Episode #192: The Sound of Drums / The Last of the Time Lords

"They used to call it the Shining World of the Seven Systems. And on the continent of Wild Endeavour, in the mountains of Solace and Solitude, there stood the Citadel of the Time Lords. The oldest and most mighty race in the universe. Looking down on the galaxies below, sworn never to interfere, only to watch. Children of Gallifrey were taken from their families at the age of eight, to enter the Academy. Some say that's where it all began, when he was a child. That's when the Master saw eternity. As a novice, he was taken for initiation. He stood in front of the Untempered Schism. It's a gap in the fabric of reality through which could be seen the whole of the vortex. We stand there, eight years old, staring at the raw power of Time and Space, just a child. Some would be inspired. Some would run away. And some would go mad."


Episode #192:   The Sounds of Drums / The Last of the Time Lords.
Companions:     The 10th Doctor, Jack Harkness and Martha Jones.
Air Date:            23rd to 30th June 2007.

The Tenth Doctor, Martha Jones and Jack Harkness return to present day London, horrified to discover that Prime Minister Harold Saxon is the Master. "Saxon" informs the world about receiving contact from an alien race called the Toclafane. Framed as fugitives, the Doctor, Martha and Jack try to sneak in and stop the Master before he unleashes a wave of terror. But his dark ambitions reach beyond the stars.

Wrapping the events of Utopia this storyline brings out time travellers back to Earth to stop the newly regenerated Master from unleashing a dark future on the Earth. Unfortunately, at least for me, it is a very dissapointing story which doesn't fire the enthusiasm nor does it really feel like Doctor Who. It isn't because it is badly written or too dark. It feels too much like Daleks in Manhatten in that it is just a little too surreal for Doctor Who.

Jon Simm was a great choice for the Master. He carries the evil madman personna off perfectly and you do get a slight hope that he'll win out at the end of the day. The introduction or retcon of some sort of drumming in his head which is what has driven him mad was an interesting move. Nothing like this had ever come up before in the show to explain why the Master was as insane as he was. It would be some time however before we learn the cause of it.

We get some more of Martha's family in this story but by this time I am sick of them. A disfunctional family with no redeeming qualities does not make for good background if you ask me. I especially dislike the mother but that may be because none of this would have probably happened had she had any common sense throughout this season.

I'm not a fan of the villains of this piece, the Toclafane either. They tie in nicely to the events of Utopia but we learn nothing else about them other than who they ultimately are. I'd have liked some more info. The whole paradox creation issue doesn't sit well for me either. It works for the story but doesn't really do anything at the same time even as desperate as they are it seems a self-defeating thing to do.

The story has another issue that never bothered me but at the time seemed to cause a stir among fans. Ever since the Runaway Bride there has been a bit of "the lonely god" written into the 10th Doctor's character and it seemed to rub many the wrong way. The Archangel network of this story and how it plays out at the end certainly played into that point of view.

Ultimately I am not a fan of this adventure. It doesn't seem very well worked out and much like the rest of the current season before it just wasn't very good. I think a better ending could have been made for this season.

Episode #187 : 42

"The wonderful world of space travel... The prettier it looks, the more likely it is to kill you."

Episode #187:  42.
Companions:   The 10th Doctor and Martha Jones.
Air Date:         19th May 2007.

The Tenth Doctor and Martha follow a distress signal, only to be trapped on a spaceship hurtling towards a sun and cut off from the TARDIS. With only forty-two minutes left till impact, can they save the day? Also, something else is on the ship and it wants everyone to burn.

As the blurb says, the Doctor and Martha find themselves trapped on a starship falling into a star with very little time left to save everyone as something not human begins to stalk the crew and burning them with a gaze. It is good classic Doctor Who again with our heroes fighting against the clock, running down corridors and trying to outsmart whatever monster is on board the ship with them. Add to that a subplot where the Jones family are being manipulated by the strange men and women in black to find out where the Doctor is and what he is up to, all in preparation for later this season, and you have a spot on adventure.

You can see now that Martha has become a companion. She started out only a few stories ago as someone the Doctor picked up and whisked through time and space as a thank you for her help on the moon. She has since been properly brought on board with this story. Martha is a companion that I can take or leave usually but in 42 when it appears that she is going to die in the grasp of an alien sun I find a side to her that makes me take her in a bit more. 

