It’s here – our last (ever?)

I think we’re going to face a problem here, because there are essentially two things to consider with ‘The Name Of The Doctor’. The first is the episode itself; the plot driven bit that sought to wrap up the loose ends of the last few episodes, in particular the status of Clara as The Impossible Girl scattered through time. The second is the ending of the episode; not the culmination of the plot itself, although we’ll discuss that too, but the very final surprise, a moment which is going to overshadow the rest of the episode somewhat.

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In our last review before the Series 7 finale, James Willets revisits ‘Nightmare in Silver’.

Don’t forget to download our new Moffat Bingo cards before tomorrow’s episode!

Neil Gaiman is rightly lauded as a titan of genre writing, the guy behind enduring classics like Sandman, Neverwhere, Stardust and Coraline. He’s written extensively for young adults and comics, and won numerous awards for his fiction.

It’s hard to overstate the impact Sandman had on me. It was one of the titles that first got me into comics – the gateway drug that drew me into the wider four colour world, back when I had a sneering disdain for the garish funny books from the big two. Without them I wouldn’t have discovered the world of non-cape comics; no V for Vendetta, no Transmetropolitan, no Y: The Last Man or Ex Machina or Walking Dead.

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Just two days left until ‘The Name of the Doctor’ and James Willets continues his rundown of Series 7b. Was he tickled pink by ‘The Crimson Horror’?

There’s still time to get your hands on the brand new Moffat Bingo cards.

‘The Crimson Horror’ marks the return of Victoriana, the Paternoster gang, and that gnawing sense that Mark Gatiss may be the most hit-and-miss Doctor Who writer since Chris Chibnall. You may remember that I really loved ‘Cold War’. I thought it was fan-pleasing without being introvertedly self-referential, action packed without being over the top, and in a setting that felt historically real enough that the cracks in the likelihood of eccentric Soviet professors knowing much about English electro-pop bands didn’t really matter too much.

This certainly isn’t to suggest that ‘Crimson Horror’ approaches the levels of ‘Fear Her’ or the inaccurately named World War Two shocker, ‘Victory of the Daleks’, in being a bad episode. Quite the opposite in fact; I found it hugely enjoyable, even on a second viewing. It’s simply uneven in a way that many of his episodes seem to be.

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As we count down to the Series 7 finale this weekend, James Willets continues his reviews of the last half-season.

Don’t forget to download our new Moffat Bingo cards before Saturday!

At what point does a TV series reach a critical mass of recycled plotlines and a bloated parody of itself, reflecting enough of the bits that you used to long for to make you hope that it’ll be good, but never quite managing to regurgitate enough substance to satisfy? Because I think Doctor Who has reached that point.

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James Willets continues his run-down of Series 7b, but ‘Hide’ isn’t chilling him for the right reasons.

Have you downloaded our brand new Moffat Bingo cards yet? Grab them before the series finale this Saturday!

‘Hide’ is one of those weird episodes that happen every series or so, when the team in charge of Doctor Who get bored of the usual sequence of historical-alien-future adventure serial, and decide that what the show needs is a good old retreat into other genres; primarily horror. And as with all of those episodes before it, the classic horror setting and tropes are abandoned two thirds of the way through to explain that it’s all just another sci-fi baffler, and that’s not a Werewolf, or a vampire, or a ghost, or a great pumpkin; it’s an alien pitched up on Earth.

These episodes usually aren’t all that great – ‘Vampires in Venice’ stands out for its campy attempts to create an accurate flavour of medieval Venetian life, if medieval Venetian life had included the threat of consumption by horny cosmic piranha girls. Add to that the ‘witches’ from ‘The Shakespeare Code’, the ‘Werewolf’ from ‘Tooth and Claw’ and the Evil Living Scarecrows from the ‘Family of Blood’ two-partner, and you start to build up a picture of Doctor Who struggling to do the monster mash in an enjoyable or sensible manner.

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It’s here! All new Moffat Bingo, ready for the Series 7 finale and the 50th Anniversary special!

The original Moffat Bingo is still one of our most consistently popular posts, spreading far and wide via Twitter and Pinterest. But the departure of the Ponds last year means it’s no longer fit for purpose so, after a bit of faffing, here’s the newly revised edition, just in time for ‘The Name of the Doctor’!

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We’re catching up on our

‘Cold War’ is the first episode so far this season, and probably the first Mark Gatiss episode ever, that I can overwhelmingly say I loved. I think it’s hard not to like an episode that doesn’t overcomplicate the horror movie concept at its heart and is content to be story about a monster in the dark.

There are a couple of neat twists that stop this from being a totally generic episode, although there is plenty here that we have seen before.

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A little later than scheduled, our reviewer James Willets is here to pick over the bones of one of New Who’s most divisive episodes in ages.

There was a point about halfway through ‘Rings’ when I thought (realised?) that this was going to be one of my favourite episodes for a long time. After journeying to an intergalactic version of Camden Lock and rescuing this week’s plot-relevant moppet, we got a sequence so wonderfully constructed and unusual, it made me realise how rarely we get to see something different in Doctor Who.

This was the first episode in years that felt truly alien. For all its sci-fi trappings, Doctor Who can often feel like a trip though other programmes the BBC does – lashings of period drama, becostumed thespians and CGI Macguffinery and very little in the way of actual world building.

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Caleb and P.G. find plenty to talk about as Clara finally joins the Doctor full-time. Has her (re-)introduction been too long coming? How does she compare to her previous incarnations? And what clues to her identity have we found so far? All this, plus the question of souls; the spectre of Russell T Davies; the brilliant Celia Imrie and Jumping the Shard. (Geddit?)

We also open with a very important announcement about the future of the podcast that you really don’t want to miss, and finish with a look ahead to the 50th Anniversary. So let’s get cracking!

William Hartnell was the original Doctor – but is he the original and best? We consider how the Doctor evolved from mysterious and unreliable mad scientist into the unconventional action hero he is today. Plus, how has the role of the companions changed since the original TARDIS crew of Ian, Barbara and Susan, as played by William Russell, Jacqueline Hill and Carole Anne Ford.

Join us as we celebrate the classic opening episode where it all began, plus reconsider those neglected cavemen episodes that follow… or should we skip to the Daleks already?

How do you feel An Unearthly Child holds up after all these years? Are you a fan of the First Doctor, and what are your favourite stories from his era? If you’re a recent Doctor Who fan who came to it since it’s 2005 return, what is it like to go back and uncover Doctor Who’s past? Let us know your thoughts below!

Stay tuned for our anniversary-year coverage of Doctor Who, as we celebrate each of the eleven Doctors from the last 50 years, one per month, and count down to the big day on 23rd November 2013!

To follow our ‘The Angels Take Manhattan’ commentary, James brings you his review of the episode. Don’t forget to let us know what you thought too. Come along Pond!

So, goodbye Ponds. Over the course of the last two and a half seasons you’ve been exceptional. You and Matt Smith have consistently been the best things about nearly every episode of Doctor Who for the last few years, and I will sorely miss you.
From Amelia Pond waiting in her garden, to the introduction of Amy proper, waiting for her Doctor to return for her entire life, making the choice of Rory over the Doctor, then Rory and the Doctor – at the heart of Karen Gillan’s portrayal of Amy Pond has been true character growth. It’s easy to feel like Amy really has grown up with the Doctor over the last few years, and she’s turned into a kick-ass woman and half of one of the best relationships in sci-fi (up there with Han and Leia, Adama and Roslin or Zoe and Wash).
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Steven Moffat said “If the Ponds’ departure doesn’t make you openly weep, I haven’t done my job.” Did he succeed for you? Let us know what you thought!

The Weeping Angels are back! No episode preview this week so Caleb and Sarah discuss what they think The Angels Take Manhattan may mean for The Doctor and the departure of Amy and Rory. They also discuss some of your comments on The Power Of Three – don’t forget to download our commentary and read James’ review too!

Come along Pond!

Are you looking forward to The Angels Take Manhattan? Let us know your expectations in the comments, or via Twitter, Facebook or email, and come back on Sunday for our commentary!

