and developed the most- a thirtysomething temp from Chiswick becomes half- Time Lord and saves all of creation. However, her human body cannot cope with the intelligence of a Time Lord so, to save her life, the Doctor removes from her memory all of her experiences with him. Once again, she is the eternal temp, eagerly awaiting a new Pringle flavour. Catherine Tate was never less than spectacular as Donna in a performance that should have silenced all her critics, but didn’t, as her critics could not see past their own prejudices. In my opinion, she was the best companion since the return of the programme, a character that was always interesting to watch and I will miss her.

We end on the Doctor being alone (thankfully not jarred by a teaser for the Christmas Special) after a real thrill-fest that had me gripped throughout. And yes, that includes towing the Earth home!

NEXT: "The Next Doctor"

"Turn Left"

2009-12-28T15:06:00.001Z

Ever since It’s a Wonderful Life, the ‘What if X was not there?’ storyline has been used many times in film and television and it was time for this question to be asked in a Doctor Who episode: What if the Doctor wasn’t there to save us? We are presented with a world where the Doctor died as a result of the encounter with the Empress of the Racnoss. As a consequence, Martha dies when the Judoon steal the Royal Hope Hospital (together with Sarah Jane, who was the only one who stepped up in the absence of the Doctor). The starship Titanic crashes into Buckingham Palace, causing a nuclear explosion that devastates the south of England, causing the breakdown of British society. The USA would help, but the Adipose have harvested their young from the fat of America (one wonders why they didn’t do that in the first place!) Torchwood (with the obvious exception of Captain Jack) also give their lives immolated with the burning of the poison sky. We are presented with a Britain that is truly broken, where martial law is in operation and, eventually, non-British people get shipped off to labour camps. Some may find this a bit too grim, too 'adult', but this is what life would be like without the Doctor- a bit too close to real life for comfort. And it is clear that it isn’t just Britain or even the Earth that is affected. Overhead, without any fuss, the stars are going out...

I have said that the question is what if the Doctor wasn’t there to save us. However, it is soon obvious that the real question is what if Donna wasn’t there to save the Doctor? For the whole thing is brought on by a mysterious fortune teller on the planet of Shan Shen. Somehow, she is persuaded not to take up the job that led to her meeting the Doctor. This is the story of Donna Noble, the temp from Chiswick, whose normal life was ruined, but not destroyed by the horrors that were unleashed upon Britain. This episode is very much Catherine Tate’s and any lingering complaints about her performance should have been thoroughly eradicated. Donna is recognisably the same gobby woman from "The Runaway Bride", but Tate gives her more depth, understanding that Donna is not the one-shot character she once was. She can be crass and rude (such as in her initial treatment of Rocco Colasanto) but she shows real determination and grit and we love her for it. Bernard Cribbins works his inestimable magic in another delightful performance as Wilfred, but Jacqueline King deserves special praise for her excellent performance as Sylvia, effortlessly showing the fight draining out of her. Rocco is played by Joseph Long in a performance that initially screams ‘comedy foreigner’, which makes his eventual fate even more shocking and tragic in a wonderfully judged performance. However, there is another significant character- a mysterious blonde woman who rushes into Donna’s life at key points. Rose is back, although it has to be said that Billie Piper seems to be a tiny bit uncomfortable in the role, like wearing an old pair of shoes. It is wonderful to see her again, however, and her performance is good, in spite of Piper’s uncertainty.

Davies wrote the great script, but it is the masterful direction of Graeme Harper which binds it all together. Scenes of office mundanity are punctuated with tragedy, a bucolic Christmas is shattered by nuclear holocaust. Then, of course there is the unforgettable scene where Donna travels back in time. The beetle on her back is a very basic animatronic creation, but Harper’s direction makes it genuinely creepy. Harper also makes sure that the effects are as blinding as they have always been and Murray Gold provides another outstanding score.

This is a triumphant and thrilling story anchored by a phenomenal performance by Tate. Donna not only saves the Doctor, but saves the world (This is most emphatically *not* a reference to the execrable Heroes). However, Rose whispers two words that, as before, appear everywhere. The cloister bell rings...

NEXT: "The Stolen Earth"/ "Journey's End"

Happy Hogswatch to all of you at home!

2009-12-26T03:37:00.000Z

Back in a few days...

"Midnight"

2009-12-23T13:30:00.000Z

There are many Doctor Who stories that have the Doctor turning up to find a crisis, winning over the dissenters, quelling the enemy and saving the day. This is not what happens in "Midnight". The Doctor is on the eponymous planet and decides to take a trip to see its famous Sapphire Waterfall. He makes friends with his co-travellers and everything seems peachy. Then, a threat emerges and the Doctor, to use a bit of an understatement, loses the room. Russell T Davies weaves one of the most frightening tales the programme has told. The threat is inexplicable at the start and equally inexplicable at the end and the way it manifests itself is simple, yet extremely creepy. Banging and knocking is heard outside the bus and the lights go out. When they go back on, the front seats have been ripped up and Sky Silvestry, one of the passengers, is behaving rather oddly. First she repeats what everyone is saying, then speaks simultaneously, first with all of them, then with the Doctor alone. And it has only just begun.

In such a claustrophobic setting (influenced by Hitchcock's Lifeboat) characters are important. What we have here are various types, ranging from a professor and his assistant to an ordinary family. The Doctor, as said before, establishes a rapport with them. But as the entity asserts itself, the Doctor finds out his charm does not work. Instead of being reassured by him, they are annoyed and finally enraged. Instead of them finding the best in themselves, they give way to their worst. The Doctor’s usual tricks do not work; when they are discussing whether or not to throw the possessed Sky out of the airlock, the Doctor’s ‘Could you really do it?’ is answered immediately in the affirmative. In the end, the creature speaks the Doctor’s words before he does and the rest of the passengers are all too keen to believe that the creature has possessed the Doctor- it is easier to deal with a practically catatonic man. It is only the doubts of the Hostess that enable the day to be saved, as she sacrifices herself to launch Sky out of the airlock. The survivors make the return journey in silence. Throughout all of this, one thing is clear- no-one but Sky and (at the end) the Doctor were affected by the creature- all that foulness came from their own frightened souls. These characters are played to perfection by a very talented cast. David Troughton is, of course, one of the finest actors in the country and he makes Professor Hobbes seem at first to be a likeable old academic who then gives way to his jealousy as he finds he is not the smartest man in the room. Lindsey Coulson and Daniel Ryan effectively play a couple who suggest that The Daily Mail is still in circulation in the far-future. Everyone’s favourite jug-eared young warlock, Colin Morgan, plays their son. In the key role of Sky Silvestry, Lesley Sharp is astonishing, even on the merely technical level of her repetition and simultaneous talking. She effortlessly changes her bearing and gait throughout the episode to awesome and chilling effect, making the unnamed creature a truly memorable foe.

Alice Troughton directs with great confidence, squeezing every drop of tension from the scenes. There is a wonderful sequence where the Doctor, Driver Joe and Claude the mechanic look onto the Midnight landscape- and Claude swears he sees a shadow moving quickly towards them. We see nothing, but this simple scene is so well done that we half-remember seeing the shadow. The sound design is exemplary, adding to the sense of claustrophobic terror- and it goes without saying that the matte paintings for the Midnight planetscapes are spectacular.

Donna once said that the Doctor needs someone to stop him. "Midnight" shows that sometimes he just needs someone to help him connect, in a masterful 45 minutes of humour, tension and real scares.

NEXT: "Turn Left"

"Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead"

2009-12-21T14:06:00.001Z

The Stephen Moffat story is always a highlight of the relaunched Doctor Who and here, he is given a two-parter for the first time since 2005. Moffat’s previous stories have had interesting ideas, explorations of primal fears, great characters and fantastic dialogue and "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" certainly has that. The setting is a planet called ‘The Library’, because that is what it is, a repository for every book ever published. But The Library is silent, its aisles and reading rooms empty. Into this, the Doctor and Donna land and are soon joined by a group of archaeologists in the pay of Strackman Lux (whose family own the library) trying to find out what happened- and find something horrible. The main monsters in the story are the Vashta Nerada, microscopic creatures that can strip a human body of its flesh in less than a second and hunt in swarms that look like shadows. Any shadow. Moffat has taken a very common childhood fear and relaunched it in our consciousness with instantly effective results. However, his inventiveness doesn’t stop there. The communications system that the archaeologists use is ‘wirelessly’ connected with the user’s nervous system, an arrangement that has a disturbing side-effect. When the user dies, their thoughts are stored for a while in their communicators- a ‘data ghost’. In a very memorable scene, the ditzy Miss Evangelista is killed by the Vashta Nerada, leaving only a skeleton. However, her voice remains, asking where it is, asking to speak to Donna (the last person who was kind to her) before her thoughts eventually break down and her voice loops on one phrase: ‘ice cream’.

All this occurs in "Silence in the Library", but there are greater terrors to follow. Donna is teleported back to the safety of the TARDIS, but her teleportation stream is intercepted. "Silence in the Library" ends with Donna’s face on an information node stating repeatedly: ‘Donna Noble has left The Library. Donna Noble has been saved. In "Forest of the Dead", we find that she is seemingly living a normal life, but she soon figures out something is wrong. Her life appears to be edited like a film, with boring bits like walking cut out. However, the mysterious figure of Doctor Moon is there to reassure her that everything is fine and she settles down. But a visit from Miss Evangelista (who has also been saved, but imperfectly) brings to light something terrible- her children are not real. Donna refuses to believe this and, when even they say ‘We’re not real, are we Mummy?’ she sobs, holding them tight in a vain effort to stop them blinking out of existence. This is something which must have stirred a feeling of solipsistic horror with anyone who was watching, particularly parents- what if our loved ones only existed in our minds? This is connected to the key to this whole mystery- the strange girl who dreams of the library in her sleep. We first see the Doctor and Donna as intruding characters in her dreams. Doctor Moon is there too and he chillingly states to her: ‘The real world is a lie, and your nightmares are real’. For ‘Doctor Moon’ is really the virus-checking satellite of ‘The Library’ and the girl is the personality and mind of Strackman’s aunt, who suffered from a terminal illness as a child- Charlotte Abigail Lux: CAL. She stored the teleportation streams of all the survivors to her hard drive- they have, quite literally, been saved.

There are so many ideas in this story, it seems fit to burst- but it never does. One reason for this is that Moffat never forgets character. Each character is well written and played, with Steve Pemberton making Strackman Lux more than the usual ruthless magnate and Talulah Riley being delightful as the scatter-brained Miss Evangelista. We have the inimitable Colin Salmon as Doctor Moon. Moffat even comments on the fact that you seldom see two people with the same name in a story, so we have two Daves here. However, the key supporting character is River Song. This is a character who is engaging from the very start, but it is clear that she knows more about the Doctor than appearances would indicate. She is a companion from his future, one whom he has known as a fellow traveller and, perhaps, as something more. She can send messages to the Doctor’s psychic paper. She has a future version of the Sonic Screwdriver at her disposal. And, most critically, she whispers the Doctor’s greatest secret into his ear- his true name. This is great stuff on paper, but it would not work anything like it should were the performers not up to scratch. Alex Kingston is utterly electrifying from her entrance and her rapport with Tennant is fantastic. This is the reason why we believe it when the Doctor dives into the core of The Library to save a woman he has just met. The Doctor is more compromised than he has been for ages, yet he is as bold, brilliant and downright fantastic as he has ever been. Catherine Tate, however, is not to be overshadowed and her performance, especially in the scenes in the virtual reality of CAL.

Euros Lyn puts in his best work yet in this story. The ‘CAL world’ is like a 21st century version of the Matrix in The Deadly Assassin and Lyn’s work would do David Maloney proud. A huge array of moods and settings are thrown up by the story and Lyn is more than equal to the task of moulding them into a cohesive whole. He is helped by the usual sterling efforts of the production team, with great cinematography, sets, costumes and special effects.

"Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" broke Doctor Who’s winning streak at the prestigious Hugo awards, but this is still a fantastic piece of television that is full of emotion, terror and excitement. Most of all, it has hope for the future, that the Doctor’s best days are ahead of him- a man who can quell an army with a single glance, who can open the TARDIS with a click of his fingers. I can’t wait...

NEXT: "Midnight"

"The Unicorn and the Wasp"

2009-12-19T13:05:00.000Z

I have never been a fan of Agatha Christie- perhaps I was spoiled by the excellent TV adaptations with Joan Hickson and David Suchet, but I find her books rather lacking as literature and nothing like as good as the adaptations. I am obviously in the minority here, which is why it is the Dame of Detection who is chosen to be the next great historical figure for the Doctor to meet. Gareth Roberts creates a story that is as close to being an all-out comedy as the revived programme has been. The script is littered with allusions to Christie titles that get (intentionally) less subtle as the story goes on. The episode is full of pastiches of Christie, from the teaser (which also has a hint of Cluedo) to the whole set up. A diverse group of people at a country house, murder, red herrings galore and all the suspects brought together in a drawing room for the dénouement. Of course the villain isn’t a venal cad or a forgotten illegitimate scion, but a giant alien wasp- this is Doctor Who after all! However, despite the gags, this is not just a parody. The inspiration for the story is Christie’s real life disappearance in 1926, and Christie’s mental state is dealt with effectively and sympathetically. Roberts might be a Christie fan, but he is well aware of her critics- she says herself that she does not consider her work to be great literature. Roberts cannily addresses another criticism of Christie- that she does not give death itself the appropriate weight in her stories- by having her chide the Doctor about his flippancy. The characters might be stock Christie on the surface, but there is more under the surface- the juxtaposition between the characters’ alibis and what they were really doing does this comedically, but Donna’s realisation that Roger’s footman (and lover) cannot openly mourn his death is touching. Of course, the reason why the plot is like a Christie pastiche is because the villain is unconsciously making it so- a nice touch.

Graeme Harper is easily up to directing this script, showing a flair for comedy that is not surprising, if you remember his helming of the Rik Mayall sitcom The New Statesman. The juxtapositions in the depositions of the suspects are dealt with in style, as is the main comedy set-piece, the Doctor’s hilarious ‘detox session’. The period production is dealt with in the BBC’s usual degree of excellence. The titular wasp is a great creation, although its sound could have been more effective. The guest performances are perfect. Leena Dhingra is always good value and it is always wonderful to see Felicity Kendal. Christopher Benjamin returns to Doctor Who in another hugely entertaining performance and Tom Goodman-Hill is great as Reverend Golightly, spouting Anglican platitudes one minute and buzzing with alien fury the next. Fenella Woolgar is simply outstanding as Christie, giving her a sense of fun while still portraying her sadder side. Tennant and Tate have a whale of a time and their enthusiasm is obvious in every scene.

"The Unicorn and the Wasp" is the bees knees (sorry!) and comes highly recommended.

NEXT: "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead"

"The Doctor's Daughter"

2009-12-16T15:12:00.001Z

...And so, the TARDIS whisks off Martha, together with the Doctor and Donna to Messaline, a planet that is the location of a war between humans and Hath, a race of fish-like humanoids. The war has a horrendously high body count, which is why cloning machines replenish the fighting force daily. Sure enough, when the TARDIS crew arrives, the Doctor accidentally sticks his hand into one of these machines to produce... well, you know! The world of Messaline is certainly an intriguing one and Stephen Greenhorn comes up with some intriguing ideas. The trouble is, there is simply too much plot for any of these ideas to be properly explored. A common criticism of the new series is that single 45-minute episodes mean that stories are rushed. I do not agree with this, but it is certainly a valid criticism of this story. A two-part version would have let the story breathe and improved it no end. In addition, there are some plot problems. For example, Donna discovers that the war has only been going on for seven days (yes, yes, Genesis chapter 1) but General Cobb is clearly not a fresh clone. Does he know the truth, or is it just an oversight by the writers? The quest for the Source is the driving force for the two armies, yet there is no time for this to be explored properly, making the closing act a bit half-baked.

Alice Troughton makes it all look fantastic, and she is helped by the usual sterling work of the production team- Messaline is excellently realised, with some fantastically stark CG landscapes. The script doesn’t exactly have the most original characters, so it is a relief that the cast is so good. Nigel Terry gives Cobb a real sense of authority and Joe Dempsie is good as Cline. However, it is the title character, played by Georgia Moffett, who is the most memorable. Jenny might not be the best written character, but Georgia is incredibly charismatic and likeable. It is great to see Martha travelling in the TARDIS again and her isolation from the others means that she really shines in her scenes with the Hath (can she understand them, or is she a good guesser?) although the scene where she is rescued from the quicksand could have used a different take, as it doesn't show Frema at her best as an actor. David Tennant is great as usual- the scene with the toy mouse is priceless and his changing attitude to Jenny is excellently portrayed, particularly Jenny's apparent death.

This is good fun as a story, but it really isn’t anything to get too excited about. With a two-parter, Greenhorn could have written a very arresting sci-fi tale. He is by no means a bad writer, however- there is some excellent dialogue and it is worth checking out- though probably not as your first episode!

NEXT: "The Unicorn and the Wasp"

The Sontaran Stratagem"/ "The Poison Sky"

2009-12-14T14:49:00.000Z

Helen Raynor’s previous Doctor Who story was "Daleks in Manhattan" / "Evolution of the Daleks", which I consider to be the nadir of the relaunched programme by a considerable margin. So it was with great trepidation that I awaited the broadcast of this two-parter. Happily, Raynor provides a far better script this time. The Sontarans storm back and it is obvious that Raynor and Russell T Davies really understand these monsters. Unlike the Daleks and the Cybermen, these are not creatures who have been altered to remove or restrict emotions, but are merely conditioned to be bellicose from birth (or hatching). This obviously means that they are easier to characterise and Raynor does this excellently- the face-off between the Doctor and General Staal at the climax is brilliantly written. The plot is simple, but not predictable and shows inventiveness . The setting at the Rattigan Academy at first seems like something out of The Sarah Jane Adventures, but is incorporated well into the story. Most importantly the script has coherence and internal consistency, the lack of which damned Raynor’s previous Dalek two-parter. The pseudo science is no less fake than in "Daleks in Manhattan" / "Evolution of the Daleks", but it doesn’t contradict itself and such is the verve of the story that it can be forgiven, even the quite extraordinary method used to disseminate the Poison Sky- surely burning it would use up all the oxygen, asphyxiating the Earth even more quickly? The story is helmed by Douglas Mackinnon who directs with great verve, and energy, effectively dealing with spectacular scenes, such as the appearance of the Valiant, to more intimate ones such as Donna’s reunion with her family.

The characters are also well written. Child geniuses are seldom appealing characters, but Luke Rattigan is very memorable and is excellently played by Ryan Sampson. His arrogance is to the fore early on, but his betrayal by the Sontarans leaves him sobbing like an infant on the floor and his redemption is very moving. This story sees the return of UNIT, led by Rupert Holliday-Evans’s Colonel Mace, who plays the Brigadier role (the real one is mentioned for the first time this century and has received a knighthood- hurrah!) and it is good to see that the non-commissioned end of the ranks is not full of stereotypical army grunts. We have the wonderful character of Private Harris, played by Clive Standen, who discovers the clone in the basement. He acts like a typical squaddie, taunting General Staal about his height, yet displays intelligence and sympathy when examining the clone. Staal is played brilliantly by Christopher Ryan, who makes the character a very believable leader of an army of clone warriors, yet is not above humour. The look of the Sontarans takes the best from their previous appearances (i.e. the Kevin Lindsay versions) and updates them with 21st Century prosthetic techniques with very impressive results.

One thing I was very much looking forward to was the return of Martha. Miss Jones is now Dr Jones and Freema Agyeman effortlessly shows her as being more mature, with more responsibility, but still the Martha we know and love. Her performance as her evil clone is nicely underplayed and all the more sinister for that. Donna is great in this, displaying her ‘supertemp’ skills and it is always great to see her family. Anyone expecting a cat-fight between Martha and Donna were to be disappointed and their relationship is good- although I love their differing responses to the Doctor’s safe return. The Doctor is presented in a way closer to the Jon Pertwee era than ever before and David Tennant plays the part with his usual excellence. Raynor wrote very generic Doctor material in her previous story, but this time she goes for archetypal- the Doctor saves the day by inspiring someone to be better.

"The Sontaran Stratagem"/ "The Poison Sky" is wonderful fun and proves that Ms Raynor had it in her all along.

