Doomsday

"This is the story of how I died."

Writer: Russell T Davies

Format: TV

Broadcast: 8th July 2006

Series: 2.13

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Rose

Synopsis 

A secret order of Daleks emerge and the Cybermen from Pete's World make their way to Torchwood Tower. As the two deadly forces fight over Earth, the Tenth Doctor realises that in order to stop the threat, sacrifices will be made...

Verdict 

Doomsday was an incredible episode to conclude the story already started in Army of Ghosts. It was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster as well as being well and truly action packed! We finally had the wishes of many fans come true as after years upon years of asking, the Daleks and the Cybermen finally did war. The question of who was superior was pretty definitive with the Cybermen barely registering a scratch on their Dalek counterparts and it certainly seems that the Cybermen were officially demoted to always being just behind the Daleks when it comes to the question of who the Doctor's greatest enemy is. I guess the Time War kind of answers that for us and speaking of which, I loved how Rose asserted herself immediately after the Daleks descended from the void ship and mentioned how she knew all about them and their war with the Time Lords. When she thought she might be saying her final words, I loved how she referenced Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways in explaining her pride and humour in how she destroyed the Dalek Emperor. The mystery behind the Genesis Ark was excellent and I liked how even the Doctor didn't know what it was. He was just as interested in the Time Lord science behind it. The moment the Cult of Skaro learned of the Doctor's presence was absolutely outstanding and I think for the first time we saw a Dalek flinch. Five million Cybermen didn't worry them but their oldest enemy did. I liked how the Doctor was quite impressed with the existence of the Cult of Skaro but he did mock them for running away from the Time War. The Cult of Skaro themselves were interesting and I did like how they all had names and were challenged to think like the enemy in an effort to extend Dalek existence and eradicate all other life. I liked how we saw the aftermath of the events of Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel on Pete's World with Harriet Jones now even the President. Seeing Pete and Jake again was great and I liked how the former's being there provided a reference to Father's Day on more than one occasion. The reunion between Pete and Jackie was very emotional and Rose's reaction to it was wonderful to see. The battle between the Daleks and the Cybermen was fantastic and full of action which was great but I thought the initial meeting between them was equally as good. It seemed that the Cybermen were perhaps more intellectual, but the Daleks were simply more ruthless and better equipped. The reveal of the purpose behind the Doctor's 3D glasses was good and it looked like he'd suspected things from the very start in regards to the Void. The flashback of Dalek was excellent and I liked how it served a pretty big purpose for explaining the Genesis Ark. Mickey inadvertently activated in the crossfire between Daleks and Cybermen but that only ended up helping the Doctor's cause of fixing things and closing the breach between worlds. The Doctor used all the tools given to him by Torchwood and started the process of reversing the access point to the Void so it would suck all the "void stuff" back in. That meant Daleks and Cybermen alike but that would also mean the Doctor and Rose. He wanted her to go to Pete's World so she didn't have to lose her mother forever but Rose was having none of it. She came back but that would prove almost fatal. The Daleks and Cybermen were being pulled back in but with the Cult of Skaro using an emergency temporal shift to escape, Rose was almost dragged into the Void but Pete returned and saved her in the nick of time. She was stuck on the other side of the breach and that meant she couldn't do anything about not seeing the Doctor. There was the chance of an emotional farewell in which Rose declared her love for the Doctor and he almost did the same in return but time ran out and I liked that ambiguity behind the ending. The arrival of Donna on the TARDIS to lead into The Runaway Bride just added to what was an eventful episode! It was full of action, emotion and simply brilliance. It's one of the very best that's for sure. Overall, superb!

Rating: 10/10