The Angels Take Manhattan

"I just went to get coffees for the Doctor and Amy... hello, River."

Writer: Steven Moffatt

Format: TV

Broadcast: 29th September 2012

Series: 7.05

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory, River

Synopsis 

A simple trip to 2012 New York goes horribly wrong when Rory is sent back to the 1930s by the Weeping Angels. There, he finds that his daughter, River Song, is investigating the Angels and Manhattan has become their hunting ground. The Doctor and Amy must find Rory before it's too late, but they soon find that not every point in time can be changed. And here, the Doctor must face the one thing he has been dreading - a final farewell to the Ponds. 

Verdict 

The Angels Take Manhattan is just incredible. It's actually a stupendously good sendoff for Amy and Rory. Everything about it is pretty much amazing! Emotions, love and an incredible story. The pre-opening credits scene was tremendous and told a clever little story of its own leading upto the main bulk which was just sensational. I loved how the Doctor was taking the Ponds on a nice little outing to NYC. You'd think after the last two times visiting he would be a bit skeptical but surely just once, in the city that never sleeps, he could just take his friends for a nice coffee and read in Central Park. But of course, there was a small problem that were Weeping Angels were in town. And they just pulled off their best episode yet! Yes, I think this is better than Blink. Amy looked absolutely spectacular in those reading glasses, girls always look better in those type of glasses and wow she just looked sensational! The humour around the glasses with the Doctor too was great! I must say that the makeup team have been doing a stellar job in making Karen Gillan look older to go with the whole Amy and Rory only travelling part time in the TARDIS. But whatever they're doing, I swear Karen is looking hotter! Matt Smith did an outstanding job here as the Doctor and without him saying or even hinting, he was clearly hurting at seeing Amy age. As was evident with him ripping the last page out of the book, our dear Doctor is not a fan of endings. The subject of the book was absolute genius. Really, extremely clever! The book told of the future and once read, it became a fixed point. As seen with River breaking her wrist for instance. The relationship between the Doctor and River was just incredible as always and I'm crying out for River to join him in the TARDIS, even for just one sole adventure! We got a brief hint at what the pair might get upto in Rain Gods but I'm talking a full length episode. The flirting, chemistry and emotion between the pair is more than perfect. I adored how the Doctor wanted to look good for his wife! Winter Quay proved to be a tremendous focal point for the Angels' plan and boy what a plan it was! It's difficult with the Angels being quantum locked to discover their motives but as more adventures come things about the brilliant enemies become clearer. The fact they were using the hotel as a battery farm feeding on the time distortion and life energy of sending people back in time, over and over, until they see their future self die. Now that's the plot of wonderful enemies! I'm khan that in his final episode, Rory was actually relevant! So far this season he's been pretty useless which has been a great shame seeing as it's lead upto his departure here. I liked how he was going to take on the Angels himself after watching himself die. Again. As he said, when doesn't he come back to life? He knew that if he jumped off the building to his death, that a paradox would be created and the Angels would be wiped out. But the emotional scene with Amy was extremely heartfelt and impressively powerful! "Together, or not at all." Superb. The reaction of the Doctor going from horror to happiness at the success was fantastic! I was a little surprised at how he only called out Amy's name when the Ponds were plummeting to their death. It has always seemed he's held Amy in much higher regard. But I can let it slide seeing that hers was the first face his face ever saw. Fabulous continuation from The Eleventh Hour. I bloody loved the scenes where Amy and Rory, then the Doctor and River, named each other husband and wife, literally. A lovely family outing... until the surviving Angel came along with just enough power to zap Rory into the past. Just as the Doctor thought all was well and the Angels had been defeated yet again, one survivor turns up from out of nowhere and throws the TARDIS foursome's lives into turmoil. Rory is gone, Amy's heartbroken, River's parents are split up and the Doctor's going to lose somebody yet again. He ought to know this was coming though by the book's chapter titles. Amelia's final farewell had come. And she emotionally let herself get got by the Angel so she could be with Rory. "Like it should be." Beautiful. An incredible sendoff! I really liked the scenes in the TARDIS after the Ponds were gone with River flying the TARDIS and the Doctor an emotional wreck. Everybody knows he can't go travelling alone, and River mentioning it along with Amy also thanks to the final page, made the departure easier to handle. Long standing companions had gone, but that was okay for the Doctor (and the viewer). Somebody else would soon be a coming. And she'd light the world alight. 

Rating: 10/10

The Auntie Matter

"He could have at least killed us before losing all interest!"

Writer: Jonathan Morris

Format: Audio

Released: January 2013

Series: FDA 2.01

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana I

Synopsis 

England in the 1920s. 

Whilst K9 is off in the TARDIS leading the Black Guardian on a wild goose chase, the Doctor and Romana are enjoying a leisurely lifestyle as the Lord and Lady of a London townhouse. But trouble never stats away from them for long, and before they know it a chance discovery of alien technology leads them deep into the heart of the English countryside where a malign presence lurks. 

As the Doctor dodges deadly butlers and ferocious gamekeepers, Romana is faced with a malevolent Aunt and an even deadlier peril - marriage. 

Verdict 

Like the first season of Big Finish's range of Fourth Doctor Adventures, The Auntie Matter was entertaining, comical and a very good story! Naturally with Leela in the first season, there was always a bit more room for humour as that's just an attribute she can effortlessly bring but seeing as she's been swapped for the first incarnation of Romana, the Doctor has to take a more central role in the funny side of things and that wasn't a problem at all! Season 16, despite my lack of appetite for it, was a time where the Fourth Doctor had become less serious as seen with the likes Sarah and Harry, and having a fellow Time Lord travel with him on a hunt for the Key to Time seemed to allow him to open up and express himself more directly which was good, and perhaps new, for the Doctor. Anyway, I loved the title of this story prior to listening and after seeing the role of an auntie play pivotal I liked it even more after the hour was up. Lady Bassett played a terrific villain even if she sounded like a friendly old women! Well, I guess in truth that's what she was but it seemed she was trying to prevent that and her scheme set on poor old Reginald was fantastic. She would send him off out into the wilderness to find himself a wife that she can approve of, and then steal her body and take the remaining life force from. And as it would be, Romana I was next on that list. Now, the character of Romana I absolutely love but that's down to Lalla Ward and her absolutely wonderful role as Romana II. Season 16 wasn't great for me and that was partially down to Mary Tamm as companion, I just couldn't get to liking her on screen. But here on audio, I hope my opinions of her change, and there was no problem at all with her in this story! I could have done without her calling K9 "the dog" but I'll nudge. I liked how Jonathan Morris dealt with the absence of chasing the Key to Time in a Fourth Doctor/Romana I story by describing how K9 was left in the TARDIS controlling its safety whilst it bundled around the universe on the randomiser until the Black Guardian got tired of chasing it. A good way of dealing with the obstruction. Lucy Griffiths put in a stellar performance as Mabel, the maid, and her interaction with the Doctor was outstanding! I think she'd have made a very good companion and having someone on the TARDIS with a 1920s background would be good I think. Storm Warning, in which Charley arrived on board with the Eighth Doctor, wasn't set too far ahead of the '20s but India Fisher's magical companion always seems to be a bit ahead of her time. The setting was very good with Bassett House but I would have liked a bit more explanation as to how the Doctor and Romana had acquired the status of Lord and Lady in London. Jonathan Morris has given us some brilliant stories in the form of Bloodtide and The Golden Ones, but to me he doesn't clarify everything that needs to be on times. He's just a bit edgy. But overall this story was actually terrific. The identical android twins were good and despite it not working anywhere near the success that it did in The Romans, the fact that the Doctor and his companion(s) narrowly missed meeting each other was wonderful. It added great humour to an already comical story and the scenes at the end with the pair arguing over who actually thwarted the Aunt's plans were reminiscent of the aforementioned First Doctor TV serial. To me though, it was pretty evident that the Doctor was the reason the threat was thwarted! Nonetheless, a very good start to another series of adventures for the Fourth Doctor!

