DVDizzy Forum

its not an episode guide, but here's a good overview of the season to come.

WARNING: Contains spoilers.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/cult/a92454 ... eview.html

Looks like it's gonna be a good series... Still a bit iffy about the finale though, just seems tóó busy.
I hope you're right about Rose's return having to do with the Trickster. I think you're right, anyway. I've been thinking about it and it just makes sense. Also, they can do some great things with that ep. Makes me believe it can turn out alright after all, I've been dreading what her return might turn into.

The bit about The Trickster is perhaps me putting 2 and 2 together and making 5. However, it would perhaps explain the presense of Sarah Jane in the finale episodes?

Spoilers and such.

Perhaps, but with the confirmed appearances of Mickey and Jackie, but not Pete, it would definately make sense to me. Add the rumours about Rose not actually having contact with the Doctor, and it all becomes pretty obvious. If The Trickster would erase the Doctor from time and space, Rose et all wouldn't have left this reality, while Pete would remain in his world. There wouldn't be any 'they can never cross the Void, oh wait, yes they can but just for this one episode'-problems and the episode could revolve about Rose. Like I said, it just makes sense

Besides, Sarah Jane foreshadowed the coming of the Sontarans, so why not The Trickster? ^^

Yes, and there's apparently something to do with Egypt in this series (possibly the Sontaran story - it looks like a sort of sarcophagus with UNIT soilders around it on the previews on Voyage of the Damned) so I hope Bea and her late husband are at least name checked!

As Promised here is the episode teasers direct from Russell T Davies in this weeks Radio Times. I've edited the first few episodes down a bit to save my aching back and burning typing fingers, but the gist of the entry is intact.

As always RTD's style is somewhat informal and somewhat conversational. Anyway, here they are, from the pen of RTD.

1 Partners in Crime
Modern-day London, and a brand new diet-pill is being tested by Adipose Industries. Slogan: "The fat just walks away". But soon there are unexplained deaths, strange creatures in the shadows, and the Doctor starts investigating, little knowing than an old friend of his is also on the trail…

[On Catherine Tate as Donna in general] But thank God we decided to risk it and actually asked. And Catherine said yes! Immediately! And her performance is just dazzling. After Rose plucked at our heartstrings, and Martha's love went unrequited, it's wonderful to have a companion who isn't interested in the Doctor that way – she's a friend, an equal and a conscience, and I swear she will break your heart.

2 The Fires of Pompeii

Pompeii AD 79 and its volcano day!* But there's far more than Versuvius to worry about: psychic powers are running rampant; a secretive Sisterhood conceals a horrifying High Priestess; and beneath the ground, vast creatures are stirring. This is where Donna truly comes into her own challenging the Time Lord like no-one's ever done before, with one vital question: If he knows everyone is going to die, why can't he save them?

3 Planet of the Ood

Donna's first visit to an alien world. And it's freezing! But on the icescapes of a distant planet, the greatest danger might be from the human race itself. When the Doctor meets the Ood again he's determined to find out the truth behind their servility. But when an Ood's eyes turn red, you know you're in trouble, and the red-eye is spreading…

4 The Sontaran Stratagem
5 The Poison Sky

The return of Martha Jones! We've seen Freema Agyeman take Martha from Doctor Who to Torchwood, and now back home again in her new job as medical officer for UNIT, a worldwide army dedicated to fighting alien menaces. But the menace is bigger than ever, as the threat of ATMOS spreads across the planet. Sounds as if she needs her old friend, the Doctor. But he's about to meet an old enemy, as the Sontarans lie in wait – the warlike, potato-faced monsters not seen on screens since 1985. They're back, they're brutal and they're out for revenge.

6 The Doctor's Daughter

Yes, that's the title! And it does what it says on the tin. I'm saying no more; just watch David Tennant take the Doctor into new territory , with his most splendid performance yet.

7 The Unicorn and the Wasp

In 1926 Agatha Christie mysteriously disappeared, only to be found 10 days later, with no memory of what had happened. Was it a nervous breakdown? A cry for help? Or perhaps a giant alien wasp?

