Doctor Hex: Adventures in a big blue box

DOCTOR WHO SPOILER PHOTO

2008-06-13T14:28:09Z

Been around a couple of days- Well there you go. :)

So...

2008-05-19T09:09:54Z

Who's looking forward to the War On Skaro?

;P

TARDISWATCH 2008 CONTINUES

2008-04-21T18:47:30Z

The third in our series of Doctor Who episode feature reviews is now online!

So what did everyone think of Planet of the Ood?

TARDISWATCH NEWS

2008-04-06T15:03:57Z

Hey all, your friendly neighbourhood Community Maintainer here. A new series of TARDISWATCH features will begin tomorrow, exclusively published over at www.starstoreblog.com. You can go there now and check out a preview post for the new feature series, which is right here. In fact, feel free to subscribe to the blog there via its RSS feed or bookmark it, as there's a ton of cool stuff to come on there soon.

The format will differ from last year's massive Tardis Watch walls of text, and will also feature news on the series and its associated spinoffs and merchandise, as well as the regular reviews of each new episode. Smaller posts will be made mid week, with news and reviews of the episodes we didn't cover last year.

So then, what did you all think of Partners In Crime? I am yet to watch it, but I've heard what happens at the end! What the hell? :D

1st Doctor Who producer dies

2007-11-23T13:02:14Z

Verity Lambert, pioneer producer of Doctor Who, one of the first female producers in the BBC has died today age 71. So if you were planning on celebrating 43 years of Doctor Who today, raise your glass to the woman who got it all going.

http://www.gallifreyone.com/news.php#newsitemEEAVlEAEVAjKestqvG

RIP.

more Doctor Who...

2007-09-03T19:00:41Z

For thise who don't waste time on Doctor Who forums, after filming on series four finishes next year David Tennant is doing Hamlet with the RSC ,

But to ease our troubled brows the BBC have confirmed a christmas 2008 special, 3 specials in 2009 with David Tennant and a full series in 2010 (Doctor TBC).

So more Who to come and I return you to your blogging.

SWEET BABY JESUS!

2007-06-16T09:50:56Z

have you guys read the BBC press release for episode 13????

O...M...G!!!

TARDISWATCH 7: '42'

2007-05-21T18:31:26Z

TARDISWATCH- PART 7: 42
By Andrew Hawnt

Experiments don't always work. Sometimes they present some fine results, and sometimes they cause catastrophes. Putting Doctor Who into an almost realtime setting was an unusual idea and upon initially hearing about it, rather an exciting one.

There have been arguements in fandom ever since it was announced that the show would return in a 45 minute format instead of the traditional 25 minutes. Granted the 45 minute format had been tried in the classic series' past but it didn't work out that great or last for very long. For the most part the new era of Doctor Who has handled the 45 minutes very well indeed, but some limitations do occasionally show up.

One thing that is noticeable is that two parters are often unevenly balanced, with a slow first half and an overtly busy second half. Granted this gives ample room for characterization and plot dynamics but it does make for the odd slightly dull episode. The single episode tales have generally been of an excellent standard but now and again we are offered a 45 minutes so crammed with action and movement that it leaves little room for characters to gel or the plot to make much sense.

But only occasionally. The stories are largely well told in the 45 minute format, but I do now and again long for the days of four and six part stories, which you could really get your teeth...erm... eyes into. Now we either have RUSHRUSHRUSHENDING or a case of plodding for an episode and hurtling along for the next. The balance, delicate as it is, needs to be struck, and while the basic premise of 42 (and boy is it basic) is sound, the execution leaves a great deal to be desired...

I guess each season will have an episode I loathe to some extent. Season one it was BoomTown, season two it was Fear Her, and this year it appears to be 42.

On the upside, we still have the delights of Human Nature, The Family of Blood, Blink, Utopia, The Sound of Drums and Last of the Time Lords to look forward to.

Well, it had to happen at some point this series didn't it? Maybe we've just been spoiled with the other episodes, but this week, after the two week wait thanks to (the Eurovision song contest), there are a fair few fans out there who feel let down. At its best, Doctor Who can provide the most original science fiction entertainment on the planet, but occasionally the makers will forget that the show has a unique premise to exploit, and will instead just cobble together any old rubbish from a bag of SF cliches.

Sadly that has been the case this week, with a sorry excuse for an episode in the shape of '42'.

Despite the fantastic trailers and the sense of anticipation, 42 turned out to be nigh on 45 minutes of badly assembled nonsense. Here's hoping its just a blip of woe in an otherwise excellent series. Sporting a script ripped off from half a dozen dodgy SF films (most notably the recent movie SUNSHINE), an unremarkable guest cast (apart from Michelle Collins, who was surprisingly good), some horribly convoluted plot points and a plethora of reused sets and costumes (take a look! I'm sure I saw reused sets from the Girl in The Fireplace, The Impossible Planet and The Satan Pit, plus the Doctor wears the actual spacesuit he wore in The Satan Pit!).

The direction, while suitably breathless, felt far too much like an episode of Red Dwarf to make decent drama.

Redeeming features? A decent performance from Tennant (especially the chilling possession), the gorgeous scene in which the escape pod separates and leaves the ship (played in ominous silence), some excellent CG effects and Murray Gold's epic music.

The most intriguing part of the story is the closing minutes, in which we are privy to Martha's call to her mother, which is being observed by agents of Mister Saxon. I do like Martha's family members when they show up- they do feel like an actual family, which seemed a bit forced with the Tylers.

Here's looking forward to the next episode, and the delights of Human Nature
3/10

How does the next episode look?