Rating: 8/10

The Crystal Throne

"The world is a hunting ground, Madame. As Mr Darwin might say, only the strongest and most adaptable have the right to survive."

Writer: Scott Gray

Format: Comic Strip

Released: June 2014

Printed in: DWM 475-476

Featuring: Madame Vastra, Jenny, Strax

Synopsis 

Madame Vast, Jenny Flint and Strax, better known as the Paternoster Gang, are dealing with a fresh revolutionary plot to overthrow Queen Victoria, only this time with the help of a relic from Silurian history, the death of a monarch seems likely. Can the gang, whilst battling mutated wasp policemen, prevent the revolution from succeeding?

Verdict 

The Crystal Throne was a very good two part comic strip! I really liked that the guys at Doctor Who Magazine gave the terrific trio of Vastra, Jenny and Strax the chance to shine and take centre stage in the first story that's absolutely their own. For at least a third of The Crimson Horror that was the case until the Doctor arrived in unusual fashion. But no arrival was to occur in this comic strip and was a brilliant spinoff trip from the usual stuff during the transition of Doctor from Matt Smith to Peter Capaldi. The plot itself was very good I thought! The Victorian setting is always magnificent and the crystal palace centre added to the look and story. The plan of the stunning Lady Cornelian Basildon-Stone was both intriguing and borderline insane! She'd transformed hundreds of policemen into half man, half wasp, giving her a crew of controllable creatures following just one order, any order she desired. And in this case it was to bring the downfall of her majesty. I was extremely surprised to discover that she'd actually gone as far as using the gene splicer to convert herself into a half wasp as well! Just why would you want to do that to yourself? I really liked the use of archaic Silurian relics and the story of the scientist who was left to die was heartfelt. Scott Gray did a magnificent job of portraying the Paternoster Gang as they appear on TV. Vastra taking centre stage was terrific although I think better font should have been used for her narration. Jenny was nailed spot on with her speech and dialect perfect. Strax was, as usual, humorous and comical although his language was a bit too good from what we're used to but I can let that slide. The overall plot was fantastic and I liked how the Doctor had left and entrusted Vastra with his sonic screwdriver and she used it in dazzling effect here shattering the palace. The fact that Lady Basildon-Stone just fell despite having wings was a bit edgy and the fact that the wasp effects simply faded after the source being destroyed wasn't quite the climax I hoped for but overall it was very enjoyable! 

Rating: 8/10

The Power of Three

"I'm running to you and Rory before you fade from me."

Writer: Chris Chibnall

Format: TV

Broadcast: 22nd September 2012

Series: 7.04

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis 

There have been ways to invade Earth, and the Doctor has seen them all - or so he always thought. And then the human race wakes up one morning and discovers the world has been overrun by small cubes, which then proceed to do nothing at all. A plan is afoot, humanity is endangered but by what, and how, and above all, when? The Year of the Slow Invasion has thus begun. 

Verdict 

The Power of Three was actually pretty good despite being mixed overall. For about 35 minutes the episode was full of intrigue, mystery and suspense... and then it just seemed to end in a rushed way. The idea and potential of the episode is very good and had this been presented in a two part story I think it would have been far better! When you do an episode that's going to last a calendar year in length, it needs to be done very cleverly as in Last of the Time Lords, but here it wasn't done all that well. To be honest, time-wise this episode was just all over the place. First the Doctor was restless having to take the 'slow path' and just be patient. But then later in the episode he wants to stay with Amy and Rory. Now I understand and liked the fact that the Doctor missed constantly travelling with the first face his face saw, and her husband, but he's experienced companions leaving him before so it shouldn't be too new for him. I'm really not liking how Amy and Rory's departure is being prepared for. They've gone from facing divorce in Asylum of the Daleks to wanting to choose 'real life' over travelling in the TARDIS. It's all a bit quick and muddled for my liking. But back to the episode and its individuality. Brian was great reappearing after his humorous stint in Dinosaurs on a Spaceship and I really liked how he followed the instructions of the Doctor by watching the cubes, keeping a log everyday. The introduction of Kate Stewart was done very classy, no emotional or heartfelt entrance, just a UNIT break in and she casually struts in identifying the Doctor. I really liked that. And I liked the Doctor's liking of her and how she didn't want to be known simply as the Brigadier's daughter. She was more than capable of being brilliant on her own and that was evident in this episode. The plot was very good to be fair with cubes just appearing all over the world... and doing absolutely nothing for months on end. It's the perfect plan. Do nothing, conceal the truth and become part of human society and you won't be feared. Once all doubt is erased from that society that the cubes are harmless, that's the time to strike. And it was done well for the most part. After nearly a year of nothingness, the cubes absorbed literally every piece of information and more. They'd soon pounce with an attack wave and once they did, after the countdown was complete, cardiac arrest became common instantaneously across the globe. The Shakri looked very impressive but yet the apparent leader (or is the Shakri just a term for the individual we saw) only appeared for no more than a few minutes. How can the main villain of the story only appear as a hologram for one conversation? I liked how the Doctor was shocked at seeing who was behind the cubes and they must be fearful and calculative if they were used to give Gallifreyan children nightmares. But if a species could cause shivers down the spines of a Time Lord, why were they afraid of human colonisation? Surely they'd have a more straightforward way of prevention than a slow invasion. The brief scenes where seven weeks of adventures between the now part time TARDIS trio were good but again rushed. Why couldn't we have seen the Zygons at the hotel and how Amy ended up marrying Henry VIII?! The fact that this was the anniversary of the Ponds should have been more momentous also. It's just a shame that a plot with so much potential was rushed at the end. Were the flashbacks and narration needed at the start as an expense for more time with the Shakri? I'm also liking Rory less and less as his departure draws near which should not be the case! He just seems inadequate and I'm convinced the Doctor only misses Amy. Overall, great ideas just rushed. The climax was far too quick and simple which was a great shame. 

Rating: 7/10

Forever Dreaming

"You were right, Doctor-man. She's stronger than any of us, just what we need..."

Writer: Jonathan Morris

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 4th May 2011

Printed in: DWM 433-434

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy

Synopsis 

The Doctor and Amy arrive at a 1960s seaside resort where everything is just a little too stereotypical. As things entail, the Doctor vanishes into thin air and Amy is left all alone, in a dream that lasts forever, hunted by the Dark.

Verdict 

Forever Dreaming was a bit of a let down I must sadly admit. Comic strip stories that go more than one part are usually very good and tell an entertaining and interesting story but for the most part this adventure was bland and extremely average. After reading many Scott Gray comic strips to kick off my delving into this format, I'm yet to be overly impressed by Jonathan Morris. He's just not doing things greatly for the Eleventh Doctor in his first graphic novel. The story arc has just been all over the place really with the mysterious Chiyoko appearing prominently in The Golden Ones but only making a cameo in The Screams of Death since. If you're going with a story arc, at least have something leading upto the climatic conclusion story as seen with the brilliant Hunters of the Burning Stone and The Blood of Azrael. I didn't like the plot of this adventure much at all with the silly Beatles theme and dreary and dreamy atmosphere. It was needless and just far too cliched. I liked the idea of Amy having been to this particular seaside town before with her aunt but the confusing jumps between her being an adult and a child weren't great. I mean, she was wearing the same clothes in both ages of herself, there was a severe lack of explanation. The artwork was pretty awful for this story sadly, it seemed way too rushed and not detailed enough at all. I don't whether the artist was trying to make it suit the dream theme and tone or not, but whatever he'd thought of I didn't like it and to me it just didn't work. The saving grace of the comic strip was the Dark. They looked very Doctor Who and the way they spoke was impressive. The cliffhanger was not great and I did think that Amy conjuring up an ice cream to save the day, making her happy, was extremely silly. The lack of the Doctor is something that hurt the story I think. Now don't get me wrong, I absolutely love Amy when she travels solely with the Doctor and I know she'd be more than capable of holding her own in a spinoff, but here she wasn't allowed the expression and freedom that she should have. Thanks to the dreams she was restricted and the distraction of the ridiculous John Lennon entity or whatever it was didn't help matters. Thank goodness the Dark looked very good and acted like great villains. The rhyming riddles they spoke in were fantastic and the way they were turned against the "physic squid" was actually good. You know a story isn't going well when you're enemy is called a physic squid event though that's not its real name. It was severely lacking in aggression or looking fearful instead it just seemed like a giant squishy toy. The idea of it wanting to get out of psychspace was at least a saving grace. The Doctor's disappearance was a shock but to find him just sitting around with others, still trapped, was poor. I thought it was too away and again not clarified as to how the squid couldn't tap into Amy's mind. The climax with Amy conjuring up the TARDIS to escape was somewhat rushed. I've got nothing else to say really, very average but the excellence of the Dark saved things from disaster and gains what's probably a generous rating. 