It's a classic murder mystery, with a country house, vintage cars, a flapper, a vicar, a butler, a body in the library, tea on the lawn, and horrible deaths. And see if you can spot how many titles of Agatha Christie novels are hidden in the dialogue.

8 Silence in the Labrary
9 River's Run

Just to warn you Stephen Moffat created the "Are you my mummy?" Empty Child, Madame de Pompadour's Clockwork Droids and last year's Weeping Angels ("Don't Blink!"). But I think he was just warming up, getting ready for this year's adventure. Now we've got two episodes of terror in an abandoned library, moving shadows, the gruesome Nodes and the horrifying Data Ghost – possibly the most spine chilling scene I've ever seen anywhere. Don't blink indeed. Don't miss a second.

10 Midnight

The planet Midnight: a giant leisure world! Golden spas, diamond landscapes, anti-gravity restaurants… what could possibly go wrong? But for once the Doctor is left powerless and terrified as the knocking on the wall begins…

11 Turn Left

The strands of Donna's story being to draw towards a terrible climax as she finds her life, her family… her entire world being devastated. Only one person can help. But this time it's not the Doctor – but someone from a parallel universe, a woman thought to be lost forever…

12 Title Withheld
13 Journey's End

It's the big finale and the title to episode 12 is being kept secret as it gives away too much. But the threat is on a truly epic scale, as an ancient enemy is resurrected, and a whole universe is thrown into danger.

Who are the Children of Time? What is the secret of the Vault? And surely, not everyone can get out alive…?


* Do I get bonus points for spotting the Captain Jack reference?

You'll get the points if you grant me them too
Thanks for taking the trouble of this all down, sounds like there are some great episodes coming out way!
Not sure which way the Rose-ep is going though, but there's nothing in this to go against the Trickster-theory.

Thanks for the update Net! I am definitely ready for Series #4 to begin, but I am not reading any of the spoilers. Hey, I like surprises!

Well, as Torchwood ends, Doctor Who begins. Torchwood was excellent, but the reprecussions of the season finale don't exactly sit well with me (for obvious reason you'll know if you saw it). However, I was jumping for joy when the whole Tosh/Space Pig/Timeline was explained. Go Tosh! Go Tosh!

Actually, Torchwood's finale (and the somewhat related "secret origin" style flashbacks the week before) were so good, they were light years ahead of anything just last year. The improvement in the show could be charted week by week this year.

And I know it will be an episode that will split fandom down the middle (as if the return of Donna hasn't already? ) but I loved this opening Doctor Who episode. Taken for what it was (a frothy, comedy warm-up to the season and a re-introduction of Donna) it did its job well. The bit where the Doctor and Donna were miming to each other is one of my favourite scenes so far in the new series.

And finally, I see John Barrowman's new gameshow "The Kids Are All Right" is due to start before Doctor Who next saturday. And he's a judge on "I'll Do Anything" after Doctor Who. When Captain Jack returns, will he be on BBC1 in three concecutive programmes without a break? Can that man say no to anything? (Anyone who reads his biography will know the answer to that retorical question).

Well I'll weigh in with my opinions.

The finale of Torchwood was fantastic and incredibly sad. Poor Titticaca . As Netty has said this series has been light years ahead of the first series. In fact I stopped watching series 1 half way through out of boredom. But the second series has been great all the way through and I look forward to series three, with both anticpiation as to how thinks will go from here, but also with sadness at it's Titticaca-lack.

Anyway, on to Doctor Who Series 4.

Without a doubt better than anything from Series 3 (which began to annoy me towards the end, particalarly with its crap finale).

I know a lot of the Who fans have bashed Catherine Tate, but it seems to me like a load of fan boy whining at the prospect that a comedian may inject some life and comedy into their beloved show. What I loved about Donna in the Xmas Special is that she was her own person and wouldnt take none of the Doctor's nonsense. Rather than being all dewy eyed and fawning like Rose and Martha, Donna will have a go at the doctor and you get the feeling that she would punch the doctor to the floor if he annoyed her. Quite frankly I'm overjoyed they got her as a regular, as I think a bit more comedy and less goo-goo eyes from a companion is what the show needs.