NEXT: "The Doctor's Daughter"

"Planet of the Ood"

2009-12-12T11:36:00.000Z

One minor niggle that I had with "The Impossible Planet"/ "The Satan Pit" was that the Doctor didn’t show more outrage at the fact that humanity was using another race as slaves. This is addressed in this story- as the Time Lord himself says, he feels he ‘owes the Ood one’. We are taken to the Ood sphere (‘Near the planet Sense Sphere’, forging a link in fiction to the Sensorites, the Ood’s conceptual forbears) where we see genteel corporate types being offered cut-price deals on the ‘product’ sold by Ood Operations, while Ood are shipped throughout the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire like battery hens in crates, after they have been ‘processed’. However, there is a problem- the Ood are developing ‘Red-eye’ a phenomenon familiar to those who recall "The Impossible Planet"/ "The Satan Pit" and it is clear that the 'relationship' between the two races is coming to a crossroads. It seems odd at first that the Doctor is barely involved in the outcome at all- yet this is not really in the spirit of the story. The Ood should not be saved by an outsider and, despite the horror that they go through, notably the removal of their hind-brain to ‘process’ them, it is a processed Ood, Ood Sigma, who becomes the Toussaint L'ouverture of his race. The idea of the hind-brain seems a bit unlikely- I find it hard to believe that they could have evolved this system naturally, selfish gene and all that, but it makes up part of some very interesting world building.

Graeme Harper does his usual excellent job in the director’s chair, crafting the episode with great skill. The teaser for the episode begins with an advertisement for Ood Operations which says a great deal about society in the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire with great economy. There are many memorable scenes, shot and cut with great energy, with a special mention for the horrific scene where Halpen meets his comeuppance. Harper is helped by the usual strong show from design and production. The Ood sphere is an excellently realised ice planet and the sets are simple, yet effective. Murray Gold provides a very spooky Ligeti-inspired score that is amongst his best work. The cast is superb, with Tim McInnerny brilliant as the amoral, yet believable Halpen and the lovely Ayesha Dharker playing Solana, a person who is not bad but, ultimately, is just not good enough.

As said, the Doctor plays only a minor role, yet he is present to observe all events and it is his relationship with Donna that compensates for his lack of active involvement. At first, Donna is shocked by the sight of a dying Ood, yet that quickly turns to sympathy. The scene where the Doctor enables her to hear the Song of the Ood is very moving and Catherine Tate puts her all into the role in a great performance. David Tennant plays the Doctor as wanting to solve the crisis, as usual, but he is perfectly happy to see it solved without him and graciously asks to play a small part. David Tennant is wonderful- yet again.

With a serious message about slavery (including digs at present day corporations) "Planet of the Ood" is a very entertaining story as well, and I eagerly await the Doctor’s involvement in the liberation of the Functionaries of Inter Minor.

NEXT: "The Sontaran Stratagem"/ "The Poison Sky"

"The Fires of Pompeii"

2009-12-09T15:06:00.000Z

For Donna’s first trip in the TARDIS, we are taken to Roman times but the Doctor does not land in Rome as expected- there is only one hill on the horizon and the tremors indicate just which Roman city they are in. The destruction of Pompeii (and the nearby town of Herculaneum) forms a great backdrop to a hugely enjoyable story. The magma chamber of Vesuvius is host to a race of igneous invaders, the Pyrovilesm who have been awoken by the increasing volcanic activity. However, this is not the only odd thing. As with all Roman cities, there are augaries and soothsayers, but the prognosticators of Pompeii are not full of vague mumblings about the future- every soothsayer tells the truth, because the eruption was so violent that it briefly cracked the structure of space-time. Of course they don’t know this and insist that it is because they imbibe the vapours of Vesuvius. The trouble is, the Pyroviles are silicon based life forms and they are reconstructing themselves in the bodies of those who inhale the sands of their remains. This is a plot full of great ideas, yet there is much room for humour. The names of Caecilius, Metella and Quintus are pretty familiar to anyone who studied Latin in the Anglophone world. Other names have a touch of Asterix about them. There is a priceless homage to Mary Poppins and the gag about the TARDIS translation system- if you speak actual Latin, a Roman thinks you’re speaking ‘Celtic’ (which prompts Caecilius to respond with every stock Welsh phrase short of ‘boyo’). There are a very few clunky bits (notably Caecilius coining the word ‘volcano’) but they are very much in the minority.

The characterisation is not as good as it could be, but this is more than made up for by the strenth of the performances. Peter Capaldi’s impressive range as an actor can be seen in his two most famous roles- the sweet, gawky Danny in Local Hero and the human spitting-cobra that is Malcolm Tucker in The Thick of it and In the Loop. Capaldi is utterly charming as Caecilius and his family is also great fun (although it was odd seeing Francesca Fowler, as the only other thing I have seen her in is a very different sort of character in HBO’s Rome). We also have the brilliant Phil Davies as Lucius Petrus Dextrus and a nice little cameo for Phil Cornwell.

Colin Teague makes the whole thing look fantastic. There is a real energy to the scenes, of which many stand out- the ‘prophecy face-off’ between Evelina and Petrus, the brilliantly atmospheric scenes set in the chamber of the Sybilline Sisterhood. A mention must be made of the special effects, which are truly outstanding. The Pyroviles are excellently realised and there is the fantastic eruption- the scene where the Doctor and Donna are running from the escape pod has a complicated CG effect in a tracking movement, something that feels positively cinematic. The production design is flawless helped, no doubt, by the shooting at Cinecittà Studios in Rome.

Above all, this is a great story for the Doctor and his companion. Donna is, at first, thoroughly enthused by Pompeii, but she becomes angry at the Doctor for his refusal to prevent the deaths, and her anger becomes tearful pleading. The Doctor, as we are explicitly told for the first time, cannot change certain events and it is here we find out why- if Pompeii had not been destroyed, the Pyroviles would have enslaved the earth. Yet Donna manages to convince him to save Caecilius and his family in a scene of great power and wonder- I like to imagine that the Doctor was thinking of leaving Anne Chaplet to her fate in The Massacre. Tate and Tennant are both utterly stunning in this story, a good sign for the future.

This is a hugely enjoyable story that manages to overcome all the obstacles in its path. Even the ending, which should be cheesy, is touching. A real favourite.

NEXT: "Planet of the Ood"

"Partners in Crime"

2009-12-07T14:07:00.000Z

The opener of the 2008 season is a jolly tale about a miracle slimming cure with some rather unusual side effects. Of course, the Doctor is interested, but we also see the return of the Runaway Bride herself, who has regretted her decision to not accompany the Doctor on her travels. The plot is quirky and easy enough to follow and, again, does not centre on an invasion of Earth, which is refreshing. The major niggle I have is that the Doctor and (especially) Donna’s involvement was the only thing that made the Adipose plan an actual threat- true, the Doctor does point this out, but a little guilt would have been nice. However, the writing is as good as ever, with the story being pitched as more of a light comedy- scenes of the Doctor and Donna missing each other are well staged and gags and great lines flow like wine. "Partners in Crime" doesn’t have to introduce a new character, but this does not mean that there is no character work- Donna is cannily written as being on the other side of a divide from Rose. Rose is young, but can see only a life of chips and TV in front of her, whereas Donna is in her mid-thirties and has the additional feeling that life has passed her by (Martha has purpose and a future even before she meets the Doctor). This means that her joy at being reunited with the Doctor is palpable and felt by all of us.

James Strong again helms the show with great skill in an episode with some stunning scenes. The Adipose babies are lovable, without being unbearably cute, and the CGI of them swarming (assisted by Weta Digital) is jaw-dropping. I love the Close Encounters inspired space-ship at the end and Stacey’s dissolution into Adipose. However, the best scene involves no special effects at all- the wordless conversation between the Doctor and Donna when they first meet. The performances are excellent, with Sarah Lancashire being great as villainess Miss Foster. The legendary Bernard Cribbins returns, with his character revealed as being Donna’s grandfather in a very likeable performance. However, it is the return of Catherine Tate that attracts the most attention. Here she is less brash, but still full of the same spirit she had in "The Runaway Bride". She is very likeable throughout, and I had no problem with spending the next 14 weeks with her. David Tennant clearly enjoys working with her and their on-screen chemistry is wonderful.

So it’s off into time and space again for new adventures- but hang on; who’s that girl?

NEXT: "The Fires of Pompeii"

"Voyage of the Damned"

2009-12-05T13:32:00.000Z

"Voyage of the Damned" is pure action escapism, providing a Doctor Who spin on the likes of The Poseidon Adventure- by this time, Doctor Who had become a Christmas tradition like a big movie and the OTT nature of the story fits well in the festive season, even with a replica of the Titanic swooping over Buckingham Palace! The characters are engaging and Davies supplies us with his usual fun dialogue- Mr Copper’s unique take on Earth culture is a highlight. The ‘monsters’ are the host, very reminiscent of the titular automatons in The Robots of Death, but whose angelic form recalls a more recent adversary. If there is a criticism, perhaps it lacks the heart of so many other Doctor Who episodes- even Astrid’s passing does not quite move us in the way it should, in a rare case of inadequate character writing by Davies. This is the first time that the credited guest has died and it should really have had more impact. This is purely a character problem- the dialogue is wonderful, when it could be cheesy: 'You're not falling, Astrid; you're flying'.

The story looks and sounds fantastic and we know we are in good directorial hands with James Strong. The episode is stuffed with fantastic set pieces that are thoroughly exciting with stunning special effects. The cast is hugely impressive- Geoffrey Palmer as the Captain exudes dignity and regret, and Russell Tovey is very charismatic as Midshipman Frame. George Costigan is imperiously sleazy as Max Capricorn. The band of survivors are all engagingly played from Jimmy Vee’s Bannakaffalatta to Clive Swift’s hilarious Mr Copper and Rickston Slade, played by the fascinatingly bug-eyed Gray O'Brien. The big guest star is, of course, Kylie Minogue as Astrid. It is easy to forget that Kylie started off as an actress and she exudes the same charisma as she did on Neighbours, making Astrid a very likeable character.

The Doctor is more of an action hero, as befits a disaster movie and David Tennant makes this work perfectly- the moment where he takes charge over the loathsome Rickston makes you want to punch the air. The Doctor even gains a new companion, only to lose her, watching her ghostly form dissolve before his eyes. It is not surprising that at the end, the Doctor is on his own again and wishes to stay that way.

"Voyage of the Damned" lacks some of the substance or soul of previous stories, but it is very well made and supremely entertaining- if you are in the right frame of mind, you will have a blast!

NEXT: "Partners in Crime"

"Time Crash"

2009-12-02T13:41:00.000Z

2007’s Children in Need featured this fun mini episode which, for the first time in the 21st Century, had the Doctor meet one of his past selves. Like "Born Again" it is basically a scene with two actors and no elaborate special effects. The plot makes sense, but it is the opportunity to see Tennant and Davison together that really makes this work. Davison is instantly the Doctor again, although his age (simply, but very effectively accounted for in the plot) does make it feel different- Davison was younger at his departure than Tennant was at his debut, but Davison was older than Hartnell was in "An Unearthly Child" when "Time Crash" was shot. There are references to the past and a load of technobabble- yet such is Steven Moffat’s skill that it feels necessary and, of course, there is Moffat’s usual high-quality dialogue- the Tenth Doctor’s appraisal of the Fifth and the Fifth’s reaction to it is priceless.

Tenant works well with Davison and, unsurprisingly, both put in stellar performances, the characters establishing a rapport that grows with every second, only for it to collapse when Ten tries to high-five Five. It is an affectionate tribute to one of the best Doctors ever that never seems self-indulgent. It doesn’t matter if you aren’t familiar with the Davison era- this will leave you with a warm feeling inside and images of leopard-skin TARDIS interiors and Belgium sized holes in the space-time continuum.

NEXT: "Voyage of the Damned"

"The Sound of Drums"/ "Last of the Time Lords"

2009-12-01T13:40:00.000Z

"He who would Valiant be
'Gainst all disaster.
Let him in constancy,
Follow the Master."

The name ‘Mr Saxon’ has been cropping up all over the shop in this season and here, we discover his identity. The Master has returned and is now Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is here that the longest story the programme has had since its return, continues. "The Sound of Drums" has the TARDIS crew more helpless than they have ever been before- there are no old friends that they can rely on, no allies they can convert- they are on their own. The Doctor formulates a plan to stop the Master, but he is outguessed and the Master punishes the Doctor with a gleeful sadism, before opening the door to an invasion of Earth. There is no stopping this and the planet suffers under the Master’s rule for a year. In "Last of the Time Lords", the Doctor is humiliated on a daily basis and Jack is tortured and killed over and over again. The only hope is the legendary figure of Martha Jones, who wanders the planet armed with the knowledge that will finally defeat the Master. A very vocal minority of fans seem to regard this story as a travesty but in my opinion, they are so unbelievably wrong that I sometimes wonder whether they were watching the same thing as I was. This is a story that shows how effective an adversary the Master is- he seemingly has the Doctor outmanoeuvred at every turn. Russell T Davies makes him a match for the Doctor in every respect- he has the same wit and way with words, the same intelligence. This is clearly not your usual adversary, which is why Davies’s script doesn’t follow the typical finale pattern, but has surprises at every turn.

The effectiveness of this is due to Davies’s usual strong writing, most crucially in the characterisation. This is a story that paints images of humanity crushed, of floating killer spheres patrolling the skies, of entire countries being incinerated, of a fleet of spaceships stretching across continents, poised to hurl themselves into interstellar war. However, that is not what the story is about. The story is about the Doctor and the Master. From the start, it is clear that the Doctor’s attitude to his adversary is very different. The grim determination against an adversary is there, as usual, but there is something else- the Doctor actually needs the Master as a peer. The Master comes across as a truly awesome adversary here, a man who gasses the people who helped him into office, who obliterates Japan and piles humiliation on those he has defeated. Yet there is something else there. The Master is married, yet this is more than a sham and it is made obvious that Lucy has not been hypnotised or possessed. He calls the ‘Toclafane’ his ‘children’ and it is clear that they are not just a race he has allied himself with, or his pawns. The Master is a more rounded, yet more mysterious figure than ever before- even the ‘explanation’ for his motivation (with the beautiful flashback to Gallifrey) only adds to the character. The dynamic between the two characters is sublime, with their first phone call between them being a highlight. There is an undertone in the Doctor’s voice that the Master gleefully picks up on- ‘Are you asking me on a date?’, yet he freely tells the Doctor of his fears in the Time War. David Tennant and John Simm play the dynamic to perfection throughout and the final result is only evident in their last scene together. The Master has been shot and, while the Doctor cradles him in his arms, he refuses to regenerate, while the Doctor tearfully begs him (the first time the Doctor has actually cried). It is (to be pretentious) like David and Absalom and an immensely powerful scene. Throughout, Simm makes the Master gleeful sadistic and unpredictable, but he never seems one dimensional- this is someone who is capable of doing anything and probably would. Tennant’s performance is more restrained, as befits the writing for the character in the story and he is brilliant throughout.

Which brings us to the other ending. The use of the faith of humanity to restore the balance is tied in with the plot excellently and whether you see it as being a wonderful affirmation of humanity or a sci-fi version of Peter Pan is up to you. There are those who see the ‘reset button’ as a cop out, some even saying it is a ‘deus ex machina’, which is wrong, unless ‘deus ex machina’ is Latin for ‘I don’t know what I’m talking about’. The cannibalising of the TARDIS to make the Paradox Machine made it obvious that this was something that was going to be reversed. Some have compared it unfavourably with Lay Down Your Burdens the season two finale of Battlestar Galactica (the excellent, if somewhat overrated remake). Here, there is a two-part finale with part two taking place a year later than part one but there is no reset. It seems that there are many people who still do not understand what type of programme Doctor Who is. It has to be grounded in a reality we can understand, meaning that the contemporary Earth that the Doctor visits has to be reasonably similar to the real one, which makes the strange worlds and periods the Doctor visits all the more effective. Lumbering Doctor Who with a permanently ravaged contemporary Earth is stupid. It is not as if there are no consequences- the Doctor is left alone once again and Martha has changed forever. Dramatically, it is no more of a cop-out than having the destruction of Earth occur in a fascist parallel universe in Inferno or the Doctor being brought back to life in "Father’s Day".

Colin Teague directs wonderfully with a plethora of great scenes- the sky cracking open to allow the Toclafane entry to the sound of the Rogue Traders, the aforementioned scenes between the Master and the Doctor, the wonderful Gallifrey flashback. There are moments of terror, of awe and of introspection, excellently handled by Teague. The best example is the death of Mrs Rook, a combination of terror, black humour and farce that works perfectly. The special effects are awesome throughout and help to give the story a truly epic feel. The performances are also excellent, with the Jones family being on fine form, particularly Adjoa Andoh as Francine. Alexandra Moen is very effective as Lucy- I love her Sloane-ey dance in "The Sound of Drums" and there are great turns by Tom Ellis as Dr Milligan and Ellie Haddington as Professor Docherty.

This is also Martha’s last story as a regular and Freema Agyeman is, again wonderful. In "The Sound of Drums" , Martha is wonderfully defiant of the Doctor when her family is threatened and her tearful departure is very well done. "Last of the Time Lords", however, has a Martha who is hardened but still compassionate- the moment where she laughs at the Master is truly brilliant. It also confirms one thing- Martha has responsibilities that Rose never did, which means her exit scene (again, beautifully written) gives her a great deal of dignity. At times, the shadow of Rose was cast a bit too strongly in the scripts for my liking, but Agyeman was so strong that this never really mattered.

Doctor Who again ends with a bold, yet ultimately very successful attempt to do something different for the finale. Ignore the naysayers and tuck in!

NEXT: "Time Crash"

"Utopia"

2009-11-30T11:51:00.000Z

NOTE: "Utopia" is, of course the first episode in a 3-parter, but as it has so much that is unique to it, I will be dealing with it separately.

"Utopia" is about the last humans, clinging onto existence on the planet Malcassairo, 100 trillion years in the future when the Universe is dying. They hold onto one hope Utopia, where it is hoped that they can survive the end of the Universe. Professor Yana, an itinerant scientist, has built a ship to take them there, but life on Malcassairo is hard- only one of the original inhabitants has survived, the Professor’s assistant Chantho, and marauding bands of devolved humans hunt for human flesh. This is the situation that the Doctor, Martha and Captain Jack Harkness have stumbled on. It is rather straightforward and not particularly original, but it works as a story about the last humans. Only it isn’t. This is the story of how the Doctor finds out that he is not the last Time Lord- and if there is one other Time Lord who could have survived the Time War, we know who it would be. For me, this was a truly thrilling about-turn in the story that led to the final third being the most exhilarating 15 minutes of the programme’s history. The Doctor and Jack have succeeded in helping Yana to send the humans to Utopia- but Yana is dead and the Master has returned…

Russell T Davies’s dialogue has its usual spark and there is great thought to the world- building- the ‘rocket’ is actually a ship totally unlike anything even the Doctor has encountered before. The character scenes are first rate helped by the cast. It is somewhat redundant of me to say that Sir Sir Derek Jacobi (count the knighthoods!) is utterly superb- he is, after all, one of the finest actors of all time. He makes Yana a thoroughly lovable old man without making him overly dotty- there is an unmistakable touch of William Hartnell about him. His rebirth as the Master is utterly chilling- when he turns to look at the camera, it is as if the soul has been sucked out of him. In less than ten-minutes, Jacobi makes his incarnation of the Master as distinctive as Ainley or Delgado- sadistic and psychopathic, radiating hatred to all. Chipo Chung is wonderful as Chantho, who is literally the cutest, sweetest five-foot tall insect ever! Then, of course there is John Simm as the regenerated Master, bursting with the joy of rebirth, but still consumed with hatred for the Doctor. The regulars are on fine form- the newly formed Doctor/Martha/Jack dynamic is instantly effective and all three actors have great scenes.

The key to the story’s success is Graeme Harper’s direction- the twist in the tale would make the first two thirds of the episode skippable in lesser hands- yet even on rewatching it, it is still compelling. There are memorable scenes aplenty- Jack clinging onto the TARDIS, the brilliantly written and directed scene where the Doctor’s hand is revealed. Then there is the revelation of Yana’s true nature, which is flawlessly brought to screen in a breathtaking ten minutes. The production design and music are flawless, resulting in a hugely enjoyable episode that tells a story that has only just begun…

NEXT: "The Sound of Drums"/ "Last of the Time Lords"

"Blink"

2009-11-28T13:30:00.001Z

It’s time for the Doctor-lite episode and we see the highly anticipated return of Steven Moffat to Doctor Who. At its heart, "Blink" has one of the most frightening race of monsters that Doctor Who has ever presented- the Weeping Angels, who can only move when you are not looking at them. The frightening concept at the heart of "Fear Her" that was carelessly unexplored is allowed to reach its full potential here- something that shouldn’t move that does. The idea is striking because it appeals as both a fear that children can relate to and a conceptually fascinating one for adults. The Doctor and Martha have been touched by the Angels and are stuck in 1969- but the Doctor leaves a message in the form of a film that is distributed as a DVD Easter egg- a brilliant idea. However, this is only a part of the story’s effect. The Weeping Angels do not actually cause their victims physical harm, but transport them to another time. Moffatt’s script has a lot to say about the way people observe time. Cathy lives a full life, yet she is dead to Sally the moment the letter arrives, for it is a letter from a dead woman. Billy’s death is slightly different, because he actually gets to see Sally again. ‘Look at my hands; they’re old man’s hands’. Billy too, has lived a long and productive life- yet I’m sure many old people look at themselves and think ‘I was young, yesterday’. The Angels drive home the fact that death will get us in the end, no matter what we do. Moffat’s dialogue is as witty as we have come to expect, yet the emotional moments ring true- such as Sally noting that the rain that is outside Billy’s death bed is the same rain as when they met, when he was young. It is here, of course that we have the Doctor utter the best bit of technobabble ever- time is ‘a big ball of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey…stuff’. This is strangely reminiscent of a bit of technobabble from The Time Monster- but infinitely more effective.

