So now the end is near...

So here we are at another season finale, and the third one in four series to feature the Daleks.

I don't want to say too much at this stage as we're only half way through but I have to say I was quite impressed. With so many returning characters, plus the Daleks, plus Davros plus something approaching a plot, it should have been a disaster. But somehow Russell T Davies manages to make this work which is a testament to his abilities as a writer. It may not be his best script, but the fact that he managed to produce something that was not only watchable but so much fun as well just goes to show how much he deserves the OBE.

Pretty much every character gets a decent amount of screen time, with the exception of Martha's mum though that's no big loss; she's such an unmemorable character that I've already forgotten her name. The Doctor, too, seems to take a bit of a back seat here but hopefully he'll move centre stage for the finale on Saturday. Of course who will be playing the Doctor will depend on how they resolve the cliffhanger...

Ah yes, the cliffhanger. Suprisingly quite a lot of fans are rather upset at this cliffhanger, convinced that somehow the Doctor would escape the one thing that in the past he could never escape from: regeneration. They may well have a point but using the regeneration as a cliffhanger is a stoke of genius. The point of cliffhangers is to get the audience talking and excited about the next episode. Well I think it's fair to say that people are definitely talking about it. There are rumours and counter-rumours and lots of theories about whether we will see a new Doctor on Saturday night and who that new Doctor may be.

Personally I don't think he will change, though I'm not sure quite how he might get out of it. Then again Russell T Davies does like to try and surprise his audience. Maybe he has one more big surprise lined up for us.

Before I go, I hear that they've lined up a replacement for Sir Alan Sugar in the next series of the Apprentice:

"You're fired!"

Two Words...

I'm back!! Yes I know it's been months but I had more important things to occupy my time. Yes, more important than Doctor Who. Shocking I know. Anyway I'm back now and there's lots to catch up on so what better place to start than with this weeks episode Turn Left.

And so to another two words: Rose Tyler. Yes, she's back too though at first I found her return somewhat flat. Billie Piper seemed to take a while to get back into character; at times it was as if Billie was doing an impersonation of herself playing Rose. But by the end it felt as if Rose was finally back and it certainly seems to bode well for the final two episodes.

The episode itself was another attempt to stretch the format of the series. This season seems to be more experimental than any other which is something I'm all in favour of. It's also the darkest season so far and this episode is perhaps the darkest of the lot with Donna discovering what the world would be like without the Doctor to save it time and again.

For the long-term viewer it's a real treat, with references to several past episodes as well Torchwood, Martha and Sarah Jane. Doubtless some people will feel that these references are going to alienate and confuse the causal viewer and will complain bitterly that RTD is being self-indulgent but these nods to the recent past are done in such a way that even a casual viewer should be able to follow the story.

My only complaint is that the action that Donna takes to save the day at the end of the episode seemed rather obvious even to me and I'm not the most observant of people. Plus it smacks a little of a certain Season One episode.

And so to the end and two more words that resonate right back to the first (well OK, technically the second) episode of this revamped series and is enough to make the Doctor do what he seems to do best (ie run around with his mouth open like particularly well-dressed goldfish. I know there is at least one person reading this who hasn't seen the episode yet so I'll refrain from saying what those words are but I'm surprised I didn't guess what they'd be (I told you I wasn't very observant). The ending, without wanting to give too much, away was great and I love the detail that went into the final sequence.

Finally, three words about the next week trailer: Oh. My. God. I honestly don't think a trailer has ever excited me so much. This is looking to be a great finale. Not a finale for David Tennant, as some believe but for Russell T Davies. I know he's writing the specials next year but this is his last full series and I get the feeling that he's going to be using these next two episodes as an excuse to have one last play with all his toys before he lets Steven Moffatt have a go.

The beginning of the end?

I was looking through the Doctor Who Forum today and I came across a thread on the section discussing 'Partners in Crime' that was entitled 'The Beginning of the End?' Basically it was a thread that's quite typical in Doctor Who forums nowadays wherein a number of fans bitterly complain about the latest episode of Doctor Who and consider it so bad that it spells doom for the show, for all I know, the end of civilization as we know it.