Rating: 6/10

Silver Lining

"That's humans for you, never did manage the art of logic."

Writer: Colin Brake

Format: Audio

Released: 

Series: Bernice Summerfield Special Release 01

Featuring: Bernice

Synopsis 

Verdict 

Silver Lining is an excellent half hour of Doctor Who drama. Despite it being Doctor-less, as is the intention in the Bernice Summerfield range, it was really good and has definitely paved the way for me to look to do more adventures and series' in this range in the future! As in Bernice Summerfield and the Criminal Code, I really admired the enthusiasm Benny had for her archaeology and adventuring. I was intrigued at how normal a life she'd led since departing the TARDIS. It was very interesting news to discover that Bernice is a mother! I do look forward to seeing the many spinoff series she stars in pan out. I'm really looking forward to a lot of adventures and the chance for a companion to really become big in the Whoniverse, and I like the fact that it's one who didn't appear on television. But back to this cleverly titled story and I really liked the plot and it's similarities to The Tomb of the Cybermen. A cave, metalic doors hidden into moutains (or equivalent) and a unique intelligence test. Plus the would-be accomplice turning out to want to use the Cybermen or their technology for their own use. I really liked the scenes with the door opening attempts and the brilliance of Bernice shone through as she found the correct, analogue, sequence of notes on the keyboard. Just why or how the Cybermen had implanted a keyboard into their entrance I wasn't sure, but I love the absurdity! Lynton was a tremendous character and for a while with its short format, and the Cybermen yet to appear, I was beginning to wonder just what direction things were going in. But then he turned and revealed all. He was just using Bernice to break into the Cyber pit and take things for himself. He wanted the Cyber-Plague to unleash for his own devilish schemes but the revelation that the plague itself was on the outside of the canister rather than inside was brilliant! So scheming of the Cybermen yet utterly fantastic. Their plan was for the capturer of the plague to exit the pit with the can and unleash the disease on all. Bernice questioned my wondering, how would that help conversion? Nevertheless, the Cybermen have been known to partake in strange methods and reasoning so I could easily let it slide here. What mattered was the Cybermen were upto no good yet again and were planning on unleashing a contact-spreading disease. So they needed to be stop. The arrival of the Cybermen wasn't as emphatic as it could have been but I found the design, or rather voice, of this version of the silver rodents of peculiar interest. They didn't sound too ruthless or aggressive even if their agenda seemed to say otherwise. I loved how Bernice quickly friended a Cyberman to prevent the explosives from going off, or rather let her escape before the pit became an inferno. I thought it wwe awesome how she climbed on and up a Cybermen! When has that been done before? Excellent scenes. The climax in which Benny leaves the Cyberman for dead in escaping herself was very good and as I mentioned in a recent blog of Island of Horror, without the Doctor the major villains need to be defeated somewhat climatically and again that was terrifically portrayed here. Overall, despite its short length, this was an outstanding little audio! 

Rating: 9/10

Bernice Summerfield and the Criminal Code

"It's a language... and it's illegal."

Writer: Eddie Robson

Format: Audio

Released: 31st January 2010

Series: Companion Chronicles 4.06

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Bernice

Synopsis 

The Doctor and Bernice Summerfield are on the planet Shanquis, where the Doctor is trying to negotiate a peace settlement between this world and the neighbouring world of Esoria. The Doctor should be in his element, in an arena where the fighting is done with words, not weapons.

Yet after days of talks, the situation is getting worse. The planets are on a war footing and the Doctor cannot break the deadlock. He'd planned to join Bernice at an archaeology conference on the planet, but she ends up going on her own in an effort to distract herself from the increasingly dismal situation. 

Whilst there, Bernice learns of the Shanquin "forbidden language", which it is illegal to read, speak or even think. As Bernice persues the root of this obscure, archaic law, she finds herself obstructed and threatened - and realises that her investigations may have given her the only hope of stopping this war...

Verdict 

Bernice Summerfield and the Criminal Code, an interesting title with its resemblance to the Target novelisations, was a fantastic Companion Chronicle audio! Lisa Bowerman narrated the story absolutely brilliantly and with this only being my second story to feature her as companion, I'm impressed with Bernice Summerfield and can see why she's been given numerous spinoffs across different formats. She was a highlight of The Shadow of the Scourge and as it should be in this range, she was the upmost highlight here. I really liked her twist on Sylvester McCoy's Seventh Doctor with the calmness and Scottish slant coming through. Usually in the Chronicle stories the role of the Doctor is limited but here he was acting as the mediator, the "'middle man" as was said in the story and that was really great to see. I liked his attempts at preventing war between the species of Shanquis and Esoria, if there's one thing the Doctor loves to prevent it's death! And he was pulling out all the stops here trying any methods, whether it publicly or not, to negotiate a peace settlement instead of having a needless war. Bernice's relationship with the Doctor was a very good one and I liked the less aggressive theme, or scenes rather, that came with the absence of Ace. Having the Doctor travel with solely Bernice is a bresh of fresh air. I'm not a fan of Ace, she's loudmouthed, over aggressive and just annoying. As referenced, I think I need to delve into some Seventh Doctor and Bernice novels starting with Love and War. The use of a forbidden language was intriguing and I loved how determind Bernice was to discover why it was so feared despite the laws surrounding it being archaic. Something isn't as it seems if people can be prosecuted for just thinking the language! I was also intrigued by the heavy use of the TARDIS translation system in a pre-Ninth Doctor story. I'm not complaining at all, in fact I welcomed that things were made of the TARDIS ability prior to the RTD era. Gatlin was a good little character adding to the cast but as support casts go in the Companion Chronicles, this was a poor effort unfortunately and I think that's because the Doctor's role was unusually prominent in this range. I'd argue that they didn't need to include a second person to the cast members, Lisa Bowerman was so good that she could have done it all! Hell, why didn't they just throw in Sylvester McCoy for a range bonus? Not that it wasn't good, far from that, it really was excellent! The plot throughout was terrific with Bernice set on uncovering the secret language and the Doctor preventing war. The discovery that the language was actually English was very clever and tied in well with the TARDIS translation. Once things were advancing, the discovery of the planet's history with the wormholes and human settlement was tremendous and added to with the ability Bernice had by manipulating nature by the nanobots commanding them with the "forbidden language" that she was fluent in. The Doctor's heavy involvement right through to the climax was fantastic and despite myself being quite critical of the Seventh Doctor, without Ace he might not be so bad. Time to wap out the Seventh and Mel adventures I think... or advance on my knowledge on the brilliant Bernice. She really was superb in this. 

Rating: 9/10

Island of Horror

"How much do you know about our attempts to turn Earth's scientists into savage psychopaths?"

