The Shakespeare Code by: Gareth Roberts and directed by: Charles Palmer

 

“The Shakespeare Code” stars David Tennant as the Doctor and Freema Agyeman as Martha Jones with Dean Lennox Kelly as William Shakespeare and Christina Cole as Lilith.  It was written by: Gareth Roberts and directed by: Charles Palmer with Simon Winstone as Script Editor, Phil Collinson as Producer, and Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner as Executive Producers.  It was originally broadcast on Saturday 7 April 2007 on BBC One.

 

Gareth Roberts is an unapologetic transphobe, tweeting several transphobic statements over the years disparaging trans women specifically.  Once again this is not up for debate and once again this is a mark on any media written by Roberts that will be reviewed.

 

After the success of “The Unquiet Dead” and “Tooth and Claw” Russell T. Davies wished to continue the appearance of a historical figure in the third series of Doctor Who turning to novelist Gareth Roberts who had already contributed several Doctor Who novels through the 1990s and held an interest in the life of William Shakespeare, studying Shakespeare’s plays and two catalogues indicating a comedy called Love’s Labour’s Won as a potential lost work (which in actuality may be an alternate title for an already written play such as Love’s Labour’s Lost or Much Ado About Nothing).  Roberts initially used this for the title before amending it to “Theatre of Death” and Davies believed the idea would work well for Martha Jones’ first trip in the TARDIS, seeking permission to film at the Globe Theatre in London which was a reconstruction of the historic Globe.  Due to the popularity of The DaVinci Code which posited a secret history involving Leonardo DaVinci, Davies amended the title to “The Shakespeare Code” during production which was the second episode of the third series and the concluding episode of the second production block once again under the direction of Charles Palmer.  Roberts’ script also took delight in adding little sly references, overt and subtle, to the work of Shakespeare and actual history with fairly mixed success.

 

The plot of “The Shakespeare Code” is quite simple, a trio of witch like Carrionites, Lilith, Doomfinger, and Bloodtide, played by Christina Cole, Amanda Lawrence, and Linda Clarke respectively, use their advanced magic like science and the power of words to manipulate William Shakespeare into releasing their species, trapped by the Eternals from the classic series, using the odd 14 sided architecture of the Globe Theatre and the right words at the right time.  It’s a great idea for an episode and makes for a very pulpy watch as the Doctor takes Martha on the one trip he promised her into the past, get easily wrapped up in first the idea of just seeing the potential of a missing play of Shakespeare and then to investigate the death of the Master of the Revels, who drowns on dry land.  The idea is that the witchcraft is just an advanced branch of science and mathematics that use words instead of numbers, partially a reference to the thousands of words Shakespeare added to the English dictionary.  The episode is a fun time once you get past Roberts’ tendency to write an anachronistic setting, the opening sequence of the Doctor and Martha stepping out of the TARDIS to the streets of London and the rest of the episode being full of these contemporary references and customs with no attempt to couch things in historic language outside of the dialogue of plays which is in either real or faux iambic pentameter.  This is especially troubling as Roberts lampshades the fact that Martha Jones is a person of color and directly implies that history wasn’t actually all that oppressive, his general conservatism coming through with a recurring gag about global warming.  There’s also a recurring gag about the at the time to be released Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows which while Roberts shares Rowling’s abhorrent views, was clearly just meant to be references to the most popular book series in the world at the time that has aged poorly.

 

These are the major issues with the episode outside of the continuation of the relationship between the Doctor and Martha.  Mainly that the Doctor believes that this is a situation where Rose Tyler would somehow know the answers to what is going on in the first third of the episode, despite Martha proving herself more than capable and in the very next moment the Doctor actually acknowledges her.  Roberts also leans heavily into the idea that Martha has developed romantic feelings for the Doctor and it is painfully obvious that he does not see her that way, something that will contribute to the character arcs for this particular series, an issue from this point forward.  Tennant and Agyeman also just play every other scene incredibly well from their first scene, to Martha realizing the Doctor is feigning death to putt the Carrionites on the back foot, to even the Doctor triumphantly naming the Carrionites.  Roberts also includes one of the more lackluster instances of LGBT representation in this era of Doctor Who, Shakespeare, played by Dean Lennox Kelly, is obliquely referenced as being bisexual by flirting with the Doctor exactly one time and it being called out as academics punching the air in joy.  Kelly’s portrayal of the Bard is quite flirty with women so it’s genuinely a shame that the script does not allow him to flirt more than this single time.  The rest of the episode is a generally pulpy good time with the Carrionites being a great idea for villains, and put into practice quite well, with instances of sympathetic magic keeping the protagonists on the backfoot throughout the episode and a rather nice effects heavy climax using the power of words and theater tot defeat the ancient evil.