I do however have a few criticisms, funnily enough all music related. Firstly the remixed theme tune does nothing for me, in fact it sounds more dull than the previous one. Second of all some of the sound effects could have come from an episode of Lost in Space. The voice of the computer and some of the spaceshippy noises were a bit too corny for my liking.

Lastly, whoever scored the music for the episode needs to be taken out and shot. I mean it was relentless. The score was just there whining away like throughout most of the episode, sometimes incredibly annoying and sometimes inappropriate. I'm thinking particularly of the scene between Donna and her grandfather where she spills her heart. This was obviously supposed to be a touching moment, however it was completely ruined for me by the orchestral din that nattered away in the background. I mean for Christ's sake, it sounded like the string section of the orchestra were all having epileptic fits.

Anyway, Catherine Tate gets two thumbs up from me. Ive already forgotten sour face Rose and know it all Martha ever existed.

Humm. The Fires of Pompeii. I can't actually decide if this episode was fantastic or substandard. It has lots of elements of both, but the fact I can't decide probably means its neither. It's just an average Doctor Who story, with lots to make it stand out (Come on, the Doctor armed with a water pistol? Sheer brilliance, as Donna herself comments) but somehow everything doesn't quite gel.

Specifically, I felt the whole story was rushed. It's quite a common problem with the 45 minute episode format, but usually the Doctor Who production team manage to disguise the fact reasonably well. However, this time they didn't quite manage it. I think what spoilt it for me the most was the rapid paced dialogue as plot points were "explained" with the usual Sci-Fi "techno-babble" solutions. It was just to fast, too exhausting and, if you thought about it, made no sense either logically or even magically.

But the episode wasn't a total disappointment.

By using the standing set built for the HBO/BBC series "Rome" (the single most expensive television set of all time I understand) the production looked – as expected – spectacular.

I also loved the presentation of the Roman family just as if they were a modern day family, from the layabout drunken son, to the purchasing of "modern art" as a status symbol. Very witty, and yes, entertaining.

I also liked the – sadly never fully explored – conflict between the Doctor and Donna about saving Pompeii's citizens, something the show had rarely explored before – the last time with any significance probably in The Aztecs in 1964!

In some respects, I wish that the production team would have had the front to actually tell a totally historic story, without monsters, and actually upping the dramatic interaction between the Doctor and Donna and actually establishing some rules for how certain points in time are fixed.

Arc Plot Points?
As the Soothsayers attempt to "out foretell" each other with a series of supernatural insights and predictions into the Doctor and Donna's true identities and nature, one proclaims to Donna "there is something on her back" – a concept that will return later in the series.

A seer also foretells "she is returning!" - a reference to Rose's return perhaps?

Finally, like last week's episode, it appears another planet has been "lost". It's still unclear what this means (the Doctor even asks) but has it been conquered (by the Daleks?) or could perhaps a whole section of the universe be in the process of being wiped out? Perhaps falling into "Rose's" parallel universe?

* * *

I'm really looking forward to next week's Planet of the Ood though, which promises to examine just how the Ood became the slave race we say in 2006's The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit two-parter. I've typed up the brief key points of the preview in this month's Doctor Who magazine, simply because it sounds so good.

Doctor Who Magazine Story Preview wrote: Quote Unquote
The Doctor: The Ood aren't born like this, can't be – a species born to serve could never evolve in the first place. What does the company do, to make them obey?

In a Nutshell
"You the consumer, can now buy an Ood for your home! Order it to make you a cup of tea, and its only question is "How many sugars?" Ood Operations brings you a whole new world of luxury, drawing on 200 years of experience. Naturally obedient and polite, Ood make the perfect servants. We would like to stress that recent reports of Ood turning rabid and attacking people have been greatly exaggerated. If a suspected member of the terrorist group Friends of the Ood approaches you, calling himself "The Doctor", then please ignore anything this dangerous extremist, or his associate "Donna Nobel" have to say about Ood Operations' perfectly respectable system and ethics…"

I must say I feel quite the same about yesterday's episode... Some things were outstanding, but on the whole I couldn't really get into it. Still, I enjoyed it and that's the main point.

2099net wrote:Arc Plot Points?

