166. (1.7) The Long Game

I call him MAX!

This story is a cautionary tale for what type of companion not to bring on the TARDIS. At the end of last story, Adam walks into the TARDIS and joins the crew. This story sees Adam get into a hellavuah lotta trouble! He's brilliant throughout the story and only wants to share some future knowledge with the past. I think if he was with any other Doctor, they would forgive him and let him stay. But not the 9th Doctor. At episodes end, Adam is booted back to the 21st century with a big, gaping hole in his head. 

The other star turn in this story is Simon Pegg's Editor. Pure Simon Pegg doing what he does best. Kind of a slimy business man like Sil, but not so literally slimy. He's brilliant and should have been recurring character. But it's still a joy to have such a big movie star do an episode of Doctor Who.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Game

165. (1.6) Dalek

Hello old friend!

Since Doctor Who's return to television, every episode had a specific purpose. Each week, we have been introduced or re-introduced to something from the Who mythos, to paint the full picture of what Doctor Who is. This episode paints the biggest, boldest brush stroke with the reintroduction of the Daleks!

The last time we saw the Daleks was 1988 in the 7th Doctor's Remembrance of the Daleks and the seeming destruction of the species. We won't mention the Daleks on helium in the McGann TV movie. But by the end of the classic series, the Daleks had become slightly less than imposing and kind of a caricature of themselves. Though we did catch a glimpse of a Dalek finally elevating up stairs! 

A 17 year absence has made the hearts grow fonder. We are introduced (reintroduced) so one sole Dalek, the "last" survivor of the Time War. The Doctor finally fills us in on more of the Time War and what exactly happened. This Dalek is held prisoner and tortured, and we're made to feel sympathy for  it. A DALEK! Somehow after 40 years of evil, they've managed to turn it around to where we feel sorry for  a Dalek. 

Well that doesn't last long and Rose somehow recharges its battery and begins it's rampage of murder and mayhem. Back at full power, these new Daleks are impressive and are deadly again. And they fly around everywhere! They've left the stair behind. This one Dalek pretty much kills everyone in this story before self destructing. It's a brilliant story that returns the Daleks to the level of supreme monster of Doctor Who.

*Besides the return of the Daleks, we do also get a glimpse of a classic Cyberman head (circa 1974 Revenge of the Cybermen). It's a chilling reminder of an old enemy and a tease of another return.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalek_(Doctor_Who_episode)

164B. (1.5) World War Three

Everybody wants to rule the world...

In this first Part 2, the Doctor defeats the Slitheen, installs Harriet Jones as Prime Minister, and resolves everything with Rose's mom and Mickey. Just another day. This actually is a great piece for Jackie and Mickey, being pulled into the Doctor's world through Rose. We see the human emotion for those left behind.

This new series of Doctor Who, while being faithful to the classic series, truly sets itself apart by the amount of emotion that is layered throughout each episode. It just grabs your heart every week and brings tears to your eyes. We see the ramifications of putting his companions in peril through the effect it has on their family.

With the return to London in this story, they producers also re-cement the Britishness of Doctor Who. They have been quite cleverly and clearly ticking off the boxes and what Doctor Who is. And it's fantastic!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_Three_(Doctor_Who)

164A. (1.4) Aliens of London

Aliens? In London? Here we go again!

After a trip to the future and then the past, we return to the modern day as the Doctor returns Rose home for a visit. But as the TARDIS does, it returns 12 months later. We realize Jackie has had Rose declared missing, Mickey was been investigated, and we see what happens back home when the Doctor takes away his companions. 

We meet the Slitheen and they're trying to take over 10 Downing Street. And they fart... all the time. They're a large and loud new alien to the Doctor Who mythos. And they are also very well developed as characters and as a species. 

Other notable appearances this episode are Tosh Soto, moonlighting on Torchwood, and Harriet Jones, MP for Flydell North. The first of three major appearance, Harriet starts out here and is a joy every second she's on screen. 

And for the first time in new Doctor Who, we get a cliffhanger!

TO BE CONTINUED...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aliens_of_London

163. (1.3) The Unquiet Dead

It's a Dicken's Doctor Who!

The Doctor and Rose land in turn of the century Cardiff and run around with Charles Dickens with ghost. Hilarity ensues! Having just come from the far future, we know take a turn in the past. This is Mark Gatiss' first story for the new series and it's a classic. This also resurrects the celebrity historical. The actor who plays Dickens is brilliant in the role. This story also starts sowing the seeds of what will become Torchwood.Hello Gweneth! Hello rift! Hello Cardiff! 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Unquiet_Dead

162. (1.2) The End of the World

It's the end of the world as we know it.....

If Rose kicked opened the door, The End of the World pushed you through it. I think this is the most brilliant episode of the this first season. It throws Rose and viewer into the mix with tons of aliens, big space stations and dire peril. And in the background is the death of the planet Earth. It's mental!

The cast of aliens are fantastic. A cavalcade of stars. We meet the mysterious Face of Boe for the first time. Jabe is a delight and you do cry when she sacrifices herself. And Lady Cassandra is a classic villain with wit and charm. 

The build up to moment when the Earth explodes is frantic and when it happens, your heart breaks. The emotion in that scene goes right through you and played out so well. The closing scene of the Doctor and Rose back in modern day England cements their relationship and our love for them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_End_of_the_World_(Doctor_Who)

161. (1.1) Rose

He's back and it's about time. Again.

After 9 years since the Television Movie and 16 years since the last televised classic episode Survival, Doctor Who returns! Season 27 or Season 1 launched with 'Rose' and introduced Doctor Who to a whole new generation. I think Executive Producer Russell T Davies looked at the TV movie as a cautionary tale if what not to do when trying to relaunch the series. Very absent from this first episode are any references to the past, to Gallifrey, to regeneration, to Daleks, to pretty much anything. We are first introduced to Billie Piper's Rose and are immediately shown her point of view, This echo's back to the first Doctor Who story The Unearthly Child, where we are first introduced to Ian and Barbara and are given their point of view on the mysterious Doctor. So through Rose's eyes, we meet this mysterious new Doctor and are drawn into his world. The Autons return to plague the Doctor, much like the first episode of Jon Pertwee's premiere episode, but no reference is made to their joint history other than a reference to a "Time War". 

Christopher Eccleston is brilliant as the new Doctor. You can tell he has issues and you get the sense he is a war veteran. The reference to his ears is a cute nod to what we assume was a recent regeneration. He is very different from any of the previous Doctor's but brings the First Doctor's crankiness to the surface. His initial resistance to bringing Rose into his life is quite endearing. And the two together are actually a classic combination. Rose is a great foil for this Doctor. It's interesting to look back at the story arc around Ace's character and how that has carried over to Rose with the exploration of her family, her mum Jackie Tyler and boyfriend Mickey Smith. Never has a companion quite gotten such a fleshed out family life and seen their home before departing in the TARDIS.

And speaking of the TARDIS, I must say that the new Console Room is AMAZING! While I did like the TV Movies gothic console room, this new one is SO different and brilliant. From the appearance of the exterior door as the actual inside of a police box, to the round 6 sided console, to the floor to ceiling rotor column, to the alien lighting iminating from everywhere, it's just an amazing redesign. And having had the opportunity to actually stand inside this console room, it's more breathtaking in person.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_(Doctor_Who)