 

Overall, “The Shakespeare Code” is perhaps most marred by the author of the episode dragging everyone else down with his views that in some ways are foreshadowed in the script.  By no means a bad episode, it is an episode that struggles with its lighter tone in a dark story, almost reviving the 1990s guns vs frocks debate upon which Roberts is one of the few authors to reside squarely with the frocks while his script desperately wants to go towards the guns in some very dark places.  It’s a decent episode that has a great premise and idea but perhaps needed a few more drafts and steadier hand to make it a great episode.  6/10.

Titus Groan by: Mervyn Peake

 

Reading any sort of modern fantasy always has its roots in the work of J.R.R. Tolkien whether directly inspired by Middle-Earth or simply following in the legacy of the author, but what is always interesting is to read fantasy that is a contemporary of Tolkien.  Mervyn Peake lived during the life of J.R.R. Tolkien and is considered a contemporary of the man, despite having never been part of the literary circle of the Inklings.  Peake began his career as an illustrator for several authors including editions of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, as well as painting factor workers and propaganda during World War II.  In the immediate post-war, as Tolkien was inspired by World War I, Peake was inspired by World War II to write back to back Titus Groan and Gormenghast, the first two installments of a planned epic cycle that would sadly stay as a trilogy before Peake’s death in 1968 from dementia with Lewy bodies at the young age of 57.  Peake as an author I only became vaguely aware of due to his influence on the Doctor Who work of Marc Platt in Ghost Light and Lungbarrow, as well as Big Finish Productions releasing a story featuring the character.

 

Titus Groan as a novel is deceptive as the titular Titus Groan is a relatively minor character integral to the plot occurring.  This novel is essentially an exploration of stagnation in societies that rely on archaic traditions to uphold their power, Titus being born to be the 77^th Earl of Groan, the ruling family of Gormenghast.  This event is the first domino falling in a sequence that breaks the stagnation over the course of two years as the reader is privy to the perspective of Steerpike, a kitchen boy who escapes the abuse of the kitchens to scheme his way to the top of the hierarchy and enter the upper classes.  Titus Groan in a way is a deconstruction of the British class system of the mid-20^th century with a clear examination of the madness that it allows, the ruling house of Groan are all madmen in some way.  Lord Sepulchrave is bored in his role of Earl and is slowly driven insane by Steerpike while his twin sisters are mad and hidden, driven to the arson of the Gormenghast Library and his older daughter Fuschia is taken in by Steerpike’s charm.  While Steerpike is our villain, Peake makes him incredibly compelling to read, the rest of the household having some layer of insanity and Steerpike himself comes across as the only rational person in the world.  This is despite the character doing horrific things, but the reader just has to pay attention to him as the rest of the cast of characters are so insane you believe something needs to change.  The setting of Titus Groan is integral in making this work, it is an expansive Gothic castle that has slowly been crumbling due to the stagnation of the world around it.  There are secrets and horrors around every corner, but life is built around tradition and continuing that tradition, something that Steerpike can take advantage of before he can ascend into a position of power.

 

Overall, Titus Groan is actually quite a slow book, but Mervyn Peake is wonderful at the worldbuilding and character writing this commentary on monarchy and tradition through the lens of Gothic fantasy.  While many compare him to Tolkien, it perhaps may be more apt to compare Titus Groan to Shelley, Stoker, and Stevenson in terms of tone and pacing, the slow build of the novel with this background haze of madness.  8/10.

Smith and Jones by: Russell T. Davies and directed by: Charles Palmer

 

“Smith and Jones” stars David Tennant as the Doctor and Freema Agyeman as Martha Jones with Roy Marsden as Mr. Stoker, Adjoa Andoh as Francine Jones, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Tish Jones, Reggie Yates as Leo Jones, Trevor Laird as Clive Jones, Anne Reid as Florence Finnegan, Paul Kasey as the Judoon Leader, and Nicholas Briggs as the Judoon Voices.  It was written by: Russell T. Davies and directed by: Charles Palmer with Simon Winstone as Script Editor, Phil Collinson as Producer, and Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner as Executive Producers.  It was originally broadcast on Saturday 31 March 2007 on BBC One.