Moffat’s talent for characterisation is as pronounced as ever. Sally Sparrow is wonderfully written and wonderfully played by Carey Mulligan, a typical Moffat heroine- smart, sexy and witty, but easy to relate to. She is given great support from Finlay Robertson as Larry (Laurence Nightingale? Parents can be cruel) a geeky character who does not conform to usual geeky stereotypes. Moffat makes this central relationship funny and believable. There is not one weak link in the cast. A special mention must be given to the Billys- Michael Obiora makes young Billy a supremely confident, yet still likeable young man and Louis Mahoney (making his third and best appearance in Doctor Who) makes him believable as an older version of the character, more subdued, yet still with the same spark.

Hettie MacDonald’s direction is sublime, making every appearance of the Angels chilling, helped by Murray Gold’s screeching score- the movement of the Angels with the flickering light is a real heart-stopper. Crucially, MacDonald is just as skilful at directing the more subdued scenes and is masterful at creating mood. The production values are also superb- it is hard to believe that the Angels are actually people in costume and you genuinely think that they made different statues for each pose. As with "Love & Monsters", the Doctor-lite story has a director who only made one contribution and I hope she returns.

"Blink" had to follow the unqualified triumph of "Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood". At the time, it felt that Paul Cornell’s story would be impossible to match- yet "Blink" certainly does that, equally effective in a totally different way. A triumph for all concerned.

NEXT: "Utopia"

"Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood"

2009-11-26T13:34:00.000Z

The scene is set with the Doctor and Martha running into the TARDIS, on the run from an unseen foe and it looks like it’s business as usual. Then, the Doctor’s eyes open- only it isn’t the Doctor, but a schoolmaster. Martha enters wearing a maid’s uniform and we find out that it is 1913 and the Doctor is apparently a dream of this man. Roll titles.

The ideas behind "Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood" are pretty sound- The Doctor hides from the Family by becoming human and burying his memories and intelligence behind the personality of John Smith, a history master at Farringham School for boys. However, this is merely a canvas, on which Paul Cornell (using his excellent novel as a basis) has painted an absolute masterpiece. With the Doctor absent, our attention is focussed on Smith and he comes across as a sympathetic and endearing character that is definitely not the Doctor. However, the Doctor finds a way of breaking through when Smith is asleep, making Smith dream of things that seem like sheer phantasy, which he records in his Journal of Impossible Things. The way that the story is structured cleverly mirrors this- after the pre-titles sequence, the story looks like a period drama, but slivers of Doctor Who start breaking through until we have a cliffhanger where a village dance has been invaded by a cross section of pre-war society, armed with disintegrator guns. World War One strongly affects the tone of the story- Cornell accurately depicts the worldview that the Great War destroyed forever- man was capable of anything, an Englishman doubly so. The boys, trained in use of weapons to fight the Enemy in a just and chivalric war will stand in filthy trenches, get mown down by machine guns and choke on from mustard gas. They fight men of straw, just as their fellows will train for combat the next year.

However, this is not just a story of alien invasion, but one driven, primarily by characters. At the centre is John Smith, a timid, yet kindly man who finds love with the school Matron, Joan Redfern. This romance is tenderly done and we come to appreciate both characters to such an extent that, while we want the Doctor back, we are truly sorry to see Smith go. Cornell does not make it entirely clear whether Smith is an invented persona or a kenotic reduction of the Doctor, but this works in the story’s behaviour- is Smith’s heroic act with the cricket ball a piece of the Doctor poking through or is it entirely Smith? Particularly well written is Joan’s dawning realisation of the fact that her love is for a man who doesn’t really exist- her asking Smith about his childhood and receiving encyclopaedia entries as an answer is heartbreaking and written with a Borges-like elegance. Joan comes off as a splendid character, a strong, intelligent and decent woman that one can easily understand Smith falling for, but with the strictness that a School Matron should show, that is a mask of propriety for her true kindness. The rest of the staff and the schoolboys are equally well drawn. One very refreshing aspect is the refusal to make the characters hold anachronistic values- Martha’s colour is an issue with even sympathetic characters such as Smith and Nurse Redfern and Martha’s dignity and resolve throughout is wonderful.

There is one character who permeates the story, yet hardly appears- the Doctor himself. We see people’s yearnings for him both selfish (the Family) and otherwise (Martha). Tangential, yet vital is the character of Tim Latimer, a boy with an unusual gift who understands the Doctor better than any other, giving the most wonderful description of the Doctor ever written:

'He's like fire and ice and rage. He's like the night and the storm in the heart of the sun... He's ancient and forever. He burns at the centre of time and can see the turn of the universe.'

Critically, when the Doctor reappears, he is impersonating John Smith to lessen the blow before he utterly defeats the Family. The shift of narration to Baines/Son-of-Mine is inspired- we see the Doctor as his enemies see him, an implacable destroyer. In fact, until the time, the Doctor and Martha depart in the TARDIS, we are always seeing the Doctor from another character’s perception of him.

Charles Palmer directs a very impressive production with virtually no weak points. There is no time to list all the memorable scenes, so I’ll just pick a few- the flashback to the Doctor’s transformation, the boys machine-gunning the scarecrows, the heartbreaking ‘dream of a normal life’ and, of course, the wonderful coda, where the Doctor and Martha attend a Remembrance Day service where an aged Tim Latimer is guest of honour. The performances are splendid. Jessica Hynes is compelling as Joan and Thomas Sangster excellent as Tim. Harry Lloyd manages to convey the alien without going over the top, in a hugely skilful performance as Baines/Son-of-Mine. However, the best performances are by the regulars. Freema Agyeman gives one of the best ‘companion’ performances of all time in a thoroughly wonderful performance- her medical ‘talk to the hand’ scene is sublime. David Tennant’s performance is astonishing, possibly the best performance by any actor playing the lead role, although he mainly plays another role. Tennant makes Smith endearing, fearful, yet very brave and we truly mourn his passing.

"Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood" is not one of those tediously trite sci-fi stories that tell the reader ‘what it means to be human’- it points out why the Doctor can never truly be like us, while celebrating the best of humanity- Joan is awed by the Doctor, but not so much that she fails to reprimand him for the havoc he has caused, dismissing him from her presence- while she finally mourns for the man she loved. It seems weird that, a few weeks before, I was thinking that Doctor Who had lost it, for this is truly one of the best Doctor Who stories of all time.

NEXT: "Blink"

"42"

2009-11-24T14:39:00.000Z

When I heard that Chris Chibnall would be writing for Doctor Who, I had mixed feelings. I am only really familiar with Chibnall’s writing from Torchwood and Life on Mars. On Life on Mars, he wrote some excellent and moving stories. However, his Torchwood efforts had a tendency to be derivative and uninvolving and it cannot be a coincidence that Torchwood skyrocketed in quality when he left as showrunner. Which leaves us with "42". The influences are easy to spot- the real time narrative is inspired by the wildly popular 24 (thankfully, "42" does not have a simplistically reactionary political agenda) and the final act reveal is very similar to Planet of Evil (sentient planet in one, sentient sun on another). The problem is, of course, that while 24 is a thrilling ride, I find that it has little rewatch value, at least after the first season. There is a clear similarity to Danny Boyle’s 2007 film Sunshine but this is probably an unfortunate coincidence, however. There are a few choice bits of dialogue (the best, by far, being ‘Here Comes the Sun’), but beyond that, it is a standard monster on the rampage story that contains some incredibly silly pseudo-science (magnetism is obviously stronger than the gravitational pull of a sun!) and some scattershot plotting- one of which was hilariously pointed out by comedian Toby Hadoke- the sun should have made its catchphrase ‘Can I have my bits back, please?’ rather that ‘Burn with me!’ Characterisation is thin, but this is remedied by some good performances from William Ash and Anthony Flanagan. However, in the key role of Captain McDonnell, Michelle Collins only just avoids being awful. She is woefully out of her depth, something which becomes very obvious when she shares scenes with any two other actors. The regulars are excellent as ever, with David Tennant effectively portraying the Doctor’s possession and fear and Freema Agyeman again injecting life and vigour into every scene.

However, there is one considerable asset that "42" possesses- the direction. Never before has a mundane script been elevated to something else entirely by its realisation. Every scene, indeed, every shot and editing choice looks sublime. The Doctor going outside the ship to save Martha is unbearably tense on screen, belying the fact that it is very lazy and contrived plotting on Chibnall’s behalf. There are scenes of sheer wonder- the awesome death scene of Korwin and McDonnell, the beautiful shot of the Doctor and Martha staring at each other as Martha and Riley’s pod floats towards the sun. Ernest Vincze’s cinematography is just as stunning- look at the lighting on Martha in the pod, where she is lit with red on one side and blue on another. The special effects and design work is up to the task, with some nice little touches, such as the name on the unlocking device.

Despite the lacklustre script, "42" is a triumph for Graeme Harper, a real visual feast. However, it seemed at the time that Doctor Who was losing its mojo somewhat- was it going to be stuck in a rut of mediocrity?

NEXT: "Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood"

"The Lazarus Experiment"

2009-11-22T13:29:00.000Z

"The Lazarus Experiment" starts off looking like the origin story for a comic-book supervillain, with the unlikely performance of a pioneering scientific experiment in front of an audience in black tie and the less than subtle naming of the villain in question. There are subtler allusions to T S Eliot (as there were in Spider-Man II). However, the rest of the story is strongly reminiscent of The Quatermass Experiment- the man who becomes a monster that meets its end in a London cathedral. Stephen Greenhorn’s script tells its tale well and, unlike Helen Raynor’s Dalek story, the pseudo-science follows its own rules and the lashings of real science are well integrated. The story does seem to lack some depth, with characters being a bit more stereotypical than usual. The morality of what Lazarus has done is also insufficiently explored. However there are flashes of something deeper- Lazarus’s quest for immortality being rooted in his childhood experiences of the Blitz, Southwark Cathedral being an instinctive place of safety. The writing for the regulars also shines- it is clear that the Doctor has become genuinely fond of Martha, but Martha is mature enough to insist on a definition of their ‘relationship’ before they continue on their travels.

Richard Clark directs well enough, considering the straightforwardness of the story. The climax in the cathedral is very atmospheric, helped, of course, by the excellent cinematography. The Lazarus mutant is an impressive beast, but it doesn’t quite make the premier league of Doctor Who monsters. Clark manages to get some great performances from the cast. This is the second outing for Martha’s family and, although she not as well written for as Jackie, Adjoa Andoh is skilful enough to fill in the gaps. Gugu Mbatha-Raw is delightful as Tish and I’m sure that many were hoping for her to join the Doctor and Martha at the end. However, the key guest role is Mark Gatiss as Lazarus. It is due to his performance that Lazarus is as compelling as it is, with Gatiss giving an unsilly, yet entertaining performance that has no sign of seeming like a League of Gentlemen character. The regulars are awesome as usual. Scriptwise, David Tennant is not as well catered for as usual, but Tennant is not to be deterred by this. Freema effectively shows Martha’s maturity and sense of fun. Interestingly, one thing Greenhorn does effectively is make their interaction a tad more flirtatious- I love the bit where the Doctor picks up Martha’s knickers (and not for the reason you’re thinking!)

"The Lazarus Experiment" is a perfectly respectable story, if a bit unremarkable. However, there are definite consequences for the future- it seems the oft-mentioned ‘Mr Saxon’ knows of the Doctor and does not think too kindly of him…

NEXT: "42"

"Daleks in Manhattan" / "Evolution of the Daleks"

2009-11-20T15:01:00.000Z

"Daleks in Manhattan" / "Evolution of the Daleks" brings the deranged dustbins into play rather earlier in the season than is expected. However, we get a sumptuous looking story set in 1930s New York; an odd idea on paper but a look at this story confirms that, stylistically, the Daleks actually fit in quite well, especially with that grandest example of Art Deco, the Empire State Building. The production is outstanding with excellent design work that makes the viewer feel the atmosphere of New York in the depression, despite the fact that only a few background plates were shot outside of Wales. The special effects are of an excellent standard and the cast is very impressive, ranging from experienced performers such as Hugh Quarshie to very talented newcomers such as Andrew Garfield. I say this at the start, because this story goes horrendously wrong in a way that the programme has not done since it returned and there is one reason- the script.

The set-up is sound enough, which is why "Daleks in Manhattan" is actually a very enjoyable episode. The juxtaposition between the brand-new splendour of the Empire State Building and the misery of Hooverville is used well and forms a strong basis for the initial mystery. However, characterisation is unusually basic- Solomon is the strong leader, Frank the smart youngster. Even the star-cross’d lovers Tallulah and Laszlo are not sufficiently well-written to form a ‘heart’ for the story. The dialogue is OK, but shows a degree of clunkiness that was not evident before. This is all forgiveable in "Daleks in Manhattan", but "Evolution of the Daleks" provides explanations and solutions; both of which are woefully inadequate. The Daleks are dying out, with only the Cult of Skaro remaining. Dalek Sec merges with Mr Diagoras to form a Dalek/human hybrid, but there are other humans kept in hibernation. The plan is to use a solar flare (or is it lightning?) to change their DNA to make them ‘human Daleks’. The DNA is transferred by use of a blue liquid (or is it the Dalekanium on the roof?) Never mind, the Doctor adds a big dose of free-will (that pesky free-will gene!) by getting in the way of the lightning and replacing one of the Dalekanium panels (Er…) which means that the human Daleks start to question and are destroyed.

This is all utter rubbish scientifically, but pseudo-science can be forgiven dramatically- if it is consistent. Helen Raynor’s own pseudo-definition of DNA changes from scene to scene, as does the application of the genetic engineering, which makes the plot hard to follow not because it is too clever, but because it is anything but. This leaves us with situations that are solved by barrages of technobabble, which hints at the atrocity that was the Arc of Infinity plot, and has a clumsiness of construction more reminiscent of the awful Pedler/Davis Cybermen stories than classic Dalek stories. However, plot isn’t everything is it? Unfortunately, as we have seen, the characterisation and dialogue is not at its best. This means that Solomon dies after giving a bizarre speech that is a) is in no way a realistic reaction that a character would make given the events and (b) full of clichés. Solomon conveniently ignores the Doctor’s warnings and the evidence of his own eyes to die in a totally unnecessary manner. The Dalek Sec hybrid is a thoroughly wasted character- any success that it has is due to the performer and special effects.

James Strong puts in a valiant show as director and makes it all look wonderful- the scene where Mr Diagoras is consumed by Dalek Sec is profoundly disturbing, looking both like a devourment and a mating. The revelation of the hybrid at the end of the episode is also masterful (despite being ruined by the Radio Times!) The stage-show scenes are also brilliantly shot and form a very welcome diversion in "Daleks in Manhattan". However, Strong is hamstrung by the limitations of the script- although the end, where the Doctor saves Laszlo’s life is wrecked due to silly decisions in realisation that may not be Raynor’s fault. As said before, the cast is very impressive and largely give good performances. Hugh Quarshie is fantastic as Solomon, in spite of the atrocious writing for the character. Miranda Raison is very memorable as Tallulah and Ryan Carnes effective as Laszlo. I cannot judge the effectiveness of the American accents, but they seem fine, if a little mannered to me. The regulars both emerge with their dignity intact- Martha is especially memorable in this. However, David Tennant has to work with some very generic writing for the Doctor- fortunately he is so good, he gets away with it.

"Daleks in Manhattan" / "Evolution of the Daleks" is a considerable disappointment- an entertaining first episode whose potential is squandered by "Evolution of the Daleks"- the worst episode Doctor Who has had since its revival and the only one I have no desire to revisit.

NEXT: "The Lazarus Experiment"

"Gridlock"

2009-11-18T12:40:00.000Z

The city of New New York contains a subterranean 'undercity' that is dominated by a vast orbital motorway, where people seemingly spend their entire lives advancing a few miles in a colossal traffic jam and resort to all sorts of nefarious measures to join the carpool lane (which reminded me of a particularly fine episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm). One of these measures is kidnapping and Martha is abducted by a young couple who are desperate to start a new life in the city. The Doctor has to find her in the smog-choked traffic. It turns out that the undercity is actually the only part of New New York that was saved from an airborne virus by the action of the Face of Boe, who gave of his own inexplicable life force to enable the people to survive.

There are a fair few things that don't make much sense in this story- the functionality of the motorway's systems are not consistent, the Doctor's rewiring is a bit of a rushed fix for the problem etc- but they mainly concern the peripheral areas of the story. The plot is a very simple one, when you get down to it- the Doctor rescues Martha and frees the trapped commuters along the way and this is something that the story sticks to. The Doctor is resolute in his aims in the story, which wonderfully portrays him as a swashbuckler who leaps from car to car, a scientist and, critically, a man who positively affects everyone he meets. In short, the Doctor is everything the viewer expects him to be and we are cheering him every step of the way. The portrayal of the hapless commuters is another high point- they live in an ignorance about that is sometimes wilful, but they refuse to give up hope. In a very moving scene, every driver and passenger sing "The Old Rugged Cross" together, united in what could almost be a faith. Russell T Davies works his usual magic with consistently excellent dialogue and some great characters- the Cassini sisters are a wonderful creation; there should be more elderly lesbian carspotters in all types of fiction.

Richard Clark directs a very impressive looking production. The special effects are awesome, if not quite perfect, but it is Clark's eye for a good shot that saves the day. There are some stunningly beautiful scenes- the opening of the skylight, the cars flying in the New New York sky and the aforementioned swashbuckling from the Doctor, where we see the huge variety of people on the motorway, from albinos to nudists. There are allusions are made to Grant Wood's American Gothic and 2000AD. However, Clark makes the slower, more intimate scenes work equally well and he is helped by an awesome cast. Ardal O'Hanlon is brilliant as Brannigan, making him seem a fresh character- although the bit where he tells the tall tale of the woman who breathed in the fumes for too long had me expecting him to say that she had four arses instead of a mouth (apologies to those who are not familiar with Father Ted. But if you're not, you have my sympathy). However, this is a great story for the regulars. David Tennant is astounding throughout and Freema Agyeman is not far behind. Despite the fact that the Doctor and Martha are separated for most of the story, find out a great deal about their relationship. The last scene actually has Martha making the Doctor talk about his trauma in a wonderfully moving scene that is beautifully written and performed.

This is also the final appearance (so far) of the Face of Boe. The creature's self-sacrifice is incredibly moving is another absolute highlight and it is a testament to the skills of all involved that I was moved to tears by the passing of a five-foot animatronic head. Before he goes, he passes on his final secret that may have repercussions for the future.

"Gridlock" is a wonderful story that stands up to repeated viewings. It has a few problems, but none of them detract from the overall effect of the episode- you actually have to turn your brain on for the problems not to matter. Oh yes, I almost forgot- MACRA!!!

NEXT: "Daleks in Manhattan"/ "Evolution of the Daleks"

"The Shakespeare Code"

2009-11-16T13:12:00.000Z

After dropping his name left, right and centre, the Doctor finally meets Shakespeare face to face. I must say that I was not enthused with the title, which alludes to Dan Brown's best-selling vowel movement, but I need not have worried. Gareth Roberts spins an exciting and very literate yarn. There are allusions aplenty to Shakespeare's works, Shakespearian academia, a quotation from Dylan Thomas and even an airing for that most groansome of Shakespeare jokes. It even starts with a balcony scene which, of course, turns into something else entirely. However, the plot itself is very easy to follow- the Carrionites, an ancient race whose science resembles arcane forms of magic, have been trying to escape their 'banishment'. Their power is based on the manipulation of words, so who better to release them than the Bard himself? Roberts's script is full of intriguing ideas and great dialogue. The grandfather paradoxes and butterfly stamping that litters time-travel fiction is deftly dealt with in the first five minutes. Impressively, Roberts makes the characters act in a manner appropriate to their time, such as the less than sensitive view of mental illness that the Elizabethans had. It is clear that Roberts has a real love and understanding of Shakespeare and his world that is evident in every word. If I have one criticism of Roberts (and it is barely a criticism at all) it is that he is the first writer who writes like a fanboy- the Back to the Future reference, especially ‘No, the novelisation of the film!’ is the most obvious example.