If it is a good episode why am I giving it an average rating? It is difficult to put my finger on it if I am honest. Something about this doesn't look right. I don't know if it is because the production played with the colours or it was filmed in a different way but something niggles at the back of my brain. To be fair I have noticed this a lot with the David Tennant era episodes as I've been re-watching them and it applies to a lot of them especially in this current season. But also in fairness, it is a good episode but it isn't up there as a four star rating as it is basically the show at the level that I expect of it. Harsh? Maybe but a fair point.

Episode #186: The Lazarus Experiment

"I'm old enough to know that a longer life isn't always a better one. In the end, you just get tired; tired of the struggle, tired of losing everyone that matters to you, tired of watching everything you love turn to dust. If you live long enough, Lazarus, the only certainty left is that you'll end up alone."

Episode #186: The Lazarus Experiment.
Companions:   The 10th Doctor and Martha Jones.
Air Date:         5th May 2007.

After travelling backwards, forwards and backwards again in time, Martha Jones has returned home. However, before the tenth Doctor can bid farewell to her, he hears Professor Richard Lazarus announcing that he'll "change what it means to be human." What could this mean? And could it lead to something far more dangerous than a simple scientific failure?

Sometimes you don't need a story about time travel when you can write an excellent science fiction tale about the dangers of messing with science. That is exactly what we have here with this story and despite some bad CGI monster work the story does what it says on the tin. The Lazerus Experiment introduces us to Martha's dysfunctional family and her mother who really does not like the Doctor though with no good reason for it until she has someone try and point out the danger he places people in. Who is this stranger? Well, thats the build up for the end of season.

The story is nicely action packed and flows at a good pace, something that the first few stories of this season have failed to achieve. Some more money needed to be spent on the look of the "Lazarus monster" which unfortunately looks like a mid-1990's 3D computer graphic. Very disappointing.

The new Doctor Who seems to have a bit more thought provoking elements that never really made the surface of the classic show. In this episode we have the Doctor speaking the above quote to Professor Lazarus and we can see that he is getting old as an individual even if his body has youth. He's still an old man who has seen much and lost the people he loved. Where I found the fixation on the Time War a bit much in previous seasons I think you can feel for our hero a bit more when you have dialogue like this.

Re watching this season I have come to realise that I think this is the weakest season of new Doctor Who. Not sure why as I can't quite put my finger on it but it is like the writers were having trouble coming up with decent stories and plot points. It is a season that doesn't stand out very well. The Lazarus Experiment is certainly one of the better stories for this season though.

Episode #182 : Smith and Jones

"I'm talking to an alien? In hospital?! What, has this place got an E.T. department?"

Episode #182:   Smith and Jones.
Companions:     The 10th Doctor and Martha Jones.
Air Date:           31st March 2007.

Just when it seemed it would be yet another chaotic day managing her family's disputes, Martha Jones finds trouble waiting for her at work. Trapped on the Moon with space rhinos looking for a criminal and the air running out, she will have to come to trust a seemingly mad stranger calling himself "the Doctor". But can the Tenth Doctor save the day this time?

The new season of Doctor Who starts with a nice story about an abducted hospital and an alien search for a missing murderer. It sees the introduction of Martha Jones as the new companion, her dysfunctional family and the first appearance of the Judoon.

The episode deals with the translation of a London hospital to the moon where the "police for hire" Judoon can legally search it for a missing plasmavore responsible for the murder of the Child Princess of Padrivole Regency Nine. Because they have no legal right to search on Earth they move the hospital so that it isn't under legal protection. The problem is that both the plasmavore and the Doctor are both aliens in a hospital full of humans.

Smith and Jones is a clever story and despite looking somewhat silly, the Judoon are a nice new addition that wouldn't have been out of place in the classic era of the show. What lets this one down for me is a certain scene where the Doctor hops around whilst somehow transferring radiation into his foot and then his trainer before throwing it in the bin. Whoever though up that scene needs a slap. It's another element of silliness that fails to work and for me spoils the entire episode really.

I like Martha in this one. She is a good strong female role and at least for now isn't in love with the Doctor. She is along for the ride because it is exciting and takes her away from the hassles she has back home with work and family. If only we had more companions like this. Unfortunately over time she does get written with some small infatuation with the Doctor but for now it is a breath of fresh air to just have a self sustained companion.

In the last couple episodes of Torchwood there are signs showing "Vote Saxon" which also appear here. This would be the plot for the season that won't play out until near the end.