On the run from vicious aliens, the Doctor transforms himself into a human and hides as a schoolteacher in 1913, but who are the mysterious Family of Blood/ The first episode of the show to adapt one of the 'New adventures' Doctor Who novels from the 90's, this looks like a fascinating episode indeed...

Doctor Who is shown on BBC1 each Saturday, and repeated each Sunday and Friday on BBC3

The official online teaser for 'HUMAN NATURE':

VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST DOCTOR WHO POSTERS, FIGURES AND COLLECTIBLES!

TARDISWATCH 5

2007-04-30T20:20:53Z

TARDISWATCH- PART 5: EVOLUTION OF THE DALEKS
By Andrew Hawnt

Oh, thank you so much Mr and Mrs BBC, for bringing the Doctor back into the hearts and minds of the world. Something struck me while watching this excellent episode: here we are, in this age of ultraviolence on Tv, bombarded with flawed antiheroes and foul language, and suddenly we are blessed with a real, pure hero who deals with problems through science and his own intelligence. The Doctor hates guns, fights for what is right and with little to no concern for his own safety, isn't riddled with neuroses and finds even the smallest thing beautiful- which in today's televisual climate is almost unheard of. Doctor, I salute you.

I must say, this season is very, very good isn't it? Five episodes in things keep getting better. The series hasn't been this fantastic since, well, since Eccleston was in it. The scripts are much stronger, the cast are marvellous and the visuals keep on improving. There is a string feeling that this *is* Doctor Who we're watching and not an updated era of an old favourite- these episodes are genuinely feeling like a continuation of the classic series.

That has been one point I've struggled with since the show came back, yes, even in my beloved Eccleston series. The ingredients have always been there but the tone and atmosphere always felt too different to be able to trace a straight line back to the old days. Something changed around episode 3 this year; it all seems to have clicked into place. The sets don't wobble, the effects are amazing and there's much less cheese, but it does now feel 100% like Doctor Who.

DW has always been so different to other SF shows. The very premise of the show is so utterly ridiculous that it couldn't be duplicated. There's only one WHO, as it were, and its this one. I only hope that things continue along these lines. Sure we don't see a starship every week, we don't have movie stars in it, we don't have millions and millions of pounds in effects, but what we do have, dear reader, is the finest, longest running, most creative and most interesting science fiction show that has ever been produced, and that is a fact.

Yeah, thanks BBC. Thank you very much indeed. We have a real hero to look up to again.

The second halves of two-part stories always worry me. Will they live up to the promise of the first part, or, in the case of bad first halves, will the resolution make up for the weak start? The concern was well placed this week- after such a strong first part in DALEKS IN MANHATTAN, would its conclusion, EVOLUTION OF THE DALEKS, live up to expectations?

The opening minutes of the episode answer that with a resounding YES. The Daleks mean business this week- they're scared, which, as the Doctor says, makes them me dangerous than ever. Their ingenious plan to splice human and Dalek DNA is put into action this week, with thrilling results. We get the exterminations we missed out on last week, we get the residents of Hooverville taking a stand against the alien menace, we get Martha being as intelligent and feisty as the crew always promised, and we get the Doctor becoming rather unhinged in several scenes.

David Tennant really surprised me this week. The scene in which he's screaming at the Daleks to kill him had me on the edge of my seat. Truly we caught a glimpse of an ancient alien hero who had lost everything; his planet, his people, and his closest friend. That last part is starting to hit Martha hard. She realizes what Rose meant to the Doctor and we can empathize with how she feels when the Doctor seems to 'look through her'. Rose meant so much to him. That is where this era differs a great deal still from the classics- the Doctor, while caring for his companions, never seemed so attached as the 9th and 10th have done to Rose. I'd say the closest the classic era came to a similar dynamic was the excellent pairing of Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred as the 7th Doctor and Ace. In fact, this year is feeling like a late-period McCoy series rather alot...

The Human/Dalek hybrid was a revelation; a character with a terrifying visage but a fascinating character. Its desire to make Daleks more human and cure them of their deadly ways is a wonder to behold. The Doctor's shock and confusion at this premise is a great touch, and acted with some grace by Tennant, who has definitely struck the right balance of mania and subtlety this year.

One thing of note, did anyone else notice the word 'Master' used repeatedly throughout the episode? Just an observation...

I admit I half expected the Doctor to regenerate when he was hanging onto the mast and being hit by lightning- thats how tense it looked. A brilliant end to a brilliant two-parter. I pray that the rest of the series continues with this level of quality. Of course we'll see the Daleks again (something tells me that Dalek Khan will meet up with a certain Dalek-related scientific genius somewhere in the future), but it really did feel- for a time at least- that this was the end of an ancient race. They'll live to fight another day, but, thankfully, so will the Doctor.
8/10

How does the next episode look?

Guest starring DW writer/League of Gentlemen stalwart Mart Gatiss, next week's episode also sees the return of Martha's family. The shots of Dr lazarus' machine look superb, and that creature, crikey, that creature looks incredible! Hopefully it will carry some more substance than a simple runaround episode, but I think we can count on that as this is where the arc starts to makes itself known. keep an eye on the background in this episode... you may well spot someone very important to the Doctor's future</i>...

Doctor Who is shown on BBC1 at 7pm each Saturday, and repeated each Sunday and Friday on BBC3

The official online teaser for THE LAZARUS EXPERIMENT:

VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST DOCTOR WHO POSTERS, FIGURES AND COLLECTIBLES!