Shakespeare himself is wonderfully brought to life on the page, nicking quotations left-right and centre, trying to charm Martha at every turn and remaining, at all times, the master wordsmith. This interpretation is excellently realised by Dean Lennox Kelly in a hugely charismatic performance. Christina Cole is appropriately vixenish as Lillith and the rest of the cast are excellent in some very lively turns. I was surprised to see that Peter Streete was played by Matt King, despite my being a massive Peep Show fan, which shows how good his performance was. Freema Agyeman is utterly wonderful in her first trip in the TARDIS, with her infectious enthusiasm and her genuine annoyance at the Doctor's slight stand-offishness. David Tennant is wonderful as ever, but worthy of special praise is the difference in the playing of the relationship between him and his companion that the arrival of Martha brings.

The production is absolutely stunning, helped in no small way by the location filming at the restored Globe Theatre. Charles Palmer makes this a sumptuous and exciting ride deciding to make everything look bold- cinematographer Ernest Vincze makes this a very colourful looking story, working in tandem with excellent costuming and sets. There are memorable scenes aplenty- the drowning on dry land, the Carrionite spectre that appears in rehearsal and the full on swarm, Lillith’s flight on her broomstick etc. Murray Gold’s score is his best yet, a wonderfully lush and vibrant series of compositions.

William Shakespeare probably did more to make the English language respectable than any other- no other writer has contributed more words. It is fitting that the climax of this story should be the Bard closing a dimensional rift and banishing a swarm of witches using only words- as understanding a tribute as Doctor Who could have for the man and a great end to a great story.

NEXT: "Gridlock"

"Smith and Jones"

2009-11-14T10:09:00.000Z

We open on Martha Jones walking down the street towards the hospital where she is training to be a doctor. She is on the phone to every single member of her immediate family who seem to turn to her every time they have a problem. Then, a strange man comes up to her and does something random and inexplicable, and her day gets odder from that point onwards.

"Smith and Jones" doesn’t have as much riding on it as other previous season openers, but it has to introduce the new companion while telling an entertaining story. The story is certainly a blast- upward rain, a hospital being transported to the moon, a detachment of space rhinos looking for a criminal, a little old lady who sucks your blood out with a straw- God I love this programme! The plot is simple, yet thoroughly engaging and zips along, laced with the trademark Russell T Davies wit. Throughout all this, we never lose sight of Martha as a character and it is a truly joyous moment when the TARDIS zooms off into the vortex. If there’s one flaw, it’s that the idea of frying the earth with one MRI machine does strain my credulity somewhat. Production values are of the fantastic standard we have come to expect, with stunning scenes such as the rain, the hospital on the moon, the landing of the Judoon, the Doctor’s method of expelling X-radiation, the awesome use of time travel as a cheap trick etc. Charles Palmer makes this a very energetic ride without losing sight of the people in the story.

Billie Piper was a tough act to follow. It helps, of course, that Freema Agyeman is absolutely stunning, but she also makes Martha clever and likable, but without alienating the casual viewer. Martha is written as being older and wiser than Rose, with a career and responsibilities, but her flirtation with the Doctor is more overt. Agyeman is probably not quite as good an actress as Piper, but she is more than up to the job- just look at the expression on her face when her flirtation is brushed off. Martha’s family are brought to life by Trevor Laird as her father and the always excellent Adjoa Andoh as her mother. Playing a smaller role is Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Martha’s sister- the Jones family are clearly unfairly advantaged in the gorgeous daughter stakes! There are further excellent performances from Roy Marsden as Mr Stoker and Anne Reid as the Plasmavore.

As said before, this story has less to establish than either "Rose" or "New Earth", which is probably why it is the most thoroughly enjoyable season opener yet.

NEXT: "The Shakespeare Code"

"The Runaway Bride"

2009-11-12T12:45:00.000Z

By the broadcast of this Christmas 2006 episode, Doctor Who had lost both of the leading actors that it had relaunched itself with. Yet, by this time, David Tennant had long since ceased to be the ‘new boy’ and was Doctor Who in the hearts and minds of millions, which meant that his first episode without Billie Piper had little to prove in terms of his ability to go it alone. The plot is frenetic and full of technobabble, but it works well enough dramatically. However, Russell T Davies is clearly aiming to have a bit more fun this time, presumably because of the presence of Catherine Tate in the ‘companion’ role. There are a lot of gags, most of which are very funny- the varying reactions to Donna in her wedding dress, Donna’s story of how she became engaged to Lance, her less than dashing escape from the web. However, this is not a simple ‘comedy’ episode, with Davies keenly observing the Doctor’s need for a companion- without them, his ruthlessness can be horrifying.

Euros Lyn is, as always, perfectly in tune with Davies’s writing, realising the story perfectly from the aforementioned comedy, to scenes of sheer wonder, such as the journey to the time of the Earth’s creation. Then there’s the show-stopping and utterly jaw-dropping chase sequence- makers of the 1996 TV Movie take note, this is how you do a car chase in Doctor Who! The production is excellent across the board, with a truly excellent monster in the shape of the Empress of the Racnoss and a wonderfully explosive finale.

The performances are all very strong, with Don Gilet making Lance believable as both concerned fiancé and scheming liar and Jacqueline King being very effective as Donna’s Mother. The lovely Sarah Parish is almost unrecognisable, but is great fun as the Empress- it is nice to see an adversary with a sense of humour (albeit a very poor one!) However, there is one performance which had everyone looking forward to with a mixture of apprehension and dread. I am sure I am not alone in failing to see what is funny about The Catherine Tate Show and her appearance at the end of "Doomsday" made me momentarily wonder if I was dreaming. Happily, Tate is very good here. Earlier in the story, she does make Donna a bit gobby, but Tate is excellent in making her seem real and sympathetic- Donna’s betrayal by Lance is effectively played as is her genuine wonder at what the Doctor shows her. However, if you watch the end where Donna refuses to accompany the Doctor and still think Tate does not have what it takes then… best to say no more. Then, of course, there is our leading man, who portrays the playfulness, ruthlessness and sadness of the Doctor as flawlessly as he has ever done.

Again, Cardiff give us a Christmas present to treasure in a very entertaining Christmas romp.

NEXT: "Smith and Jones"

"Army of Ghosts"/"Doomsday"

2009-11-10T09:49:00.000Z

"Army of Ghosts" immediately kicks off with a wonderful prologue, narrated by Rose that somehow manages to be both joyful and a lament- ‘the story of how I died’. Our interest has been piqued and is sustained by the intriguing scenario- ‘ghosts’ are appearing all over the world and they have thoroughly captured humanity’s attention. Of course, the Doctor realises that something more material and more sinister is behind the ‘ghosts’. The cause is, in fact, the covert organisation known as Torchwood, who have discovered a breach in space-time, through which has come a mysterious sphere which cannot touched, scanned or perceived in any way apart from sight. Torchwood have been waiting for the Doctor to come back for years but, as always, his arrival brings disaster. The ‘ghosts’ are the impressions of beings who have been trying to break through- the Cybermen from the parallel Earth. Millions of the creatures materialise worldwide- but worse is yet to come. The Sphere, which heralded their coming is not theirs. It cracks open- to reveal Daleks!

The ‘event finale’ is a very welcome development that the relaunched Doctor Who brought along with it. The previous series had the outstanding "Bad Wolf"/ "The Parting of the Ways" so expectations were high; to say they were met is something of an understatement. "Army of Ghosts"/ "Doomsday" is, first of all, tremendous, glorious fun from start to finish, so much so that it doesn’t strike one just how brilliantly written it is. The plot is full of intriguing concepts and ideas from the start, with the ‘ghosts’ and the idea of ‘The Void’ (which has a great deal in common with ‘brane theory’ in astro-physics). Torchwood is finally revealed in all its glory- a mysterious secret organisation that ruthlessly protects its airspace from the alien, yet maintain a ‘people-friendly’ working environment. However, there is one thing about this story that has occurred in the dreams of all Doctor Who fans for decades- Daleks v Cybermen. This is a basic ‘fan-fiction’ idea that has been elevated to something else entirely by a great writer. There is no fan-fulfilling contest to see which is best, as that is certain within a few minutes- the Daleks are a race with hugely advanced technology, capable of time travel, the destruction of entire planetary systems etc. The Cybermen are just bionic humans- they don’t stand a chance. The face-off between Dalek Sec and the Cyberleader shows that you can have memorable dialogue between ‘Stephen Hawking and the speaking clock’ in a scene that is funny, without belittling either of the two races. However, this is not merely an all-action shoot-out, but a story featuring real characters and a great understanding of human nature. The effect of the ‘ghosts’ on humanity is brilliantly observed- they have an instant effect on popular culture, but also appeal to a very basic yearning that all people have. Jackie imagines the shadowy figure that appears in her front room has the smell of her deceased father, but it is obvious that she is deluding herself. In the middle of a pitched battle, Jackie meets the alternative Pete in a scene that is funny, touching and, most importantly, does not make us want to fast-forward to the next bit of action. Davies plays with our preconceptions and confounds them with something simpler- and better. We see something called the ‘Genesis Ark’ which must, of course contain Davros. It is, instead, a dimensionally transcendental prison ship- with an army of Daleks inside.

Graeme Harper truly makes this an epic visual feast- the scene where a legion of Cybermen shoot up at a flotilla of dive-bombing Daleks is a sight which, were it to be taken back in time and shown to a 1980s Doctor Who fan, would probably kill them from pure ecstasy. The script has changes of mood and pace that require direction that is equally as sophisticated- and this is precisely what we get. From the nightmarish appearance of a Cyberman in a child’s bedroom to the beauty of the opening scene, Harper shows he is still, very much, at the top of his field. The cast is superb, with Tracy-Ann Oberman being phenomenal as Yvonne- ruthless and driven, but keen to know all of her underlings, and by no means evil. Raji James is also quietly effective as Dr Singh. One of the highlights is the reappearance of Mickey, brilliantly played, as always, by Noel Clarke.

It ends, of course, with the Doctor and Rose separated in different dimensions. These final scenes are beautiful and heartbreaking, a triumph for both Davies and Harper, but also a final showcase for the skills of Billie Piper. Rose was our identification figure for the relaunch of the most bonkers and brilliant idea in television history and Piper never put in a bad performance and this, her last one as a regular, is simply phenomenal. It is odd to remember how apprehensive some were about David Tennant- by the time this was broadcast, he was Doctor Who and he gives his best performance yet.

So it ends with a beautifully heartbreaking scene, very reminiscent of His Dark Materials (a comparison that Philip Pullman welcomes with his typical generosity) that caps a fantastic story and a great season.

NEXT: "The Runaway Bride"

"Fear Her"

2009-11-08T16:10:00.000Z

"Fear Her" boasts an original alien race in the Isolus and an intriguing premise- people can be turned into drawings- that recalls such things as Catherine Storr's book Marianne Dreams (filmed as Paperhouse and Escape Into Night) and M.R. James’s short story "The Mezzotint". Set in London at the start of the 2012 Olympics, the story involves the disappearance of children and a sinister child who may be responsible. The writer, Matthew Graham, was the co-creator of the beloved Life on Mars. It has all the ingredients for a great story, yet it doesn’t quite come off- in fact it is probably the most hated Doctor Who story to have been broadcast since 2005. While I do not believe that it deserves the bile directed at it, there are some large-ish problems with the story. Graham’s script, as said, plays with some interesting ideas, but doesn’t spin them into a wholly cohesive story. The two key issues- Chloe Webber’s possession by the Isolus child and Chloe creating a nightmare vision of her dead father are not fully integrated with each other, meaning that what could have been a deft exploration of the loneliness of children and the breakdown of the nuclear family seems to be rushed. This is a pity, as the concepts show a degree of depth. Graham realises something about children that can be terrifying- they exhibit less empathy than adults and behaviour considered normal for a child would be seen as psychopathic in an adult. This is brought into light in the characterisation of the Isolus, but Graham fails to make Chloe/Isolus truly frightening, which is unfortunate, considering the name of the story. a child with great power is something to be feared. There is also the much maligned climax, where the Doctor lights the Olympic Torch. It is important to remember that this does make sense within the context of the story, but it does have to work very hard to not be cheesy- whether it fails is up to the viewer.

Euros Lyn makes this a very polished production, as we have come to expect, with all the scenes shot in a very competent manner. However, there is the problem that this should be a very scary story and it fails. The teaser is perfect, with the boy disappearing and becoming a drawing- which then runs screaming towards us. However, this sense of horror never returns after that, which is a mistake- even the monstrous drawing of her father does not come off well. This is not to say that there are no memorable scenes- Rose being attacked by a scribble, ‘fingers on lips!’ and the hilarious materialisation of the TARDIS, but Lyn is certainly capable of better. There are some nice performances from Abdul Salis, Edna Dore and the lovely Nina Sosanya. Abisola Agbaje is sound enough as Chloe, but she isn’t as scary as she could be although, as said earlier, the script doesn’t help. Tennant and Piper have a last chance to play Rose and the Doctor as happy-go-lucky and succeed admirably.

Despite what many others have said, this is not a bad story, but it could have been so much better. Things that shouldn’t move, but do, are terrifying. It’s a good thing that someone else would realise that a year later…

NEXT: "Army of Ghosts"/"Doomsday"

"Love & Monsters"

2009-11-06T13:28:00.000Z

The frenetic nature of the production process for Doctor Who meant a very interesting creative decision for the production team- mounting a story that would be shot at the same time as another episode with minimal appearances for the Doctor- the so-called ‘Doctor-lite’ episode. "Love & Monsters" tells the story of one Elton Pope, an ordinary Londoner who is obsessed with finding the Doctor and what happened when he found like-minded individuals along the way. By telling the tale of people who have noticed the Doctor, it becomes a love-letter to fandom. There are those who have followed the Doctor all their lives, those who have turned to the Doctor to mask other tragedies and Elton, who remembers the Doctor from his childhood and wants to know more. The members of LI’n’DA (as they eventually dub themselves) are not the usual ‘anoraks’ that are used to denote fans- they are a diverse group of people who have other interests and find something more in LI’n’DA - shared interests lead to genuine friendships developing, and perhaps something more. Of course, there are some who take it a bit too seriously and the character of Victor Kennedy takes control of LI’n’DA , whose ’ec-zee-ma’ is more than it appears to be. RTD calls this story "Love & Monsters" and there is certainly both- Elton’s shadowing/ stalking of Jackie turning into feelings of friendship that awake what he has been feeling for Ursula all along. And there’s the Absorbaloff, a fun monster created by a young fan, that is used in an inspired fashion. Davies makes this a story of real human beings confronted with the unearthly, yet still wanting to live their lives.

Elton is not only the central character, he is the narrator for this story, which means that director Dan Zeff had an interesting set of options for visualising the story. The use of Elton’s video camera must have tempted Zeff to tell the story as a faux-video diary, à la The Blair Witch Project or Diary of the Dead. However, Zeff realised that this would not suit the mood of the story- this is not just about experiences of the Doctor, but about fantasy and memory, as, indeed, is our perception of the show itself. In addition, the comedy would be far less nuanced if the entire story was shot in that way. It is clear that a fair few of the scenes merely represent Elton’s internal perception- the comedic chase of the Hoix in the opening sequence, the literal internet meltdown. The mood changes subtly as the story progresses and Zeff is up to the challenge.

The cast is great. Marc Warren makes Elton very likeable and the adorable Shirley Henderson is wonderful as Ursula. All the members of LI’n’DA come across as likeable people thanks to the wonderful performances. Camille Coduri is given her meatiest role yet and her lovably slatternly pursuit of Elton is both funny and touching. Then there is Peter Kay as Victor/ The Absorbaloff. The idea of a posh-sounding gentleman with a cane being unmasked as an absorbing green blob with a Lancashire accent makes me giggle and Kay, though funny, never overplays the role. It goes without saying that David Tennant and Billie Piper are as excellent as ever in their limited roles,.

"Love & Monsters" is a wonderful and wholly successful experiment- don’t miss it!

NEXT: "Fear Her"

"The Impossible Planet"/ "The Satan Pit"

2009-11-05T12:54:00.000Z

After the triumphant return of 2005, there were some who were a bit disappointed that the Doctor never journeyed beyond Earth orbit and yearned to see the Doctor walking on the surface of an alien planet. This happened in "New Earth", but it was this story that fulfilled that wish in a truly spectacular manner. The script by Matt Jones is excellent; the fact that, from the start, it is clear that we are beyond the Doctor’s and even the Time Lords’ knowledge takes some of the cosiness away immediately and the removal of the TARDIS soon afterwards makes the Doctor and Rose in a situation every bit as grave as the humans that they have encountered- a situation that is reminiscent of early Hartnell stories. And what a situation it is- an expedition that has ended up on a planet that is tidally locked inside the event horizon of a black hole (see below)- a planet that shouldn’t exist. ‘Welcome to Hell’ a graffito sanguinely states- and the feeling that they are in a region that operates beyond the laws of physics, where the only remaining explanation might be the most terrible legend of all. The themes are not original and have parallels with stories from throughout the programme’s history, most notably The Curse of Fenric- an evil from (before) the dawn of time, the Doctor’s faith in a companion etc. The presentation of the Beast’s character is probably influenced by C.S. Lewis’s Perelandra, but obviously written from a far less devout viewpoint. Such is the skill of the storytelling that you don’t notice these influences until afterwards. Even the usual clichés in this type of story are overturned, such as a new take on an escape up a ventilation shaft.

Newcomer James Strong puts in a phenomenal job behind the camera. It’s not just that he constructs memorable scenes, his direction is vital to the storytelling process itself. The possession of Toby is visualised by red contact lenses, marker pen and basic editing, yet the results are phenomenal. This is as a journey into the unknown for the Doctor as well, so Strong takes the simple, yet ingenious step of making his descend into the pit look like him abseiling into infinite darkness. He is aided by one of Murray Gold’s best scores- especially the terrifying scene where Scooti meets her end. The look of the story is wonderful, with the sets and costuming being perfect. The special effects range from beautiful to exciting to terrifying, but all are excellent- the visualisation of the black hole, the wonderful shot of Scooti floating in space and the subterranean city. The Ood are wonderfully realised and are both terrifying and sympathetic. Then there is the Beast. Demon or alien, it is a hugely impressive monster. The overall effect is a story that contains some of the most terrifying scenes the programme has ever had, scenes that will stay with younger viewers for a long time.

The script is not merely action and shocks- it is very talky, particularly "The Satan Pit", but such is the atmosphere that is created by Strong, that it all manages to hang together as a whole- I was actually reminded of Tarantino’s Kill Bill in the way that this was done. He is helped by a very strong cast. Shaun Parkes (who memorably starred with Tennant in Casanova) is excellent as Captain Zack and, with Rose and the Doctor separated for most of "The Satan Pit", Claire Rushbrook fills the companion slot with aplomb. As the voice of the beast, we have the very welcome return of Gabriel Woolf. Age has made his voice even more terrifying, a sonorous whisper that speaks of infinite evil- I have an mp3 of ‘Don’t turn around’ that I BlueTooth to people to frighten them.

The Doctor’s characterisation is very skilful- in a story about faith, his faith is unique- a faith in the fact that there are things he has not seen- but that faith finally bumps into his own prejudices. It is a reading of the Doctor that David Tennant puts his best work yet into. This does not mean that Rose is sidelined- with the Doctor facing the Beast, it is she who marshals the opposition to the Ood and it is she who finally defeats the Beast, justifying the Doctor’s faith in her.

There are a few niggles I have, mainly with the science. It is perfectly possible for a planet to orbit a black hole, for example. However, the story is so good that I can cut it a lot of slack- just imagine the words ‘inside the event horizon of...’ in front of ‘a black hole’ and the story works again. This is a wondrous story that does what it does with beauty, horror, intelligence and a dash of humour. Priceless.

NEXT: "Love & Monsters"

"The Idiot's Lantern"

2009-11-03T11:25:00.000Z

"The Idiot's Lantern" takes us back to 1953 where the broadcast of the coronation of Elizabeth II means that millions would buy their first TV set in a state patriotic fervour. What better environment for a disembodied alien intelligence that feeds off neuro-electrical activity? Mark Gatiss conhures a breezy little tale with an original villain- The Wire (no relation to the superlative HBO TV series) that manifests itself in a time that is often misunderstood by the average person, who believe that nothing happened in Britain between VE day and The Beatles. Gatiss evokes the time very well and it is full of the sharp dialogue that we have come to expect of him. The story is also a celebration of television itself, with references to contemporary programming, video tape and colour television. Gatiss is of the generation that was warned that too much telly 'rots the brain', just as I was of the generation that was told that it gave you 'square eyes'. Here, television can bring together communities and, indeed, nations, but it can also, quite literally, suck your face off! However, there is a problem with this story that cannot be ignored- it's conceptually ingenious, but the realisation of these concepts, both in terms of plot and plausibility is very inconsistent. Why the Wire's feeding leaves the victim literally faceless is not satisfactorily explained, especially when the defeat of the Wire suddenly restores the victims. However, the way in which the Doctor defeats the Wire is both true to the stories ingenuity and well realised- The Wire is trapped on a Betamax tape!