Now I'm not going to to criticise anyone for giving their opinion. Let's be honest it'd be pretty hypocritical of me to do that given that I'll be doing the same thing shortly. But really, 'the beginnig of the end' is just a touch melodramatic isn't it? Not only that, but the impression I got from that thread was that people were passing judgment not just on that episode but on the whole of Series 4 when only one episode had been shown. And that, to me, is just ridiculous. It'd be like trying to write a detailed biography of Kate Winslet when all you've seen her in is that scene in Titanic when she takes her clothes off. In short, if you're going to pass judgment on anything it's best to wait till after the event before you do so.

Anyway rant over.

I did, of course watch 'Partners in Crime' and I was quite impressed. Admittedly I didn't go in with high expectations which may explain why I was so pleased with it. It might also explain why the 'beginning of the end' people weren't so impressed. I think it's very easy, particularly at the start of a new series to go in with unnaturally high expectations. I'm not quite sure what it is that some people expect but whatever it is, it's the opposite of what I expect.

Traditionally the opening episode of each series has been rather lighter in tone than later episodes and so I wasn't in the least bit surprised to find that the case with 'Partners in Crime'. But of all the season openers this is by far the most comedic; in fact it may the most comedic episode of Doctor Who since the series returned. And that, in my opinion is no bad thing. I can't remember when we last had a light-hearted episode of Doctor Who, The Shakepeare Code perhaps? Series 3 was pretty grim for the most part and even Voyage of the Damned was somewhat downbeat.

So in many ways 'Partners in Crime came as a great relief to me. The fun-loving Doctor is back! I was starting to miss him.

One other thing that struck me about the humour was that there was a lot of visual comedy and sight gags, more so than usual I think. Particular favourite moments for me were the scene in the office where the Doctor and Donna just keep missing eachother, the bit with Donna's grandfather and the alien spaceship and, of course, the eventual meeting between Donna and the Doctor - possibly one of the funniest Doctor Who scenes ever.

Speaking of Donna, I have to say that, at this stage I really like her. Her character's been toned down since we last saw her but not too much. So, at the moment she's refreshing without being annoying. That opinion may well change of course in future weeks.

I even liked the little Adipose creatures. Yes, they did look somewhat basic but they were supposed to be made out of fat so I don't know how else they were supposed to look. That said I think they should have dispensed with CGI, made the Adipose out of plasticine and got someone like Aardman Animations to animate them. They'd have looked even better then. Though adimttedly we'd still we waiting to watch the episode if they had done that.

And just a brief mention of Rose's return. Totally unexpected (by me at least), very exciting but what does it all mean? I guess time will tell.

I was going to mention the last episode of Torchwood but I don't really have time right now. All I will say is: is Owen the only character in TV history to die twice within just one series? Boy, is he unlucky.

Mark C

It All Begins (Again)

And so Series 4 of Doctor Who has begun and it seemed like a good time to start a new Doctor Who blog. Some people might say that there's already plenty of them but well there's always room for one more isn't there?

Basically all I want to do with this blog is just give my views on all things Doctor Who. And I want to be a broad as possible so I'll be talking about the new series, the old series, the books, the CDs...basically whatever takes my fancy. Oh and I'll probably talk about Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures too from time to time.

One thing I will say though and that is that I don't do spoilers. If you've got a hot scoop from someone who knows someone whose uncle's cousin's daughter's boyfriend works on Doctor Who then I don't want to know. I like to be surprised by my TV wherever possible so I do my best to avoid spoilers, not that I always can. So if anyone wants to post a comment please bear that in mind, thanks.

Having said that, when I write about a TV episode or a book or a CD I'm going to be assuming that the reader has also watched/read/listened to said story. So, just to warn you, if you don't want to be spoiled yourselves then you may want to read certain parts of this blog with caution.

It's been quite a Who-ey weekend what with the end of Torchwood Series 2 and the start of Series 4 of Doctor Who (series 4 already? hard to imagine) but I think I'll leave off writing my thoughts on those till next time.

Mark C