TARDISWATCH 4: DALEKS IN MANHATTAN

2007-04-23T18:21:14Z

Finally got around to doing some work for my day job today:

TARDISWATCH- PART 4: DALEKS IN MANHATTAN
By Andrew Hawnt

Everyone knew they would show up at some point in this season. Even if we hadn't been shown the shot of Dalek Sec at the end of the teaser on The Runaway Bride, it was obvious the Doctor's most famous enemies would be back. I'm thrilled they're back again, but unless the next season takes a bit of a break from them (or at least only features them in a standalone episode, a la the 1st Season's incredible 'Dalek' episode), then they once again run the risk of losing any impact they have. This happened in the early days of the show as well as the 80s. The old evil pepperpots would show up regular as clockwork, with varying levels of success.

Some of the stories were old fashioned runarounds, all explosions and exterminations, and then you have the rare stories such as the 6th Doctor's Revelation of the Daleks, in which these iconic characters are used in a different way. It's these stories that give strength to their reputation as scheming, cunning, evil masterminds. Seeing them manipulate events from behind the scenes is a wonder to behold. There's much more to them than just screeching and threats. They are geniuses, and I love it when they are given the space to show just that.

So this year we get them in manhattan in 1930. But these aren't just any Daleks, they are the Cult of Skaro, the four elite Daleks last seen at the end of series 2 (The four Daleks that brought the Genesis Ark out of the Void Ship and unleashed millions of Daleks against the Cyberman army. Man I enjoyed typing that!), led by the chilling black Dalek Sec. These four Daleks are a fascinating concept in the Doctor Who universe- they have names for one thing, and seem to carry much more of a commanding presence than the usual drones, which makes them all the more effective.

Yes, they are the biggest attraction to many viewers, but they must not be turned into the jokes that they became in such stories as Destiny of the Daleks again. Thankfully I don't think we'll see them up against white-suited androids in bad disco wigs again... I hope!

One thing I must complain about here and now is the BBC's handling of this episode- the big cliffhanger to this episode was given away on the front of the Radio Times magazine, well before the episode aired. We're not talking a tiny picture or a minor spoiler here, we're talking an enormous full-front-cover image and inch-high lettering, which basically ruined any chance of there being any tension or wonder at what the end up the episode would bring. I can understand that the BBC wanted to draw viewers in and to announce that the Daleks were back, but to give the actual final seconds of the episode away ON THE FRONT OF A NATIONAL MAGAZINE is a bit, well, stupid really.

So, whacking great big spoiler aside, lets see how the episode itself is..,.

Oh, wow. Since Doctor Who came back to our screens, there have always been little quibbles with the CG created for the show by The Mill. That stops with this episode. The visuals are beautiful and you really are thrown headfirst into 1930s New York (the real one, not the New Earth knock off!). The crew flew over and actually did some plate shots in NY, then CG'd some aspects to take the city back to the Depression. The results are really quite remarkable.

Well, Martha's still wearing the same outfit as she did in the first episode, and I'm starting to wonder if she could do with a shower, or at least a clean shirt. It almost feels as though this series is taking place in near realtime! The Doctor has changed his suit a couple of times, but she's still in the same outfit from the publicity shots. Poor girl. You'd think the Doc would at least let her have a rummage in the TARDIS wardrobe. Mind you, she might end up finding the 6th Doctor's infamous coat, so maybe that door should stay locked.

After a rather awkward pre-titles sequence, the episode gets underway properly. The Doctor takes Martha back to New York in 1930, at the height of the Depression, and after seeing the statue of liberty (which the Doctor kindly landed the TARDIS at the base of), the two of them take a walk through Hoovertown, the shanty town community in the heart of Manhattan. We meet Solomon, the apparent head of the town, and incidentally, one of the best characters this new era of Who has offered thus far. We learn about the mysterious disappearances in the town (Yay!), which raises the Doctor's suspicions. As the episode progresses we are treated to scheming Daleks, rampaging Pig-men, lots of running around in sewers and even a musical number (!!!), all of which add up to quite a special first part. Granted there is a little padding evident in the script, but that is something apparent in any first half of a two-part story. This is all about set-up, and for the most part it does the job very, very well.

The most powerful moment for me was (surprise, surprise) given away during the teaser last week. When the Doctor comes out of hiding as a Dalek passes him and Tallulah in the sewers and delivers the "They always survive while I lose everything" line, I was transfixed. The Doctor came across as hurt, scared, and above all, furious. Something that is becoming ever more evident this season is the darkness- it has thus far been a much more serious season than last year, which is a good thing as theere were moments of absolute agony for me in last year's series. The Doctor's character seems to have levelled out now, and David Tennant is finally starting to be believable as a 950 year old Time Lord (it took Christopher Eccleston ten minutes to achieve that to these eyes, but, for me anyway, it has taken much, much longer for Tennant to do the same). He's screeching less and acting more like a hero than a hyperactive child. The hyperactivity is good (it has been present in most Doctors to a certain extent, but not quite to the same level), but not always what you'd expect (or want) to see from a character who is on his tenth lifetime righting wrongs across the universe.

The Daleks' big plot, to evolve by becoming symbiotic with human hosts, is a very cool idea and well realized onscreen in the closing moments of the episode. Seeing the Dalek Sec/Human hybrid stand and start ranting was very cool indeed, I just wish the BBC hadn't spoiled it!

Some of the New Yawk accents are a little hammy, but for the most part everyone plays it pretty straight. It's everything you would expect from a TV vision of 30's NY, and the Hooverville scenes add a lovely gritty edge to proceedings.

Boasting a very strong script from Helen Raynor, the episode feels like old-school Doctor Who with a new-era sheen (it really does feel like a classic episode). Packed with some great moments for every character, superb pacing and of course, manipulative Daleks, everything is pointing to a very strong second part, and I really hope it delivers the goods. Hopefully this time we won't have the ending spoiled so soon!!!
7.5/10

How does the next episode look?

