The Stolen Earth

So much for the hiatus. I just CAN'T stay away. Well a little break from the old routine is always welcome (and I'm rather busy this particular weekend) besides which, I just felt compelled to write about last night's DW episode! Yep we've finally reached the season finale. Came round quickly hasn't it? It had a lot riding on it (which I've kind of mentioned before) but here are my thoughts...

THE GOOD BITS

It had a very "epic" feel to it as the previous season finales have done.

Rose, you have been refused access to Doctor Who facebook on the grounds of your weird and lispy accent...

The bringing together of all the past companions/characters on the whole worked very well, contrary to fears that it wouldn't, and everyone got a decent amount of screentime.

Nooooo!! Please, please, PLEASE don't show anyone that embarrassing title sequence from "K9 and Company" with me in legwarmers...I'm BEGGING you...

And I liked their various reactions to the invasion of the Daleks e.g. Sarah Jane's terror-struck expression and tears. Well, her and those pesky pepperpots go back a long way, so it was understandable...

And then there were three...until Torchwood Season Three that is...

Having the Torchwood gang in there was a definite coup and I hope they get to properly hook up with the other DW characters later on. The dynamics could be very interesting. Gwen and Donna having a fishwife scrap, anyone?

Well at least I've been in a good few DW episodes...well, it's been fun, boys...Back to the RSC for me, then...Any openings for a corpse with a posh accent?

Great to see Penelope Wilton back as Harriet Jones in a touching cameo and appropriate that she was trying to "make" amends by getting all the major characters to team up and contact the Dr. The "Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister" bit though slightly overplayed was funny stuff. But is this the true end for Harriet? And was she really a "goodie" or is something more sinister going on?

He's BACK and he's menacing! And doesn't have much body left under his tunic! Yuk!!

The resurrection of Davros!! Great performance from Julian Bleach which (so far) is more reminiscent of Michael Wisher than Terry Malloy (I won't even mention David Gooderson). A nice build up of menace with Davros "shrouded in shadows" and he looked good (or should that be bad?) when unveiled. Hope he'll live up to his promise in Part Two.

No, I HAVEN'T fallen out of a bargain bucket of KFC! Exterminate!!

Dalek Caan - now looking rather worse for wear, the poor love, and coming out with all manner of weird comments. But very creepy in his weirdness all the same, a kind of warped Dalek Messiah (well the same could be said for Davros really, couldn't it?)

Black Dalek? Pah. Dalek Caan?? Double pah! Davros?? WHATEVER. I'm better than all of you, nah nah nah!

The Red Dalek was cool. I heard rumours that he was really a human in disguise, but we'll see. Hope he gets a good face-off with his opponents in Part Two.

Okay! Okay! I WILL run down the road in a pair of lurid pink legwarmers!! Just don't kill me...I have a contract for Sarah Jane Adventures series two, after all...

Liz Sladen as Sarah - as good as ever!! Plays the part with such conviction and believability. How will she escape getting exterminated in her car? (I have a strong suspicion that K9 will pop up in the back and zap 'em? Or, maybe Sarah will strip off and shake her bejuvlies at the metal monsters, thus causing them to go into paroxysms of ecstasy? "My vision is impaired, I cannot see...". Erm, yes. That was a TAD rude). Anyway I hope she gets a reunion with Davros - would be highly fitting after, erm, some 33 years?? Perhaps they can catch up with a cup of nescafe and some custard creams!

Sorry, Noble family members, just playing a quick game of Space Invaders...it's good practise you know...

Billie Piper as Rose. Loved her "back off or I'll shoot you with my enormous Terminator-style weapon" bit to the robbers in the shop scene. Very Sigourney Weaver/Linda Hamilton. For a former shop girl she's come a LONG way. And her reactions when she couldn't contact the Doc on the PC were touching. As for the reunion bit with the Doc - very nicely done, but nipped in the bud of course! (Though how the hell could Donna tell it was Rose from so far-off?)

Not again...

And finally...the shock regeneration of the Doctor!! Is he really going to regenerate?? Is this the end for David Tennant??? It can't be! There have already done reports on the filming of the forthcoming Xmas episode and from what I can remember, David T was involved... anyone know any more about this than me??

You mean...??! I've had physical relations with an actual rhino??

Nice to see the Judoon back, if only for a brief cameo.

THE NOT-SO GOOD BITS

What's Lady Bracknell doing in outer space?

Forgive me for sounding thick, but what was the POINT of the shadow proclamation scenes?

Rather a lot of Daleks...hope they've paid their congestion charge...

The return of the Daleks yet again, wasn't handled with any kind of fanfare or surprise, highlighting how over-used they have now become (in spite of my comments before about them looking good, with some new "aspects"). They are rapidly turning into formulaic monsters and this isn't a good thing. Time to lay them to rest once and for all after this story, methinks.

The explanation as to why a massive new army of Daleks and a Dalek fleet had sprung into existence, after the previous whittling down of their race to ONE i.e. Dalek Caan, was done in a slightly glib fashion - surely more exposition/a decent flashback, rather than a few hasty comments, would have added more credence to the whole thing?

The revelation (even though we all knew) that Davros was back would have been better saved until the very end of the episode I reckon - along with the regeneration bit it would have made a great "double whammy" cliffhanger!

Has he been eating too many pies? Or swallowed some hamsters?

Ianto's rather tubby face. Had the comedy doorman-cum-stalker-of-Jack been eating too many pies? Perhaps it was the grief of losing Tosh and Owen that caused him to stuff his face...

Any openings for a former drag queen in Doctor Who? Or even Torchwood?

The slightly silly celebrity cameos at the beginning e.g. Paul O'Grady. Now obligatory in every season finale but perhaps we could have done without it?

No, I am NOT married to Harriet Makepeace in real life! Now ZIP it, Dr Jones!!

Michael "Dempsey" Brandon's rather hammy performance as UNIT General whats-his-face. Personally I would have preferred to have seen Colonel Mace back again, he had a certain charm in spite of his blandness...Seems there isn't much continuity with the UNIT characters these days...oh for the return of Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart...

The planets sweet

The moving all the planets across the cosmos thing (hence the episode title). What the hell was going on with that? How did the Daleks find the technology? Okay, I'm being churlish as I'm sure we'll get an explanation for all this in the next episode.

And that, groovesters, is about it! On the whole I thought "The Stolen Earth" was fabulous, blockbusting, emotional and exciting fare. I hope you all enjoyed it too. Would love to know your thoughts on episode too, so get posting a comment NOW, or you will be....well, you know what.

Byeeeeeeeeee!!