Writer: Terry Nation

Format: Comic Strip

Released: September 1978

Printed in: Dalek Annual 1979

Synopsis 

When Karl Martin is found in the fishing nets of a Japanese trawler, Mark Seven and Joel Shaw are stunned. What, they wonder, is the pre-eminent scientist doing in the waters off the coast of Japan? Although Martin is not able to communicate his thoughts to the ADF agents, he is concealing a picture of a Dalek in his pocket...

Verdict 

Island of Horror was a fantastic little comic strip! The story really was what it says on the tin, a horror-filled island. Considering this was a Dalek story, with no Doctor, in a Dalek annual, given the shortness of the story I was quite surprised as to how long it took the Skaro-natives to appear but once they did their presence lit up the story! The mystery of Karl having been fished up was intriguing and I loved how he had a Dalek picture concealed on himself. There was a big mystery, an unknown island and a top scientist gone mad, and now the Daleks were involved. Surely something like this was on the Christmas list of the Doctor? I'm sure had he been present during this Dalek plan that he wouldn't be impressed with what his arch enemies were upto this time. Their plan was devious and downright brilliant. It somehow seemed that it would be better suited to something the Rani would get upto in her spare time, but the Daleks attempting to turn the planet's top scientists crazy and against their own kind! Had they succeeded, Earth would be in pieces. The characters of Shaw and Seven were very good, I really liked what they were capable of. The design of the Daleks in the comic strips really was admirable and they just suit the format absolutely tremendously! The way the short comic came to and end was good with your basic explosion. The Daleks stood no chance really against the island of which they were on being blown out of the sea did they? Without the Doctor, the Daleks need to be defeated in a pretty calamitous way and I like how that was shown here. Overall, for a short Doctorless story I was impressed! You had mystery, a great Dalek plan and a good climax! I think this comic strip could form the basis of a fantastic extended story of performed Doctor Who.

Rating: 9/10

A Town Called Mercy

"Violence doesn't end violence. It extends it."

Writer: Toby Whithouse

Format: TV

Broadcast: 15th September 2012

Series: 7.03

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis 

Missing Mexico by 200 miles, the Doctor, Amy and Rory end up in Mercy, Nevada, where something isn't quite right. The locals are hostile to strangers and a border of stone and wood surrounds the town. As the Doctor finds out, a gunslinger is behind all this, and he's far from ordinary...

Verdict 

A Town Called Mercy was a very good episode! Full of emotion, this did have a great story and served excellently as a filler episode. With no series arc of such that involves Amy and Rory, this episode just pushed on the inevitable departure of the Ponds that's drawing ever closer. I have to start by mention Amy, she was unbelievably spectacular in this episode, and that was just without speaking! Karen Gillan really did look absolutely incredible. Her hair is just perfect and her dress was wonderful, not to mention her sensational looks! I've always thought she was a beautiful women but for whatever reason I'd never included her at the top of my list of the prettiest, most beautiful (or whatever else you want to call it) list of companions. Clara, Polly and Peri have always been my top 3 but Amy gatecrashes into the medal positions I think after a dazzling episode, in which she stole the show. Rory didn't really do much, as per usual, and it was upto his wife to pull of memorable moments. The Doctor was outraged beyond anything we've ever seen before. He'd seen the atrocities that Kahler-Jex had committed, transforming innocent people into war machine cyborgs. And he seemed proud of his war-hero status, which came at a cost of life in a cruel way. The Doctor was having none of it and Matt Smith just oozed amazement. When the TARDIS trio arrived in Mercy, the Doctor just had that presence of an important man, something extraordinary. And the way he reacted to Kahler-Jex was just outstanding. The Doctor actually contemplated killing Jex in cold blood with a gun. It's time he started putting the victims first, honouring them, and seeing the criminal come to justice. But then Amy stepped in, shocked at the actions of the Doctor. I adored how she told the Doctor that he shouldn't be like Jex, he should be better. A tremendous moment. The Gunslinger was a good character and I liked the fearful presence that he brought. I wasn't struck on the appearance I must admit but to bring out emotion in cyborg is impressive, even if they made him Marshall at the end which just seemed unnecessary in my eyes. Considering my utter distaste for The Gunfighters, the setting wasn't bad at all to be fair. It actually worked very well for the episode! Yes, I'm praising a Wild West setting, don't get used to it. The barrier stopping the Gunslinger from entering the town seemed very poor and unexplained but I did like the town's residents. Some fantastic characters were seen. The Doctor's mentions of the victims of the Master and the Daleks was a lovely moment, so many had died because of the mercy he'd shown and now the Doctor was thinking of change. As Amy pointed out, and as we all know, the Doctor needs companions. So if Amy knew this, why would she leave the Doctor to travel alone again? I know the series is slowly going towards the Ponds' departure, but do they really need to go home after every bloody episode? I think not! But nonetheless, a very good episode with plenty of emotional value. The climax was a good way to end things with Jex facing his crimes himself, and dealing with them honourably. Overall, excellent!

Rating: 8/10

Dinosaurs on a Spaceship

"Did the Silurians beg you to stop?"

Writer: Chris Chibnall

Format: TV

Broadcast: 8th September 2012

Series: 7.02

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis 

In 2367, the Indian Space Agency is on high alert as an unifentifiee spaceship hurtles towards the Earth. The Doctor assembles a team to investigate, including the legendary Queen Nefertiti, a big game hunter named Riddell, Amy, Rory... and Rory's father, Brian. Materialising on board a Silurian Ark with its only inhabitants dinosaurs, an injured rogue trader and two childish robots, the gang have a mystery to solve...

Verdict 

Dinosaurs on a Spaceship was a very good episode to continue the game changing seventh series of the revived Doctor Who. The title suggests the story is going to be pretty unique and indeed that was the case! I loved how the Doctor seemingly has a rambunctious side when he's travelling alone, as we've previously seen with River Song, and now here with Queen Nefertiti! Just what was he doing with the historical Egyptian? I'll leave it to speculation. I suppose my annoyance at Amy and Rory not constantly travelling with the Doctor is more critical of the series' direction than this episode itself, but I just really dislike that the companions can come and go with the Doctor as they please. It's a luxury! You shouldn't be able to choose, you just stay or go. After the Doctor had picked up Nefertiti and Riddell, I liked the humorous way in which Brian came aboard the TARDIS with Amy and Rory. Brian was a fantastic character and I liked how being Rory's Dad brought in some humour. The plot of the story was actually fantastic! Dinosaurs on a spaceship is something unique but it actually made so much sense when you threw in the fact that the ship was a Silurian Ark! Somehow, this story seemed to be a mini crossover of The Ark and Invasion of the Dinosaurs. I'd never have thought stories of so much difference could conjoin to become one! But that's the feel I got from it here. Amy was stunningly good in this episode and with her away from Rory she shone ever so brightly. The redhead was, figuratively, on fire! Sexy, smart and superb. A terrific companion performance, pushing buttons to discover just exactly what was going on. The Doctor had taught her well. I loved the Doctor's joy at having his own gang, brilliantly typical of the eleventh incarnation. Although, I don't feel Nefertiti and Riddell actually needed to feature. All Riddell brought was innuendo with the Egyptian Queen whilst the Queen herself just served as market value to Solomon. But surely the TARDIS would have been worth much more than her? Solomon was an excellent villain, utterly spiteful and horrid. He'd ejected every Silurian from their own ship so he could take the cargo of dinosaurs for himself to export. As the Doctor said, piracy and genocide. Something the Doctor would avenge. Matt Smith was again fantastic as the Doctor and showed all the traits of why he's my favourite Doctor superbly here. We saw the comical side with his joyous glee at having a gang and seeing dinosaurs in space. We had his genius side in how he saved the day and rescued Nefertiti. We also got the wonderful quirkiness mixed in with the absolute seriousness that Smith so effortlessly turns on. He'd left the missile signal in Solomon's ship, and uncharacteristically but justly, left the trader to die. Greed isn't a trait the Doctor is fond of, and we found out brilliantly why in this episode. The idea of a wave powered ship was good but I didn't buy a sky on the inside of a spaceship at all. The idea though of the advanced Silurians is extremely clever. And now I have to mention those stupid robots. I just couldn't understand why there were so ridiculously silly! It annoyed me in fact and really hurt the episode. Way too childish for an emotional story. It was obvious they didn't fit the bill, just make them aggressive and it would have been much better! But anyway, overall it was a very good episode and sneaks a very decent rating. 