Well it certainly looks like the Daleks will be making up for not exterminating anyone in this week's episode. Evolution of the Daleks looks like it's going to be the massive, action packed payoff we're all hoping for. The airborne Daleks look fantastic. Here's hoping the Sec/Human hybrid will be given something cool to do, and doesn't just end up cackling or ranting for all of his screen time.....</i>...

Doctor Who is shown on BBC1 at 7pm each Saturday, and repeated each Sunday and Friday on BBC3

The official online teaser for EVOLUTION OF THE DALEKS:

VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST DOCTOR WHO POSTERS, FIGURES AND COLLECTIBLES!

TARDISWATCH 3: Gridlock

2007-04-16T13:21:16Z

The third of my new DW features written for work:

TARDISWATCH- PART 3: GRIDLOCK
By Andrew Hawnt

A fine tradition in Doctor Who is to bring back classic monsters from earlier incarnations of the show. Going hand in hand is the tradition of Whovians speculating which classic creatures are to return. The obvious ones of course are the Daleks, the Cybermen and other such masterful creations (pun ahoy!), but now the pepperpots and the disco droids have been introduced to the new generation of DW lovers, old-school fans were wondering who or what would be next in line for a new series makeover.

What a surprise it was to discover that the latest classic series monster to make an appearance in the new era of Doctor Who would be the Macra! Last seen in 1967, in the second Doctor story The Macra Terror, they have been blessed with a beautiful CG makeover and the audience was blessed with a mercifully brief bit of background on them by the Doctor.

I am really rather enjoying the mix of new and old creatures/villains in this new era of DW. For the most part the balance is being kept in check, but the Daleks for example are starting to be a little over-used. Granted they are *the* iconic baddies but they are in danger of being a bit over-done to the point where, as in the 80s, they lost their power somewhat (mind you, the 7th Doctor's tale Remembrance of the Daleks is still an amazing piece of SF television). The next two weeks' episodes are centred around the Daleks again, so we shall see how they are handled this time round.

One aspect of bringing old enemies up to date that is proving to be a great deal of fun is discovering what they look like with actual money spent on the effects and some near-cinematic direction. The cynic in me also points out that these creatures aree a massive merchandising opportunity, but then again, thats how it has always been with SF shows and I hope it always will be as SF merchandise is a marvellous thing that brings a great deal of joy to fans young and old. Keeping things in mint condition is cool, but not half as much fun as getting the darn things out of the packaging and having hold of them.

Plus, such merch encourages the young to have an imagination of their own and not just get their dreams force fed by a games console.

I love what Doctor Who has done to kids in the UK. I would equate it to what the Harry Potter books did- they got kids reading and excited about doing so, and now Doctor Who is firing up their imaginations with tales of time travel adventure and scary monsters. Not only that, but it is showing them that there is a better way of living than just being alive for material gain. Doctor Who has ALWAYS been about putting things right. It is against suffering, against injustice, war, racism, and all the petty differences we endure. It is about looking at the bigger picture once in a while and realizing there is an entire universe out there to be explored.

You don't need a TARDIS to do that. All you need is an imagination. Imagination is something that haas been lacking in TV in recent years until the Doctor came back onto our screens. Now we have millions of kids whose creativity is just being awakened to the possibilities.

Cheers Doc.

Following on from the lackluster second episode, Gridlock hits the ground running with a great opening. The moment Martha is kidnapped is genuinely tense, as is the Doctor's horror at his friend being taken away.

This is a very strange episode indeed, and it had a great deal to achieve in its 45 minutes. Not only would this bee Martha's first trip to the future (and another world), but it would also be the episode in which we discover the Face of Boe's great secret, promised to us in the first episode of the previous season.

The underbelly of New Earth is an ugly place indeed, looking almost contemporary in places (which does jar a little seeing as this is supposed to be five billion years in the future). Its a far cry from the sterile utopia we saw last season, and all the more interesting. Humanity's apathy in this episode is very close to home, as is the sad reliance on chemicals to control ones' moods.

I bet there were thousands of people watching this who could relate to the years-long traffic jams. There will also have been a group of viewers (myself included) that felt a little sense of deja vu watching Gridlock, such is its resemblance to the stories of Sylvester McCoy's era as the Doctor. It also bear all the hallmarks of the Andrew Cartmel-influenced stories from that era. Now, I love tthe 7th Doctor's era, he was 'My' Doctor as a kid and of course was the longest serving actor to hold the title (1987-1996), but I was quite surprised at how much this story resembled some of his, mostly Paradise Towers, but a couple of others poped up as reference points too.

The inhabitants of the Traffic Jam are archetypal of that era, the dude in the bowler hat, the Cassinis, Ardal O'Hanlon's cat Pilot, they would all be at home with the 7th Doctor and Mel. This retro feel permeates almost the whole episode, dragged out of it only by the massive set pieces (the Macra attacks are amazing, for example, and almost filmic in scope). The beautiful wide shot of the senate chamber full of skeletons has quite an impact, and is perfectly timed with the Doctor's realization of what is going on above the Undercity. The shots of New New York at the episode's climax are stunning, looking for all the world like the work ILM did on the STAR WARS prequels. Gorgeous work.

Sadly Martha seems to have been given Rose's lines from The End of the World. Her speech about going off with the Doctor is almost exactly the same. Freema gives a valiant performance but this is the Doctor's episode by far.

The final 10 minutes of the episode are absolutely sublime. The final moments in the life of the Face of Boe, including his message to the Doctor, and the Doctor's subsequent conversation with Martha are perfect. the script, acting and direction is wonderful, and when the Doctor again describes Gallifrey you can hear both the pain and the love in his voice, and bodes well as background for what is to come later in the series...
6.5/10

How does the next episode look?