Euros Lyn has a field day with Gatiss's concepts, filling the story with memorable images- the faceless victims are genuinely scary, as is the sight of dozens of stolen faces screaming for help on black and white screens. Lyn uses Dutch angles (or, to be less showy-offy, he tilts the camera) a lot, giving parts of the episode a Third Man-esque look in places. The production values are excellent throughout, as we have come to expect from the team.

Of the supporting players, only the Connollys are proper characters. Gatiss attempts to tell the story of the breakdown of a family as well, but the problems here are more severe than the plot problems. We may not be seeing the family at its worst, but Eddie Connolly does not seem that much worse than the average lower middle/ working class father of the early 50s- there is nothing to suggest that he is even mildly physically abusive, and he just comes across as a pompous blowhard. Jamie Forman, who I have been impressed with in other productions, plays Eddie a shade too broadly, although Debra Gillett is very effective as his wife Rita. The actual dialogue is well written, but we never really believe in the situation- however, the scene where Tommy goes to carry his father's case is very effective.

Ron Cook is brilliant as Magpie (a rather underwritten role) but it is Maureen Lipman who makes the biggest impression. She is obviously hugely successful in portraying the Wire as a 50s BBC announcer, but her natural likeability makes the feral snarl she projects as the monster beneath all the more frightening. Tennant is a ball of energy throughout and Rose becomes wholly likeable again in a very impish performance by Piper.

Despite some fairly serious problems, "The Idiot's Lantern" is good fun and well worth a watch:

NEXT: "The Impossible Planet"/ "The Satan Pit"

"Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel

2009-11-01T15:13:00.000Z

When the Daleks came back, the obvious question that cropped up was when the second most-popular Doctor Who monsters would return, and this question was answered in the run up to the 2006 series. This is,to be frank, something that I was more excited about at the time than I would have been now, because I hadn’t watched/ listened to all the Cyber-stories in order. The Cybermen, let’s face it, have rarely had the opportunity to shine in the way that the Daleks did- of their nine previous appearances, I would only wholeheartedly recommend The Invasion and would recommend Earthshock with reservations. All the other stories have grievous flaws that cannot be overlooked. There was also the case of the other very successful long-running sci-fi TV franchise- it has been claimed that Star Trek’s Borg are a ‘rip-off’ of the Cybermen. This could well be true but (and I speak as someone who considers Who to be greatly superior to Trek in all its forms) I believe the Borg are everything that the Cybermen should have been and are a far better conceived and far more frightening race of monsters that the Cybermen ever were- a great Doctor Who villain that never appeared in the programme. < /controversy >

It is refreshing, therefore, that the Cardiff production team decided to reinvent the Cybermen for a new era. The origins of the original Cybermen are based in a future that never came to pass and contains much that the modern viewer would be unwilling to suspend their disbelief for. So we are now given a race of Cybermen from an alternative universe, who originated on Earth- a whole new origin story that is far more resonant, without contradicting the programme’s mythology. The reason for their creation is one that can easily be understood- John Lumic, an electronics and industrial magnate is dying. He is mostly confined to a wheelchair which also contains other life-support systems (shades of a certain other creator of a race of monsters!) and has created a cybernetic body that will allow him to live on, free of the agony that has tormented him for years. He is obsessed with taking away pain- in all its forms- from humanity, so he makes it his mission to ‘upgrade’ humanity- the results of which, we all know. This rings true and is tied in well with the current obsessions with software upgrades and built-in obsolescence. The parallel world is reasonably well constructed- Zeppelins are an obvious, yet undeniably impressive shorthand for ‘this is an alternate reality’- presumably the Hindenburg never crashed here. Tom MacRae paints a Britain that is a bit more oppressive than our own, but not so much that it feels alien . The character work is excellent with the yearning that Rose has for her father with the regret that Mickey has about his grandmother working very well. The Preachers are excellently characterised as a group and individually- it is very refreshing that an older female character like Mrs Moore can be included. The plot is very straightforward- some would say a bit too straightforward and there is a bit of clumsiness, such as the scene where Crane attacks Lumic and the resolution to the cliffhanger might have some slapping their heads. However, it does work dramatically, which is the main thing.

A very welcome step by the production team was the return of Graeme Harper as director and he doesn’t disappoint. Every shot and sequence is constructed with love and understanding and Harper brings a truly epic sensibility to the story- the loss of Joe Ahearne from the show’s roster has clearly been compensated for. The production is flawless, with excellent location filming being combined with brilliant effects work- the Zeppelins are awe inspiring, as is the moment the TARDIS drops out of the time vortex. The new Cybermen look fantastic and benefit tremendously from Harper’s direction- his gradual revelation of their appearance being expertly done.

The performances are generally very good. Don Warrington is fantastic as the President and Helen Griffin very believable as Mrs Moore. Mona Hammond always seems to play a West Indian matriarch, nowadays, but it is a part she plays very well indeed. Shaun Dingwall makes a very welcome return as Pete Tyler (who, as he feared, is now bald!) I am not entirely sure about Roger Lloyd Pack as Lumic, who seems to go a bit OTT in some scenes, but he doesn’t actually ruin them. The regulars are excellent, with Tennant all improvisation, righteousness and sympathy and Piper doing brilliant work, mixing Rose’s heroism with her streak of selfishness- I love the scene where she discovers who her counterpart in this world is! However, the best performance is that of Noel Clarke. He effortlessly makes Ricky and Mickey different versions of the same character and the emotion he puts into the scenes with his grandmother and the farewell scene is totally convincing.

"Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel" is not the best story that Doctor Who has had since its revival, but it is still very good. It is in a league above most of the Cyberman stories of the 20th Century, not just because it is better written and realised, but because McRae and Davies understand the Cybermen better than their creators Gerry Davis and Kit Pedler ever did. Here, they are genuinely emotionless and a reason is given for them being so- because an unaltered brain would not be able to cope with waking up in a metal body, free, not only of pain, but of all tactile and gustatory senses. The dehumanisation of the creatures is cannily revealed in the fact that the two Cybermen who mention their previous identities were women. These are creatures of nightmare that we thank our lucky stars that we will never become- something they rarely were originally.

NEXT: "The Idiot’s Lantern"

"The Girl in the Fireplace"

2009-10-30T13:03:00.000Z

After "The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances", fans eagerly looked forward to what Steven Moffat would come up with next and he certainly didn’t disappoint. Moffat tells the tale of a spacecraft in the 51st Century that contains ‘time windows’ that lead to various stages in the life of one woman- Jeanne-Antoinette ‘Reinette’ Poisson, better known as ‘Madame de Pompadour’. For some reason, the maintenance robots on the ship need her head- but only when she is ‘complete’. This is a story where the Doctor fights the monsters and wins, but it is also the story of a woman who has loved the Doctor her entire life and the Doctor’s deepening feelings for her, despite the fact that, from his perspective, he has known her for only a few hours. This can be seen as an illustration of the Doctor’s view of his human companions in "School Reunion"- Reinette grows from childhood to youth to middle age in front of our eyes, as well as the Doctor’s. Moffatt’s writing of the relationship between Reinette and the Doctor is as excellent as you would expect from the writer of Press Gang and Joking Apart. For her, the Doctor is prepared to do something he has never done before- being stranded for the rest of his life on one time and place and, crucially, we are prepared to believe he will do so. Reinette comes to life magnificently via Moffat’s pen, highlighting her intelligence, wit and irresistible je ne sais quoi with some choice lines- her description of her trans-temporal relationship with the Doctor is sublime writing. There is also the wonderful scene where she uses the Doctor’s telepathic technique to look inside his head. Moffat, being Moffat, also includes some brilliantly funny lines that somehow work hand-in-hand with the horror aspects. Moffat also makes the sci-fi aspects work magnificently, with intriguing concepts like the clockwork robots and their gristly repair plan. Like "The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances", there is no villain, just an automated system that has followed its program a bit too literally.

Euros Lyn commands a sumptuously triumphant production. The period detail for 17th century France is phenomenal and the grimy spacecraft is equally successful and Lyn manages to make them both work together magnificently- sometimes within the same shot (the linked sets are a very bold and eminently successful move) with beauty and futuristic squalor being juxtaposed perfectly. There are a multitude of memorable scenes- showpieces like the monster under the bed, the attack on Versailles and the wondrous scene where the Doctor bursts through the mirror on horseback work wonderfully, but there are also quieter scenes such as Rose and Mickey waiting on the other side of the broken mirror, which work just as well.

The performances are sublime, but the key guest role is Madame de Pompadour herself, played to perfection by the very talented and very beautiful Sophia Myles. David Tennant is outstanding as the Doctor, combining the humorous heroics that we associate with the character with something more tender. Piper and Clarke are in more in the background, but they do not slacken, by any means. A special mention must be given to Arthur the horse- the bit where the Doctor tells him to stop is one of the best pieces of animal acting I’ve seen!

I have said before that, although plot is important, it is not the only important part of the story and, in certain cases, other factors should take precedence. "The Girl in the Fireplace" contains an intriguing plot that would work well on its own, but, more importantly, it deals with the question of what an immortal loving a mortal must feel like. This is why, when we find out the reason for the robots’ interest in Madame de Pompadour, it does not feel like a massive twist ending, but an ironic coda in an ultimately tragic story, as the episode ends on a note of subdued and beautiful melancholy that hasn’t been seen since The Green Death. This is one of the most moving, intriguing and beautiful stories ever to be broadcast under the Doctor Who banner.

NEXT: "Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel"

"School Reunion"

2009-10-28T12:29:00.000Z

"School Reunion" has a perfectly respectable plot. A school in London has been infiltrated by the Krillitanes, a race who take physical characteristics of the races they conquer and add them to their own. They are using the children of the school as an organic computer to crack the ‘Skasis Paradigm’, apparently a formula that is the key to everything in creation. Mickey has noted something odd going on and has summoned the Doctor and Rose back to Earth. However, Mickey is not the only one who has noticed something odd, because there is also a freelance journalist who may look familiar to some of those viewing, together with something in her car boot…

Toby Whithouse creates a very entertaining story that seems, at first glance, to be aimed squarely at kids. The school setting and the use of the children in the adversaries’ dastardly plan is reminiscent of the Demon Headmaster books and TV series. However, the presence of Sarah Jane adds a different dimension altogether. Sarah Jane does not live in the past, but it is clear that her time with the Doctor will be with her forever. This also has an effect on Rose as she says, ‘I’ve been to the year 5,000,000, but this is really looking at the future’. The initial tension between Rose and Sarah Jane is written with wit and real understanding of the characters and their eventual reconciliation is joyful to behold. Just as interesting, if not more so, is the Doctor’s reaction to this, giving us insights into how he views the all-too mortal humans he travels with and his reluctance to ever say goodbye. The farewell scene between the Doctor and Sarah Jane is utterly beautiful- the line ‘I think it will be someone else’s grandchildren’ is heartbreaking and the Doctor finally saying goodbye shouldn’t leave a dry eye in the house. James Hawes makes another impressive show in the director’s chair, mounting scenes with expert shooting (although some of the editing is a bit off) but paying attention to the little things- I love the scene where Rose reaches out, expecting to get the Sonic Screwdriver, only for the Doctor to hand it to Sarah Jane. In Hawes’s hands, K9 is not just the lovable tin mutt of the past- the scene where he shoots down the Krillitane is completely awesome and K9’s apparent death genuinely left me shocked. The special effects are great, with the Krillitanes being very memorable.

The Doctor is written with more depth than in David Tennant’s previous stories and Tennant proves that Russell T Davies was fully justified in the risk he took in employing him. From his physics lesson at the start to his joyful reunion with K9, to his grim face-off with Mr Finch, Tennant is brilliant. Billie Piper is great in a performance that sometimes highlights one of Rose’s less laudable characteristics- her occasional selfishness. Noel Clarke is again utterly wonderful, with his realisation that he is the ‘tin dog’ leading him to join the TARDIS crew. The tin dog himself is obviously ace, with John Leeson returning. Then there is Elisabeth Sladen, who effortlessly gives a more mature, yet still recognisable Sarah Jane. Despite all these headlining performances, Anthony Head still manages to be fantastic as Mr Finch/ Brother Lassar, which would have satisfied Buffy fans as much as Sladen and Leeson satisfied Doctor Who fans. In smaller roles, Joe Pickley is great as Kenny and the Krillitane staff are also memorable but still very much ‘teacherly’.

"School Reunion" could have been fan-pleasing rubbish, but we are in skilled hands. It can be watched by those who don’t know who Sarah Jane is, without them losing anything, for it is a great paean to living one’s life with the belief that the best is yet to come.

NEXT: "The Girl in the Fireplace"

"Tooth and Claw"

2009-10-26T09:14:00.000Z

"Tooth and Claw" has a fair bit in common with The Horror of Fang Rock. Both were rush-written to replace another story. Both have a climax where the Doctor uses a diamond to focus light to destroy the enemy. However, here we have actual lycanthropy, in another take on the legend of the werewolf. Davies’s script is highly inventive and, like the best of the Hinchcliffe/ Holmes stories, gives its own spin on an old legend, with folklore being deconstructed and applied scientifically, weaponising mistletoe and moonlight ("Mistletoe and Moonlight" would have been a great alternative title, by the way). The pace is relentless, but it is quite easy to figure out what is going on and Davies makes sure that character is not sacrificed- we get a real sense of who Sir Robert is and are even given little glimpses into Captain Reynolds and Flora, the maid. Of course, for the first time, we have a Victorian story that actually features the Crowned Saxe-Coburg herself. Victoria is presented as coping well with the death of Albert, eighteen years earlier (incidentally, it is odd, though quite understandable plotwise, that John Brown is not with her in a story set in Scotland!). She is depicted as still very much possessing the formidable personality that made her such an iconic figure. As said, the dénouement is similar to The Horror of Fang Rock, but Davies creates a wonderful steampunk contraption to house the diamond- the Koh-i Noor, no less. At the time, the ending looked rushed, but it is actually paced very well.

Euros Lyn makes a very welcome return to the programme and is perfectly in tune with the script when it comes to visualising it. There is rapid cutting, kinetic camera work and a mastery of combining different moods- somehow the wire-fu works in this context and is very skilfully realised. The effects are stunning, especially the utterly astonishing werewolf. In my opinion, it was better than similar creatures in the likes of Van Helsing and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Lyn commands a fine cast of both seasoned and new actors. Pauline Collins returns to the programme after an absence of 39 years as Victoria and is very good, if a trifle mannered. Derek Riddell is very sympathetic as Sir Robert and Ian Hanmore very menacing as Father Angelo. The regulars are clearly having a whale of a time and put in great performances with David Tennant giving us a chance to hear his natural accent.

"Tooth and Claw" is tremendous fun and impossible to dislike- and, of course, the seeds of something important are sown…

NEXT: "School Reunion"

"New Earth"

2009-10-24T18:59:00.000+01:00

The new Doctor Who finally takes us to an alien planet even though (as the title of the episode says) it’s not radically different from Earth. The episode is built on an intriguing premise- using genetically engineered humans as lab-rats to cure diseases. It has to be said, however, that the plot is half-baked in places and a doughy mess at the end. Although it is great to see Cassandra again, her motivation isn’t as convincing as it could be. And the dénouement, where the Doctor makes the diseased humans pass to each other the cure he has concocted doesn’t quite justify its symbolic resonance as it is obvious that too many plot short-cuts have been taken- how can an intravenous cure suddenly be an external one? The body-swapping, though amusing, is also a bit arbitrary. However, the dialogue is still great, as is Russell T Davies’s talent for world-building- ‘apple grass’, feline nuns, the nostalgia that created the need for a New Earth. The parts with the Face of Boe are excellent, giving the new series a mythos of its own, to add to that of the past.

It looks fantastic, as usual. The location filming at the Wales Millennium Centre gives a real sense of scale and the shots of the myriad pods containing the ‘lab rats’ are breath taking. The make-up for the cats is also first rate as is the work on minor characters, such as the Duke of Manhattan. James Hawes creates some very memorable scenes such as the break-out of the infected (basically a zombie attack) and is helped by some exquisite cinematography. The guest cast is excellent, with Zoe Wanamaker again being memorable as Cassandra. Doña Croll and Adjoa Andoh exude a disquieting sense of menace with their performances as the Matron and Sister Jatt and Anna Hope is rather sweet as Novice Hame.

The best performances, however, are from the regulars. The body-swapping might be a bit excessive, plotwise, but this is more than compensated for by the performances. Billie Piper is priceless as Cassandra, giving a wonderfully catty (sorry) performance. David Tennant is in full force as the Doctor here and is instantly appealing with a mix of blokiness and real steel. Tennant also gives his take on Cassandra which has to be seen to be believed!

"New Earth" is probably the least successful script that Davies has written so far. However, it contains much else that is commendable and is certainly worth watching.

NEXT: "Tooth and Claw"

"The Christmas Invasion"

2009-10-22T13:19:00.000+01:00

"The Christmas Invasion" was the first episode produced by a production team that knew that the relaunch of Doctor Who had succeeded beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. However, they also had to contend with the fact that the lead role had just been vacated by one of the foremost British actors of our generation. For a whole generation of viewers, this was the equivalent of William Hartnell being replaced by Patrick Troughton. As I said, many moons ago, this required a special sort of story- and again, this is precisely what we got. Russell T Davies takes the bold step of taking the Doctor out of the action for a good portion of the episode. This may, at first glance, seem like madness, but as one watches the episode, the soundness of this thinking is all too evident. At the start, the characters and the viewers want the new Doctor. By the time of the final act, they need him. We are given an invasion crisis that seems hopelessly insoluble without the Doctor. We are even told that the Doctor is ‘broken’- the alien Sycorax cannot be understood, because the Doctor is an integral part of the translation circuits of the TARDIS. The Sycorax invasion itself is shown with a refreshing degree of ‘realism’- without the Doctor holding their hands, the programme shows the government reacting in a plausible way. There are some intriguing concepts, such as ‘blood control’ and the robot ‘pilot fish’ who travel in the wake of another alien force. The Sycorax are a well thought-out alien race, with them treating their science as a form of magic. Davies manages to mix in his trademark witty dialogue with the plot and his skewering of Christmas iconography is funny without seeming ridiculous. In 2009, it is impossible to ignore the fact that this is an antecedent of the outstanding Torchwood: Children of Earth, especially the scene where the A-positives are controlled into standing on the edge of tall buildings and, of course, the sting the story has in its tail- again courtesy of Torchwood. It is testament to the formidable writing on both this and Children of Earth that neither is diminished by the other.

The production is epic, with a giant ship made out of an asteroid floating above London and is expertly helmed by James Hawes. Scenes such as the hypnosis of the A positives are realised excellently, symptomatic of a show that knew that it was a success and resolutely refused to rest on its laurels. Even when it refers to other things (Harriet Jones's television plea to the Doctor recalls Superman II, Torchwood's weapon is like the Death Star) the story manages to make these things its own. Hawes brings a more cinematic feel that is excellently done, making this truly a 'special'. The cast is also superlative. Penelope Wilton effortlessly makes Harriet Jones a credible leader of a major power as well as the slightly batty figure we all know and love and she is ably supported by Daniel Evans and Chu Omambala. Noel Clarke and Camille Coduri again play their parts to perfection- we care about these characters deeply, now, and their inclusion is always welcome.

Now, we come to the Doctor. It is hard to believe nowadays how much trepidation there was over the comparatively unknown David Tennant. However, it was soon clear that we were in good hands. Even in his incapacitated state, Tennant shines and in the utterly glorious revelation of the Doctor in full working order, Tennant grabs our affections and never lets go, from quoting The Lion King to sword-fighting for the planet, Tennant astonishes in every frame he is on screen. However, we must not forget Billie Piper's contribution- it is Rose who must accept this stranger as the Doctor and Piper brilliantly portrays the faith amid confusion that the character must have.

This is a wondrous story that proved that, not only was Doctor Who back, it was here to stay.

NEXT: "New Earth"

"Born Again"- Children In Need

2009-10-21T23:48:00.000+01:00

Or "Pudsey Cutaway". But I don’t really care about the name. Doctor Who makes a return to Children in Need for the first time in 12 years in a mini-episode that can actually be deemed (deep breath) ‘canonical’. "Born Again" addressed the fact that Doctor Who in the 21st century can’t spend 15 minutes having the Doctor examine his new body in detail and gets it out if the way in this fun little skit, written with Russell T Davies usual zest. Piper is good, as always, but it was very brave to have David Tennant make his first performance as the Doctor in an eight-minute episode. Tennant is buzzing, but sensitive, and always makes damn sure we know who the leading man is. It is an excellent taster, which whets the appetite for what is to come- although it’s odd that they seem to change the lighting scheme completely, midway through the episode!