Rating: 8/10

The Highlanders

"Put the foot into him and tramp his English bones into the deck!"

Writers: Elwyn Jones & Gerry Davis

Format: TV

Broadcast: 17th December 1966 - 7th January 1967

Season: 4.04

Featuring: Second Doctor, Polly, Ben

Synopsis 

The time travellers arrive in Scotland just after the Battle of Culloden. The Second Doctor gains the trust of a small bang of fleeing Jacobites by offering to tend their wounded laird, Colin McLaren. While Polly and the laird's daughter, Kirsty, are away fetching water, he and the others are all captured by Redcoat troops commanded by Lieutenant Ffinch.   

Verdict

The Highlanders was a fantastic serial, and the first where there was no doubt that Patrick Troughton was the Doctor. After The Power of the Daleks introduced us to the new man with the keys to the TARDIS, this adventure allowed him freedom and expression of the new. And along with Polly, who's just shone ever since arriving in The War Machines, the Doctor's antics were a big highlight of this serial. The numerous disguises the Doctor dawned in this story were very comical! The main German persona was very good but I'm not sure, this early into his reign as the Doctor, that Patrick Troughton should have been blending in and covering himself up. Despite this, I thought he was tremendous! It shows how much of a change has occurred as I just couldn't imagine the First Doctor dressing up and acting as an old lady. The writers can now give the Doctor more freedom and they've been quick to use the new abilities here. The 18th century Scotland setting was one I really adored with my love of history. Scotland wasn't a great place to be in the 1700s with the fighting against the English so a Doctor Who story taking place here is definitely something that needed to be done and I'm glad it was pounced upon early. But with the Doctor and the setting being highlights, yet again it was Polly who was the star. She looked absolutely sublime! Her hair and attire was just gorgeous and as I've mentioned even her voice is lovely! And her actions in blackmailing Ffinch was one of the greatest companion performances I've ever watched. She was so vicious, devious and conniving. And I absolutely loved it. Polly was flirtatious, passionate and just damn right sexy and I think she's slowly becoming my all time favourite companion. Her relationship with Kirsty in this story was brilliant and its development was nice to see after they originally didn't see eye to eye. The guest  cast were incredibly strong in this story with the likes of Perkins, Kirsty as I've mentioned and Trask. The reference to The Smugglers was nicely placed and I liked how Solicitor Grey proved to be a great historical figure enemy. The scenes on the ship with the English literally trying to sell off the Scottish as slaves were fantastic and this is where Ben fitted in tremendously. The cockney sailor was on the side of the Scottish, so there were obvious complications there and Ben was thrown straight in at the deep! As I say that, that brings me to the cliffhangers which were all excellent, particularly episode three where Ben literally was thrown in at the deep as he was chucked off the ship. For me it was a historic cliffhanger and was one of my all time favourite episode finishes! The overall plot of the serial was excellent and despite the TARDIS trio all being back together early in episode 4, they were going to stay and aid the Scottish on the ship which I thought was lovely! The way they liberated the ship was very clever and it was nice how Jamie had become fond of his savers. I liked Polly's eagerness to have him join onboard the TARDIS instead of leaving him on his own. And the Doctor's agreement, with a joking condition of learning the bagpipes, was wonderful. A new Doctor, and now a terrific trio has become a fantastic four. I look forward to future adventures, reverting back to the very first season with four TARDIS members! 

Rating: 9/10

The Invasion of E-Space

"Then he took out his gun and he shot Adric." 

Writer: Andrew Smith

Format: Audio

Released: 31st October 2010

Series: Companion Chronicles 5.04

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II, Adric

Synopsis

Trapped within E-Space, the Doctor, Romana and Adric are searching for a Charged Vacuum Emboitment - the gateway back to our universe. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack. 

Then, by pure chance, a brand new CVE rips into being. Its makers are the Farrian, a warlike race who have the technology to break into E-Space. They have come to invade and plunder this new territory, and the riches of the planet Ballustra are their first target. 

Verdict 

The Invasion of E-Space was a very good Companion Chronicle audio story and I really liked how we got an extra performed story set during the infamous E-Space Trilogy. Lalla Ward is a wonderful actress and her Romana II is right up in contention for my all time favourite companion. And she narrated this story very well. I really liked the story, despite the lack of drama an invasion of a whole world (or universe, take your pick) should have. But the idea was there and that was more than enough to make this a very enjoyable listen. With the Companion Chronicles being focused on the companion, as you can guess, I liked how the Fourth Doctor's absence was accounted for when the TARDIS was sort of crashed into. Romana and Adric had come off bumped and bruised but the Doctor had taken the worst hit and needed the Zero Room to restore him to full health. Adric, my least favourite companion of all time, wasn't depicted too bad here. His arrival on the TARDIS in Full Circle, which was nicely referenced here, wasn't bad at all but immediately his character was easily unlikable. Speaking of stories, Warriors' Gate was nicely mentioned by Romana herself prior to telling us of this untold adventure. I liked how she'd been of massive help after staying behind in E-Space and it's nice to know her decision was the correct one. Although, she mentioned liberating many worlds from the evil we saw in the Trilogy, and I question, can't we have a small spinoff depicting these adventures? The more of Lalla Ward the better! The audacity of setting a Chronicle inside the E-Space Trilogy was brilliant and as it's always been described that the TARDIS trio were trapped in the alternate universe for months, which three TV stories doesn't seem long enough for, more adventures in the universe I welcome! The fact that an invasion was occuring from N-Space was absolutely brilliant and I loved how the Farrian could actually manufacture CVEs. The TARDIS had its way out. And I was massively intrigued to discover that the Doctor, during the infamous Trilogy, had actually gotten back to N-Space in the TARDIS with Marni. But of course he went back for his Time Lord compatriot. Marino herself, the other casted character in the story, was fantastic. A really lovely women and her anger at what she thought were murders was terrific. I loved how once the CVE that caused devastation to a planet had come into existence, there was the TARDIS right in position to be blamed. The Doctor always gets that spot on. The cliffhanger of the story was terrible to be honest, basically a teleportation. There wasn't danger or even something major revealed! It hurt the story midway sadly. Thankfully though, part two was tremendous and the scenes panned out really well! The climax was excellent and I really liked how the Farrians were destroyed. Great and logical methods. The way the TARDIS was prevented from leaving E-Space was clever and also simple and keeps the TV Trilogy more than intact. But now, thanks to this Chronicle, it's more than just a TV Trilogy now! I just wish that the invasion had a lot more power, intensity and suspense that you'd expect from such an occurrence. Nonetheless, a very enjoyable listen! 

Rating: 8/10

Asylum of the Daleks

"I thought you'd run out of ways to make me sick... but hello again. You think hatred is beautiful?"

Writer: Steven Moffat

Format: TV

Broadcast: 1st September 2012

Series: 7.01

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis 

The Eleventh Doctor, with his former companions, Amy Pond and Rory Williams, are used as a secret weapon by  the Daleks to lower the defences of the Dalek Asylum and allowing the orbital attack on the Dalek inmates, who are at risk of breaching the defences. The Doctor can't save the day, or his companions' marriage, as easily as he can fix his bow tie, can he?