When I say Classic-Doctor Who I admittedly refer to it purely as something that, like Professional Wrestling or Star Trek, I find more interesting as a programming concept than an actual show. I’m still to watch much of the pre-relaunch Doctor Who – I’ve seen one full story and snippets of others and if I’m honest it’s not something that I feel any need to go back to. (more…)

Did the Ponds make the right decision? Were the Shakri a genuine threat? And was this episode better than Dinosaurs on a Spaceship?

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the website for James’ review of The Power of Three, coming soon!

And once you’ve heard what we have to say, let us know what you think in the comments, or by email, Twitter or Facebook.

This week The Doctor moves in with the Ponds during the year of the slow invasion! The human race wakes up to find the world littered with small black cubes – where did they come from and more importantly are they dangerous?

Cube anyone?

Are you looking forward to The Power Of Three? Let us know your expectations in the comments, or via Twitter, Facebook or email, and come back on Saturday for our commentary!

To follow our ‘A Town Called Mercy’ commentary, James brings you his review of the episode. Don’t forget to let us know what you thought too.

With three episodes of the series shown I’m pretty comfortable calling this. This will not be a season to remember.

‘A Town Called Mercy’ is the Back to the Future 3 of the series. Back to the Future was all nostalgic cool, goofy and fun that had something for everyone, like Dinosaurs. Back to the Future Part 2 took a darker tack, like Daleks. Back to the Future 3 was really, really Westerny. Like Mercy.

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Caleb, Sarah and new contributor Nat Slow don their stetsons and ignore the keep out sign as they explore ‘A Town Called Mercy’. Daleks, dinosaurs and now a cyborg gunslinger. As Doctor Who meets a western we discuss guns, tic-tac spaceships, moral complexities and The Doctor’s mercy.

Did The Doctor make the right decision with Kahler Jex? Would The Doctor have used the gun? Where did The Doctor learn to speak horse? And who gave Amy a gun!

Keep out?

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the website for James’ review of A Town Called Mercy, coming soon! now live, check it out!

And once you’ve heard what we have to say, let us know what you think in the comments, or by email, Twitter or Facebook.

This week The Doctor gets a gun, a Stetson and a cyborg! The Doctor ignores the keep out sign on a visit to A Town Called Mercy – will you too?

If you want a few more hints, read on…

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To follow our commentary on last night’s Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, James is back with his review. Were the dinosaurs up to scratch and was David Bradley’s character a depart from tradition for a Doctor Who villian? Beware spoilers!

Dinosaurs on a Spaceship is pretty much hardwired to be something I enjoy. It’s got Dinosaurs, comedy and enough sci-fi in-jokes to choke a T-Rex. And unlike last weeks episode it actually has a plot, with a clear start, middle and end.

So on one level, this is the best episode of the series, a welcome return to form after the Daleks did their best to kill off Doctor Who as a programme (if not The Doctor himself). On the other hand, it has some of the worst CGI of new Who, some horrifically written jokes and adds very little beyond its key concept of Dinosaurs on a Spaceship.

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Tortured metaphors aside, we discuss the importance of characterisation, the almost-return of the Silurians, and the alarming possibility of Chris Chibnall as Doctor Who showrunner. Listen now to what we had to say!

And once you’ve listened to our opinions, let us know what you think in the comments, or by email, Twitter or Facebook.

With a great guest cast including Arthur Weasley, Argus Filch, Inspector Lestrade and Mitchell & Webb (also known as Mark Williams, David Bradley, Rupert Graves and, er, Mitchell & Webb), the Doctor assembles a motley gang to investigate dinosaurs… on a spaceship!

But is the entertainment factor of said prehistoric creatures be undermined by flaws in the characterisation? We give our first impressions, and a drop a few hints and teasers about what’s ahead.

If you want a few more hints, read on…

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Are the Daleks still an effective villain? What happened to all the different Daleks we were promised? Just how did Amy and Rory get to the point of divorce? We discuss this and more in this weeks commentary and of course we consider the impact of Jenna-Louise Coleman’s early appearance – and that twist!

Souffle anyone?

James gives us his review of ‘Asylum of the Daleks‘ as a first reaction ahead of our podcast commentary, coming later today online now! Does this story restore the Daleks as effective villains, or do they just rely on nostalgia value for their survival? SPOILERS ahoy!

It’s amazing that this episode wasn’t spoiled well ahead of broadcast, and it’s undoubtably better for it. There’s at least two twists in there that I don’t think anyone coming in blind will expect, so I’m going to save talking about those until the end so as to avoid spoiling it for you.

Let’s get right down to it. The Daleks are no longer a good Doctor Who villain. They survive more on nostalgia value than anything else, and there’s not really been a New Who episode that showcases them as potentially lethal threats since Dalek. The closest thing we’ve had to an episode in which the Daleks constitute a real threat since then is The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End, episodes which hardly stands as a high point for villainous masterplans.

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Contrary to popular conceptions, at its core it’s not even about the Doctor. If we travel back to 1963 we do of course meet the TARDIS and the Doctor but we soon realise that they are the frame in which the story is hanged. Ostensibly most of the first two seasons revolve around the TARDIS team trying to get Ian and Barbara home to 1960s London after being kidnapped by the Doctor for rumbling his affairs, so why take a roundabout route visiting Kublai Khan, Robespierre and the Sensorites?

Interestingly, from the modern Who perspective, none of the early serials focus on the character of the Doctor. The earliest story is The Tenth Planet but that just establishes that he can rejuvenate; the whole mythos of regeneration comes a lot later. Even The Deadly Assassin which establishes the 12 regeneration limit really focuses on the Master trying to cheat death.
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New website! New content! Whether you come to us for our Doctor Who commentaries, our discussions on sci-fi and fantasy TV, films and books, our interviews or our video game columns, we think you’ll love our new look. Fresher and easier to navigate, the new site will launch on Saturday 18th August Saturday 25th August, with a raft of new content.

In this week’s podcast, we outline the major changes and interview acclaimed horror writer Simon Kurt Unsworth about his new regular column for us, exploring the ups-and-downs of writing for a living. Plus, we tell you, faithful listener, about the many new ways you can get involved with the podcast, so download it now if you’d like to be a part of it!

It’s the end, but the moment has been prepared for. Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell draw our Series 5 commentaries to a close.

Where can a show turn when it’s just wiped out the whole of existence? Why, the National Museum of Wales, of course! We discuss whether the show over-uses its most regular locations and wonder when the polar bears joined the alliance against the Doctor. Plus, does the wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey runaround still hold up, or is it just lots of exposition interrupted by bouts of repetitive action? And can we have Matt Smith dancing in every episode, please?

All this and more, in the latest Impossible Podcast! Download us now!

That’s it for our Series 5 commentaries, but we’ll be commentating on Series 7 week by week, as it happens, so stay tuned!

Join Sarah and Peter as they plough headlong into the first part of Doctor Who’s Series 5 finale!

It’s been a long journey since ‘The Eleventh Hour‘ and, as Moffat moves his pieces into position for the final confrontation, we chart his progress through the series so far. Did he deliver on his early promises? Has he beaten Russell T Davies at his own game? And, more importantly, has the production team found a way to lessen the embarrassment of those awful new-look Daleks? All this plus: zombie Cybermen, rubbish Romans, horror movie homages and the speech to end all speeches. Oh, and Rory’s back! Yay!

A little later than usual, Caleb and Sarah continue our run of Series 5 commentaries.

Comedy masterpiece or a joke too far? We take a long hard look at Gareth Roberts’ light-hearted fish-out-of-water tale and ask some serious questions. Did this story forever change the tone of Matt Smith’s portrayal of the Doctor? Could the show ever work with a permanent male companion? And would James Corden be the one for the role? Let us know what you think, in the comments below or via Facebook and Twitter!

Caleb and Sarah discuss Scottish accents, art and death, rom-coms and more in our fan commentary on series 5 Doctor Who episode, ‘Vincent and the Doctor’!