NEXT: "The Christmas Invasion"

"Bad Wolf"/"The Parting of the Ways"

2009-10-20T14:15:00.000+01:00

When Doctor Who was relaunched, I was, make no mistake, very happy it was back- but I didn’t expect that it would grow on me to such an extent that the week between "Bad Wolf" and "The Parting of the Ways" would be one of the longest weeks of my life. This story confounds expectations at every turn, pulling you in all the way. It starts off in, what is recognisably the UK version with Big Brother- ironically, I write this in the year that Big Brother UK was cancelled. The bloodthirsty futuristic versions of programmes such as Big Brother, What Not to Wear and The Weakest Link are funny without losing the sense of unease and disorientation. Davies starts with the Doctor, Rose and Jack already in the games, which adds to this sense. It is revealed that this is Satellite 5 from "The Long Game" a century on. The Doctor’s actions in "The Long Game" have not solved the wrongness of that future. Indeed, the head-chip technology seem to have evolved into the disturbing figure of the Controller- a woman who has lived her entire life plugged into what is now called the GameStation. There is a reason for this- this world has been twisted by the last surviving Daleks and they’re ready to invade…

The ways in which these pieces are slotted into place are expertly managed by Russell T Davies but this is just the plot and, to be honest, plot is only the most important thing in a story if you are a child. This is also the story how, by making Rose a better person, she redeems him. It is about how Jack is improved as a person and how he craves the Doctor’s love without being jealous of Rose. And, of course, it is the Doctor coming to terms with committing genocide and paying the ultimate price. One thing has been made abundantly clear in this season- with the Daleks, it is not a game for the Doctor. He is uninterested in their demands, has no room for negotiation- he just tells them what he will do, in a scene that, even on the nth viewing, still sends shivers down my spine. The story also shows a new type of Dalek, twisted by the fact of their hybrid nature into religious mania. The characters Davies creates are all very real, from the programmers to Rodrick, a character who acts like a bastard, but is clearly human, evidenced in his helping of Rose to acclimatise. We have the lovely Linda (sorry, Lynda), whom we all want to become a companion. Yet, in the middle of this, we have the very ordinary conversations that Rose has with Mickey and Jackie in the chippy, which only add to the drama. I also love the implication that watching mindless TV junk can save us- the Daleks have no time for reality TV! Through all of this, Davies writes dialogue that is evocative, funny, heartbreaking- all that we have come to expect from one of the greatest television writers in the world.

Sadly, this would be Joe Ahearne’s final stint in the director’s chair for the programme and he certainly goes out on a high, with an embarrassment of beautifully shot, memorable scenes that span multiple moods and textures- the revelation of the Dalek fleet, the disorientating opening scenes in the TV shows, the wonderful rescue of Rose from the Dalek mothership, the subtle revelation of the Dalek in reflection, the scenes with the Controller and whole armies of Daleks. Then there is the astonishing sequence when the Doctor believes Rose has been exterminated, the heartbreaking hologram scene and the death of Lynda. Ahearne juggles varying moods, settings and characters with expert skill. He also makes sure that the performances are superlative. We have the fantastic Paterson Joseph as Rodrick (thankfully made before "Numberwang!") and Jo Joyner being eminently lovable as Lynda. Nisha K Nayar and Jo Stone-Fewings give real depth to the programmers. Meanwhile, back on Earth, Noel Clarke continues his excellent, heartfelt portrayal as Mickey and is ably supported by Camille Coduri. John Barrowman plays Jack’s relationship with the Doctor as being half devotion to a superior officer and half unrequited love- there is genuine hurt on his face at times. Billie Piper continues to amaze- Rose is everything from determined everywoman to godly being, which she carries off with aplomb.

The production is of a consistently superb standard, with a brilliantly rendered (and refreshingly retro!) Dalek fleet and the jaw-dropping scenes that feature the Dalek Emperor. Nick Briggs manages to make him sound exactly like he did in The Evil of the Daleks and there is the pleasant surprise of hearing the ‘Dalek Computer’ sound effect. This is also a good time to praise two regular contributors. Murray Gold’s music was superlative, albeit sometimes a bit high in the mix, which is not his fault. Then there is the cinematography by Ernest Vincze, who managed to make every shot look fantastic.

And now we come to the end. The quandary faced by the Doctor- destroy the Daleks and the human race or let the Daleks spread their tyranny across the universe- is solved by Rose’s return, rippling with the power from the TARDIS, to destroy the Daleks. People cry ‘deus ex machina’ as if the writer has never heard of the term. Rose is turned into a super being by the TARDIS- she literally is a god from the machine! Whatever the plot niggles of this (and, as I think I explained earlier, plot is not the most important thing) the writing is beautifully epic, the direction superb. However, Rose is being destroyed by the energy, so the Doctor kisses her, to remove it and heal her. However, the damage is permanent and his body explodes with energy- to reveal a different face.

Christopher Eccleston was never less than brilliant in the role and he rounds off the season and the era with, perhaps his best ever performance. From his defiance of the Daleks, to his speechless anguish at seeing Rose apparently die, to his moment of turmoil after closing the TARDIS doors on the Daleks, he constantly arrests our attention. Doctor Who’s return was an utter triumph, with, perhaps, the most consistently great season since season 18 and the only Doctor for whom I would wholeheartedly recommend every story of his entire era.

NEXT: "Born Again"- Children In Need

"Boom Town"

2009-10-18T12:33:00.000+01:00

One of the great things about Russell T Davies is how deftly he plays with the perceived structure of the average Doctor Who storyline. Here, the villain’s plan is discovered and the villain captured within the first third of the episode which means that the characters, as well as the audience, have to pass the time until the final act. This is filled by the Doctor having a meal with his enemy and Rose and Mickey examining their relationship. In the hands of a lesser writer, this would invariably mean skipping from chapter 6 to chapter 10 on the DVD. However, we have the expected ‘humanisation’ of Blon Fel-Fotch Pasameer-Day Slitheen who insists that she was brought up to be a murderer and her sojourn in Cardiff has made her more empathetic, which is followed by the unexpected dismissal of it by the Doctor- these are just mechanisms so that a killer can live with themselves, begging the question that Blon then asks… These scenes are almost Tarantinoesque in their combination of humour (such as Blon’s repeated attempts to kill the Doctor) and mundanity of setting which belies the fact that the participants are chipping away at each others defences. The interaction between Rose and Mickey is also beautifully written. Rose talks about the wonderful places that the Doctor has taken her (very well written- sometimes telling is better than showing) while Mickey tries in vain to re-establish the connection he once had with her. Mickey’s attempts to make her jealous fall apart very quickly and he admits that he is prepared to wait for her forever. Rose is a great character and we are with her all the way, but Davies realises that there a streak of selfishness in her- as she says at the end Mickey ‘deserves better’. When the climax comes, it is spectacular, but is resolved in that most maligned of plot devices, the deus ex machina. There is some justification given- she genuinely wants to start again, but I’m still not sure whether it works.

Joe Ahearne’s skill in this more low-key story is still very much evident. The conversation between Blon and the Doctor progresses with tighter and tighter shots, fuelling the drama all the way. He also makes the funny bits work excellently- Blon teleporting, her aforementioned murder attempts and Mickey’s plonker-thon when attempting to capture Blon. The climactic quake in Cardiff is astonishingly shot, with some of the most impressive effects work of the season. Most critically, Ahearne makes the Slitheen work in a way that Keith Boak never could. This is not just because of his shooting style, but in his mastery of directing actors. Annette Badland is superb as Margaret/ Blon, far more memorable than she was in "Aliens of London"/ "World War Three". Jack is a very welcome addition to the crew and Billie Piper puts in a very sensitive performance. The best performances come from Eccleston, and, especially, Noel Clarke, who is nearly heart breaking as Mickey. Of note is the joyous scene where the Doctor, Rose, Jack and Mickey are having lunch and they are all having a laugh as friends, but with Mickey looking like someone who has just penetrated a very exclusive clique.

"Boom Town" is excellent drama with great performances, fantastic dialogue, a monster and an explosive climax. What more do you want?

NEXT: "Bad Wolf"/"The Parting of the Ways"

"The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances"

2009-10-16T11:23:00.000+01:00

It seems weird now that a few eyebrows were raised when it was announced that Steven Moffat would be one of the writers for the revived series. He had, of course, written the excellent Curse of Fatal Death, but he was most famous for his then most recent work, the sitcom Coupling. Many people of a certain age, however, remembered that he was the writer of Press Gang, one of the best series of all time, so they weren't surprised when they were left utterly stunned by the quality of "The Empty Child" and were utterly thrilled by "The Doctor Dances". The characterisation is superb, from the plucky Nancy, who feeds starving kids during the Blitz ('I'm not sure if it's Marxism in action or a West End musical!') to Jack- a wonderful creation which shows how far attitudes have come without rubbing our noses in it. The Blitz is brought to life excellently- it is easy to forget that Londoners really feared that the Luftwaffe were going to pulverise England and then descend to rule the smoking remains. Moffat creates a very intriguing plot, but bolsters it with pitch-perfect dialogue that ranges from the funny to the poignant- compare the 'length comparison' between the Sonic Screwdriver and Jack's sonic blaster with the poignancy of the conversation between the Doctor and Dr Constantine: 'Before this war began, I was a father and a grandfather. Now I'm neither; but I'm still a doctor'. The skill with which he balances comedy and drama is equal to what he displayed in Press Gang- in the middle of a terrifying attack by the gas-mask creatures is thrown in a wonderful there is some farcical prestidigitation with a banana. Most wonderfully, in a story that is more terrifying and more adult than any in the series so far, this is a story where there is no actual villain, the Doctor saves everyone and nobody dies. The way in which this is done is perfect and we never feel that we have been cheated.

There have been some outstanding directorial contributions in the series so far, and James Hawes is no exception. The strengths of Moffat's writing are reinforced throughout, with Hawes taking full advantage of a story set entirely at night and creates many scenes that will be remembered for decades to come- the central image of a sinister child in a gas mask saying 'Are you my mummy?', the utterly terrifying transformation of Dr Constantine, Rose's flight through an air raid. Hawes gets great performances from everyone, even the child actors. Florence Hoath is wonderful as Nancy and Richard Wilson effortlessly effective as Dr Constantine. John Barrowman makes Jack instantly memorable in a very likeable turn and his joining of the TARDIS crew is very welcome. Billie Piper is wonderfully sparky and flirty as Rose, but Christopher Eccleston manages to improve, yet again, on his previous performance- the moment where he triumphantly shouts 'Everybody lives!' sends a shiver down my spine, even on the nth viewing. It goes without saying that the production is brilliantly, effortlessly giving us wartime London and stunning us with some of the best special effects the programme has yet seen, from the impressive bombing sequence to the truly horrific transformation of Dr Constantine.

Make no mistake, "The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances" is fantastic television, easily up there with the best Doctor Who stories of all time.

NEXT: "Boomtown"

"Father’s Day"

2009-10-14T13:53:00.000+01:00

"Father’s Day" is a tender story of the relationship between two people who have a deep love for each other, but have never met. It is also the story of a chaotic universe where the removal of an intelligent guiding force results in the resurgence of a primal, bestial, regulating one. It is also a story where flying monsters attack people in a church. Paul Cornell’s script manages to incorporate all this, and more, into one of the most powerful Doctor Who stories of all time. The plot covers what happens if something from the past is knowingly changed and the answer is that there is a ‘wound’ in time, which attracts its own type of parasite, the Reapers, who will sterilise the wound, while the original timeline tries to manifest itself, almost like arterial spray. The sci-fi aspect of the script is well thought out and makes it clear that the laws of the Doctor Who universe are very different, now that the Time Lords have been destroyed.

However, the plot is only one of the great things about this episode. After Adam was expelled from the TARDIS team for using time-travel for his own ends, Rose almost suffers the same fate, although her motives are more laudable- to have her dad back. Rose’s image of her dad is the hagiographic impression that Jackie gave her. Pete only knows Rose as a baby, loving her unconditionally but having few experiences to tie to that love. Moreover, Pete, with all his flaws, becomes the figure children see their dads as- a hero who can save the world. Both characters come to know each other as people, something which is deftly and beautifully written by Cornell. The story is full of great little character moments, such as the Doctor celebrating the joys of ordinary life, the lovely wedding of Pete and Jackie etc.

The script is given an extra boost by the excellent direction by Joe Ahearne. There are so many striking scenes- the TARDIS turning into an ordinary police box, its shimmering re-materialisation, the wonderful desaturated shot of Rose staring into space and, most shockingly, a Reaper devouring the Doctor, the first time the Doctor actually dies. The Reapers are a very memorable monster race and are excellently realised. Every single shot looks like it is there for a reason and there is not one performance that is less than excellent. Shaun Dingwall makes Pete very likeable and Camille Coduri is her usual striking self. However, it is Billie Piper who romps home with the prize in a stunningly moving performance that grabs hold of you and doesn’t let go. Christopher Eccleston, however, is not to be overshadowed and he puts in another very strong showing.

This is one time Doctor Who has nearly made me cry, but with a story that has a real understanding of human emotion, rather than relying on cheap sentiment- truly one of the best stories the programme has ever produced.

NEXT: "The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances"

"The Long Game"

2009-10-12T10:50:00.000+01:00

"The Long Game" is a great little tale, effectively told. It has the Doctor finding something wrong, getting to the bottom of it and effecting a solution. The storyline is well executed and contains the great dialogue and characters that we have come to expect from RTD. In a tale where the monster is a fanged gelatinous blob hanging from the ceiling, news broadcasts that use human brains as processors and have people having ‘kronkburgers’ and beef milk shakes, there is still room for competition between co-workers and an exploration of what it takes to become the Doctor’s travelling companion. There is also a continuation of an important theme in Doctor Who that has really been brought to the fore in this season- the Doctor doesn’t just save the day, he makes people better. Cathica is one of the myriad unquestioning drones that the 2001st Century seems to have developed- yet the influence of the Doctor enables her to break out of the box she has been trapped in and it is through her that the day is saved.

The guest cast is superb. Anna Maxwell-Martin gives a wonderful performance on the cusp of her recent, highly deserved, success and Christine Adams puts in a great performance as Cathica. There is a wonderful little role for Tamsin Greig as the nurse, though it is a pity her formidable gifts as a comic actress weren’t better utilised. However, the most memorable guest role has to be Simon Pegg. Pegg is one of those who dreamed of being a Doctor Who baddie since childhood and it is clear he is having a blast. This doesn’t mean he goes over the top- it is a quietly menacing performance, gilded with Pegg’s comic charm. The regulars are excellent and, as the dynamic for the TARDIS crew has changed, so have their interpretations of their characters. Bruno Langley is very skilful in making Adam a man who gave into a very understandable temptation and refused to take responsibility for it- however, I was as glad as anyone when the Doctor chucked him out.

The production values are excellent with good design work and some excellent effects- especially the opening foreheads. The Jagrafess is a fun addition to the Doctor Who bestiary. Brian Grant’s direction is good, although he doesn’t have the instinctive feel that Euros Lyn or Joe Ahearne posses.

"The Long Game" is an entertaining story that seems like an enjoyable one-off. But, of course, we now know better…

NEXT: "Father’s Day"

"Dalek"

2009-10-10T13:26:00.000+01:00

As I pointed out before, if there is any doubt that the programme you are watching is indeed Doctor Who, there is one guaranteed solution, as the production team first decided with the arrival of Patrick Troughton. This episode was (next to "Rose") the one we were all waiting for. Rob Shearman's script is based on a base-under siege type plotline which has, in the past, led to some of the least interesting stories in Doctor Who's history. However, Shearman is out to do much more than tell a tale that adheres to tried and tested formulae. Doctor Who's most iconic monster is back and it has to be as frightening for the children of 2005 as the 1964 version was, so there are many scenes of the Dalek being awesome, using the very things that it has been mocked for- the plunger, apparent stair impairment- and turning them on their head. The Dalek is a nightmare in chrome, able to kill hundreds of people with little effort. There is a great piece of dialogue where Van Statten asks what the Dalek wants and the Doctor replies that it wants to kill any human that it sees:

- 'But why would it do that?'
- 'Because it honestly believes that they should die.'

"Dalek" also explores the character of the Doctor. It is revealed that the Time War which destroyed the Time Lords was fought against the Daleks. The Doctor acts in a way that we have never seen him act before, gleefully taunting the Dalek and even torturing it. In the end, he is actually pointing a gun at it. For the first time ever, we see the Doctor actually hate his enemy, the first time ever that the Doctor's motivation is primarily his own self-interest and desire and the skill of the writing is such that it doesn't seem like a betrayal of the character. As a contrast, Rose has no preconceptions of the Dalek, which contrasts well with the Doctor's hatred and, perhaps, helps in the healing of the Doctor. The story takes the contentious step of humanising the Dalek, which is done very well and the added twist that it is this humanisation which makes the Dalek want to commit suicide is excellent. There are a few clunky bits ('Thank you, Doctor, but I think I know how to handle one single tin robot') but they are very few and far between.

The writing of the other characters is not as complex, but this is compensated for by some witty dialogue and some excellent performances. Corey Johnson, a very talented American stage actor, plays Van Statten to perfection and is ably supported by Anna-Louise Plowman. Bruno Langley is quite effective as Adam and Nicholas Briggs is flawless as the Dalek voice- we finally hear what a Dalek sounds like when it isn't shouting. However, the regulars are absolutely phenomenal, especially Christopher Eccleston who fully conveys degrees of pain and rage that the Doctor has never shown before.

The episode also benefits from the fantastic direction of Joe Ahearne. Not only does he command a great cast, but he knows exactly what angles to choose, how the camera should move etc which, when one compares it with "Aliens of London"/ "World War Three" doesn't leave one with the best impression of Keith Boak. The production is flawless, with a special mention for the Dalek- instantly recognisable, but spruced up with subtle touches to make it more visually interesting. The scenes of the Dalek mutant opening its casing and reaching for the Sun are sublime, a triumph of effects and direction.

I watched this story three times in a row when it was broadcast and, watching it again, I realised that it is still a very strong story and well worth the time.

NEXT: "The Long Game"

"Aliens of London"/"World War Three"

2009-10-08T12:55:00.000+01:00

The first two parter of the 21st century is a significant story for long-standing fans of the programme. It is similar in length to the 4-parters that the programme used to have and, perhaps even more critically, this means that "Aliens of London" ends with the first proper cliffhanger the programme has had in 16 years. But, what of the story itself? Russell T Davies's script definitely proves one thing- he can make ordinary human drama funny, intelligent and touching. This is immediately apparent from the very beginning of "Aliens of London". The Doctor has brought Rose back home, but has accidentally arrived a year after they left. Rose returns to find that her mother believes she is dead and Mickey is rumoured to have done the deed. These scenes are excellently done and drive home a fact that we never consider about the Doctor- his companions are, effectively, alien abductees and, for the first time, we see the trauma for those who have been left behind. This is as good time as any to address a fandom criticism of 'New Who' that has always infuriated me- the accusation of 'soapiness'. For a certain minority of fans (not just of Doctor Who, but all sf/fantasy) anything that does not involve aliens, monsters, spaceships etc is 'soap opera'- an attitude that says more about the lack of sophistication of such fans than the quality of the programme/ film/ book. Davies creates interesting characters who behave in ways appropriate to their personality and situation and this aspect of his writing is phenomenally strong.

This helps to make "Aliens of London" a very strong episode indeed. The alien threat is very intriguing- a crashed spaceship contains a surgically augmented pig, but the Doctor suspects that there may be more to this than meets the eye. Politicians and key people in other areas are disappearing, and the (rather corpulent) people who remain appear to have certain flatulence problems. It turns out that they are aliens from the planet Raxacoricofallapatorius, all members of the Slitheen family, who are keen to remove any threat to their eventual plan. This gradual revelation of the alien plan is very well written and work very well with the more domestic scenes- the Doctor trying to watch the news while a toddler steals the remote control. "World War Three" reveals the plan, but the perfunctory way in which the threat is overcome is rather disappointing- a missile strike is used to dispose of the aliens- but Davies's character writing remains excellent.

The main problem with the story as a whole is the direction. Keith Boak deals well with the more domestic parts of the story, but his direction of the sci-fi aspect is all over the place. Although he comes up with some memorable shots and scenes, there are a few which are carelessly sloppy, especially in his supervising of editing. Most serious of all is the tone of some of the Slitheen scenes, which seem to come from the bad end of the 'kids TV' spectrum. Some of the performances by the Slitheen actors are painfully unsubtle, but in a way that makes it clear that the fault is with the director- Annette Badland's talent manages to overcome Boak's limitations, notably in the scene where she is threatened by the Doctor. This is a pity, as the production is of a very high standard- the crash-landing of the spaceship is phenomenal, one of the best special effects seen on the small screen. The Slitheen are realised with some effective CGI and some good costumes- which lose something when Boak directs.