Finally, like last week's episode, it appears another planet has been "lost". It's still unclear what this means (the Doctor even asks) but has it been conquered (by the Daleks?) or could perhaps a whole section of the universe be in the process of being wiped out? Perhaps falling into "Rose's" parallel universe?

Well, this actually does bring back some of my faith in the Trickster-theory. Next bit in white because of spoilers and such.
It wasn't all that difficult for the Trickster to erase Sarah Jane Smith from history - she'd lived for, what, sixty years? But the Doctor, over nine hundred years old, having been almost everywhere in time and space, would be more difficult to erase. So maybe it's being done bit by bit. The planets which have been 'lost', might indeed have been taken over by the Daleks never stopped in the Time War. Rose has to be brought back from a different universe entirely, so that might take a while as well. I'd lost some faith in the Trickster's involvement last week, but it's returning. There are ways to make it work.

Another Arc Plot Point might be how the Doctor did get convinced to save some people originally meant to die. Remember the line from Voyage of the Damned: 'But if you could choose, Doctor, if you could decide who lives and who die... That would make you a monster.'
I really hope they do something with that.

Well Nandor, this isn't my theory but one I saw online but... Oh, I guess it needs spoilers:

At the end surviving Roman family go to Rome and the father gets a comission for his skills in Egypt. The family was "supposed to die" according to history, but Donna convinced the Doctor to save them. Meanwhile, RTD has stated that there is something to do with Egypt in the series (he vetoed an Egyptian Sarah Jane Adventures based story for this reason) and in Partners in Crime, Donna says she went to Egypt, but it wasn't as impressive as she thought it was. It was shortly after visiting Egypt that she started to hunt for the Doctor. But what if something in Egypt... something "on her back" ever since she visited Egypt... influenced her? What if that something found out abut the Doctor thousands of years ago because that one Roman family that was supposed to die, lived?

It's been stated a few times, Donna has her own story this year. What if by Donna pleading for the Roman family to be saved, she rewrote history? No Trickster required.

I also think the scene with the cast watching Pompeii burn was significant, when the Doctor explains it won't be forgotten. It will be found and rediscovered many years from now, and Pompeii will go down in history. Didn't Gallifrey burn, like Pompeii? What if somebody or something rediscovers the ruins of Gallifrey?

I think The Trickster theory is pretty much dead now, due to Rose being in Episode 1 unaided. But the name of Episode 11 "Turn Left" suggests it's going to show a diversion from the "normal" time line... where time perhaps turned left (wrong) instead of right for some reason?

But the Seer did say The Doctor and Donna used the language of Tricksters. Maybe there's something in that after all?

I absolutely loved yesterday's episode. A great story, in a wonderful environment, with one of the best creatures the new series has produced. The rather gruesome moment at the end was absolutely lovely. The Doctor himself wasn't really the one to save the day - so didn't really deserve the praise at the end - but that's a small fault in an otherwise wonderful episode.

As you may have guessed from my previous post, I was looking forward to this episode greatly. I was a big fan of the Ood in their first story, finding them very creepy (as you would expect being posessed by "the devil") but also sympathetic. They may have looked like "monsters" but were anything but.

I have to say I was a little disappointed with Planet of the Ood, but only slightly. Perhaps my expectations were built up too much, or perhaps it just suffered a little too much from cramming such a complex concept into 45 minutes (a common complaint). It did feel as if some of the ethical issues were quickly passed over - I feel the Doctor should not have apologised to Donna after his remark about cheap clothes for example, as it was spot on.

I'm also not sure that an alien race could evolve with a secondary brain basically unprotected. I'll be generous and say that the exposed brains we saw were after the company pre-processed the Ood in captivity before lobotomising them.

But overall another good episode. I thought it had echoes of Eccleston's season in that the Doctor did very little and was almost just an observer. Of course Eccleston's Doctor tended to inspire others to act, which this story lacked. In fact, if the Doctor never visited the Ood-Sphere, it appears events would have turned out the same.

Ongoing arc details?
The missing bees on Earth, first mentioned in Partners In Crime is mentioned again.

The CEO's office at Ood Operations has a number of Roman artifacts and small statues on display. A reference to Rome being an Empire built on slavery? Or something to do with the Doctor and Donna's visit to Pompeii last week?