 

By the time Doctor Who was renewed for a third series, Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner knew that Billie Piper would be leaving the show at the end of the second series and as such a replacement companion would have to be introduced.  The decision was made to have the commissioned 2006 Christmas Special not serve as an introduction to a new companion to allow audiences a gap between Rose and her replacement, as well as the logistics of not introducing a new regular months before the third series proper would begin.  Once again in preparing the third series, Davies planned to write six of the fourteen episodes including the Christmas special, opening episode, the finale, and one episode in between, and in these initial preparations it is clear that Davies and Gardner had learned from the hectic productions of the first two series.  While Davies would decide to expand the two-part finale to a three-part finale, there were no last minute rewrite episodes like “Boom Town” or “Tooth and Claw”, and once again six other writers would be recruited over the course of the series with four new contributions and two returning contributions.  In designing the new companion, Davies knew he did not wish to repeat the same character outline as Rose Tyler, going through several ideas including a schoolgirl and a Victorian maid, the latter being discouraged by BBC Controller of Drama Commissioning, Jane Trantor.  The schoolgirl idea was eventually developed into Martha Jones, 23 year old medical student, with Davies drafting the Jones family to include parents and two siblings, although continuing the trend of dysfunction as Martha’s parents are divorced.

 

Freema Agyeman was first on the radar of the production team in 2005 when casting “The Christmas Invasion” where she was under consideration for the role of Sally, and later cast in “Army of Ghosts” in a minor role, Phil Collinson already looking for potential actresses for Martha.  She would undergo the audition process in early 2006 before being cast and formally announced to the public on July 5, 2006.  Russell T. Davies at this point had made the executive decision to avoid assigning titles to episodes for the third series until necessary in an attempt to avoid leaks, but considered opening with “Martha” as an introduction, the title under which it would be filmed by newcomer to Doctor Who, Charles Palmer, starting the second production block of the series.  This would be the first of two production blocks under Palmer for the third series while David Tennant was eager to return for a second series in the role of the Doctor.  Production commenced only a few weeks after Agyeman had been cast and partway through Davies would change the title to “Smith and Jones” as a reference to the Doctor’s alias on Earth and Martha’s surname, a pairing of names he adored and emphasized in editing the script for “School Reunion”.  Despite changing the title, Davies’ script does draw on the major successes from “Rose”, mainly focusing on the new companion and their first steps into the Doctor’s world.  Davies’ script and Palmer’s direction avoids the trappings of following “Rose” directly, there is no zoom in to the Earth and the explanation of the premise of Doctor Who is rapid, rightfully assuming people would not need it three series in.

 

Agyeman sells the episode from her very first scene, quickly establishing Martha as not only competent, but sure of where her life is going and only being dissatisfied with the antics her family gets up to.  A background element of the episode is the drama surrounding Martha’s brother Leo’s, played by Reggie Yates, birthday party: her mother Francine, played by Adjoa Andoh, is angry at her ex-husband and his new girlfriend, Clive and Annalise played by Trevor Laird and Kimmi Richards respectively.  Martha and her sister Tish, played by Gugu Mbathta-Raw, are the only sane ones in the family.  Once the episode gets going and the hospital Martha is training at is transported to the moon, Agyeman really gets to show off as the only character outside of the Doctor calm enough in the crisis to realize that there is something more than the transport occurring.  She is the one to notice the oxygen isn’t rushing out of the hospital as the windows are not airtight and that there must be some force field, this is what attracts the Doctor to her.  The Doctor is unable to resist a mind as sharp as his and that’s what Martha represents.  Agyeman and Tennant also have excellent chemistry throughout as the Doctor and Martha independently deduce why the Judoon, a band of space rhinoceros police mercenaries, would be invading this hospital and what the alien they are looking for could actually be.  Davies’ plot is simple and straightforward with the stakes being the approximately 1,000 people in the hospital as air is slowly being used, escalating to half the Earth once the alien and her escape plan is revealed.  There is one moment that sets up much of the Doctor and Martha’s character arcs through the series as the Doctor kisses Martha to transfer some of his DNA that the Judoon would be able to check, this act blossom into unrequited romance on Martha’s part, which is a complete misstep.  “The Runaway Bride” essentially establishes that the Doctor is moving forward from Rose and this establishment, and the way the Doctor talks about Rose in this episode, is another example of Davies expanding a character arc for melodrama which is a shame because take these out and you have a perfect Doctor/companion dynamic with the Doctor and Martha.