The Doctor and Amy meet famous painter Vincent van Gogh in this episode penned by none other than Richard Curtis. But is Saturday teatime sci-fi the right slot for exploring themes of depression and suicide? Or is this episode proof that Doctor Who can be broader and deeper on the small screen than weekly alien invasions and unlikely raising of the stakes to imperil all of reality itself? Let us know what you think, in the comments or via Twitter and Facebook!

Caroline John, 1940 – 2012

Welcome to our monthly round-up of Doctor Who news, views and rumours.

We reflect on the sad death of Caroline John and examine her role as Dr Liz Shaw, one of the most distinctive companions of the Classic Series. Was she dropped for being too strong a character, or did the show’s new Earth-bound format simply work against her?

We also look ahead to the debut of Series 7 and the return of the Daleks. Listen to our theories about what lies in store!

Plus, we make a couple of very exciting announcements about the future of the podcast, including your chance to take part!

Your intrepid hosts, Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell conclude their commentary on the return of the Silurians. Frankly, it could have done with a few dinosaurs…

As the humans and Silurians teeter on the brink of war, we discuss the thorny issue of gender politics in crisis situations, wonder why the new Silurians act more like Cybermen than reptiles, and ask why on earth Chris Chibnall decided to have a secondary character start narrating the action half way through the story.

And, of course, there’s that ending…

There’s something amiss in the Welsh valleys (isn’t there always?) but fear not – your commentators Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell are here to talk you through it.

As Moffat redesigns his second classic monster of the series, we ask whether the new-look Silurians are really such a failure. There’s also a brief discussion of POV Monstervision, the logistics of running the world’s biggest deep-core drilling operation from a couple of laptops in a shed, and whether Chris Chibnall could have crammed any more Pertwee references into this story if he’d tried. All it’s missing is the Whomobile!

Now there’s an idea for the 50th anniversary…

Join Swithun Dobson, Sarah Burrow and Caleb Woodbridge as Doctor Who goes all wibbly-wobbly, dreamy-weamy.

As the TARDIS crew are forced to choose between two competing realities, we ask why the show doesn’t do more of these “format breaker” episodes. Plus, we assess the emotional see-saw that is Amy’s love life, the dark side of the Doctor and re-examine the start of a phenomenon – Rory kicking the bucket.

Join us, for all this and more!

Caleb Woodbridge, P G Bell and Sarah Burrow face the Vampires of Venice in our latest Doctor Who commentary!


We discuss vital questions such as, what is the Doctor thinking with his matchmaking techniques? How much does this story fall prey to “time tourism” syndrome? Are alien fish creatures an acceptable substitute for real vampires? All this and much more!

Caleb Woodbridge and P.G. Bell bring you our monthly roundup of news, views and chatter.

It’s a short and sweet one this month – just enough time to congratulate Steven Moffat on his new BAFTA, wave goodbye to the Ponds and hello to Jenna-Louise Coleman, and ponder the demise of the SFX Weekender convention. Plus, a look ahead to next month’s podcasts, which are chock full of Doctor Who goodness!

Caleb Woodbridge and Sarah Burrow go back to commentate on The Time of Angels, the story which reintroduced River Song and the Weeping Angels for the Steven Moffat era. With the Angels returning for Amy and Rory’s departure from the show in the autumn, does it hold any clues to the future?

You can read what our very own James Willetts thought of the episode at the time in his Time of Angels review. And in wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey fashion, we recorded our commentary on Flesh and Stone, the second half of the story, back in 2010 when it first aired.

“I have been asked if I want to do a 2013 multi-Doctor special…”

The sixth Doctor speaks! One of the stars at this year’s SFX Weekender convention, Colin took the opportunity to hold forth on his four decades in show business and spill the beans on his greatest televisual triumph… Come Dine With Me.

He also gives a frank assessment of Doctor Who past and present as well as sharing some really excellent advice for budding actors everywhere. It was a presidential performance and one not to be missed!

Join Caleb Woodbridge, Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell as they deliver our monthly round-up of news, rumours and feedback.

It’s been another busy month. With Doctor Who filming on both sides of the Atlantic, we discuss the on-set pics and wonder how long we can avoid the major spoiler that leaked out this week. (Don’t worry – we give nothing away).

JK Rowling, creator of Harry Potter, announced the title of her new adult crime novel – The Casual Vacancy. We wonder what it all means and take a detour into Pottermore, the official home of the Harry Potter e-books.

And while we’re on the subject of the boy wizard, Sarah got to preview The Making of Harry Potter set tour in London recently, and gives us her expert verdict. You’ll find a few pics of her adventures after the jump below, or visit our Facebook page to see the whole album.

All this and more in the latest Points of Who! (more…)

“I didn’t stab anybody in the throat…”

Eve Myles is a local girl at heart. She may have swapped Cardiff for Los Angeles, but she was thrilled to be back in Wales for an in-depth Q&A at February’s SFX Weekender convention.

In a pretty candid interview, she reveals the story behind her pivotal role in The Unquiet Dead, how she unwittingly set a new trend in Hollywood and what she really thinks of Torchwood’s future. All this, plus the revenge of Little Barrowman.

Ianto speaks! If you liked this, check out our Gareth David-Lloyd interview.

We’re four years old today! And to celebrate, we’re challenging David Yates to his own game and coming up with our very own Doctor Who movie.

High concept ideas. Multi million dollar budgets. A cast of thousands. These are just some of the things we’ll never be trusted with and, on the strength of this podcast, that’s probably a wise move. But we let our imaginations run riot and cook up not one, but six competing movie pitches.

Who are our Doctors of choice? Which monsters will they be facing? And who will write and direct the madness? Join us to find out!

Once you’ve heard the podcast, head to our Facebook page or the comments section below to vote for whose film you’d choose to see. Find IMDB links on our choices page – contains spoilers for the podcast!

Your Impossible Podcasts team in Eddie’s Diner

Welcome back to Points of Who, our monthly roundup of news, views and general waffle.

And what a month it’s been! The Doctor’s new companion for Series 7 was confirmed, in the form of the lovely Jenna-Louise Coleman. We discuss her casting and float a tantalising (if unlikely) theory about the sort of character Steven Moffat might have in mind for her.

Then there was the official BBC Doctor Who convention right here in Cardiff and we’ve got a report from the front lines. Sort of. We did at least meet with the fine folk of the Who’s He, Ubuntu UK and Doctor Who podcasts, and recorded some of the results. And, for your continued listening pleasure, we give you a quick roundup of some of our favourite geek-friendly podcasts. (See the links below to visit their sites).

All this, plus your feedback and a look ahead to some of our forthcoming podcasts. So what are you waiting for? Click below and give us a listen!

Links to other podcasts…

• The Who’s He? Podcast
• The Oncoming Storm
• Kermode & Mayo’s Film Review
• The Incomparable Podcast

Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson, Sarah Burrow and P. G. Bell return to The Beast Below, the second episode of the Smith/Moffat era!

Join us as we discuss Star Wars references, political allegory, sparkly space whales, Paragon versus Renegade actions, and whether the Doctor is pro- or anti-monarchy! But watching the episode again, will the team choose to Protest or Forget?

What did you think of The Beast Below? Should the Doctor have brought down the British monarchy? Did you care about the plight of the space whale? And just what had happened to the Welsh on Starship Britain?!

It’s time for some words of wisdom from the Seventh Doctor himself, Sylvester McCoy – recorded live at last February’s SFX Weekender. Sylvester was on typically lively form, swapping the safety of the stage for a roving microphone and getting up close and personal with his public.

And what a show he gave us. Not content with revealing a few secrets of his time in the TARDIS, he explained the origins of his stage name (be warned: it involves a rather naughty joke), why he used to set fire to his own head for money and what he really thinks of Matt Smith’s performance as the Doctor. Even more excitingly, he revealed how he won the role of Rrrrrrrrradagast the Brrrrrrrown in Peter Jackson’s forthcoming Hobbit movies. This one’s not to be missed!

What was Sylvester’s greatest Doctor Who moment? Head to our Facebook page and have your say!