Slitheen aside, the cast is excellent from Navin Chowdhry's Indra Ganesh (odd name, by the way- it's like calling a Greek man 'Uranus Apollo'!) to a pitch-perfect cameo by Andrew Marr. However, Penelope Wilton's brilliant Harriet Jones is instantly memorable and a special mention must be given to Noel Clarke, whose performance as Mickey is phenomenal. Christopher Eccleston is brilliant in every scene, from his reactions to life on a council estate to his memorable face-off with Margaret the Slitheen. Rose has to cope with a veritable emotional barrage and Billie Piper conveys this with aplomb.

"Aliens of London" / "World War Three" has its faults, but it is entertaining and by no means a bad story.

NEXT: "Dalek"

"The Unquiet Dead"

2009-10-06T08:51:00.000+01:00

A trip to the future was followed by this jolly trip into the past. Mark Gatiss weaves a very enjoyable tale of ghostly gaseous aliens, a rift in time and space, zombies and Charles Dickens. It is, perhaps, this story that really highlights the differences in pacing between the old programme and the new. The period setting already makes it reminiscent of the likes of The Talons of Weng-Chiang, but the 45-minute length means that the story has to be told in a very different way. The Gelth are a very simple idea, but are brought across well and the ‘zombies’ that they create are frightening without being too much for the kids. There are brief, but effective, musings on the difference between morality and propriety and- as will become more evident over the seasons- hints of a greater tragedy beyond. Such is the skill of Gatiss that we get an alien invasion story that feels like a Victorian ghost story that manages to weave its spell and have some excellent characterisation and dialogue. The ending also works well, although it seemed rushed at the time.

As said before, the characterisation is great and the excellent cast do the script justice. Alan David is wonderful as Mr Sneed (a wonderfully Dickensian name) and Eve Myles brings real humanity to Gwyneth- Gatiss wonderfully paints her as being naïve, but not unintelligent and Myles makes her very appealing. However, the most wonderful thing about this story is Simon Callow’s Charles Dickens. Callow is an authority on Dickens and has played the part many times- it is wonderful that he had enough faith in the programme to allow what is, for him, something that is more than simply another part, to be included. Gatiss paints Dickens as a man who, despite the great things he has done, is questioning the worth of his life. This portrayal is so convincing that we never, for one moment, see Dickens’s joy at the end as being anything other than wonderful. The regulars are wonderful as ever and we see them truly confirming their friendship- ‘I’m so glad I met you!’

Euros Lyn again directs with great energy. The séance scene is perfect, as are the zombie scenes. It is wonderful how he can have sedate scenes (such as the very start) and frantic ones and not have them ruin the flow of the story. He is helped, of course by fantastic production values- the excellence that the BBC has always shown with period dramas is combined with some wonderful special effects.

"The Unquiet Dead" is a wonderful story and comes highly recommended.

NEXT: "Aliens of London"/" World War Three"

"The End of the World"

2009-10-04T14:33:00.000+01:00

If "Rose" was a low-key story that gently introduced the viewer back into Doctor Who, "The End of the World" pitches them headlong into the crazy worlds that Doctor Who can take us to. Following on directly from the end of "Rose", it can be seen as 100,000 BC to "Rose"s "An Unearthly Child", taking us from the familiar to the incomprehensible. The plot is a whodunit in space, but this merely the skeleton for the story. We are taken to the year 5.5/apple/26, when the Earth finally meets its end, with an audience of the far-future’s rich and famous come to pay their respects. This includes an alarming array of aliens, creatures that evolved from the trees of the Brazilian rain forest and Lady Cassandra, the last human- a piece of skin stretched over a frame with eyes and a mouth. This evocative mix of Olaf Stapledon and Douglas Adams is a wonderful setting which Russell T Davies populates with some memorable characters. Jabe, one of the trees, actually plays the role of companion for most of the story and works very well with the Doctor. This is helped by a wonderful performance by the very talented and very sexy Yasmin Bannerman- her fate shouldn’t leave a dry eye in the house. Cassandra is a CGI creation, deliciously voiced by Zoë Wanamaker. Davies also makes minor characters such as the Steward and Raffalo come alive.

However, while this is going on, there is a deeper purpose. This is about Rose starting her journey with the Doctor- we sense the shock that Rose feels when confronted with. At the same time, we start to get to know the Doctor a bit more. The manic bonhomie is mixed with tragedy, for it is here that we find that the Doctor is alone and Gallifrey has been destroyed. The sequences where the enormity of the Doctor’s loss are revealed are beautifully written and performed. The story also deals with the emotional consequences of time travel- when Rose speaks to her mother thanks to the Doctor’s jiggery pokery with her phone, she realises that she is talking to someone whose fossilised remains will shortly be vapourised. The destruction of the Earth is followed by a scene showing a very ordinary London street that is full of life. Everything has its time and everything dies- but not yet. Together with Rose, we want to continue this journey, after we’ve had some chips! The regulars are wonderful in this, with Billie Piper effectively conveying Rose’s confusion at being thrust in this alien environment. Eccleston shows the pain the Doctor is hiding (we see a single tear on his face) and his compassion (comforting Jabe’s companions) but we see a ruthless side in his allowing Cassandra to rip apart.

"Rose" was as kinetic as 21st Century television usually is, but it is clear that Euros Lyn is in a different league to Keith Boak. "The End of the World" is flawlessly directed with Lyn conveying scenes of jollity, such as the Doctor dancing to "Tainted Love" and scenes of great tension and managing to make them work together. Lyn is helped by a very impressive production, with the various aliens being excellently realised- The Moxx of Balhoon is a very minor character, yet the effort put into his realisation is phenomenal. The CG spacecraft and robot spiders are things that 20th century fans could only dream of, yet Lyn does not allow them to overwhelm us.

"The End of the World" proves that Doctor Who is funny, scary and completely bonkers- which is why we love it!

NEXT: "The Unquiet Dead"

"Rose"

2009-10-03T14:41:00.000+01:00

We open in space and bear down upon Earth at frightening speed- to end up looking at the face of an alarm clock. This leads to a high-octane montage of a day in the life of Rose Tyler, a normal every-day girl who has something very unusual happen to her that changes her life forever. Ladies and gentlemen, Doctor Who is back!

The story is very easy to follow, which makes it difficult to appreciate how incredibly skilful the writing is. The ‘threat’ in the story is the Nestene Intelligence and the Autons, who are again brought back to usher in a new era. However, we never see how they invaded and we never get scenes of them plotting. They appear as an inexplicable menace, as they should to the average person. For this story is called Rose for a reason- she is the average person who has to be introduced to a legend that has lasted for 40 years. The characters that populate this story are real, from Rose's mother Jackie, who is obsessed with getting compensation for Rose to Clive, a very sympathetic portrayal of a conspiracy freak. This is due, in a large way, to Russell T Davies. What is rarely appreciated is his deep understanding of the programme, which led him to start the relaunch of the series with such a low-key tale- yet "An Unearthly Child" was similarly low-key, which made it all the more effective. The council-estate setting is also redolent of Survival. Davies not only understands what made the original series work, but knows how to reinterpret that for the 21st century. The story is helped, of course, by Davies’s phenomenal skills as a writer, writing dialogue that is realistic, funny and evocative. We can also see how acceptable subjects for family television have changed- ‘he’s gay and she’s an alien’, ‘kit-off!’ and references to breast implants would have been unthinkable in the original programme!

The look of the series is, of course completely different to anything that has gone before- the programme is now in widescreen and has a filmic look. The editing is frenetic as is the pace. Keith Boak directs with aplomb, although he would be quickly outclassed by other directors. The production values are all phenomenal from the headless Auton Mickey to the wonderful new TARDIS set.

Russell T Davies is a very highly respected name in television, which is why he was able to get one of the finest British actors to play the Doctor. Christopher Eccleston is unlike any Doctor previously seen, but we are seeing the character in a way we haven’t really seen him since Spearhead from Space- a force of nature that occasionally stops to chat. The Doctor is manic, sometimes absent minded, funny, but possessing deep wisdom and intelligence and Eccleston is instantly effective in the role. However, this story is called "Rose" and it is Billie Piper who is the real lead player. It seems hard to believe the incredulity her casting caused, but it is easy to believe the complete evaporation of that bad feeling that occurred after the episode aired. Piper exudes star quality and talent from the start and it is clear that a great Doctor/Companion dynamic has started. The supporting cast are great, with Camille Coduri being great fun as Jackie and Noel Clarke making Mickey very real, and a complete plonker!

Doctor Who is unique and some would say an acquired taste. It is an easy taste to acquire, however, provided the right starter is presented- and this hugely entertaining 45 minutes truly whets the appetite.

NEXT: "The End of the World"

Hiatuseses

2009-09-26T13:24:00.000+01:00

Doctor Who came back after seven years and it would take another nine years for it to return again. That leaves 15 years of no new televised Doctor Who on the BBC. None? There was, of course Dimensions in Time, which was made for the 30th anniversary and broadcast in aid of Children in Need. This was an attempt to shoehorn as many Doctors and Doctor Who monsters that weren’t created by Terry Nation into 13 minutes of television. It has a semblance of a plot, but that is not the point of the ‘story’. It is a nicotine patch for those who had been missing the programme and fulfils that purpose. Yes, it is dramatically worthless, but it clearly isn’t a Doctor Who story, whatever JNT thought- how can it be, when it crosses over with EastEnders? It is, incidentally, the first story that was written by the Turner and it is obvious that his talents lay elsewhere. JNT is still vilified by a certain section of fandom, but I must say at this point that his tenure started with a much-needed revitalisation of the programme and ended with two excellent seasons. True, he made some bad decisions which probably were a result of his lack of creative experience, but it is a shame that he is still hated by some fans.

Then there was the 1999 Comic Relief skit The Curse of Fatal Death. Again, this is blatantly not a proper Doctor Who story, but, unlike its Children in Need predecessor, this is a wonderful celebration of the programme that has ten times more understanding of the programme (and, indeed, good television) in its 25 minutes than the Paul McGann movie did in 85. Here, the Doctor is a hero, an adventurer and a scientist, a man of wit and compassion. Rowan Atkinson’s performance is different, yet instantly recognisable. We are then treated to excellent portrayals by Richard E Grant, Jim Broadbent, Hugh Grant and Joanna Lumley. Jonathan Pryce (one of the most gifted actors in the world) is wonderful as the Master and Julia Sawalha plays a role that she blatantly would have played anyway, had the programme continued. The script by Steven Moffat is hilarious, but full of hope: ‘Perhaps even the Universe can’t bear to be without the Doctor’.

There were a few revivals on radio, the only one of which I have heard is the epic and highly recommended Death Comes to Time. Then, there were the comic strips (which I never read) and books. I read a few New Adventures, Missing Adventures, Eighth Doctor Adventures and Past Doctor Adventures, but it wasn’t the same- the only ones I ever re-read were Lungbarrow and Human Nature (for obvious reasons). There were also some semi-professional video releases, which ranged from being amateur but entertaining, to being genuinely horrible. Later came the Big Finish audios, which I’ve listened to a few of, which always feel professional and sometimes have genuinely great stories. As far as I was concerned, however, these new efforts, excellent though some of them were, were not something I would show any real loyalty to.

Then came Scream of the Shalka. It seemed that, if we were ever to see any more proper Doctor Who, this was the closest we’d get. Paul Cornell’s story was simply, yet very effectively written with great performances from a fantastic cast. Richard E Grant made a fine Doctor and was ably supported by the legendary Sir Derek Jacobi and the wonderful Sophie Okonedo. The animation by Cosgrove Hall was very good and I could have been converted to being a regular viewer, had these animated adventures continued. However, it was not to be- and for the most wonderful reason possible…

NEXT: "Rose"

"Doctor Who"

2009-09-26T12:57:00.000+01:00

Doctor Who had been apparently dead for seven years when, unexpectedly, it returned for one night only. This was Doctor Who as we had never seen before- shot on 35mm film, boasting state-of-the-art CG effects and, most crucially, very American. These days, it seems that every new season in the US broadcast calendar produces a programme worth watching- some of the best TV dramas of all time have emerged from the USA in the last 15 years. However, I believe that, from the advent of colour television all the way to the early 1990s, American TV drama was nothing like as good as British TV drama. The writing was hampered by unadventurous house styles; the production was unimaginative, with shows being made on 35mm film that were so shoddily shot and lit that they might as well have been made on videotape. These factors, combined with (to us) puritanical broadcast restrictions severely inhibited real quality. There were a handful of notable exceptions, of course, but the considerable talent that has always existed in the US TV system meant that something good had to pop up from time to time. This had started to change in the early 1990s (if I was to credit any programme, it would probably be The Simpsons, strangely enough) and American TV drama was certainly improving by the time this story was broadcast. It was a huge success in the UK (much less so in the USA) and it is easy to see why. There was a generation of teenagers and children who had watched the show who had entered into young adulthood and they were presented with Doctor Who with the budget the programme had always deserved but never got. There were the not-so-young hardcore fans whose prayers had finally been answered- this was an event which needed to succeed, to prove that Doctor Who could live again. I remember loving this when it was broadcast, but when I inserted the DVD to watch it for this marathon something hit me- although I had seen various highlights of the story since, I had never watched the whole thing again. It is now time to look at it more objectively.

I tend to avoid excessive hyperbole, but I have to say that the script by Matthew Jacobs is one of the worst ever produced under the name Doctor Who. This may seem excessive, but let me take you through it. The basic premise is based on The Deadly Assassin (the Master seeks to be reborn by opening the Eye of Harmony) with a sprinkling of Spearhead from Space (the hospitalised Doctor). This leaves the wholly original parts- the Doctor regenerates and has to stop the Master by stealing a piece of an atomic clock. He is too late and has to go back to 'before he arrives'. The Master, however, has taken control of Grace, the Doctor's companion, but the Master eventually kills her and Chang Lee, his own companion. However, the Master is stopped and the Doctor brings Grace and Lee back to life. This is a lazily conceived and frankly dull plotline, made worse by the wholly predictable and clichéd situations the script creates, where too many things happen for no reason. Then there's the appalling structure- however nice it was to see Sylvester McCoy again, having him turn up simply to regenerate is terrible, in story terms, especially considering the utterly idiotic way he meets his end. Worse still is the dialogue- not so much the words said, but their placement. The Doctor randomly info-dumps for no reason and Grace spouts lines that seem to have been dropped into the script at random- her saying 'I finally meet the right guy and he's from another planet' apropos of nothing makes no sense in the context of the scene. An incredibly basic rule of writing is ‘things happen- people react to them’- and there are times when this is not followed. It is not surprising that characterisation goes out of the window- only the Master actually seems like a proper character at all. The fact that the Master is more memorable than the Doctor shows another of the many faults of the script- it is the Master who is treated as the main character. The Doctor is not a hero, a man who inspires others to be better- he's a wandering weirdo who is, let's not forget 'Briddish'.

The production values are very impressive- the set for the interior of the TARDIS is the only unqualified triumph of the whole story. However, the story manages to accomplish the feat of being well-shot, without being well directed. Apart from the wonderful montage that forms the prologue, memorable scenes are few and far between- there are lots of interesting shots, but they seem to only be there to look cool, not to serve the story. Some scenes are botched completely- look at the terribly rendered scene of the regenerated Doctor causing the orderly to faint. Beyond this, we have a car chase that completely fails to make an impression and scenes from the climax which only register because of the genuine wonder of the fantastic TARDIS set. Having praised the set, however, I must say that the revelation of the TARDIS’s dimensionally transcendental nature is totally botched by director Geoffrey Sax. When Barbara barged into the TARDIS in "An Unearthly Child", it was a jolt to both viewer and character. However, we are immediately shown the Doctor inside the ship (which must have confused the casual American viewer no end- there is no indication given that this is the interior of that odd blue box they have just seen). The moment where Chang Lee steps into the TARDIS should have been our first revelation about the ship, a real moment of wonder- yet, as the nature of the ship has already been artlessly revealed, it comes off as being merely a feeble comic double-take. In the end, the ultimate failure of Sax's direction can be seen by the fact that here are only a couple of scenes that would even qualify for what I would consider to be ‘Doctor Who moments’- the only one I can think of offhand is the discovery of the security guards that the Master has paralysed. Sax has proved a good enough director before and since, so I can forgive his mistakes and blame them on the travesty of a script and interference from The Man.

The minor cast consists of typically competent, if unspectacular American TV performers, a description that stretches to Yee Jee Tso's Chang Lee. Daphne Ashbrook is engaging enough, but is not helped by a script and a director that has no idea of who the character is. This leaves us with the Time Lords. Sylvester McCoy puts in a very good performance, but is wasted- his shooting by the gang members is stupidly directed as well as stupidly written. Paul McGann totally convinces as the Doctor- for a handful of scenes. Most of the time, he spouts what, to the average American viewer, must have seemed like absolute gibberish, conforming at all times to the average American TV Executive’s idea of what we crazy tea-drinking, left-hand drive, ‘Briddish’ are like. McGann has given some fine performances, but if he had it in him to play the Doctor, he doesn't show it here. Eric Roberts, on the other hand, relishes playing the Master and his flamboyant performance mixes urbane villainy with real bestial fury as effectively as Ainley at his best, but with a very different performance.

There are those who hate this story because of the kiss and/ or the revelation that the Doctor is half-human. The first doesn’t bother me in the slightest, the second is a little annoying, but really not too important. It is for far more fundamental reasons that this film fails both as Doctor Who and decent drama. It fails both as a continuation of the BBC series and as a good American version of a BBC original. It would really have been best if it had been ignored and then forgotten after broadcast. Unfortunately, McCoy's presence means that this uninspired 85 minutes has a guaranteed place in Doctor Who history that it does not, in any way, deserve.

Survival

2009-09-21T12:30:00.000+01:00

Survival is a story of home- how our behaviour shapes it when we are there, how we cope when we leave it and what our leaving does to those we leave behind. It is also a story about how self-interest must be tempered by empathy for a society, indeed a world to survive. It does this, as only Doctor Who can, by having a race of humanoid cheetahs menace people in suburbia, transporting them back to a hostile alien planet to hunt them for sport. Rona Munro's script is short on explanations for the weird goings on. But that does not matter in the slightest- it is more about theme than plot and the story is full of them, some, more obvious than others- the meaning of the Cheetah planet breaking apart because the Cheetah People fight is blatant, yet it does not seem like it is being rubbed in our faces. Munro uses very ordinary people- Perivale teenagers, shopkeepers, housewives and a Territorial Army sergeant as characters, who have lives beyond the otherworldly chaos they are thrown into- yet this is also a Master story and the character is used well- a Time Lord who is a heartless killer makes perfect sense in the story.

Munro's script is very good, despite showing slight signs of padding (a bit too much running around in part 2). However, it is the Direction of Alan Wareing that really brings the story to life. Having given us the very stylised Greatest Show in the Galaxy and Ghost Light, he shows that he can work his magic in the more mundane setting of Perivale in 1989. Again, his eye for a memorable image is excellent- the POV shots for the unseen appearance of the Cheetah People; the image of one revealed in slow motion and the epic moment when, in mortal combat with the Master as the Cheetah Planet disintegrates around them, the Doctor bellows: 'If we fight like animals, we'll die like animals!'. The production is largely excellent, with the Cheetah Planet being excellently rendered. True, the Kitlings aren't that great, but neither are they awful, and the verve of the production easily compensates for their technical shortcomings.

The guest cast is competent at worst and outstanding at best. Julian Holloway makes Sgt Paterson a very memorable character with a very intelligent performance. Lisa Bowerman is fantastically feral as Karra. Hale and Pace work very well as the shopkeepers even though, one expects, they were included purely as an allusion to their most notorious sketch. However, the standout is Anthony Ainley's last performance as the Master. He is more subdued, yet far more menacing than he has ever been before and it is great that his last performance of a part he genuinely loved was his best. The regulars are on fine form- the relationship between Doctor and companion is more archetypal than in the rest of the season- we feel that this is a friendship that will continue.

Only, of course, it didn't. Although it was not meant to be at the time of shooting, this was the last Doctor Who story produced by the BBC in the 20th Century. The programme ended with one of the best seasons it had ever had, with a thrilling and memorable ride that proves that Doctor Who certainly did not go out with a whimper.

NEXT: "Doctor Who"

The Curse of Fenric

2009-09-19T09:34:00.000+01:00

In many ways, the penultimate story of Doctor Who's original run combines the preoccupations of the McCoy era with the themes of the Hinchcliffe/ Holmes era. It explores themes such as the Doctor's manipulative nature and Ace's coming to terms with her own personality and combines them with the 'horror' stylings of the early Tom Baker era. Steeped in Norse mythology, the plot is also influenced by horror films (John Carpenter's The Fog being an obvious example) but takes familiar ingredients and cooks up something new with them. The plot is easy enough to follow. Russian soldiers covertly arrive in the Northumbria to steal the ULTIMA machine, the most advanced code-breaking computer in the world. However, Commander Millington, the base commander, is only too willing to let them have it- an ancient evil, entombed in the nearby church for centuries, is about to awake and the Doctor must stop it. This description does not hint at the nuances of the superlative script. The ancient evil under the church is not merely the primordial entity that is called Fenric by some, but the natural poisons that seep from its foundations. Ace's stake in the story is not just her own development, but the entire direction her life has taken. The situation between the Russians and the British deflates the cosy belief that the USSR only became our enemies after the war. Ian Briggs's script is replete with great dialogue- the use of 'love' as the codeword to detonate the booby trap in the ULTIMA machine, Ace's thoughtlessness when it comes to 1940's mores. Briggs's writing is so skilful that we never notice the pains taken to avoid the use of the word 'Ragnarok'.