 

“Smith and Jones” is bolstered by the actual alien plot being one alien Plasmavore, Florence Finnegan played with wonderful camp by Anne Reid, and her two slag leather androids, sucking the blood and killing Mr. Stoker, played by Roy Marsden, masquerading her internal biology as human and bypassing the Judoon’s genetic scans.  As a villain she is one note but Reid plays the character with relish, especially when the Judoon disintegrate her at the climax of the episode, with a declaration that the Judoon will “Burn in hell!” in a manner that no special text would adequately describe the delivery.  The Judoon themselves, voiced by Nicholas Briggs in a very gruff choice, are quite interesting.  Some comparison has been made to the Sontarans, and the similarities are there, especially in their ruthless nature, but making them a separate species allows Davies to subtly critique the general police system.  Sadly, “Smith and Jones” is a single episode and has much of its focus elsewhere, but there are hints in Davies’ script, with the Judoon mercilessly slaughtering a scared human with no remorse and the system’s backing, giving out compensation to Martha for their gruff treatment, and leaving once killing the Plasmavore with no real regard to the humans being left behind.  It’s certainly not a takedown of the oppressive nature of policing (and being written from a British perspective in 2007 it would not accurately reflect the current day state of the police), but Davies clearly understands at the very least the abuse that has become a fact of life for being policed.  It’s a small commentary, but a commentary, nevertheless.  And of course, the episode ends on Martha having her bigger on the inside moment and joining the Doctor, though being only promised one trip adds a more subtle reflection on the loss of Rose than his rather annoying declaration that she is not being replaced.

 

Overall, “Smith and Jones” starts the third series of Doctor Who just as strong as “Rose” started off the first series, most definitely free from the limp start of the second in “New Earth”.  David Tennant and Freema Agyeman shine as the Doctor and Martha Jones while the episode is not hampered by attempting to reexplain the premise of the show to any newcomers this series.  The chemistry is there and Russell T. Davies clearly has had a less stressful series this time around with only the remembrances of Rose and some of the commentary there not being explored, the former due to Davies’ attachment to Rose and the latter due to the 45-minute runtime, holding it back from being the perfect series opener.  8/10.

Catspaw by: Robert Bloch and directed by: Joseph Pevney

 

“Catspaw” is written by Robert Bloch and is directed by Joseph Pevney.  It was filmed under production code 30, was the 7^th episode of Star Trek Season 2, the 36^th episode of Star Trek, and was broadcast on October 27, 1967.

 

There’s something odd about this episode of Star Trek being purposefully held back to be aired as a Halloween Special.  Produced as the first episode of the second season of the original series, Robert Bloch’s “Catspaw” is an episode that is steeped in myth and fairy tales and slight bits of Shakespeare where there is an impossible castle inhabited by two space wizards who wish to test the Enterprise crew through a series of tricks and trials.  It’s essentially a big game of trick or treat, though on the budget of a single episode of Star Trek so many of the trials are mind games and conversational so the back half of the episode feels a bit close to “The Squire of Gothos” in concept but not execution.  Joseph Pevney’s direction really must be praised for making the episode work, evoking quite a few spooks and frights akin to a haunted house story.  There are clear influences from the work of director William Castle, budget saving techniques used to effect genuinely good frights plus a classic plastic skeleton or two to make things fun.  There is one sequence where three witches are encountered on the planet and genuinely the makeup work and performances are the closest to outright horror the episode gets.  Despite Bloch being most well known for writing Psycho, he’s not trying to really write Star Trek doing a horror story, just Star Trek having quite a bit of fun at the expense of it being the Halloween season and that’s genuinely okay for an episode, especially as the second season of Star Trek thus far has had some amazing episodes but those often followed by lackluster episodes or just okay episodes.

 

Theo Marcuse and Antoinette Bower play Korob and Sylvia respectively, the two space wizards who are in control of this castle, both providing temptations for Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, while controlling Sulu and Scotty and killing our pre-credits redshirt which launches the episode with a great pratfall.  Sylvia is a classic femme fatale, using her sex appeal to tempt Kirk into feeding her his emotion and there is this absolutely brilliant scene where Shatner as Kirk doesn’t give it to her.  The idea of the episode is that these two are creations of humanity’s subconscious, given power by their transmuter and the minds of the crew.  The way Shatner plays it is to subtly communicate that he is not actually taken in by Sylvia and the implication being not to connect sex with romance as a good thing, an oddly progressive message to be found in a Star Trek episode that also has its primary female character turn into a cat at multiple points during the episode.  The dynamic between Korob and Sylvia is perhaps the episode’s weakest point, Korob getting much of the second act of the episode to just argue with Kirk, Spock, and McCoy before being won over to their side of things for no particular reason.  The danger the pair pose to the Enterprise is a brilliant way to keep the tension of the episode up, Joseph Pevney’s direction in the scenes that cut back to the ship keep the shots close and tight so the danger can be implied by some great performances by Nichelle Nichols, Walter Koenig (in his first recorded scenes), and returning day player Michael Barrier.  There is a point where Sylvia uses a pendant of the Enterprise to rapidly increase the temperature by hovering it over a candle, further hints of the episode being about humanity’s subconscious, and the scenes set on the Enterprise while not quite harrowing are immediately tense and there is the fear that these people will just destroy the ship.  The further scenes where the Enterprise is placed behind a forcefield don’t quite work because the overheating sequence is so effective, but it does keep the rest of the characters in the episode while Scotty and Sulu are relegated to being hypnotized which is a shame, though George Takei does do some excellent silent acting.