The dust has settled, the hangovers faded and the cosplay has been packed away for another year. But was this year’s SFX Weekender – one of Britain’s biggest sci-fi and fantasy conventions – worth the trip?

It’s safe to say that not everything went according to plan, but did the stellar guest list make up for the freezing temperatures and interminable queues? P.G. Bell shares the high and low points with Caleb Woodbridge and Sarah Burrow. PLUS! a report on the inaugural cosplay competition and interviews with a few of the participants. Click on the jump below to find photos of some of the people we spoke to, but head on over to our Facebook page to see a complete gallery of the weekend’s events! (right click and “Save Target/Link As…”)

P.S. The excellent ‘Transdimensional Mix’ of the Doctor Who theme music comes courtesy of HardWire.

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Caleb and Swithun discuss:

• (from 1 min) The recovery of missing episodes of Doctor Who from Galaxy 4 and The Underwater Menace: celebration or disappointment?
• (from 19 min) How should the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who be marked by the BBC, by fans, and by us as a podcast?

Sarah and Caleb discuss:

• (from 29 min) The Sherlock finale, The Reichenbach Fall, including just how did Sherlock survive that fall?
• (from 39 min) The Hunger Games trailer – how will the film compare to the book?

For such a diverse show, Doctor Who has always stuggled when it comes to video games. Could Worlds in Time be the one to buck the trend? Olivia Cottrell takes her virtual TARDIS for a spin…

Pity the Doctor Who fan who also happens to be a video game geek. While the Doctor might initially seem a perfect fit for the video game world – his universe of strange aliens, dramatic stories and quirky characters is already one with a touch of the virtual about it – the franchise’s attempts to cross into video games have so far been decidedly lacklustre. While perfectly decent for free titles, a clunky control system and broken AI meant that the recent range of downloadable 3D Adventure Games were frequently frustrating experiences.  As someone who considers herself both a video games nerd (I’ve spent too many hours shouting at dragons over the past month to successfully argue otherwise) and a Doctor Who fan, I was ready for something more satisfying.

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Remember all those commentaries we never got round to in Series 5? Well, here they come!

The team take advantage of Doctor Who’s extended leave of absence to fill in some of the gaps in their back catalogue, starting with Matt Smith’s debut adventure. Click below to find out what Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson, Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell make of the newly regenerated series. Does the shadow of Russell T. Davies still loom large? How does Amy keep up her mortgage repayments on a kiss-o-gram’s salary? And when will the show ever get round to a Groundhog Day episode?

In the second Points of Who, we go beyond our commentaries to catch up on the Doctor Who news and rumours.

In this episode:

• Caleb and Sarah discuss David Yates’ original comments on making a Doctor Who film.
• Swithun and James discuss Steven Moffat’s response and what they’d like to see from a Doctor Who movie.
• Caleb and Sarah discuss the Night and the Doctor mini-episodes.
• Caleb gives his in-depth review of series 6 as a whole.

Should Doctor Who go to Hollywood, or is it better suited for the small-screen? How does series 6 hold up now it’s out as a box-set? Let us know your thoughts below!

Merry Christmas! Caleb Woodbridge, Sarah Burrow and P. G. Bell go through the wardrobe to discuss this year’s Doctor Who Christmas special, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe!

In our latest podcast commentary, we discuss the influence of C S Lewis on Doctor Who, whether Matt Smith should have a child as a companion, the criminal underuse of Bill Bailey, Steven Moffat’s gender politics, the place of fairytales in Doctor Who, the extraordinary in the everyday and much more.What did you think of this year’s Christmas special? Did it enchant you, or did you feel it could have been better? What other classic Christmas stories would translate well to Doctor Who?

Join us as we discuss whether the disaster movie format is compatible with the traditional Doctor Who good versus evil showdown, the representation of angels in pop culture, the deification and deconstruction of the Doctor, and much more. And a merry Christmas to all of you at home!Don’t forget to check out our spoiler-free preview of this year’s Christmas special, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe, and come back in a couple of days for our podcast commentary on the same!

Previewing the Doctor Who Christmas special is like opening presents early: a guilty yet irresistible pleasure. But is Steven Moffat’s Narnia-inspired The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe a cracker or a turkey?

The story begins with a bang, literally, with a madcap escape for the Doctor. In the course of his adventure, he encounters Madge Arwell, played by Claire Skinner, in a role that isn’t a million miles off her part of the Mum in Outnumbered. Mr Smith voice artist Alexander Armstrong appears in the flesh as her husband Reg, while the casting directors of Doctor Who show their talent once more at finding good child actors for the parts of Cyril and Lily. Throw in Bill Bailey and co as the comedy support act, and Matt Smith doing his patent blend of age-old wisdom and child-like enthusiasm, and you’re all set for the now-traditional “Christmassiest Christmas ever!”

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Our Christmas countdown continues as Sarah Burrow, Swithun Dobson, James Willetts and P.G. Bell revisit Catherine Tate’s fan-baiting debut as companion-to-be, Donna Noble. “For better or for worse…”

There’s no denying that comedian Catherine Tate is the heart and soul of the 2006 Christmas special. But did we love her or hate her? Join us as we pick sides and discuss other noteworthy aspects of the show’s second festive outing, including: cliffhangers, cleavage, Gallifrey, and why Torchwood would need Segways.And there’s still more to come! Visit again next week when we’ll be discussing ‘Voyage of the Damned’. Was it really a disaster in every sense? Until then, head down into the comments section and let us know what you thought of this latest podcast.

Tis the season to be jolly! In the first of a series of festive treats, Swithun Dobson, P.G. Bell, Sarah Burrow and – specially flown in from the North Pole – James Willetts revisit the very first Doctor Who Christmas Special, ‘The Christmas Invasion’.

Remember when the show was still trying to prove itself? When David Tennant was the new kid on the block? When we had yet to visit an alien world? It all seems so long ago now, so how does this yuletide special hold up to scrutiny? Join us as we discuss killer Christmas trees, why the Doctor doesn’t like Christmas and try to think of some other Christmas-themed entertainment that’s actually Christmassy. (Here’s a clue… Die Hard).How did you like this blast from Christmas past? We want to hear from you! Head down into the comments to share your thoughts, and be sure to come back next week for our next Christmas Special commentary – ‘The Runaway Bride’.

Caleb Woodbridge, P.G. Bell and Sarah Jane devotee Brandon Michelle pay tribute to the wonderful Elisabeth Sladen, who as Sarah Jane Smith won the hearts of generations of fans.

We look back on The Sarah Jane Adventures in our commentary on the final story, ‘The Man Who Never Was‘, discussing Elisabeth Sladen’s return to our screens via Doctor Who, the show’s place in children’s television drama history, and what both she and the show mean to us.

Welcome to our first edition of Points of Who, our new regular slot for your feedback!

Up until now, we’ve been discussing your comments, tweets, emails and the like on a fairly ad-hoc basis. But we’ve decided to have a monthly slot dedicated to your questions, views and opinions.

In this episode, we discuss your reactions to The Wedding of River Song, plus where to find Doctor Who actors in horror movies (answer: practically everywhere!). We also welcome a new guest commentator Brandon to the show, and ask for your suggestions in naming P. G. Bell’s baby boy – his wife has already vetoed Stormaggedon!We also announce our new regular schedule for the coming months with Doctor Who off the air…

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Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow discuss ‘The Wedding of River Song’ , episode 13 of Doctor Who series 6. As the Doctor heads to his almost certain death, something has gone very wrong with time, thanks to a woman…

We discuss alternate realities, guns’n’eyepatches, Indiana Jones, the Brigadier Alastair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, time loops, the motives of the Silence, the legend of the Doctor, stepping back into the shadows, story arcs and more, plus we look forward to the Christmas special and beyond!

Caleb Woodbridge looks ahead to ‘The Wedding of River Song’, considering seven possible (or impossible!) ways to cheat death when you’re a Time Lord!

Theories covered include:

1. “I woke up and it was all a terrible dream”
2. It’s the Doctor’s ganger!
3. It’s the Tessalecta!
4. “Regeneration juice” and other technobabble
5. “Time can be rewritten”
6. “To be fair, the universe did blow up”
7. The love of a good woman?