Beyond the script, the excellence of the story is confirmed in its realisation. Nicholas Mallett doesn't put a foot wrong in his direction of the story, making great use of well-chosen location with superb lighting and camerawork. The production design is fantastic, combining the BBC's usual aptitude for costume drama with the increasing sophistication of the special effects department. The Haemovores are instantly memorable, with their hideous appearance evoking rotting cadavers and leeches. Mark Ayres's music is again wonderful- it is a real pity that he came to Doctor Who so late. Mallett also commands a brilliant guest cast. As has been said by many, Nicholas Parsons's portrayal of Rev. Wainright is a revelation, his face speaking volumes on the conflicts in the man. Dinsdale Landen and Alfred Lynch bring Judson and Millington to life with style. Tomek Bork is very charismatic as Sorin and Cory Pulman is very sympathetic as Kathleen. Both Bork and Landen do excellent jobs in portraying both their characters and Fenric possessing their characters. It says a lot that the worst performers Joann(e)s Kenny and Bell as Jean and Phyllis would not have stood out as such three years earlier.

There is very strong material for the regulars and both rise excellently to the challenge. The Doctor is more manipulative than ever, but this is in the face of a truly awesome foe. The moment that he has to break Ace's faith in him is brilliantly written and performed- the Doctor's subsequent 'I'd have done anything not to hurt you' shows what a powerful actor McCoy can be. Ace grows up in many ways in this story and Sophie Aldred provides a very effective performance.

This is another story where two versions exist. The original version has a wonderfully frenetic pace, but the special edition lets the story breathe and provides depth to the characters. The two editions are quite different in content and, although I would state that the special edition is better, this is not to say the original is worthless- both are recommended.

In all great Doctor Who stories, there are moments that stand out and this one is no exception- the runes appearing on the wall, Sorin warding off the Haemovores with his faith in the Revolution while Wainright loses his faith in the Bible, the runes turning out to be a logic diagram and, of course: 'We play the contest again- Time Lord'. This is one of the truly definitive Doctor Who stories.

NEXT: Survival

Ghost Light

2009-09-16T15:12:00.000+01:00

In less than 75 minutes, Ghost Light reminded us all how powerful Doctor Who could be. The story is fresh and original, yet actually easy to follow- my sister, who was 7 at the time, had no problem figuring out what was going on. However, the script by Marc Platt deals effectively with the controversy that Darwin caused with his theories of evolution, with a script that brings up allusions and references with, seemingly, every line- we have Douglas Adams, Shaw’s Pygmalion and The Lost World (to name but three) in a script that makes the viewer want to watch the story again and look up every reference- even Queen Victoria is called the ‘crowned Saxe-Coburg’ more often than her regnal name. Platt does this in a way that does not seem self-consciously clever, but instead enriches the story as a whole, combined with clever and witty dialogue (‘He’s gone to see a man about a god’). The story’s preoccupation with adapting to the environment means that Platt creates some odd, but very memorable characters. Lady Pritchard and her daughter Gwendoline are traumatised by the powers in the house, but the personae they have as a result are the results of their own character- as the Doctor says, Gwendoline enjoys sending people ‘to Java’ too much for her to deny responsibility for her actions. Josiah Samuel Smith has adapted so well (as was the purpose of the experiment) that he is indistinguishable from a Victorian Gentleman. and there is Nimrod, the Neanderthal butler. Which is really cool. There are some things that don’t quite work in plot terms (the light in Redvers’s cigarette case, the nature of the maidservants, for example) but they are so well done, they come off as interesting diversions, rather than plot problems. There are also some flaws in the science- a common mistake that people make is to equate being more ‘evolved’ (or ‘derived’, to be more accurate) with being superior. For example, despite being more ‘primitive’ than bony fish, sharks are actually far more intelligent. However, these do not detract from one’s enjoyment of the story.

Alan Wareing directs a practically flawless production. Wareing creates scenes of great energy with his effective, yet unshowy camera work. The story has scenes of humour contrasted with some real scares, such as the death of Inspector Mackenzie and the gradual emergence of Control. However Wareing manages to make these scenes effective without being gratuitous, which is why he gets away with the most explicitly horrific image in the history of the programme- Light holding the severed arm of a young woman. The production design is fantastic, with Gabriel Chase being utterly convincing. Even light, when he manifests himself, looks like a Pre-Raphaelite angel, an image which invokes feelings of awe and of rejection of modernity.

The cast is superb, and is marshalled expertly by Wareing. Katharine Schlesinger is gleefully sadistic as Gwendoline and contrasts well with Sylvia Syms icy Lady Pritchard. Ian Hogg is masterful as Josiah, contrasted in every way with Sharon Duce’s marvellously feral Control. John Hallam, despite lightening his very gravelly voice, exudes both awe and horror as Light and Frank Windsor is great fun as ‘the cream of Scotland Yard’. The regulars have exceptional material to work with. Ace is confronted with a fear from her childhood and Sophie Aldred puts in one of her best performances. The Doctor hasn’t been this devious and mysterious for years and, apart from the bizarre gurn-fest in episode 3, Sylvester McCoy puts in a fine performance.

Ghost Light is a phenomenal story, a clear indication that the highs of the previous season were no fluke.

NEXT: The Curse of Fenric

Battlefield

2009-09-14T13:21:00.000+01:00

Battlefield sees Doctor Who tackling Arthurian legend for the first time, which is surprising if you see Doctor Who as being a British mythos in its own right, but perhaps less surprising when you consider that Arthurian legend a) mainly French and (b) is basically the story of a king conceived in rape who, despite the help of a half-demon wizard, loses everything due to the fact that he conceives a child with his own sister. However, Ben Aaronovitch creates a very convincing tale where the legend of Arthur is based on the exploits of a warrior king from another dimension, where knights carry a sword on one side and an energy weapon on the other, where ornithopters and organic spacecraft rule the skies and where the line between science and magic is blurred. Into this, we have the Doctor who, to his own surprise, is hailed as Merlin by these people and has to improvise his way through situations that his future self has set up for him. Despite containing some undercooked plotting, a few lines of really dreadful dialogue, Aaronovitch tells a very enjoyable and evocative yarn. Despite a few bad lines, there are far more memorable ones and Aaronovitch's script is clearly the work of someone who deeply cared for what he was writing. Although the effectiveness of some characters is based on the actors, Morgaine is very well written for and the others work very well in the story. Aaronovitch is also concerned with the changing nature of war- Ancelyn and Morgaine represent the chivalric model of battle, overturned forever by World War One. We have the hydrogen bomb and Morgaine has the Destroyer- an obvious allusion to Alan Oppenheimer's paraphrasing from the Bhagavad-Gita (or 'the Hindu Bible' as Indiana Jones artlessly put it).

The realisation of the story is, however, very variable. Michael Kerrigan directs well, but not well enough. It is, perhaps, unfortunate that most of the problems are with the first episode, which is easily the weakest, with silly flying knights, the terrible 'Waiting for me!' bit and the horribly written and directed 'boom!' conversation between Ace and Shou Yuing. Most of the action scenes are poorly choreographed and the stock armour is less than successful. The final scene is a mixture of the sublime and the cringeworthy. However, UNIT looks like an international force for the first time and the actual design is very good. The absolute production highlight is the Destroyer, as good as anything from a big-budget movie. We also have the dreaded return of Keff McCulloch as composer but, although he sometimes indulges his predilection to signpost every movement with a chord, he does some very good work, most notably the already powerful scene where Morgaine kills Lavel and then heals Elizabeth Rawlinson.

There are some good performances, the best of which has to be Jean Marsh as Morgaine, a ruthless witch-queen who, nevertheless, has her own strict code of morality. Marsh is utterly fantastic in this role (the 80s saw her play witch-queens in several movies, so she had practice). Nicholas Courtney returns as the Brigadier giving a wonderful performance, helped by some great lines. The brilliant James Ellis gives a great performance as Warmsly and Ling Tai is very good as Shou Yuing. Christopher Bowen as Mordred is also good, although what possessed Michael Kerrigan to make him laugh like an idiot is beyond me. Brigadier Bambera is not the best written character, but Angela Bruce's natural charisma manages to save the character. Marcus Gilbert is his usual dashing self as Ancelyn, although the romance between him and Bambera seems tacked on. I must mention Sylvester McCoy's performance here. In this story he is both utterly convincing and utterly awful, in places giving the worst ever performance in the title role. Sophie Aldred is generally good, a special highlight being the scene where she is goaded into almost racially insulting Shou Yuing- a very brave move by Aaronavitch which could easily have misfired.

Battlefield manages to combine some excellent moments with some awful ones but it does work. I would recommend watching the 'movie' version if you only have time for one, as it fleshes out the back-story to good effect. It's hardly the highlight of the McCoy era, but is worth watching- and things only get better from here on.

NEXT: Ghost Light

The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

2009-09-12T08:50:00.000+01:00

Calling a tale The Greatest Show in the Galaxy holds it open to all sorts of ribbing unless it is a very special adventure- fortunately, if there was any doubt that Doctor Who was back in black, it was totally blown out of the water by this story. On one level, this is a story about a sinister, once legendary, circus that has a habit of killing its audience. It is, of course, based on coulrophobia- the fear of clowns- but, like the scary clowns in The Celestial Toymaker, this is just one weapon in the story’s arsenal. We have a werewolf, a killer robot bus conductor, reanimated corpses, gaily painted kites that seek out fugitives and a seemingly average 1950s family who have the power of life and death over anyone in the circus. However, it can also be seen as a meditation on the rampant materialism of the 80s destroying the naïve idealism of the 60s, whilst acknowledging that the hippies begat the yuppies. It can be seen as looking at the way we compromise ourselves to ensure our own self-interest. It can be seen as a take on late 80s Doctor Who, with a show that was past its prime battling for its continued existence on a secluded location. The uber-villains in the story (The Gods of Ragnarok) are not just the Doctor’s enemies for the story, but are suggested as being against Doctor Who itself and everything it stands for. However, it is, above all else, a thumpingly good yarn, which Stephen Wyatt populates with well-drawn characters who are given some truly fantastic dialogue. Wyatt shows how words are the backbone of any story- look at the scene where the Doctor creates a sword from a piece of metal by telling a story about it. If I have any criticism, it is that the defeat of the Gods of Ragnarok is, on the surface, accomplished using a McGuffin. However, this is more than compensated for in other areas of the story’s realisation.

One thing that is immediately obvious is the fact that there are no production failings at all. By this time the Doctor Who production team were confident in what it could achieve on its budget and avoided the things it couldn’t. Sets and locations are all perfectly dressed and lit. The key factor is the fantastic direction of Alan Wareing. Wareing makes sure every actor is performing at their best and knows precisely how to move the camera and set up shots to maximum effect. This results in an embarrassment of memorable scenes- the cliffhanger to the first episode, the pursuit of Bellboy and Flowerchild, the first appearance of the Chief Clown, the death of Bellboy… The transformation of Mags into a werewolf takes a very basic make-up job and turns it into a genuinely scary scene, thanks to Wareing’s skills. Most wonderful of all is the Doctor walking calmly away while the Circus explodes behind him. A special mention must be made of Mark Ayres’s wonderful score, one of the best Doctor Who soundtracks ever.

As said, the performances are excellent across the board. The circus folk are memorably portrayed with Deborah Manship as Morgana and Ricco Ross as the Ringmaster (it seems at first that this portrayal borders on the non-PC, but everyone, even Bruce Forsyth, was rapping in 1988!) Doctor Who finally employs the right Guard brother, with Christopher Guard’s performance as Bellboy being very skilful and nuanced. The sinister Chief Clown is fantastically brought to life by Ian Reddington and we have the wonderful T P McKenna as Captain Cook and a great performance by Jessica Martin as Mags. Sylvester McCoy gives one of his best ever performances and Sophie Aldred supports brilliantly.

This is a genuinely wonderful story, which you should have no hesitation in seeking out and watching!

NEXT: Battlefield

Silver Nemesis

2009-09-09T14:56:00.000+01:00

It is obvious to anyone how similar Silver Nemesis is to Remembrance of the Daleks. Both involve the Doctor using an ancient Gallifreyan device to destroy an army of aliens. Both were broadcast in the 25th season. However, this story is the ‘official’ anniversary story and the Cybermen are used instead of the Daleks- and it fails where the other succeeded and the fact that they are so similar is one of the less serious problems with the story. The main problem is the very poor script. Remembrance of the Daleks was, in part a celebration of the past 25 years of Doctor Who. Silver Nemesis seems to focus merely on the period of 25 years. Adversaries and events are inserted into the story with no thought as to how they will work individually, let alone together. The Nazis are entirely superfluous and are given virtually nothing to do, the main villainous parts being taken by the Cybermen and Lady Peinforte. There are some truly awful scenes- the nonsense with the Queen and Windsor Castle is bearable, but the (very RADA) skinheads and the American tourist are utterly cringeworthy. The characterisation is virtually non-existent, with only Lady Peinforte and Richard showing any signs of life- the rest are merely one-line descriptions- in fact, for DeFlores and his gang of Arisch cavemen, I suspect that it was less, even, than that.

This is a shame, as some of the story looks quite impressive. The Cybermen look fantastic- for the first time their costumes look like actual designs rather than bits and pieces sprayed silver. We even have the return of the visible lower jaw from Earthshock. The special effects for their ship are also quite impressive. Unfortunately, the script has to have them be worse shots than Helen Keller and take part in ludicrous scenes such as that ridiculous sleight of hand involving the bow of the Nemesis. It is difficult to truly judge the effectiveness of Chris Clough’s direction, considering how hamstrung he was with the script. It must be said that all the major characters are well acted, especially Fiona Walker as Lady Peinforte and Gerard Murphy as Richard. Anton Diffring could play a character like DeFlores in his sleep and, although he is blatantly thinking more about Boris Becker than Doctor Who, he is always watchable in a very poorly written part. Keff McCulloch again seems to think that the more notes you cram in, the better the result would be. Someone should have realised that you do not have a guest performance from Britain’s foremost jazz musician and have McCulloch doing the rest of the music. Sophie Aldred is great in this, but Sylvester McCoy ranges from inspired to silly.

I must admit that, at the time, I enjoyed the story almost as much as Remembrance of the Daleks. It has exciting fight scenes and other things that can divert a 12-year old. However, Remembrance of the Daleks is a story that I still enjoy today- this story is just embarrassing.

NEXT: The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

The Happiness Patrol

2009-09-07T14:16:00.000+01:00

The Happiness Patrol continues the move into uncharted territory that the Sylvester McCoy era had shown signs of taking. If you can accept the premise- a society that has made sadness illegal- there is much to enjoy in Graeme Curry's scripts. Curry creates a gynocratic society of forced smiles, muzak and gaudy décor, where bad jokes are broadcast on the airwaves, while the titular secret police make undesirables disappear. Some aspects of the story do not quite gel- the Kandyman seems to have been included purely to give the story a monster and sometimes sits uneasily with the rest of the story. This is more than made up for by the fact that the Kandyman is absolutely brilliant! The 'planet of women' idea is one which has formed the basis for many bad works of sci-fi. However, this aspect is not the driving force of the society and, indeed, while men are less prominent than women, they are by no means oppressed. There are some unmistakeable gay undercurrents to the story which work well with it.

The look of the story is very distinctive. It has been said that the intention is to evoke German Expressionism as expressed in films like The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and The Golem: How He Came Into the World. The Kandyman's Kitchen feels like a cross between Fritz Lang's Metropolis and a George Méliès film and the make-up for the Terra Alphans is reminiscent of the stark make-up used to enhance the eyes and mouth in early cinematography. These references to silent films are not as esoteric as it seems- up until the early 90s Channel 4 would show silent film classics on weekend afternoons- but, although the lighting is very evocative, the experiment does not quite work. Chris Clough seems to be far less successful in the studio than he is on location- for example, the Kandyman's revelation is very undramatic, which is a pity, as he looks brilliant. The look is by no means bad, however and does not interfere too much with the story.

There are some excellent performances, most notably Sheila Hancock as Helen A, who manages to invoke Thatcher without making it a lazy impersonation. David John Pope brings the wonderful Kandyman to life and his scenes with his creator Gilbert M are worth the price of admission alone. McCoy is presented with a version of the Doctor who is fun-loving, yet manipulative- note his words to Ace: 'You're no use to me like this!'. Unfortunately, the story brings to the fore the fact that he is unable to shout convincingly- his hijacking of the protest is close to being embarrassing- however, he succeeds admirably elsewhere. Sophie Aldred is also very good here, making Ace very memorable as a borderline delinquent with a strong sense of morality.

Despite its flaws, this story has a lot going for it- things are certainly looking up!

NEXT: Silver Nemesis

Remembrance of the Daleks

2009-09-05T12:41:00.001+01:00

For the first time in what seemed like ages, everyone was talking about last night’s Doctor Who in school, not just the few of us who still watched religiously (although this was, sadly, not reflected by the viewing habits of the British public in general). By the time the story had finished broadcasting, one thing was certain: Doctor Who had suddenly and miraculously got its act back together. On the face of it, the story was similar to some of the worst of mid-80s Doctor Who in that it had many fan-pleasing references to the series’ past, but the first thing that one notices about Ben Aaronovitch’s excellent script is that, despite references to Omega, Rassilon, Spiridon and the like, the story is not dependent on references to the past- it stands up on its own and can be enjoyed by a complete newcomer and the fact that a previous history is referred to actually adds verisimilitude and texture, rather than alienating the casual viewer- they’re there if you want to look, but are not essential to the story. Previous attempts at referring to the series’ past continuity tended to needlessly complicated the plots, but the plot here is easy to follow- two rival Dalek factions have arrived on Earth to gain control of a powerful Time Lord device left behind by the Doctor. Beyond this storyline, however, there is a good deal more to enjoy in the script. The characterisation is excellent- Group Captain Gilmore comes off as being far more than the flat authority figures that the Doctor usually deals with. Professor Rachel Jensen and her assistant Allison work together wonderfully and even Ratcliffe and his Association work well, even though it seems at times that the parallels between the Daleks and neo-fascists can come across as heavy handed.

The realisation of the story is equally expert, from the great pre-titles sequence to the excellent location filming and the almost flawless production design. Andrew Morgan doesn’t put a foot wrong and it is not surprising that there are many images that lodge in the mind, such as the Predator style heads up display, the new Dalek guns, the Special Weapons Dalek, the eerie child etc. Morgan knows how to manage moods from frenetic action scenes and moments of introspection, making the story flow very well. The Daleks themselves look better than they have ever done and the special effects are very good. It is pleasantly surprising how few allowances the present day viewer has to make for the story.

The story is also blessed with an outstanding supporting cast, with Simon Williams’s outstanding Gilmore, Pamela Salem’s Rachel and Dursley McLinden’s Mike Smith. George Sewell deserves special praise for managing to convey the wretchedly pathetic nature of people like Ratcliffe, while still making him despicable. It is clear that in Sophie Aldred and Sylvester McCoy, we have a new, instantly brilliant set of leads. Ace is unlike any other companion, beating up Daleks with a molecularly charged baseball bat, jumping through windows, yet feeling genuinely hurt and betrayed by Mike’s actions. This is the start of the Doctor as manipulator and him using that part of his nature in, basically, clearing up after himself. However, McCoy still has that wonderful scene with Joseph Marcell in the café, where he almost acts like someone who has genuinely come home after a long trip –‘It’ll be twins!’

Remembrance of the Daleks was the first story in the 25th Anniversary season and, from the start, it plays with the memories of generations of viewers- there is a shot of Coal Hill School at the beginning and we see Rachel walking past- I’m sure many older viewers instantly thought it was Barbara. The Daleks are portrayed as genuinely terrifying machines of menace, just as older viewers remembered them and they dominate the story in a way they hadn’t really done since The Evil of the Daleks. Davros appears, but only in the last episode and what we think was Davros is something else. And there is the moment that everyone was talking about- the Dalek following the Doctor up the stairs.

Remembrance of the Daleks is the best Dalek story since the Troughton Era and there is a strong case for it being the best Dalek story of the 20th Century. It is a wonderful story that can be appreciated by casual viewer and hardcore fan alike.

NEXT: The Happiness Patrol