Verdict

Asylum of the Daleks is possibly the finest series opener in Doctor Who history. After the Doctor tricked the universe into thinking he was dead in The Wedding of the River Song, his 'death' was short lived as the Daleks lured their "predator" out of hiding. The way they did so was fantastic! The Prequel was a great little minisode leading into the start of this episode with the Doctor on Skaro. And he was disgusted with it, war torn and damaged. I liked how from above the city seen was reminiscent of that first seen in The Daleks. Continuity is always wonderful! After the events of Pond Life, the divorce angle between Amy and Rory was continued and I'm very surprised that they went in that direction. After Rory waited outside a box for 2,000 years and after the hell on Demon's Run, I figured they were the unbreakable couple. But by this point in the run of Amy and Rory as companions, I'm getting a little tired of the pair and I'm glad change isn't far away. I much preferred Amy as sole companion. Speaking of companions, kind of, Oswin was the surprise highlight of this tremendous episode. On broadcast, the appearance of Jenna Coleman was an incredible surprise and I'm not sure how they managed to keep it quiet. She was just incredibly good in this! Her flirting with the Doctor and Rory was excellent and I adored how she'd named them the "chin and the nose"! The idea of a Dalek Parliament was incredible and I loved how they just had their Parliament in its own spaceship! Bringing back the gold version of the Daleks was definitely a right move, the Paradigm Daleks just didn't look good. Although, I do wish Moffat had brought a new design to the Daleks but reverting to the previous size. Seeing many previous Dalek designs in the Asylum was absolutely fantastic and I loved how the Special Weapons Dalek seemed to stand out the most as it's probably my favourite Dalek design. To me that Dalek defines the brilliance of Remembrance of the Daleks. The references to Kembel, Exillon and Spiradon were wonderful to hear along with all the other Dalek story references! The Doctor was incredible in this episode, as per usual with the eleventh incarnation, and the gravitas that Matt Smith brings to the role is magnificent. The moment he realised the Daleks were sending him and his companions down to the Asylum and then that soon followed with the utter sickness he had towards the Daleks as he learned they had a concept of beauty. Oswin's hacking throughout the episode to aid the Doctor to rescue her was tremendous and the fact that she hacked into the Pathweb and wiped out all information the Daleks had on the Doctor was just outstanding! It causes a problem for future Dalek stories, but visiting in a different point in Dalek history can easily bypass the fact that the Daleks have forgotten the Doctor! Incredibly genius! That's the way to defeat your greatest enemies. I thought it was so sad when the Doctor finally got to Oswin, only to find that she had been fully converted into a Dalek. It was devastating as you couldn't not adore Oswin! When the Doctor triggered her memory and she'd realised the truth, she was devastated but sent the Doctor on his way, victorious. And whilst this was happening Amy and Rory had emotionally reconciled in wonderful fashion. Their love was stronger than ever! I just don't like the idea of companions going home. You either stay with the Doctor or you don't. There shouldn't be an in between! But overall, an incredible series opener! Utterly brilliant. 

Rating: 10/10

The Dead Line

"This must be the longest I've ever looked at you and not seen you smile."

Writer: Phil Ford

Format: Audio

Broadcast: 3rd July 2009

Series: BBC Radio #4

Featuring: Captain Jack, Gwen, Ianto, Rhys

Synopsis 

When a hospital is inundated with patients that have fallen into coma-like trances, Torchwood move in to investigate. They find that the trances were triggered by phone calls, all of which were made from a number that hadn't been active for over 30 years. Determined to find out who'd been calling the unfortunate victims, Jack rings the mysterious number - two, zero, five, nine - nothing. It's a dead line. Until it calls Jack back, he answers - and falls into a deep trance. The team race against time to find the source of the 'infection' and save the patients.

Verdict 

The Dead Line was an excellent audio adventure of Torchwood, and the superb spinoff is proving it can be just as good on audio as it is on television. And once I explore the novels I'm sure they'll be more than worthy also! The plot of this story was brilliant and I loved the idea of a menace in the phone line. As you may know, something similar has been done by Big Finish but the way the threat was dealt with here was much different. This story actually gave me the knowledge that there used to be four digit phone numbers. I naturally just figured it had always been six! The usual pre-credit lead in was well worthy of an end of season cliffhanger here! Jack, the immortal man, was dying. When I heard Ianto giving Stella that message I was unbelievably shocked! How could Jack die? Last of the Time Lords implied to us that Jack would go on to become the Face of Boe, so how could he be dying now? All the possibilities were running through my head on the credits hadn't even hit! I do like a story that gets you thinking. I was surprised in the direction this story went with having the lead character of Captain Jack absent for the majority of it. But this allowed Rhys to step up to the plate and he did so terrifically alongside Gwen who was given freedom to shine, and she did in spectacular fashion. Gwen Cooper is just such a great character! A Welsh, beautiful brunette, what more can I ask for? And that beauty somehow shines through in audio. The character of Stella was really good and I was intrigued about the relationship stint she shared with Jack back in the '70s. She'd gotten caught up with Torchwood and when Jack awoke it was nice to see that they'd clearly ended things on good terms. Ianto's speech to Jack whilst he was in the trance was absolutely beautiful and it showed how much Jack meant Ianto! The pair had grown so much since Cyberwomen and to Jack, Ianto was so much more than a blip in time. Gwen and Rhys teaming up to track down the mysterious phone call was fantastic and they worked very well together! The reference to Something Borrowed was comical and I liked how Rhys, in pretty much a world of the unknown, was pretty demanding and adamant. It seemed like he was trying to prove to his wife that he could work with her in Torchwood. He could take on the aliens and be victorious! His help was actually pivotal which was really good. Ianto treating the trance causing menace in the telephone as a virus was clever as it paved way for a very logical solution, something we don't always get in the Whoniverse. The electromagnetic wave was created in great style and Ianto's execution in wiping out the virus was tremendous. I admire Gwen's determination to save the human race even if it meant Jack being stuck in a trance for eternity. But he'd come around. All the victims had - Ianto had succeeded. It's great to see that in Torchwood, despite Captain Jack being the one who's a former companion of the Doctor having travelled in the TARDIS, his recruits are more than capable of saving the day. And that was wonderful to see here. 

Rating: 9/10

Seven to One

"Perhaps I can learn from my mistakes of the future."

Writer: Simon Miller

Format: Audio

Released: 31st May 2011

Series: Short Trips 3.01

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace, Sixth Doctor, Peri, Fifth Doctor, Nyssa, Fourth Doctor, Romana II, Third Doctor, Jo, Second Doctor, Jamie, First Doctor, Susan

Synopsis

Seven Doctors... one tricky situation. Will the First Doctor be able to save his future incarnations from a deadly game?

Verdict 

Seven to One was an absolutely brilliant Short Trip audio story, eclipsing Rise and Fall as my all time favourite in this great little range. I loved the idea and audacity of doing a multi-Doctor story in this format, and yet it absolutely worked. It was definitely the right decision, with no main actors reprising their roles, to not have the Doctors meet up. I loved how the story progressed in reverse order for the Doctors, as the story title suggests, going from the Seventh Doctor to the First. The way the Seventh Doctor and Ace bypassed the android guard to the door was very clever but I thought the way the Sixth Doctor and Peri got past was much better and the best of the story! As I continue through the audios more and more, my pity towards Tegan grows as the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa have had, and I'm sure will have, numerous adventures set between Time-Flight and Arc of Infinity. The pairing's role was pretty short here, yet still effective. The Fourth Doctor and Romana II, an astounding pairing, were the first to discover that future incarnations of the Doctor himself had been defeated by the game of the Entity, which was terrific as the enemy of sorts. They never agree yet can't do anything without the agreement of one another. And that provided the setting of Grey Space. Brilliant. The Third Doctor and Jo bypassing the android to the door was great and I thought the Second Doctor and Jamie doing so as well was done excellently. And as all six incarnations after the First Doctor had failed the game, plunging to what seemed like their death, mysteriously without their companions, it was up to the First Doctor himself to save his future incarnations. The youngest, but probably the wisest Doctor of them all soon realised that Susan wasn't actually his granddaughter. It was someone impersonating her to lure him into the door and to have his life records expunged. I absolutely loved how this story depicted that the First Doctor is the wisest and cleverest of all the (Classic at least) Doctors. Was it the family bond between the Doctor and Susan that caused the realisation for the first incarnation? Whatever it was, it was just wonderful! An absolutely brilliant audio where the First Doctor saves his future selves! 