Listen to the evidence for and against each one, let us know your predictions, and check back in a day or two’s time for our commentary on the finale!

As the Doctor’s death approaches, he makes a social call on his old friend Craig Owens, but soon finds himself saving the world one last time. We discuss the Doctor’s parenting skills, Cardiff filming locations, sentimental endings, and much more, as well as responding to your feedback on The God Complex!

Caleb Woodbridge previews ‘Closing Time’, episode 12 of Doctor Who by Gareth Roberts.

Two hundred years later, and the Doctor is preparing to meet his end at Lake Silencio. As part of his “farewell tour”, he calls in on Craig Owens (James Corden from The Lodger) to make a social call, but with mysterious power shortages and disappearing shop attendants, he can’t resist investigating one last mystery…

After exploring the darker side of travelling with the Doctor in The Girl Who Waited and The God Complex (don’t forget to check out our audio commentaries on those episode), we’re back to a much lighter action-adventure in this week’s encounter with the Cybermen. The domestic humour combined with something sinister in a department store harks back to Russell T Davies-era Who, especially the first episode Rose, which is no bad thing in my book.

As might be expected from the pen of Gareth Roberts, who brought us last series’ The Lodger, as well as the witty The Unicorn and the Wasp and The Shakespeare Code, the jokes come thick-and-fast. The bromance between the Doctor and Craig reaches new levels (and the return of the so-called “Gay Agenda”!) One of the Doctor’s new abilities from earlier in the series provides a great running gag too.

James Corden is one of those comedy guest stars, like David Walliams last week or Catherine Tate before, who tend to polarise opinion. I really enjoyed both Gavin and Stacey and The Lodger, and Corden’s turn as the hapless but likeable Craig Owens is just as entertaining a second time round, though sadly Daisy Haggard only gets a cameo as Sophie. There’s a fun reappearance for Lynda Baron, making her third guest showing in Doctor Who: she was Captain Wrack in the Peter Davison story Enlightenment, and sang ‘The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon’ all the way back in 1966 for The Gunfighters!

Some might find the ending a bit too sentimental – the Doctor says as much! But I really enjoyed it – it’s fun, touching and scary in the right places. The Cybermen get treated properly as monsters and are nicely effective, even on a small scale.

Although an unashamedly fun episode, the shadow of the Doctor’s impending death looms large, and the closing moments lead directly in to the events we saw back at the start of the series, where the Doctor was struck down by the Impossible Astronaut. Closing time indeed…

Check back on Saturday night for our audio commentary on ‘Closing Time’ and to let us know what you thought!

Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow discuss ‘The God Complex’ , episode 11 of Doctor Who series six, penned by Being Human writer Toby Whithouse.

The Doctor, Amy and Rory face their nightmares in an infinite hotel, but has travelling with the Doctor finally become too dangerous? We discuss nightmares, blogger stereotypes, religion in Doctor Who, Rory’s lack of faith, the question of what the Doctor believes in, the departure of Amy and Rory Williams, and much more.

Caleb Woodbridge and Swithun Dobson discuss the finale of Torchwood: Miracle Day, The Blood Line. Has Miracle Day given Torchwood a new lease of life or reduced it to shambling corpse?

We discuss Holocaust parallels, dystopian futures, sympathy for the devil (or at least Oswald Danes), the clash between its high concept science fiction concept and its action-thriller format, and deliver our verdict on the series as a whole!Have you stuck with Torchwood through to the end? What did you think of the conclusion to Miracle Day? Do you want to see more from the Torchwood team, and if so, where should the show go next?

James Willetts brings us his review of ‘The Girl Who Waited’! Don’t forget to check out our commentary, and let us know what you think!

What can you say about The Girl Who Waited? Well first of all, it’s brilliant. Secondly though, it’s yet another chance for the cast to showcase just how great they are.

I was speaking to someone the other day who complained that since RTD left Doctor Who hadn’t been the same. They were right. It’s got better. This has been touted as a little bit like Turn Left, but it’s as superior to that as the Original Trilogy is to the Prequels.

This isn’t just look what happens if the Doctor dies, if you make the wrong choice, go through the wrong door. This is what happens if that wrong decision is compounded again and again. None of it malicious. This wasn’t a trick to make things deliberately worse. This wasn’t a world threatening sequence of disasters. It was one woman who pressed the wrong button and ended up in a different time stream. That’s it.

In fact the whole theme of this episode was choices. It opens with Amy making the wrong choice of what button to press (but it was one that Rory and the Doctor could easily have made too), hinged upon Amy making the decision to work with Rory to save her younger self, and ended with the Doctor leaving Rory to make the choice about which wife to save.

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Caleb Woodbridge reviews ‘The God Complex’, episode 11 of Doctor Who, a weird and twisted tale of nightmares and infinite corridors by Being Human scribe Toby Whithouse.

After last week’s excellent The Girl Who Waited, this keeps up the high standard with a neat psychological tale. Although last week’s events aren’t referenced directly, it certainly has an impact on the Doctor’s relationship with Amy and Rory. The Doctor’s fallibility comes under more scrutiny as the TARDIS team face their worst nightmares…

The Minotaur makes for a great monster, and there’s a strong guest cast, including David Walliams doing a typically Walliamsian turn as Gibbis, one of the most cowardly creatures in the cosmos. Amara Karan is the other stand-our performance, playing Rita, who I think is Doctor Who‘s first Muslim character (at least since the 1965 historical story The Crusade, which says a lot). Questions of faith form an important part of the story – it’s the most theological Doctor Who has been since The Satan Pit back in Tennant’s first series.

The nightmare hotel is reminiscent of Whithouse’s portrayal of Purgatory in Being Human series 3, which also featured people’s individual fears. It’s interesting that in telefantasy, Purgatory has become a place where characters go to “Face their Issues” rather than be purged of their sins: the afterlife adapted for the therapy age. That’s not what’s going on here though – we’re still firmly in science-fiction territory.

There are lots of easter-eggs for fans of the show, including blink and you’ll miss them glimpses of old monsters (plus a member of the production team!) There’s a sly link back to a Tom Baker era story, and a vital scene that echoes a moment in The Curse of Fenric. 

It’s not as emotional as last week, but still a strong, moving and intelligent story. Check back on Saturday night for our podcast commentary on the show!

It’s the end, but has the moment been prepared for? Well, sort of – like Miracle Day as a whole, ‘The Blood Line’ is a mix of the good, the bad and the just plain silly. But it carries it off with enough energy and conviction to make it compelling, if not entirely coherent, storytelling. And inevitably, not everyone is going to make it out alive…

Tough choices await Captain Jack and the rest of his team. Much of the drama centres around the decision to bring back death, giving a real sense of the weight and responsibility of the choice. This is especially true of Gwen Cooper, whose opening speech sets the tone for the episode, and Eve Myles does a great job as usual of humanising what could become a rather abstract concept. Central to the series is the theme of the danger of deciding who lives and who dies.

On a lighter note, there are also some fan-pleasing references to Doctor Who continuity. And the last few scenes come with a twist that will redefine Torchwood as a show if it returns – but whether it will be renewed is very much in question.

Perhaps more importantly, should the show return? Check back on Thursday night for our commentary and full post-mortem dissection of the undead corpse of Torchwood: Miracle Day!

Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow commentate on ‘The Girl Who Waited’ by Tom MacRae, the latest episode of Doctor Who!

With Amy Pond trapped in the Red Waterfall facility, can the Doctor and Rory rescue her before she is killed by kindness? Or will time catch up with her first?

We discuss time-travel conundrums, asking if knowing the conventions of the show’s format helps or hinders the drama. We dig deep into Amy and Rory’s relationship, praising Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill’s performances, plus spot the connections to The Mind Robber, City of Death and Amy’s Choice, keep score with Moffat Bingo and much more!

Batten down the hatches, lock up your daughters and wrap that precious Torchwood fandom of yours in cotton wool and bubble wrap – Swithun is back!