The Ood - creatures of great telepathic power - state that the Doctor's "song" will end soon. Could they be predicting his "death" or "removal"? (Re: the upcoming Turn Left episode?)

So far, every story has involved humans being turned into something else.

Oh my God. How good was this week's episode? I'd have to give it 11/10!

As close to my expectations of what New Who should be to be perfect. This episode had it all:

Close ties to the original "classic" series. I can't believe how respectfully both UNIT and the Sontarans were treated. So many little things for fans to pick up on from UNIT dating jokes to the first time "Sontar" has been heard on screen as the Sontaran's homeworld. And the speech patterns and phrases of the Sontarans were excellent. In fact, they sounded more "Sontaran" like than previous Sontarans in the classic series.

It also had a large amount of humour, but in a very organic way. None of the jokes seemed forced, but a smile crossed the viewer's face every minute or so. I did like Partners in Crime, but the humour was very broad and I can understand it not being to everyone's taste. But I can't see anyone complaining about the humour in this episode.

The return of Martha Jones. I really like Martha, and was so pleased to see her again. Shame Dr Milligan was only mentioned and not seen.

The evolution of Donna. There were some truely excellent scenes with Donna, all showing how much she has grown since The Runaway Bride. And I loved the scenes with her family - the normal 45 minute format doesn't allow for much downtime so it's welcome when it is seen. I hope all the outspoken Catherine Tate haters are on their knees now, begging fandom to forgive them for their crass public insults and complaints about the actress.

And talking of Evolution, script writer Helen Raynor has redeemed herself in spades from the disappointing Evolution of the Daleks. Lord only knows what happened with that, and why the Daleks were so out of character because as I pointed out the Sontarans in this episode were spot on. The story itself is, while not groundbreaking, very logical (unlike a certain Dalek story!) and its something which will make you slap your head and say "Why didn't they do a story about that before?" It just seems so obvious. The Sontaran story is a two-parter and we have an exciting cliffhanger, and I can't wait to see the conclusion next week!

I'd probably have to watch it again, but I think this could be the single best episode of New Who to date.

Yesterday was the *real* premiere of Series 4 for Doctor Who in the States (as last week was Voyage of the Damned, which I already watched on YouTube. But we watched it again, just to get a real viewing on the television.)

Anyway, my cousins, aunt, and I watched "Partners in Crime" last night and none of us were particularly enamoured with it. I mean, it was a great start for the season, as the Doctor and Donna get reunited (and the whole silent conversation they're having across the windows is still priceless!). But it didn't seem like there really was much going on beyond "Hey, this is an adventure that brings back Donna and sets her up as a companion...er...mate!"

The Adipose babies were really cute though, even if their origins were rather...eeww-y. Then again, I wouldn't mind popping out a few Adipose kids, I could do with about 30 less pounds!

Overall, I'd probably give the episode a rather weak-but-still-strong-enough 6.5 out of 10. It just wasn't as thrilling or engaging as what I expected/hoped. Still, it's a better season opener than "New Earth" (probably the weakest season opener of the first 3 seasons, even with "foxy" Doctor.)

Albert

Well time for me to catch up on my comments for the past three episodes.

The Fires of Pompeii

Quite frankly I loved this episode. I'd say it could easily be one of my favourite episodes of all four series. Lots of good silliness wrapped up in the historical aspects. I would say the whole circuit thing was a bit "wha?" and did seem to get a glancing explanation which i didn't find particularly satisfying or comprehensible.

Planet of the Ood

Was again great. Biggest problem was again, complex plot points being given a glancing explanation and then left, which I didn't find made much sense or were explained particularly well. I'm thinking particularly of the giant brain. It's purpose is still a mystery to me even after watching the episode twice. But a great episode otherwise.

The Sontaran Strategem

"Meh" is all I can say. But to be fair it is the first of two parter, so naturally it's purpose is to set up the story for part two, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt for now. Lots of plot points introduced, so we'll have to see how they pan out. The sontarans look brilliant, and not a single bit of CGI in sight, brilliant puppetry, in fact CGI would probably not even be as convincing. There were some pretty extensive CGI outer space shots which looked good, and I expect there will be more. Some great banter between Donna, Martha and the Doctor and again more brilliant Donna not fawning over the doctor and telling him what a plank he is.