Rating: 10/10

Solitaire

"If that's all you care about then you're not enjoying the game and if you're not enjoying the game then what's the point of it?"

Writer: John Dorney 

Format: Audio

Released: June 2010

Series: Companion Chronicles 4.12

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Charley

Synopsis 

"What if there were a game you didn't know you were playing? Where you didn't know the aim and you hadn't seen the rules?"

Charlotte Pollard arrives in a toyshop, but she doesn't know where she is - or even who she is. The mysterious owner wants to play games. He's the Celestial Toymaker, and he has already defeated the Doctor, whose essence is hidden inside a ventriloquist's doll. 

The Doctor is gone. The TARDIS is lost. But the game is only just beginning...

Verdict  

Solitaire is an absolute gem of an audio story! By far the best audio I have listened to in the Companion Chronicles range, a real pleasure and ease to listen to. A fine hour of Doctor Who drama. As you may know from my previous posts, I'm a massive fan of Charley and I think she's an absolutely brilliant companion and suits the Eighth Doctor perfectly. But here, in her sole Companion Chronicle, she showed that she's just as wonderful on her own and I can clearly see already, at an early stage in my adventures with Charley, that she's going to be extremely high up on my list of favourite companions. And this was only my sixth story featuring her! The plot of this audio story was bloody superb. The Celestial Toymaker was back once again but this time, as it was beautifully revealed, he was the one playing the games. He's revealed to Charley upon her arrival to his domain that the aim of the game was finding the aim of the game. A confusing mouthful but it actually made perfect sense by the climax. Throughout, the Toymaker gave her subtle hints hidden in plain sight. The ones you'd think are far too obvious to be the answer but in actual fact they are. When you're dealing with the Toymaker, you need to think outside of the box but taking everything literally at the same time. This was easily my favourite story featuring the Celestial Toymaker and David Baile gave character's finest performance yet. I adored how the story began with the Eighth Doctor as a doll, already defeated by his long time adversary. So the scene was excellently set from the start with Charley, suffering from amnesia, taking on the Toymaker without knowing who the Doctor, or even herself, was. But wow! Didn't she give it an amazing go, defeating the Toymaker using his own clues. He'd been tricked by his very own game. Charley was the solution. Not any of the doors she'd cleverly 'exited' or the mysterious cash register and walls that led to the void. She didn't even need the answer. As the Toymaker stated, the one playing the game was the one who didn't know they were playing. There were some terrific riddles present here and once Charley had solved the lot, the Toymaker was shocked, defeated. The thing he called a disintegrator chamber, which caused for a historic audio cliffhanger, was in fact hidden from him by perception. It was a "blue cupboard". The TARDIS. The Doctor, despite being defeated, still laid down the groundwork for Charley to defeat the immortal being. I think it's wonderful how even as a defeated doll, the Doctor can still be of great help! The references to Nimon and The Celestial Toymaker were delicately placed and added to the tremendous relationship between Charley and the Toymaker. Pardon the pun, but he was toying with her superbly and it was lovely to see how pissed off Charley was getting at him! The moment she shouted at him "oh shut up!" at him was just awesome! I think I fell in love with the character all over again! Absolutely wonderful. The climax and realisation that Charley wasn't playing the game was just beautiful. The Toymaker was playing, and Charley had won. She entered the TARDIS as the toyshop shrunk to an oblivion with the Toymaker inside, refusing to go to safety like a sulking child. The Doctor was returned from a doll and again the Toymaker was defeated. It's clear the Doctor has his number...

Rating: 10/10

The Lodger

"Six billion people. Watching you two at work I'm starting to wonder where they came from."

Writer: Gareth Roberts

Format: TV

Broadcast: 12th June 2010

Series: 5.11

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy

Synopsis

A mysterious force block the TARDIS - with Amy inside it - from landing, keeping it stuck in a materialisation loop. It's up to the Eleventh Doctor to work out what that force is, lest Amy be lost forever along with his home. As he investigates, he learns of a house on Aickman Road, with a staircase which people walk up but never come back down. To solve this mystery, the Doctor must pass himself off as a normal human and share a flat with Craig Owens. 

Verdict 

The Lodger is an excellent episode of Doctor Who and expertly blends humour and horror. The Doctor is absolutely brilliant in this and the brilliance of Matt Smith along with his humour, persona and quirkiness makes the relationship between him and Craig, played by the terrific James Corden, a huge highlight. Despite appearing in minimal fashion, this episode reignited my love for Amy Pond as companion! In the previous episodes before this with Rory, and the rest of Amy's episodes, she was great but I think on her own without her husband she shines. I only wish we had more episodes with Amy as sole companion, not that I don't like Rory by any means. The mystery of the flat above Craig's was excellent and very intriguing. Different shapes and forms asking people up the stairs provided tremendous suspense. The idea of a materialisation loop preventing the TARDIS from landing was very good and even better in the fact that it separated the Doctor from Amy providing marvellous humour. The communication between the pair was lovely and the relationship between them had more than blossomed by this point in the series. Talking of relationships, the love story between Craig and Sophie was absolutely lovely! I loved how it was the solution to the story but the events leading up to the 'I love you' were fantastic! It was so blatantly obvious that the pair loved each other that the Doctor could see it! He teased and dropped hints terrifically. I think many people would be envious of Craig in this episode. He opens the door and then there's the Doctor with £3000 in a paper bag. That's more than enough rent! The Doctor was so barmy in this story and that was just tremendous. I bloody love the Eleventh Doctor and his youth and persona are just outstanding. Hell, he's even awesome at football! To be honest, I didn't like the football scenes too much despite my absolute love for the beautiful game. The cricket scenes in Black Orchid were much more accounted for than the football ones here. You could have got the effect that the Doctor was better and showing up Craig in better and quicker fashion. Although, hearing a 'Doctor' chant on a football pitch was something unique! The Time Ship that the Doctor and Craig burst into was of the upmost intrigue. Somebody was trying to build a TARDIS, and by the looks had succeeded! The deaths of the victims increasing the danger to the TARDIS was clever and the localised time loop not affecting the Doctor was brilliant. I loved how the Doctor built a tracking device from non-technological things and man did it look impressive. I thought the scene where the Doctor intentionally banged heads with Craig to give him the data transfer was hilarious and superb. James Corden put forward the shock in terrific fashion and I loved how he'd seen all the faces of the Doctor, and knew of Amy Pond and the TARDIS as if it was natural now. I adored the brief hints at the appearance of the Silents and it wouldn't be revealed what this episode meant, in some regards, until The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon. The linking between the two stories is absolutely excellent and just shows how good the writers are on this brilliant series! A terrific climax with a love story coming full circle. And then there's the continuation of the season arc with the crack appearing once more and Amy finding her own engagement ring in the Doctor's jacket. The mysteries would soon be revealed in the next story, and what a finale it is. But The Lodger served as a superb penultimate episode of the series. 

Rating: 9/10

The Power of the Daleks

"Polly... Ben... Come in and meet the Daleks." 

Writer: David Whittaker

Format: TV

Broadcast: 5th November - 10th December 1966

Season: 4.03

Featuring: Second Doctor, Polly, Ben

Synopsis 

Following the Doctor's renewal into a new, younger body, the TARDIS lands at an Earth colony on the planet Vulcan in the far future. Mistaken for an official Earth Examiner, the Doctor discovers that a scientist called Lesterton is attempting to deactivate two inanimate, subservient Daleks found in a crashed space rocket. The colonists refuse to heed the Doctor's dire warnings that the Daleks are dangerous. Once reactivated, the Daleks secretly begun to reproduce themselves in a bid to seize control of the colony. 