As the Torchwood team make their penultimate moves in the game against the Three Families, we discuss the overall sweep of the series so far, wonder at the true nature of the Blessing and take a wild guess at how things might be resolved next week. This is your last (but one) chance to join us, so click below and give us a listen!

This week’s contributors: P.G. Bell and Swithun DobsonWe’re thinking of taking our arc plot disucssion further and would love to have your input. Let us know your favourite and most hated arc-heavy shows. Lost, BSG, X-Files… we want your opinions on the lot. Make yourself heard and we’ll do our best to include your thoughts in a future podcast!

We don’t have our usual commentary for you this week, but worry not – we’ve got a terrificly spirited and in-depth discussion for you instead.

Location, location, location… how much influence does it have on Doctor Who, and how does Steven Moffat use it differently to Russell T. Davies? Plus, as Mark Gatiss returns to the show he helped relaunch, we examine his back catalogue and wonder whether we can forgive him for last year’s Dalek fiasco. Finally, we veer into a fairly serious debate about arc plots v. standalone episodes. Has Doctor Who got the balance right? (We’ll give you three guesses about Swithun’s stance on this one…)

All this, and a brand new podcaster! Join us in welcoming Sarah Burrow to our scary cupboard of fandom.

This week’s contributors: Anna Bell, P.G. Bell, Sarah Burrow, Swithun DobsonArticle: Click here for Swithun’s article, ‘Doctor Who’s Story Arc of Infinity (and Beyond?)’

We’re thinking of taking our arc plot disucssion further and would love to have your input. Let us know your favourite and most hated arc-heavy shows. Lost, BSG, X-Files… we want your opinions on the lot. Make yourself heard and we’ll do our best to include your thoughts in a future podcast!

Scary for scary’s sake? Reviewer James Willetts asks whether last Saturday’s episode had more to it that meets the (glass) eye…

There’s a lot of talk a lot of the time about how scary new-Who can be. How it’s somehow unsuitable for children, as though terrifying them about a fictional monster is in some way going to emotionally cripple them for life. It’s an argument that most people, thankfully, have little time for, and I bring it up because ‘Night Terrors’, an episode which was seemingly designed simply to scare the crap out of small children everywhere, actually addresses it. It’s a nicely meta moment that sums up everything else within this episode; a child’s father mentions that, to stop him being scared, they banned scary television.

It’s probably a common response. If you read the message boards and speak to parents they often worry that Doctor Who may be unsuitable for their child. As though mild peril with a through-flowing message that everything will be alright in the end is a bad thing.

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It’s here! Our (one man) discussion of the latest episode of Miracle Day.

After the twists and revelations of last week’s episode, can Torchwood maintain the standard? Will the presence of so many other sci-fi franchise actors help or hinder them? And just what has Oswald Danes been up to these past few weeks? P.G. Bell takes a one man romp (maybe more of a saunter) through the latest happenings.  James Willetts will be back later in the week with his written review.

It’s here! Our first commentary of the new (half) series.

And what an episode it was – shock regenerations, miniature people, shape shifting robots, killer squid things, young Amelia and, of course, Adolf Hitler. Plenty to like, plenty to disagree about, so click below to find out what we all thought.

This edition’s commentators: Swithun, Peter, Gwen and Anna.Was this episode worth the wait? And were you playing Moffat Bingo with the rest of us? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and on our Facebook page!

James Willetts. Doctor Who. Review. Need we say more?

There’s something wonderful about Nazis. Not in a weird way – I’m not one of those people. But if you want someone who can exist as simply a villain, with no qualms, morality or care for their welfare, Nazis are brilliant. Always have been. Forget Islamic terrorists, the Soviets or whatever super villain society you can conjure up; if you want an unquestionably evil bad guy, you have to go with Nazis*.

And Hitler, now Hitler is just a whole other level. If Nazis are bad, then the chief Nazi must be so much worse.

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Doctor Who is back! Our full-length commentary will be online later this week but, to tide you over, here’s something a little bit special. WARNING: contains some spoilers about a returning monster!

Our very own Caleb Woodbridge had the chance to question Steven Moffat, Arthur Darvill and Karen Gillan at the recent preview screening for ‘Let’s Kill Hitler’, held at the British Film Institute in London. Find out how the showrunner keeps his stories straight, his approach to the mythology of the Doctor and, most importantly, why they really keep killing Rory.

The secrets of the universe lie within this podcast.* Can you afford to live without it?*As long as you consider Karen Gillan’s favourite outfit of the series one of the secrets of the universe.

What better way of celebrating the return of Doctor Who this weekend than by saluting our Ming-Mong-In-Chief? How, we hear you ask? Why, by downloading these exclusive Moffat Bingo cards of course!

Moffat Bingo couldn’t be easier to play. Simply print out the cards below (there are three different arrangements in total) then sit down with a pen, a friend (you do have one of those, right?) and the latest episode of Doctor Who. Then cross off each trope as and when it appears in the story. Easy! The first person to complete a line of five squares wins. See if you can get a full house (crossing off every square on the card) over the course of the series.

Our thanks go to podcast listeners Kevin Greenan, Fiona James and Jon Rook who suggested suitable Moffatisms over at our Facebook page, and to Anna Bell for her help in designing the finished cards.

Check back after tonight’s broadcast for some insights from the man himself, as we bring you highlights from the recent ‘Let’s Kill Hitler’ preview Q&A, with Steven Moffat, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill.

No time for a full commentary this week, sorry, but Gwen Williams and P.G. Bell go tête á tête over the details of ‘Immortal Sins’, the latest episode of Torchwood: Miracle Day.

In addition to discussing whether this marks a turning point for the series, we find time to talk about Catholocism, homosexuality, armed police response units, the upward trend of John Barrowman’s acting (no, really) and velociraptors. What more could you ask for? (Apologies for any slight discrepancies in the sound quality of this week’s podcast – we experienced a few technical difficulties that we’ve done our best to remedy in the editing process).Looking forward to the return of Doctor Who? Don’t forget to join us for Moffat Bingo, which will be available here on the blog on Saturday. Plus, stay tuned for a word from the man himself, recorded at the recent Q&A session at the British Film Institute!

Reviewer James Willetts weighs in on the latest episode of Torchwood. Has his patience finally paid off?

With a single episode Torchwood has sparked a resurgence, albeit one that may well have come too late for the casual viewer. After five weeks of lethargically plotted, unyieldingly slow story, we’re finally rewarded with three ongoing plot threads that are equally relevant and interesting. It’s hard to believe that this is the same series.

Whilst Rhys and Gwen try to break her father out of the Welsh concentration camp, Jack does some investigative work into PhiCorp and Rex and Esther set out to reveal the truth about the death of Dr Juarez.

Rex and Esther are both given a chance to shine here and, after five weeks in which neither have shown much in the way of engaging characterisation (Esther in particular having suffered from a bad case of the ‘Nobody Cares-ies’) it’s certainly refreshing to see them both engaging in some plot advancing escapades. Their story also benefits from a series of scenes which successfully build the tension as Rex digs himself deeper and deeper into trouble.

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Caleb Woodbridge, P.G. Bell and Gwen Williams discuss Miracle Day episode 6, ‘The Middle Men’. (Check out our spoiler-free review!)

We discuss Shanghai geography, Chinese swearing, whether 45 storeys is enough to guarantee unconciousness, Ghostbuster Ernie Hudson’s turn as Stuart Owens, Jack Harkness as gay or omnisexual, Esther’s uselessness, Gwen’s awesomeness, and the amount of posing that goes into blowing stuff up! Plus much more…

It’s time to play Moffat Bingo! With Series 6b almost upon us, we’re finally making good on an old promise and compiling a list of the Moff’s most enduring tropes to see how many of them turn up in the new episodes. And we want YOU, faithful podcast fans, to help us!