The Daleks are back! 1930's Manhattan is under siege by Pig-Men and the legendary alien villains, but what are the cult of Skaro up to, and how will the Doctor and Martha put a stop to their plans? The episode looks great fun, if a little hammy in places (pig-men pun not intended!), and the accents used by the cast had better be more believable when the episode airs! The Pig-Men look rather daft, sadly. I am intrigued by the premise, and also by the title of the episode after that, namely Evolution of the Daleks...

Doctor Who is shown on BBC1 at 7pm each Saturday, and repeated each Sunday on BBC3

Check out the official BBC teaser for the next episode- Daleks in Manhattan!

VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST DOCTOR WHO POSTERS, FIGURES AND COLLECTIBLES!

Animated Doctor Who

2007-04-12T15:32:31Z

Now I don't know how many of you are up to date with the Doctor Who DVDs, but last year they released the Invasion, an 8 part Troughton story on DVD. Now 2 of the episodes only exist in soundtrack form, no film or video. So to fill in the gaps they animated the episodes, commisioning Cosgrove Hall to do it. The results were fantastic and brought the missing episodes to life.

As you may know there are another 106 original Doctor Who episodes that exist in sountrack form only (thanks to dedicated home tapers). The DVD comisioning editor has just announced that they are accepting submissions for more animations (as in proper professional submissions). See the Restoration Team forum for details

So whilst I doubt we know anyone who could do it, for any fans of 60s Doctor Who this is great news. And there could well be some more missing episodes coming to DVD soon .

TARDISWATCH 2: The Shakespeare Code

2007-04-08T13:23:33Z

Written as part of my Dayjob:

TARDISWATCH- PART 2: THE SHAKESPEARE CODE
By Andrew Hawnt

Ever since Doctor Who began in 1963, the adventures of our intrepid renegade Time Lord have regularly involved meeting famous historical figures and becoming involved in famous events. Some of these have included Marco Polo, Napoleon, Emperor Nero, Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, HG Wells, Albert Einstein, Charles Dickens, Queen Victoria, along with Queen Elizabeth i and II (contrary to the comment in The Shakespeare Code, the Doctor had actually met Elizabeth I before, in The Chase, but what does continuity or canon matter any more?) and a good few others. These stories, while not all classics of the genre, certainly provide memorable moments galore.

Doctor Who was originally intended as a pseudo educational show in which the (first) Doctor and his companions (who at the time were his granddaughter Susan and her school teachers Ian and Barbara) would go on adventures to other times and the young audience would learn the facts about each period. This all went to pot with the advent of the Daleks a few episodes later and the show became the institution that we know and love today.

The adventures featuring famous historical figures have thus been pure fantasy with a few dashes of reality thrown in for the sake of authenticity. For the most part these stories work very well, the early tales only suffering from a lack of budget and thus coming across as stage plays rather than science fiction yarns.

The finest of the historical stories since Doctor Who's return to our screens, as far as I am concerned, is The Unquiet Dead, the superb Mark Gatiss-scripted story in which the ninth Doctor and Rose come up against the Gelth, aided by Charles Dickens (masterfully played by Simon Callow). This episode perfectly suited the 45 minute format and made excellent use of a wonderful cast (it even starred Eve Miles, who went on to star as gwen in the DW spinoff TORCHWOOD).

In the next season we had Tooth and Claw (featuring Queen Victoria), which was marvellous, and The Girl in the Fireplace (featuring Madame De Pompadour), which, while regarded highly by many viewers, met these eyes as a bit of a mess. This year we were promised a meeting with the bard himself. How was it? Lay on, reader, and damn be he who first cries HOLD, ENOUGH! Sorry. Ah, to quip or not to quip, that is the... never mind...

The first pre-credits sequence of the series is a bit of a mess, sadly. Right from the first shot of the prosthetics- laden witches the viewer is assaulted with pantomime cackling. And what the hell is this? Villain talking to the camera? Oh please no. Mercifully the opening titles begin and the scene is cut off. Hopeully the episode is to improve...

Which it did! Hooray!

Martha Jones' first trip in the TARDIS takes her to 1599 and Shakespeare's London, and her first walk through a street of the past is magical. My questions from last week were answered early on in the episode, the matter of Martha's ethnicity and how she differed from the people of the time was handled very nicely and with some grace.

When we meet William Shakespeare (played with some gusto by Dean Lennox Kelly), we are treated to the sight of the famous writer coming across as a boisterous rock star instead of a stuffy scholar. What a breath of fresh air! His handling of the character is a marvel to behold, however it does make ones' suspension of disbelief suffer when this raucous, womanising 'lad' is supposed to be the world's greatest genius. It grates a bit, but not much.

The world of 1599 has been recreated with some ingenious CG courtesy of The Mill, but the real coup for the episode is the crew actually got to film in the Globe theatre itself, which adds a much needed layer of authenticity (and scale) to the episode. The setting is beautifully achieved (and admirably so- the crew had ONE HOUR to make the Globe look like this on each night of shooting the episode as they could only shoot after that evening's performances had been completed. They did a great job- the place looks beautiful), and the computer enhanced crowds fill the auditorium perfectly. Just don't look too close at the faces or you'll notice a dozen of each person dotted around!