 

Overall, “Catspaw” is kind of the perfect example of a ridiculous Star Trek episode working with a weird premise, mostly because the cast and director are all taking this seriously as a threat.  It’s not a brilliant horror story or a thriller by any means but it fits perfectly into the bill of a Halloween special.  It’s not going to be an all-time classic episode, but it does pass the benchmark of an enjoyable episode in the first third or so of a season that had been oscillating from brilliant to outright bad.  7/10.

The Runaway Bride by: Russell T. Davies and directed by: Euros Lyn

 

“The Runaway Bride” stars David Tennant as the Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble with Sarah Parish as the Empress, Don Gilet as Lance Bennett, and Jacqueline King as Sylvia Noble.  It was written by: Russell T. Davies and directed by: Euros Lyn with Simon Winstone as Script Editor, Phil Collinson as Producer, and Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner as Executive Producers.  It was originally broadcast on Monday 25 December 2006 on BBC One.

 

When planning the second series of Doctor Who Russell T. Davies had to incorporate an extra episode into the series in the form of a Christmas Special.  This episode would become “The Christmas Invasion” which already added a gap into the original thirteen-episode plan, but other gaps would be created after the development of “The Runaway Bride”.  Davies originally intended the episode to take the sixth slot in the second series, inspired by the idea of having the TARDIS take part in a car chase, something that could only be effectively portrayed with 21^st century special effects.  Initial outlines would have a bride transported into the TARDIS that the Doctor and Rose would have had to investigate, however, before scripting could begin Doctor Who was renewed for a third series and second Christmas Special.  Knowing that Billie Piper would be leaving the series and Davies intended an emotional exit, he made the decision to use the lighthearted premise of “The Runaway Bride” as a Christmas special, helped by the wedding setting being inherently jovial.  Catherine Tate was already a successful comedian and was tapped to play the Bride while the Bride’s mother was played by Doctor Who fan Jacqueline King, named Donna and Sylvia Noble respectively in the script.  Both actresses were designed to be one-off appearances, with no further plans for the characters to return.  In hindsight, this is an integral aspect for understanding why Davies characterized Donna and Sylvia in a very one-note way, playing on the comedic chops of both Tate and King because this is meant to be generally light-hearted.  Direction was assigned to Euros Lyn and the episode was given its dedicated production block, filming on it (and thus the third series of Doctor Who) began in July 2006.

 

“The Runaway Bride” was set up in the closing moments of “Doomsday”, but the opening sequence was extended and reshot for the episode to show Donna walking down the aisle to be married before being transported to the TARDIS (plus another version of the zoom in to Earth from space).  This opening scene introduces the new lighting scheme of the TARDIS, gone are the general greens of the console room outside of the central time rotor and console, in are a yellow/brown hue to the rest of the room which is generally something I’m not a fan of.  The darker lighting assisted with the character of the set and in the brighter lighting, while it allows the actors to be seen easier, loses some of the mystery and wonder of the set that the first two series captured quite well.  There aren’t many scenes in the TARDIS outside of the opening or the genuinely great car chase where Donna takes a taxi where the driver has been replaced by a robot Santa.  Much of the episode is shot on location in London and in the studio for the lair of the villainous Racnoss, an alien spider-like empress played by Sarah Parrish from before the formation of the Earth who in a great twist has been working with Lance, played by Don Gilet, to take over the world with her many children, feeding Donna huon particles over the months of their relationship to act as food for the baby Racnoss.