Simply visit our Facebook page, post your suggestions on the wall and we’ll add the best (and funniest) to our patent-pending Moffat Bingo card, which will be posted here on the blog so you can play along at home. See how many tropes you can tick off per episode! (I feel a drinking game coming on…)

Here are a couple to start you off…

1. The Doctor adopts a new form of headgear

2. A Classic monster receives a controversial (and largely unnecessary) redesign

3. We meet a character who knows more about the Doctor’s future than the Doctor does

4. Alex Kingston regenerates into Julia Sawalha

Okay, maybe not that last one, but you get the idea!

Click here for our Facebook page.

Direct from the BFI screening, Caleb Woodbridge brings us his spoiler-free review of ‘Let’s Kill Hitler‘, the first episode of the autumn run of Doctor Who!

As the Doctor, Amy and Rory search for Melody Pond, they find the TARDIS hijacked! Arriving in Berlin, 1938, they discover they aren’t the only time-travellers present and that Hitler isn’t the worst war criminal on the loose…

I was lucky enough to get a ticket to the BFI screening of Let’s Kill Hitler in the two hours before they sold out. The screen was packed with fans and press, who laughed and cheered and whooped in all the right places. Scattered around the room were various Doctor Who cast and crew, from Michael Pickwoad the producting designer, to writer Phil Ford, Doctor Who Magazine editor Tom Spilsbury and many others of the great and the good. And, of course, Steven Moffat, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill – though sadly not Matt Smith, who is busy filming another series.

We’ll have more on the screening and Q&A soon, but now you can hear my first spoiler-free reactions to the episode! Hit play or click download to hear my review. You can also read my 10 hints and teasers about Let’s Kill Hitler, and we’ll have our usual podcast commentary online after the show airs on BBC1!

You can also listen to Caleb’s spoiler-free review of ‘Let’s Kill Hitler’!

10 Clues and Teaser about ‘Let’s Kill Hitler’:

1. Some time has passed since the end of A Good Man Goes to War.

2. The opening shot is similar to one in series 5, but not for long!

3. There may be someone new taking a trip in the TARDIS…

4. The Doctor’s fame has spread even further, but not everyone is as hostile as the Clerics.

5. We find out why the Titanic sank.

6. Alex Kingston steals some clothes. And most of the scenes she’s in.

7. Some familiar faces are glimpsed, and they don’t make the Doctor happy.

8. The Beano may have been the inspiration for one plot thread!

9. The Doctor’s death is a fixed point in time, apparently.

10. Remember, the Doctor lies. And so does Steven Moffat.

James Willetts is back to pick over the bones of the latest episode of Miracle Day. Warning: may contain traces of Buffy.

So that was it. Torchwood’s big twist was that there was no twist. The concentration camps are just concentration camps and Oswald Danes really isn’t a nice man after all. Yes. It’s not exactly The Sixth Sense. Hell, it’s not even The Village, but Torchwood should really be applauded for its enthusiastic willingness to play it straight.

The only problem is, no one seems to have told the show runners, who breathlessly announced that this was the point at which PhiCorp’s true intentions would be revealed. Except, as it turned out, they were the same intentions that were revealed last week.

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Tomorrow evening, the BFI is hosting a special preview screening of Let’s Kill Hitler, the first episode of the autumn run of Doctor Who. Tickets sold out within hours, but our esteemed editor Caleb Woodbridge managed to nab a seat…

That’s right, I’ll be reporting on the event tomorrow night! I rewatched A Good Man Goes to War today in preparation for the screening, and I can’t wait to find out what happens next. How will Amy and Rory react to the news that River Song is their daughter? Will they rescue Amy’s baby? Is the Doctor really going to kill Hitler?! And this time tomorrow, I’ll know the answers…

I’ll be tweeting on @ImpossiblePod from the event, so follow us now! I’ll bring you a spoiler-free review as soon as I can after the event – keep your eye on the blog. Steven Moffat and Karen Gillan will also be taking part in a Q and A after the episode, so I should have plenty to report…

Doctor Who will almost certainly be returning to our television screens on Saturday 27th August. The trailer for series 6b is on the BBC website, but here’s something from YouTube that might make you laugh…

Caleb Woodbridge previews ‘The Middle Men’, episode 6 of Torchwood: Miracle Day. Reeling from the the death of one of the team, can the rest of Torchwood escape to let the world know the truth about the overflow camps?

Caleb Woodbridge, P.G. Bell and our new American commentator Gwen Williams give our commentary on episode 5, ‘Categories of Life’. (check out our spoiler-free review!)

As the Torchwood team go undercover to uncover the shocking secrets of the overflow camps, has Miracle Day at last hit its stride? Is the shock ending a bold move or big mistake? We discuss disintegrating healthcare systems, British queuing and much more…

James Willetts continues his weekly analysis of the Marvel Universe Miracle Day. Don’t forget this week’s podcast commentary, available immediately after the UK broadcast, tomorrow evening!

When I was a student I discovered a series that I instantly fell in love with. It was a genre bending mash up of Raymond Chandler-esque gumshoe investigation and teen drama, in a fresh and vibrant school setting. The first two seasons involved an ongoing plot arc but the third, faced with cancellation and troubled budgeting, featured two shorter mini-arcs – an elegant mix between episode-of-the-week shenanigans and a more involved season arc which meant the producers had a chance to tell two final stories rather than one.

The reason I bring this up is because we’re now four episodes into Torchwood: Miracle Day and nothing has happened since the first ten minutes. Now, this may be the most meta of stories: a plot that shambles on long after it should have died may be a novel way to demonstrate the problems of a world in which death is no more, but somehow, I don’t think so.

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Caleb Woodbridge previews ‘Categories of Life’, episode 5 of Torchwood: Miracle Day. As governments worldwide agree on the new “categories of life”, the Torchwood team goes undercover to discover the secrets of the overflow camps and their mysterious “modules”…

If you’ve been wavering over whether to stick with the series, this week may well be make or break. So far, Miracle Day has plodded rather than gripped, but events take a darker and more dramatic turn. This week brings some real shocks and revelations. Either you’ll be on the edge of your seat waiting for the next episode, or throwing things at the screen in frustration, or maybe even both.

‘Categories of Life’ is helped by keeping some of the cheesier conspiracy elements in the background: the focus is firmly on how society deals with the Miracle, without any off-the-peg Men in Black agents or mysterious spinning triangles. It’s all the stronger for it, and it’s possibly the first time that the scenes with Torchwood are as interesting as those with Oswald Danes and Jilly Kitzinger.

But while episode 5 pleases by actually making some bold moves, it sometimes frustrates with the clumsiness with which certain scenes and characters are handled. Sledgehammer subtlety would be elegant by comparison.

For all that, it regains a much needed sense of excitement and momentum, and is probably the best episode of Miracle Day since the series opener.

Episode 5 airs 9pm, Thursday 11th August, BBC1/HD, and our audio commentary will be online immediately afterwards. is now available.

Caleb Woodbridge and P.G. Bell give our commentary on episode 4, Escape to L.A. (check out our spoiler-free review), including Tea Party politics, the ethics of euthanasia, and the possible return of the Slitheen. We also consider Torchwood’s uncertain future, and wonder whether the show can go on without Russell T Davies at the helm. What did you think of the latest episode of Miracle Day? What did you think of Ellis Hartley Monroe’s  “Dead is Dead” campaign? Who do you think the mysterious Families are? Let us know your thoughts!

James Willetts shares his thoughts on last week’s episode of Torchwood. It seems he’s a glutton for punishment. Don’t forget to download our commentary for Episode 4: ‘Escape to LA’, available immediately after the UK broadcast tonight!

Torchwood, Torchwood, Torchwood. What the heck is going on here then?

Whilst the last few episodes have been all over the place in terms of realism, characterisation, plotting and holding an audience’s attention I’m still happy to watch this. No matter how bad it is, the innate draw of sci-fi, or just a neat ‘what if’ are enough to keep me going. Something has to be really bad to lose me entirely. I’m not one of these people who think life’s too short to waste on bad TV, or low budget B-Movies, or spending an evening of my life trying to find some Superhero themed music*.

Some people might see it as a character flaw. Personally, I think it’s more of a triumph. Anyone who’s read anything I’ve ever written, knows that I frequently dislike the shows I watch. Just because I have a tolerance for nonsense, doesn’t mean I can’t recognise it when I see it.