All the ingredients for a rollicking good tale are in place, and for the most part one is had. There are some marvellous literary in-jokes, as well as some lovely character moments for the Doctor and Martha (the Doctor is certainly less manic this year and it's very welcome, while Martha is struggling to find a place in the Doctor's affections while he still talks of Rose). The episode looks beautiful, the cast are largely superb, but it falls short of great status thanks to one aspect:

The villains. The comedy rubber witches are awkward enough in brief shots, but the longer they are on screen, the more you can see the dodgy makeup. That aside, they are given some good lines, but the main problem is the basic nature of these villains; yet another race of ethereal alien beings coming through into out world via a rift of some sort to try and enslave/destroy/replace (etc) mankind, only to be done away with by the guest star in a blaze of CG magic. It is pretty much The Unquiet Dead all over again, albeit on a larger scale. There is a whole universe of plot ideas out there and the old 'earth in danger' plot is getting really old.

That said, there was a great deal of fun to be had and some lovely suspense to get the kids behind their sofas. A worthy addition to the new WHO, but not a classic.
5/10

How does the next episode look?
Episode 3, GRIDLOCK, looks, well, a bit unfinished. We're off to New Earth again for more adventures with Cat Nuns, New New York and flying cars, this time guest starring Ardal O'Hanlon as a feline pilot! The CG provided by The Mill is looking a little rushed and unconvincing (and the scene in which the Doctor jumps from car to car is going to make some of us cringe), but the tale looks like a fun romp, and hey, we FINALLY get to hear the Face of Boe's four-word secret to the Doctor. is it "You are not alone", "Your brother is alive" or "Where are my keys?" Place your bets!

By the way, remember to Vote Saxon...

Doctor Who is shown on BBC1 at 7pm each Saturday, and repeated each Sunday on BBC3

Check out the official BBC teaser for the next episode- Gridlock!

VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST DOCTOR WHO POSTERS, FIGURES AND COLLECTIBLES!

Written for work...

2007-04-03T00:52:16Z

The first installment of my series of Doctor Who features for my dayjob (contains mild spoilers for episode 1):

TARDISWATCH- PART 1: SMITH AND JONES
By Andrew Hawnt

Welcome one and all to the first in our series of features following the third series in the new era of DOCTOR WHO! Each of the 13 episodes will be covered in detail right here. So, without further ado, lets get down to business.

The third season of a show is usually the point where the makers start to get a little complacent, a little bit 'We've hooked 'em now, so we can go on auto pilot this year'. Not so in the case of Doctor Who. Yes it has established itself once again with the public as essential viewing but even now it is still having to ease the new fans into the mythos, introducing each well-known aspect of the show for a new audience one at a time. We've already had a regeneration, the Daleks, Cybermen, Autons, UNIT and temporary companions, and now we have the introduction of a new main companion character in the shape of medical student Martha Jones.

A great deal of controversy surrounded her casting in the wake of Billie's departure, mainly down to the fact she had been in the short-lived return of atrocious soap opera nonsense Crossroads. many believed she wouldn't be up to the challenge, that she could never live up to expectations and that she would make the show a laughing stock.

Hang on, what year is this? Weren't the diehards saying EXACTLY the same thing about Billie Piper when she landed the role of Rose? Yup, and look how that turned out- a fantastic actress coming into her own, and the Doctor's most popular companion in the show's entire history. Look, Russell T Davies knows what he is doing, and so do Julie Gardner, Phil Collinson et al. These people brought this amazing show bang up to date and turned it into a ratings winner and global success for the BBC when all seemed lost. I look back at the rumours of 2003 now with some strange form of nostalgia- the rumours that there would be a one-off episode made by the BBC as a Christmas special. None of us dreamed it could be this big again.

Freema Agyeman's casting did come as something of a surprise though, due to her already appearing (and dying horribly!) in the final 2 parter of series 2 as a girl named Adeola. I love the story of her journey to the role of Martha though. The fact that everyone tricked her into thinking she was auditioning for a role in Torchwood while secretly discussing her potential as the new DW companion makes me grin. She certainly must have won the crew over, but could she win over the audience that loved Rose so much?

Saturday the 31st of march rolled around at last and 7pm saw the answer to that question come to light in an adrenaline-fuelled 45 minutes...

An understated opening welcomes us very rapidly to the world of Martha Jones, her bickering family and her life as a medical student. When she meets a particular patient named John Smith however, everything she knew about her life was turned upside down. Not only is the hospital transported to the moon, but then there's an army of rampaging Space Rhino Police, a vampiric alien entity masquerading as a pensioner (with a straw!) and a strange man with two hearts who saves a thousand people while barefoot.

Smith and Jones is a fantastic start to the series. Much more self assured than New Earth was, and while not quite as well structured as the Rose episode, it is nontheless a nigh-on perfect introduction for Martha that gets all the essentials out of the way nice and quickly (the Doctor's alien nature, the TARDIS etc) in order for us all to get on with new adventures! Aside from a couple of dodgy effects shots and the radiation-dispersal scene (gah!), this episode gets things off to a great start with massive alien spaceships, massive aliens with appropriately massive rhino heads, an evil hidden alien and a frenetic race against time. Marvellous.

As ever with this new era of WHO, the guest cast a mostly wonderful, the viewers' suspension of disbelief slipping only when the groups of rubbish extras start screaming. This is a small quibble though. The main characters of the piece are superb.

The pace is frantic, maybe a little *too* frantic in places, but it is a fantastic thrill ride that gives the kids (and the older fans) something to whoop and cheer at, and sees a welcome return to proper storytelling after the lacklustre (I'm being kind) Runaway Bride Christmas special. This certainly bodes well for a season already bursting with goodies to offer (I won't tell you what they are, but CRIKEY are there some surprises coming up in future episodes!

The teaser for next week's episode, The Shakespeare Code, looks stunning. I do wonder how Martha's ethnicity will be approached in 1599, if at all. I know such matters shouldn't come up in this day and age, but the world was rather a different place back then and I'm intrigued to see whether it gets mentioned at all.