 

While dark on paper, the episode plays this for laughs with Donna being the one to force herself on Lance, finding connection when he offers to make her a coffee one day, the office romance being pushed by her.  This is a series of jokes that generally hasn’t aged well, while not terrible, there are some undertones of jokes based in nagging to achieve consent and a relationship status.  The entire characterization of Donna on the whole is also kind of basic, mainly playing on Tate’s comedic stylings which are great when Tate is allowed to have quieter scenes but many of her scenes just push Donna to be loud and in places emotionally manipulative, playing these scenes for comedy when there’s already plenty of comedy to be derived from the absurdity of the scenario.  Catherine Tate does have excellent chemistry with David Tennant which is something that Davies would not forget when planning future series, and her appearance here also is the first in a series of special guest stars for special episodes that would get the co-starring credit.  David Tennant as the Doctor also gets to have a great time during the plot, using much of it to imply moving on from Rose, the final message in “Doomsday” giving the character a sense of closure.  He is ready to offer Donna a place on the TARDIS, something she rejects in a touching scene.  Sarah Parrish is also just beautifully campy in her villainous role which adds to the enjoyment of an otherwise average episode.

 

Overall, “The Runaway Bride” is a fairly good romp and a nice breath of air after the melodrama of “Doomsday”.  It’s an episode where you can tell Davies is no longer feeling the pressure of providing a satisfying follow-up to the first series while introducing the new Doctor, so it opts to just being a fairly fun little special episode.  The humor hasn’t aged well and the characterization of the supporting characters are especially one-note, but this was designed as a one-off so that doesn’t completely ruin the episode.  Euros Lyn has fun with the direction of the action sequences and the villain herself being a feat of costuming and puppetry, the performance coming through the very heavy makeup.  It’s a generally fun time but not much more than that.  6/10.

Doctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks by: Terrance Dicks

 

Doctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks was written by Terrence Dicks, based on Genesis of the Daleks by Terry Nation.  It was the 23^rd story to be novelized by Target Books.

 

It’s honestly surprising that I would be taking a look at Doctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks now, about a month after Big Finish Productions releases their ‘adaptation’ of Terry Nation’s original drafts in Daleks: Genesis of Terror!, so the story itself has been on my mind.  This is not a review of the Big Finish adaptation, but it is interesting that in novelizing the story Terrance Dicks does make an attempt to incorporate some of Nation’s original ideas.  The Kaled and Thal armies are portrayed as quite young which adds this very melancholic air to the story that wasn’t there in the television story, Dicks really understanding what makes the script work and adapting it in this way is a fascinating way to get the story out on home media.  This novelization was released in 1976, only a year after the television serial broadcast, and the original serial was commissioned under Terrance Dicks and Barry Letts’ last batch of stories.  While it would go under the pen of Robert Holmes for script editing and Hinchcliffe producing, Dicks still had a strong connection by nature of being there for early pre-production and that shines through in this novelization.

 

The prose somehow manages to accurately capture the direction of David Maloney, especially in the way that it portrays the scenes set in no man’s land, Dicks being incredibly vivid and frank about presenting the deaths of the soldiers.  While this is clearly a book aimed at children, as are the rest of the novelizations, Dicks isn’t compromising the darker aspects of the serial, attempting to amplify the horror of radiation and Davros’ genetic experiments.  Nyder and Davros’ scheming and betrayals of the rest of the Kaleds still hits the difficult beats to portray and the Doctor’s dilemma is nicely portrayed.  The issues come in the fact that Doctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks has to almost compress things in places, as due to the popularity of Genesis of the Daleks means that Dicks attempts to keep every event while adding more moments, such as an extension to Davros’ death where it is made explicit that there, his body is completely destroyed which made sense as it was clear that the character wasn’t intended to come back.  There are also just these added extra moments that means the pace has to almost rush to get to the ending without expanding the page count, when it’s so clear Dicks is having fun writing the novelization.

 

Overall, Doctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks while being a step down from the televised version of the story still maintains the artistic integrity and purpose of the story unlike other versions made to capitalize on its popularity.  It was the only way to experience the story for at least five years until the first LP release, and is helped by Terrance Dicks’ mastery of prose.  8/10.

Army of Ghosts & Doomsday by: Russell T. Davies and directed by: Graeme Harper

 

“Army of Ghosts” and “Doomsday” stars David Tennant as the Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose Tyler with Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler, Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith, Shaun Dingwall as Pete Tyler, Andrew Hayden-Smith as Jake Simmonds, Tracy-Ann Oberman as Yvonne Hartman, Raji James as Dr. Singh, and Paul Kasey as the Cyber Leader.  Dalek Operators were Barnaby Edwards, Nicholas Pegg, Stuart Crossman, Anthony Spargo, Dan Barrett, and David Hankinson while Dalek and Cybermen Voices were Nicholas Briggs.  They were written by: Russell T. Davies and directed by: Graeme Harper with Helen Raynor as Script Editor, Phil Collinson as Producer, and Russell T. Davies and Julie Gardner as Executive Producers.  They were originally broadcast on Saturdays from 1 to 8 July 2006 on BBC One.