Verdict 

Welcome aboard Patrick Troughton! The Power of the Daleks is an absolutely brilliant story to debut the Second Doctor. I really liked how most of the first part was dealing with the aftermath of The Tenth Planet and the Doctors "renewal". Of course, the term 'regeneration' wasn't brought in until Jon Pertwee departed but that's what we were dealing with at the start of this serial. The Doctor's first regeneration was very intriguing. Things were extremely different now and despite the Second Doctor acting extremely different and out of character from what the viewer would have been used to, thanks to Polly it always felt like this man was still the Doctor. As she said, his body was wearing thin so he just got himself a new one. Ben's disbelief was great as I figured the viewer would have sided with him over Polly. Having a Dalek story to introduce the new Doctor was perfect in my opinion. Stick to things the viewer finds familiar and there hasn't been a more recognisable enemy in Doctor Who than the Daleks up to this point. If this man claiming to be the Doctor defeats the Daleks, would it be that hard to believe the Doctor could get himself a new body? If anyone could do it, it was the Doctor of course. I adored the fact that the First Doctor's clothes were massively too big for the new Doctor. The traits by Troughton selling the regeneration were top notch. The Crusade reference was wonderfully put in and I adored how the Second Doctor was talking of his previous incarnation in the third person. The mystery was always there, was Hartnell going to triumphantly return? As the story unfolded it was clear that Polly was right in believing the new man was still the same Doctor. The Daleks were back up to no good and after the mass defeat and destruction when we last saw them in The Daleks' Master Plan, things had changed here. The "I am your servant" line was genius and with it coming from a Dalek it was absolutely frightening! I was extremely intrigued by what the Daleks were up to in this serial. They'd willingly served humans, given up their firing exterminator and pretty much been embarrassed. But as each cliffhanger showed, their plan was advancing all the time. Three Daleks soon became more than a dozen and the reproduction scenes were like nothing ever seen in a Dalek story! They were rebuilding an army to take over Vulcan. The setting proved to be fantastic and I liked how Whittaker was somewhat returning the Daleks to their roots of The Daleks with the storage of static electricity. You shouldn't forget the origins of an enemy and it's great to see that it's not happening  in 1960s' Doctor Who. The Doctor's playing of the recorder throughout was terrific and I liked the humour element it added as well as the continued regeneration effect. Polly was wonderful yet again and despite a smaller role I just loved her. Since her introduction in The War Machines, she's starred in every story despite the massive change of the lead actor, and I hope she continues to do so. Ben has been good also but naturally I prefer the female companions and when they're as brilliant and beautiful as Polly it's hard to notice the other companion! That being said, the relationship between the companion pair here was lovely to see. They really did care for each other and that was lovely to see. The way the Doctor impersonated the Examiner was clever as it kept us away from the question of whether he was actually impersonating the Doctor also. But after the Dalek recognised a familiar foe, by episode three or four it was undoubtedly known that this man was the Doctor, simply renewed. The backdrop to the guest cast was tremendous and you had many excellent characters! Lesterton and Bragen stood out as being the best for me. Janley's role in the attempted revolution of the rebels was tremendous and I also thought Quinn and Hensell were marvellous also! The way the Doctor defeated the Daleks was very, very good in overloading the static electricity they were storing as power, causing them to decease. I absolutely loved the modesty of the Doctor when he awoke after destroying the Daleks once more. Utterly brilliant! Overall, a superb debut for the Second Doctor! 

Rating: 10/10

The Tenth Planet

"Aeons ago our planets were twins then we drifted away from you on a journey to the edge of space. Now we have returned..."

Writers: Kit Pedler & Gerry Davis

Format: TV

Broadcast: 8th - 29th October 1966

Season: 4.02

Featuring: First Doctor, Polly, Ben

Synopsis 

The TARDIS lands at the South Pole in 1986. The arrival coincides with the appearance of Earth's forgotten twin planet Mondas along with visitors from that world - the emotionless Cybermen. It's up to the Doctor and his friends to stop the creatures before they convert Earth's population into similar cyber creations - but the encounter will have a devastating effect on the Doctor...

Verdict 

The Tenth Planet is an utterly brilliant Doctor Who story and in my opinion it is the most important serial in the show's fifty year history. Yes, we have the debut of the ever recurring Cybermen but we witness the first ever regeneration. Now, watching the DVD animation of the sequence and I was totally grasped and shocked by the change even when I knew it was coming. To the viewer at the time, I can't imagine how much of a shock it was. The broadcast audience may have just figured it was another brilliant cliffhanger with somebody swapping locations with the Doctor. But they'd soon find out that their hero had a new face. For the 2014 Doctor Who fan regeneration isn't too much of a deal really. We now associate 13 actors with the role of the Doctor but back in 1966 only William Hartnell was the man with the TARDIS key. And what an amazing job he did as the Doctor. He laid down the framework for the character that's allowed the show to progress for what will be 34 seasons and 50 years. The development of the character over Hartnell's three-and-a-bit seasons has been a pleasure to watch. What a ride. The stubborn and angry old man we saw in An Unearthly Child soon vanished as his relationship blossomed with Ian and Barbara. And as companions came and went, it was only inevitable that the Doctor would change as well. This serial provides a masterful swan-song for the First Doctor with the debut of the evil and emotionless Cybermen. It's difficult to comprehend what life would be like with no emotions. Not feeling love, pride or happiness, what would be the point? Survival was the Cybermen's answer. The plot was absolutely outstanding with the return of Earth's ancient twin planet Mondas, and even better still that it was inhabited! The idea of the Cybermen is just brilliant! They used to be human but removed all 'weaknesses' to preserve and prolong their life span. The design of these Cybermen ranks amongst my favourites. As we know, the Cyberman design has changed dramatically over the last 50 years and I think original designs are hard to beat. But there's something about the design from The Invasion that gives those Cybermen my award of best design. The South Pole station setting worked fantastically and the supporting cast were extremely strong. General Cutler and Barclay the major standouts. The immediate disliking of one another between the Doctor and Barclay was brilliant from the get go. The new companions of Polly and Ben have more than settled in on the TARDIS now and are turning out to be rather wonderful. Well, Polly on her own I think is just lovely. She's staggeringly beautiful, has luscious blonde hair and even her voice is lovely! She really looks the perfect companion and with a few more stories she may just become my favourite. Similarly to The War Machines, I liked how this story's events made the news and the Doctor was getting involved in everyday life which is how it should be, providing a good cover up of the truth of course. The problems with Zeus IV and Zeus V were terrific parts of the story and the shock when the first craft blew up was portrayed expertly. The idea of Mondas returning to its twin planet to drain its entire energy was a horrific plan by the Cybermen, which from the viewer's perspective made it absolutely brilliant. And I adored the solution that the Doctor came up. Just simply wait. The Doctor knew that Mondas would absorb too much energy and cause its own destruction. The climatic scenes of Mondas' final moments were excellent and were probably enhanced by the DVD animation. Speaking of which, I must thanks those who reconstructed this missing serial into full animation and allowed a historic tale to be able to be viewed in full. It deserves it. Hartnell deserves it. Despite a brilliant plot, the debut of the Cybermen and Polly being just wonderful, The Tenth Planet is the First Doctor's story. It's his farewell. It was evident in The Smugglers that the Doctor wasn't quite feeling himself and it seemed that age was catching up. Was this a result of the Time Destructor in The Daleks' Master Plan? The Trilogic Game encounter in The Celestial Toymaker? Or was everything just catching up with the old retched First Doctor. His final moments were absolutely outstanding. "It's far from over." An iconic line that I adored hearing for the first time. In fact, it's only the beginning. A new beginning. And as Polly turned the collapsed Doctor onto his back, the regeneration occurred. Change is here, but the moment has been prepared for. 

Rating: 10/10