I will end this review by saying WELCOME FREEMA. You are a gorgeous actress, a fantastic performer and we are glad you're on board the TARDIS! Onward to new adventures!
8/10

Doctor Who is shown on BBC1 at 7pm each Saturday, and repeated each Sunday on BBC3

The BBC teaser for next week's episode:

...and in case you missed it, the BBC are offering everyone the chance to see and embed their DW teasers on their official YouTube feed. Check out this, the online trailer for what series 3 holds in store... Look out for John Simm! Who could he possibly be playing? ;P

REMEMBER TO VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST DOCTOR WHO POSTERS, FIGURES AND COLLECTIBLES!

Regeneration...

2007-03-03T16:11:33Z

Hello... Ooh, new teeth, that's weird. Now where was I? Oh that's right... Barcelona!

Yes, I deleted the community for a while as I saw little point in keeping it active. Thankfully a significant amount of my interest has returned, plus the new series starts on SATURDAY MARCH 31ST, so its a perfect time to bring this place back.

Discussion, debate and observations regarding the new series are welcome.

New Doctor Who Events
The semi-regular Doctor Who nights may well return in the near future, we'll be talking about this soon. Plus, a possible larger event may be on the cards.

Oh, and if you haven't seen them already, the BBC have started posting Doctor Who content on YouTube, the first being David Tennant's Video Diary and Freema Agyeman's Video Diary, both of which are worth a look.

Incidentally, I will be writing a feature on Doctor Who for my day-job's Myspace Page, which should be posted on Monday. An extract and a link will be available here!

Theory Time!
Thinking back to the end of Torchwood series 1, maybe Jack wasn't taken by the Doctor at all? All we heard was a TARDIS in transit, and with all these master rumours flying about, I can't help but wonder if the culprit was actually our goatee'd bad guy... ah well, just a thought :)

Glad to be back in the old blue box...
Mr Hex

grin

2007-01-04T16:58:36Z

Was just talking about the Jason Statham rumour (probably *just* a rumour but hey, it'd be cool to see the Doctor get some body mass back, hehe) with Rach and we got onto our obsession with Dylan Moran being the 11th Doctor, and the notion of the perfect companion came up: Bill Bailey! *grin*

Actually, why not have the BBC go the whole hog and put Tamsin Greig in as the Rani!!! I know she's already been in as another character, but that didn't stop Colin Baker or Freema Agyeman...

A good day to be a fanboy

2007-01-02T00:04:46Z

Well we've certainly come a long way from just having EDAs and PDAs to look forward to haven't we?

On Xmas day we had Doctor Who: The Runaway Bride, which was fun, if rather empty and suffering from a weak script, as well as the Doctor Who charity concert on BBCi. Then today we've had the pilot of The Sarah Jane Adventures and the two-part finale of Torchwood, adding up to a festive period packed with WHO related delights.

How the hell did this happen? This is great! A few short years ago, Doctor Who fans were ridiculed, even by other SF fans! A rickety old TV show about a time traveller, his companions and a big blue box, lost in 1989 and briefly resurrected in 1996. It was spent. Fans kept it going with audios, novels and just being bloody stubborn, but no maatter how hard we wanted it back on TV, there was seemingly no chance of it happening.

Fast forward to today, and Doctor Who is enormous, bigger than has ever been. Every kid wants a Dalek or a K9 of their own. The DW universe has been opened up to a new generation, the show is massively popular, and now we have two spinoffs to enjoy as well.

The Sarah Jane Adventures episode was great fun. Aimed squarely at kids, yes, but still a great romp. Decent cast, fantastic production values (Better than The Runaway Bride!) and pacing to die for.

Torchwood ended on a high note with two great episodes. The penultimate episode, Captain Jack Harkness was beautifully written, a bittersweet character piece that finally let Jack's character shine through, followed by End of Days, which did exactly what it needed to and delivered a whopping great big climax to the first series- and that ending! The implications! The Doctor must have been in a REAL rush to get away...

...unless... SPECUALTION TIME!

One thing that occured to me was that maybe the TARDIS wasn't being flown by the Doctor when it swept in for Jack. Perhaps the Doc has been injured (late in series 3- Jack's back in the last few epiodes) and something similar to Emergency Program 1 (from the 9th Doc's season) has sent the TARDIS to fetch Jack to help...

Who knows.

Aaaah, its fun being sad.

At last it clicked :)

2006-12-17T21:19:47Z

Torchwood has finally won me over. Looking forward to tonight's episode (the teaser looks right up my street) rather alot as my week has been bloody awful.

I watched the omnibus last night on BBC3 and thoroughly enjoyed it. The cast certainly seem to have found their footing with their characters, which is partly down to some much better scripts and some superb direction. The last few weeks have *really* made up for the bumpy start the series got off to.

Personal favourite right now is They Keep Killing Suzie, which was a wonderful mix of tension and superior plotting adding that missing ingredient to the stellar cast. Really enjoyed that. Even the blatant money-saver episode that followed was a treat in its sheer simplicity, and it also gave Gwen a chance to shine a bit. She's grown on me, but Toshiko will always get my attention first (Naoko Mori is such a lovely actress). Pardon me while I swoon ;)

Yeah, looking forward to the rest of the series, and am curious to find out what is 'moving in the darkness' towards Jack...

Right, back to writing.

Torchwood - They keep killing Suzie

2006-12-03T22:57:01Z

Finally an episode of Torchwood that lives up to what we expected, drama, thrils, characters and a dark dark plotline.

If you didn't see it watch it later in the week people.