 

Billie Piper’s decision to leave Doctor Who after the second series was never in doubt, “Rise of the Cybermen” and “The Age of Steel” being pitched to plant Rose’s departure as a possibility as Russell T. Davies realized that tearing apart a relationship that had developed romantically would have to end with universal separation or the death of Rose Tyler.  Davies chose the former because he believed the latter would be against the core of Doctor Who, and it is this decision with which contains the root of many of the issues with “Army of Ghosts” and “Doomsday”, but more on that as this review progresses.  Davies was also inspired by the original proposal for the 1968 serial The Wheel in Space which would have seen the Daleks and Cybermen fighting one another though this was changed early in scripting that serial as Terry Nation would not allow the use of the Daleks in this way, something which in proposing this finale, Nation’s estate changed their tune on.  Early in planning this second series also came the idea to use the dummy title Torchwood as this series story arc, originally drafting the finale as “Torchwood Rises” and “Torchwood Falls”, however quickly the titles would revert to what they aired under.  What would change in the plans, however, would be the commissioning of a Doctor Who spin-off series in late 2005 for broadcast in the final months of 2006, approximately three months after the second series of Doctor Who wrapped up broadcast.  This shifted the setting of “Army of Ghosts” and “Doomsday” from Wales to the middle of London’s Canary Wharf to accommodate plans for the spin-off to be set in Cardiff.

 

“Army of Ghosts”, on the whole, is actually a pretty good setup.  Its largest structural issue is the pre-credits sequence, voiceover from Billie Piper as Rose Tyler recapping both series thus far and how meeting the Doctor changed her life and establishing this story being the story of how she died.  The issue comes at the climax of “Doomsday” where Rose doesn’t die and is saved at the last moment by being taken to the parallel world from “Rise of the Cybermen” and “The Age of Steel” where she gets to live out the rest of her life in luxury with that world’s version of her father, plus Jackie and Mickey.  The information communicated outside of this in the pre-credits sequence, mainly foreshadowing that this is going to be Rose’s exit, is also incredibly superfluous as there are several points throughout that subtly foreshadow the fact that Rose will be leaving at the end of the adventure.  All the pre-credits sequence adds is the subtlety of these moments being completely undone and the shocking twist that Rose doesn’t die, but that also means that the monologue feels as if Rose is being over dramatic.  What especially hurts is that the first sequence after the credits in the episode actually has the pacing and would work incredibly well as a pre-credits sequence, cutting to the credits once the ghosts appear.  This would create the necessary intrigue many pre-credits sequences have used and given Camille Coduri the chance to really sell the grief better than the melodramatic pre-credits sequence undercutting a lot of the examination of grief that the ghosts present.  The ghosts, in actuality Cybermen slowly building power enough to break through and invade the main universe’s Earth, provide an interesting look at the concept of a slow invasion, taking months to build psychic connections with humanity to slowly make them believe though without saying a word, these are their loved ones come back to visit them.  It’s kind of a shame that the episode abandons them once the TARDIS with the Doctor, Rose, and Jackie on board gets to the Torchwood Institute.

 

The exploration of the Torchwood Institute, led by Yvonne Hartman played by Tracy-Ann Oberman, is equally interesting and fun as the ghost plot had the potential to be.  David Tennant plays these scenes as especially lighthearted as the Doctor, using that leverage to throw this group of essentially fans of his off-guard and to trust him.  Davies’ script does an excellent job of making Torchwood feel like an institution that has no genuine idea about how to use and catalogue the alien technology and interactions at their disposal, once again being a condemnation of the government institutions and conservatism in general meddling with things for profit without thinking of the consequences.  The episode builds tension as Torchwood has a sphere from the Void, a ship that is meant to traverse it, that because of its lengthy exposure to the space between dimensions is lacking in physical form despite being visible.  It’s described as something that looks wrong when you look at it and Graeme Harper shoots the sphere incredibly well, always looking at it from low angles so it looks slightly off kilter to simulate this to the audience.  It is largely realized through CGI, and when the episode gets to the final twist that there are four Daleks inside this ends the episode on a high note (although the initial shots of the Daleks using CGI are quite poorly realized which is rectified in the final shots of the episode where the physical props are used).  “Army of Ghosts” is genuinely good setup but it doesn’t actually have enough focus on one idea, several plot lines attempting to be the main point of the episode before being dropped for the big cliffhanger which sets up the Doctor, Rose, Jackie, and Mickey (who made it over from the parallel universe) stopping a Dalek vs Cyberman conflict.  5/10.

