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

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"

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"

"Father’s Day"

"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"

"Dalek"

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"