I’ve just written this review of yesterday’s first episode of the new series of Doctor Who, titled Rose. I wrote it for the Outpost Gallifrey fan site in mind, so it might make some references that are a little unclear if you’re not familiar with the show, but I tried to make it as clear as possible to non-fans when comparing it to other episodes and stuff. And it won the ratings battle against Ant and Dec – 10.5 million to 7 million!
7pm, Saturday 26th March 2005. If you count from the end of the television series, it’s over 15 years since the Doctor left our screens. It’s nine years since the TV movie. For me, it’s been just over five years since I’ve been enough of a Doctor Who fan to dream of the show’s return to television. It’s been 18 months since the announcement that Doctor Who was, finally, being regenerated for a new series. However you count it, we’ve waited a long time for this moment. But at last, it’s time…
One of the first things to strike me was the sheer breathless pace and energy of the story. The first few scenes quickly show us Rose’s life in a nutshell, though it then settles down to a more sensible speed. It’s still a million times zippier than the frequently slow plod of the long stories of Doctor Who from years gone by, and is quite an adjustment to make.
It’s been observed that the TV movie was a blend of Spearhead from Space, the story that saw both the debut of Jon Pertwee’s Doctor and of the sinister Autons, The Deadly Assassin, where the Doctor returned to his home planet to battle his old enemy the Master, and a bit of original material thrown in as well. But while the TV movie borrowed the Doctor’s alien physiology being discovered as he is treated in hospital, Rose takes the other, more exciting plotline that the TV movie left alone – the invasion of Earth by the delightfully scary Autons. Russell T Davies wisely chooses to define the Doctor by what he does – fight the monsters and save the world, rather than dull discoveries of two hearts and an odd body temperature.
Rose also jettisons any Gallifrey-bound backstory while popping in fun little moments that remind us that this is the very same Doctor and the very same show. Some hints about a new backstory are dropped, too. The references to a war in which the Doctor fought and planets which he was unable save are blatant signposts for the fans shouting “Start speculating here!” Robert Holmes, who created the Autons, had a knack of sketching in intriguing pointers to a wider universe, and Russell T Davies borrows this trick with intriguing and very cool sounding details such as the War and the Shadow Convention.
The actual invasion plot is rather slight, and there are some unexplained gaps in the plot, but part of the point of the story is to show events from the outside. For most people who encounter him, the Doctor is a mysterious figure who appears and disappears amid the confusion of bizarre and dangerous events. But through her curiosity and persistence, Rose manages to make her way into the Doctor’s world.
This sense of looking in from the outside is the point of the character of Clive. I loved the scenes with him. Just look at Russell’s other works like Dark Season and The Second Coming and you’ll see he does this apocalyptic style of dialogue so well, and Mark Benton pulls it off wonderfully. I thought the makers perhaps missed a trick by not craftily foreshadowing some of the later episodes set in the past. I was also half expecting Clive to produce a picture showing Rose accompanying the Doctor, which would have been an interesting complication. I think it also appealed because it was one of the few parts of the story which hadn’t been given away through spoilers or informed speculation, nor lifted from the Autons’ previous outings. It’s also a fun comment on the Internet-savvy age of the Fan.
Speaking of fun, one of the best things about the show is the delicious sense of humour. I’d seen the clip from the wonderful wheelie-bin scene on Blue Peter on Monday. It had me in stitches then, and it was probably the single thing that most convinced me that the new series was going to be fun. It’s even better in the context of the story, being both hilariously funny and creepily disturbing. It’s not popular with those who think Doctor Who should be dark and serious and adult, but can you really imagine a show like that gripping the hearts and imaginations of children and adults up and down the country? I can’t, but the show as it is seems perfectly pitched to do just that.
Much of the magic lies in the two leads, the Doctor and Rose Tyler. Any concerns I might have had about Billie Piper just disappeared away as if they’d never existed, and I was too caught up in the story to be distracted by thoughts of her past career as a pop star. And as for the Doctor: Christopher Eccleston’s Doctor is energetic, funny, eccentric and scary, rather like the show itself. Russell T Davies’ interesting drama The Second Coming now seems like a dress rehearsal for the new series of Doctor Who, since it shares both writer, lead actor and composer. But although Eccleston’s turn as the Son of God had its light-hearted moments, as the Doctor he brings both the manic intensity and a much greater levity to the role. The structure of the story is more like a romance than anything else, and by the end I was desperately rooting for the Doctor and Rose to “get together” by her joining him on his journeys through time and space!
The TARDIS set is beautiful and impressive, and when Rose came in and the camera swung up and round to reveal it all to us, I wished I had a bigger television. It felt like watching cinematic spectacle on the small screen. The organic feel gives the impression of some alien force or creature with the merest crumbling veneer of technology. I’m not sure I like the way it enters directly into the control room – it makes the inside seem more exposed, more vulnerable. That’s probably a good thing, but it takes some getting used to.
Some people have slated the special effects, but if you want super-impressive (and super-expensive) effects, then Doctor Who is probably not the best place to look. They were just the job to tell the story, and didn’t need to be photorealistic to do this. They were of a good enough level not to detract at all, and to try and make them match the movies or American productions wouldn’t really have made the episode any better. It would simply have been a way for the BBC to shout “Look how much money we’re spending!” If people are put off because the show isn’t flaunting a big budget in this way, then I don’t think they’re much of a loss to fandom. Another prime target for criticism is the incidental music. I thought it was pretty good, myself, though for the most time I didn’t particularly notice it, which seems to me to be a good indicator of being unintrusive.
The Autons themselves were suitably scary. I didn’t hide behind the sofa – it’s right back against the wall, and though my family discussed moving it forward to give us room, we didn’t get round to it. But I was hiding myself in my jumper as they began their attack, peeping out from between my fingers!
All my family watched the new show, and all of them enjoyed it. This includes my Dad, who doesn’t really like science fiction or fantasy type stuff, and my younger sisters aged 14 and 17. My younger sister usually considers herself too cool for things like Doctor Who. Her boyfriend loved it, so she’s now having to face the horrifying prospect that he might become a Doctor Who fan! The buzz from those I’ve talked to, in real life and over the Internet in various places, is one of genuine enjoyment and excitement. As the credits rolled, I grinned a big happy grin, knowing that up and down the country, a whole new generation had been enjoying Doctor Who for the first time.
Rose wasn’t the greatest piece of television in the world, which may disappoint some overexcited fans, but will probably please those doom-mongers who have convinced themselves the new series can never match the old. But it was one of the most exciting, energetic, confident and just plain enjoyable programmes on TV, and has all the humour, excitement and thrills for all the family to enjoy it. There’s nothing else like it on television, and it’s great to have Doctor Who back.