 

“Doomsday” is the clear weaker half of the story, but it is not without its high points.  The actual conflict between the Daleks and the Cybermen themselves had the potential to create one very good episode and Davies’ script when it comes to writing these conflicting ideologies, both being conformists but Daleks being supremacists who wish to destroy while Cybermen wish to convert, it’s great.  Sure, it’s become a bit of a meme in Doctor Who circles, but the humor in the interactions is actually intentional, Davies understanding that the simple fact of four Daleks is a very dangerous threat and has been setup that way over the past two series of television.  The episode takes its time before the Cybermen and Daleks meet which allows for both fascinating exposition about these four Daleks as the Cult of Skaro, four Daleks set apart and allowed creativity to be the four most ruthless Daleks in existence, and to continue to use Dalek’s destruction in interesting ways.  The doctor in charge of the sphere has his knowledge absorbed by the Daleks through their suckers which is a horrific scene in general and once again a reminder of the danger of the Daleks.  The Cybermen also get plenty of body horror, scenes showing the invasion of homes and the beginning of rounding humanity together for conversion.  The episode devolves into action that is shot really well and played nicely, until the Cult of Skaro’s plan is revealed, mainly by having millions of Daleks emerge from a Genesis Ark, a great idea of a Time Lord prison ship that is bigger on the inside and can be opened by a time traveler.  This is yet another really interesting idea that sadly doesn’t have any time to really develop as a concept before devolving poorly into millions of Daleks threatening the Earth.  Yes, the Earth’s destruction is the larger stakes of the finale and begins a trend of Russell T. Davies finales escalating the stakes until they are unreasonable, though that is a discussion for another day as present day Earth as the stakes for the second series finale actually seems reasonable.

 

The episode devolving into action means that there is less time for Davies to follow through on the interesting character arcs he sets up, Yvonne being swiftly converted though saving our heroes as a Cybermen that cries oil from its blank eye socket, though what really would have worked here in its place would actually seeing a human eye and not a tear of motor oil.  Davies sets up this idea of Pete, played by Shaun Dingwall, and Jackie coming to love each other, the final scenes following up with Rose in Pete’s World revealing Jackie is pregnant with a second child, but these are just hints.  The action gets in the way as it becomes mindless once the Genesis Ark is opened and millions of Daleks emerge and do really nothing of note.  They just become a threat.  Had Davies stuck to the four Cult of Skaro members and kept the Genesis Ark closed, it would have worked much better and gone further to keep the threat level up.  Mickey and Jake are there to help and they honestly become minor characters as the episode builds to the point where everyone except the Doctor and Rose are in the regular world getting ready to send the Daleks and Cybermen into the Void which would be a death due to crossing the Void leaving particles attracted to it.

 

The Doctor’s attempts to send Rose to Pete’s World with her family is a great moment, probably David Tennant’s best in the episode as it clearly understands that Rose should not be separated from everyone she loves and is loved by, and Rose coming back is actually a great setup for her fall.  But then she is rescued at the last minute and we spend the final ten minutes or so of the episode resolving the fact that the Doctor and Rose are in different universes.  This is another of Davies’ issues with wrapping up finales with incredibly drawn out sequences of melodrama that doesn’t work.  The Doctor breaking through to give Rose one final message, built up first by more voiceover from Billie Piper, is interesting in theory but it takes far too long to actually get going and conclude.  It also means that the resolution of the episode and how well it will resonate with the viewer will be down to how well you resonate with the relationship between the Doctor and Rose.  I do not so the metaphoric being on opposite sides of the same wall and the entire Bad Wolf Bay sequence is something that just leaves me hollow.  Piper and Tennant are turning in good performances and if perhaps this was the last we would see of Rose it might resonate slightly better with me.  That or if it were just trimmed down and didn’t follow on from the first half opening with the Rose monologue about how she was going to die, and she’s not in any meaningful sense (her name is among the dead on paper so it’s technically true, but it doesn’t feel true).  Or even perhaps if Murray Gold’s score, thematically beautiful, was mixed better into the episode as throughout the climax and resolution it is blaring far too lout and screaming for the viewer to feel sad for it which is a shame.  “Doomsday” is just a letdown.  3/10.

 

Overall, “Army of Ghosts” and “Doomsday” are a series finale for Doctor Who which fail to live up to a lot of the potential that the episodes set up.  This is one of the few times where Russell T. Davies stuffs a two-part story with way too many ideas so there is a fight for whatever finds its way on top.  The performances and direction are great but because of Davies not wishing to kill off a companion in a meaningful or even metaphorical way and just being overstuffed it brings a quite weak series to a weak end.  4/10.