Again, however they have seen fit to get a Brit actor to do a ridiculously annoying American accent. Which I found particularly weird, because the character is British, yet in spite of being British he has an American accent? Wtf? I know that kid doing the American accent from somewhere, although can't pinpoint the TV show, but the accent wandered off at places. At the start I could actually work out whether he was supposed to be American of Welsh. At times I could swear he was going Yorkshire and wouldn't have sounded out of place in an episode of 'Last of the Summer Wine'.

Unlike Netty, I don't think the ending was particularly exciting. I mean If you were trying to free someone from a car that was filling up with poisonous gas, would you try pulling at the door in the hope that it would eventually open? No. Would you lift up the hood and try to free the person by tinkering with the electronics? No. But that's what they did. I mean rather than wasting all that time fiddling about under the hood, surely the obvious thing to do would be to try and smash the window?

Netty may think this is the best episode yet, but I'd say it's the dullest of Season 4 so far. The main problem was that even though lots of stuff was "happening", I didn't really feel that much "happened", if you know what I mean.

I must admit, I watched the first third or so of this second part thinking it was going to be another Evolution of the Daleks - overall, I still feel that this second part doesn't quite live up to the first, but that's a common problem of two-parters in most series. But the drop off was only very slight, so after a slightly dodgy start to this week's episode (which sadly lowers it's rating), it soon got back on track.

And what a track it got on; teh Cribbins was on top form, sylvia wielded an axe (I hope I'm not cheated out of a Jackie/Sylvia meeting in this year's finale!), Donna was on her own on the Sontaran's spaceship, and UNIT got into a proper battle.

I still think Col. Mace is a waste of space though. Its a shame Col. Frost was killed off in Aliens of London/World War III (assuming that Frost was Col. Frost of the comics/audios). If UNIT comes back, I hope Mace doesn't - and something which will please Escapay a lot, the Brigadier got a name check, so him appearing in New Who in the future isn't totally out of the question...

Although nothing in the episode was hardly a surprise - from the true nature of the gas to the fate of Rattigan, the show managed to keep it all together without being too cliched. In many respects, it was New Who doing Traditional Who, but including some of its own New Who trademarks.

And enough of the Rose cameos. When are we going to get a Jackie cameo? Next week's episode trailer didn't enthuse me much though (and no doubt, no Jackie cameo yet again).

The Doctor's Daughter

Well, I did think this episode would be, to quote myself, "a bit pooey" but I was pleasantly surprised. Very surprised in fact as I really enjoyed it. It's sure to be more than a little controversial with some of the old school fans though.

The story itself was a little weak, but that's not really a major criticism, as the meat of the story was the building relationship between the Doctor and his "daughter", as well as her own character development. The actual event surrounding this weren't exactly new or original – it did fall back on a number of sci-fi clichés in the process, but it has a sufficient angle on most of them that it did at least add some life to what would otherwise have been a very ordinary setting and backstory.

And I have to say I loved the Hath's realisation on screen. I can understand that some people most likely won't as they were far from convincing, but the actual design and idea was at least different. I know I'd much rather have "monsters" like this than endless men with bumpy foreheads which is the staple in so many TV sci-fi today.

And that's really the only fault with this episode – and so many others. The show has ambition. Ambition to show aliens unlike those shown on screen before, and ambition to try and tell epic stories. And sometimes it succeeds, and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes the budget's just not available, or sometimes the 45 minute format means everything ends up rushed and too brief to really spark wonder or emotion. This episode tried to do "[emotional] epic" but on the whole failed, because events and emotions changed so quickly, they did tend to fall more on cliche rather than organic. I wonder if or how much better this story would have been had it been a 2-parter (part of me would like all of New Who to be made up of 2-parters). I've no doubt the cliches used in both the plot and emotional development were used simply because they would have required less exposition - being as use of time is all important in the current 45 minute format.

But I'd rather have New Who continue to attempt to fill us with amazement, wonder, amusement and sadness than become a more typical "monster of the week" type show.

7.5/10