Near Perfect

2006-12-02T15:15:40Z

While sorting the flat out a bit I've popped The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit on as background noise, and am finding it incredibly hard to take my eyes away from the screen.

These two episodes really do put the rest of the series to shame, apart from the closing minutes of Doomsday.

My favourite tenth Doc episodes so far. Excellent British sci fi. More please.

Back to greatness?

2006-11-26T00:36:18Z

Doctor Who- new series
After all my bitching about the 10th Doc, I'm starting to hear things that reawakening my interest a bit. Some things that have been revealed in the Inside Story hardcover sound intriguing.

For example, the rumoured destruction of the sonic screwdriver (Oh yes please, lets have some actual solutions!) and little things like the title of the first ep of series 3 (Smith and Jones), the return of Captain Jack for 3 episodes and other stuff including the (rumoured) episode featuring a group of Time Lord survivors who turn against the Doctor all have me taking notice again. It's about time really, as I did lose interest completely for a while. Still not looking forward to TRB though, sadly.

Torchwood
After the painfully awful Cyberwoman episode, I've really enjoyed the last two, with Countrycide being a joy to watch despite its liberal theft of X-Files/Hills Have Eyes plot devices. It did seem a tiny bit like the League of Gentlemen actually (more in the setting than anything else), hehe. I really enjoyed it, and was very pleased with Jack's gloriously OTT action hero moment at the climax.

This week's looks like it was written for me, lots of Toshiko! :)

Classics
Rachel and myself had a quiet night in tonight and watched The Mid Robber. Rach hasn't seen much of the 2nd Doc and enjoyed the trippy atmosphere lots. Those giant toy soldiers still scare the shit out of me though!

Hopefully another DW event will be organized soon- those nights were fun :)

Apathy- worse than hating it!

2006-11-11T01:15:14Z

Well, Torchwood has ended up giving me an even worse opinion that that of the lows of DW season 2. Apathy. Torchwood has been so mediocre that I've given up and won't be watching the rest of the series, which is a shame as I was really looking forward to the return of Captain Jack :/

I hold little hope for The Runaway Bride either, but hopefully series 3 of DW will be an improvement....

Is there any decent UK science fiction on the way? Torchwood is a bit, well, naff.

Torchwood

2006-11-05T23:47:39Z

You know I though this was going to be good. Its not though is it. Ah well.

Buses

2006-10-14T23:23:46Z

Seeing the Torchwood ads on the side of buses does bring a glow to the heart of this geek. Whoever would have thought, after the wilderness years, that anything related to Doctor Who would get so much attention?

here's hoping the show itself makes up for some of season 2 of DW ;P

(that last bit was posted mainly to make Dave shout at me)

Doctor Who: The Dark Crossing

2006-10-14T12:22:01Z

Okay, the working title for my fan film is 'The Dark Crossing', and I'm simultaneously writing it as a script and in prose to try and get a good pace to it. I'll post each scene here as prose and then post the script at some point for your delectation. No idea how and when it'll get made, but it'll be a giggle either way.

DOCTOR WHO
THE DARK CROSSING

By Andrew Hawnt

1

His head was full of screams.

Gareth thrashed in his bed, drenched in sweat, bedclothes twisted around him as he fought in vain against the nightmare. Someone, something was trying to break in, or break out, and the walls in his dream were cracking, the walls of his mind breaking down, glowing claws ripping through his defenses. The dream was so real, so very real. He could smell ozone and hear the roar beyond the walls that protected his essence.

A scream escaped him. Had he screamed in the real world too? He couldn't be sure. All he knew was the dream had him and it wasn't letting go. The claws were ripping his mind to shreds, tearing him apart, pulling him to pieces inside his own skull.

His defenses fell. The presence screeched with victory and hurtled into his brain, filling it, taking him over completely. His body spasmed violently, then lay still, not even breathing.

Deep inside his subconscious his own voice cried out in terror.

Another voice answered.

I am you now. You are no more.

With those words, Gareth faded into nothing.

The dark presence smiled with Gareth's lips, and opened his eyes.

The bedroom door opened and Jean walked in clutching a cup of steaming Lemsip.

"You alright love? Gareth? Here, this'll help a bit. You awake?"

She lay the cup down on the bedside table and gently pressed a hand against his forehead.

"Oh you're freezing! Here, let me get you another blanket."

Jean moved to the wardrobe and rummaged for that thick blanket that lurked under the piles of summer clothes until winter. She pulled her dressing gown tighter as a chill ran through her. Had Gareth opened a window? It felt like a morgue in there. Ah, there it is. She pulled it out and started to open it out.

"There we are." She said, turning back to Gareth.

Jean shuddered- he was stood facing her, expression blank, nightshirt soaked to his skin.

"Oh! You made me jump. Get back in bed, you'll catch your death."

"Do you have a soul?" came the voice from Gareth's lips. A voice that wasn't his. A voice that was barely even human.

"Blimey, you really do need a hot drink."

"Answer my question."

"Err, yes, if you like. Its a bit tired but I've still got it."

The creature that had been Gareth smiled and outstretched his arms. "Hold me."

Jean grinned and went to him. "You're all sweaty but I don't care. C'mere."

They embraced, and Jean screamed as the creature that had been her Gareth pulled her life energy right out through her skin, a sombre grey luminescence flashing a brilliant green for a moment and then dissipating as Jean's lifeless body fell to the floor with a sudden thud.

The creature's strength grew, but it would take a great many more souls to complete its task. It gathered clothes and boots and dressed its human body

It stared out of the window at the city beyond the homely street. It had travelled far, and the journey was almost complete.

The city, and its thousands of delicious souls, awaited.

He left the house and strode towards the lights.