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Caleb Woodbridge previews ‘Escape to LA’, the fourth episode of Torchwood: Miracle Day. The Torchwood team arrive in Los Angeles, but there’s no time for sun and surf…

Torchwood: Miracle Day continues to build steadily in ‘Escape to LA’, as the world tries come to terms with what to do with the undying sick and injured. Gwen’s not the only member of the Torchwood team attempting to protect their family, and in each case, it brings unhappy consequences.

Arriving in Los Angeles, the Torchwood team take the fight to PhiCorp, but a trap is closing around them. Meanwhile, Tea Party politician Ellis Hartley Monroe is stirring up the masses with the slogan “Dead is Dead”, and stealing Oswald Dane’s limelight while she’s at it…

Oswald Dane’s self-preserving self-promotion reaches new heights, or depths. Although he’s one of the most interesting characters, I find the role he takes on at the end of episode 3 as unofficial spokesman for PhiCorp to be rather unbelievable. Even if he was able to win some measure of sympathy on Twitter, a convicted child rapist and murderer who’s escaped justice would still be a massively hated and controversial figure. His trajectory in this episode is no more credible, though his interplay with Jilly Kitzinger in this episode is entertaining.

Dr Vera faces the medical emergency and ethical questions. “The Western world has always hidden its unwanted”, one character observes with the clunkety-clunk of unsubtle social commentary in one scene. It’s good to see some of the larger patterns and theme of the series beginning to emerge more clearly.

There’s also a building sense of foreboding as the extent of PhiCorp’s plans begins to be revealed. A generous dash of action and humour go a long way once more to keeping the whole show watchable amid its many improbabilities. Watch out for Gwen’s attempt at an American accent!

So far Miracle Day has never been less than entertaining, but has yet to fully deliver on the promise of its premise. Four episodes in, the show really needs to be hitting its stride, but it still feels stuck in third gear. It continues to dangle the promise of greater things to come in front of the viewer. I’m intrigued by the Miracle Day concept, and the irreverence of the show keeps me watching, but it has yet to wow me.

Caleb Woodbridge and P.G. Bell discuss Episode 3, ‘Dead of Night’ (spoiler-free review here), including Captain Jack’s “mortal urges”, the implausible rise of Oswald Danes and whether Miracle Day is suffering from Lost syndrome.

With Swithun in America, Peter moving house, and Caleb going to a wedding and a job interview, real life has caught up with us, meaning a discussion rather than a commentary this week – but never fear, normal service will be resumed next week! Or at least, our usual episode commentary – we make no pretensions towards normality. Did you enjoy episode 3 of Torchwood? Are you gripped by each episode, or is your attention beginning to wander? What’s the purpose of the Miracle – is PhiCorp behind it, and why? Let us know your opinions, theories and speculation!

What about you – what are your geek interests, and what else would you like to see us cover? Do you have any cool “claim to fame” stories? And what do you think of our first foray into video? Let us know below!

There are two huge problems with the second episode of Miracle Day which derail an engaging and enjoyable story.

Unfortunately there are two parts of the episode which ring so false that all sense of logic, excitement and larger storyline are utterly lost. The first is the softening of the public’s attitude towards Oswald Danes, and the second is the creation of an anti-toxin to cure arsenic poisoning from the everyday contents of an aeroplane.

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Caleb Woodbridge previews ‘Dead of Night’, the third episode of Torchwood: Miracle Day. With Torchwood on the run, can they uncover the secrets of the Miracle?

After some slow development in Rendition, the plot picks up again in Dead of Night, as Torchwood begin investigating the Miracle in earnest. This week’s episode comes from the pen of Jane Espenson, scribe for Buffy and Battlestar Galactica and builds the story well as the new Torchwood team begins to come together, while the cult of the Soulless takes to the streets.

The main weakness of episode 2 of Miracle Day was that the Torchwood team – which was technically just Gwen at this point – was too busy brewing a magic potion to save Jack to actually do anything to investigate the Miracle. Here, Torchwood are being hunted down while actually investigating what’s going on, which makes for a much better balance.

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Caleb Woodbridge, P.G. Bell and Swithun Dobson give their commentary on episode 2, ‘Rendition’ (spoiler-free review here, detailed review to follow), as they discuss CIA security, DIY chemistry, zombie Ianto and much more!

The newly reunited Captain Jack and Gwen Cooper (John Barrowman and Eve Myles) find themselves separated from Rhys (Kai Owen) and baby Anwen (aaaw!) as Rex Matherson (Mekhi Phifer) extradites them to the good old U. S. of A. But with sinister CIA agent Lyn Peterfield (Dichen Lachman off of Nieghbours and Dollhouse) taking orders from above, will they even make it across the Atlantic? (Yes, since it’s only episode 2!)

Plus we discuss your feedback – thanks to Adam Purcell of Staggering Stories, A Figleaf of your Imagination (aka Aled Morgan) of Blogga the Hut and to Shuggie for their comments. Did you enjoy episode 2? Did the high-flying shenanigans grip you or bore you? What were your favourite scenes? Let us know in the comments, and stay tuned for our spoiler-free preview of episode 3!

Caleb Woodbridge looks ahead to ‘Rendition’, episode 2 of Torchwood: Miracle Day. But is it in-flight entertainment or mid-Atlantic pitstop?

Last week’s opener ‘The New World‘ seemed dedicated to putting the pieces on the board. With Rex Matheson extraditing Torchwood to America, you might expect episode 2 to be all systems go as the Torchwood team start investigating the “miracle”. But whereas Rex’s hop across the Atlantic took place between scenes, Captain Jack and Gwen Cooper find themselves in mid-flight peril.

It’s entertaining conspiracy hokum if that’s what you’re after. But the spy-thriller elements seem somewhat divorced from the much more interesting issue of the Miracle itself. The best scenes are those not involving the Torchwood team, but those that continue to explore its impact. Bill Pullman as Oswald Danes continues to steal the show, with Arlene Tur as Dr Vera Juarez also putting in a very strong showing.

There’s an important but credulity-stretching scene that echoes a comedy moment in series 4 of Doctor Who. But whereas Doctor Who could get away with it, it doesn’t convince as easily here, though your mileage will probably vary – it’s already divided opinion among American viewers. Believability takes a definite back-seat to dramatic effect on several other occasions too. I don’t mind suspending my disbelief, but this week I had to hang, draw and quarter it.

There are some great lines, my favourite being “I’m American, too. Can’t I contribute to our global cultural hegemony with a nice frosty cola?” We also meet Jilly Kitzinger, played to perfection by Lauren Ambrose as the annoying, smarter-than-she-lets-on PR lady. So it does have its redeeming moments, but so far is a long way from matching the quality of Children of Earth.

Check back 10pm Thursday night after UK broadcast for our podcast commentary on ‘Rendition’!

James Willetts aims his bazooka of truth at the low flying helicopter that is Torchwood: Miracle Day. 

Ever since RTD launched Torchwood as a spin off for Captain Jack in an attempt to make a more adult science fiction show, the programme has struggled to find a format that works. ‘Miracle Day’ is the latest attempt to keep Torchwood relevant, coming after two largely ignored seasons of varying quality, and a miniseries that was a critical success.

Following the idea of ‘Children of Earth’, a single storyline over a shorter amount of time, T:MD is a chance to prove that the achievements of the previous itineration have not been lost. More crucially, it’s a chance to prove that serious science fiction (or at least adult science fiction) can work. Since the last Torchwood there have been few attempts to launch big budget science fiction series other than the execrable Outcasts, and there seems to be no sign that the success of the last miniseries has sparked a surge in the desire for further science fiction output. Even as Doctor Who continues to hold strong (or lose ground, or plummet towards inevitable disaster, depending on who you listen to) other franchises have found it difficult to gain a foothold.

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As Torchwood goes trans-Atlantic in Miracle Day, co-produced by Starz and BBC, we dissect the show that just won’t die! But has it maintained the quality of Children of Earth or returned to the depths of Cyberwoman?

Join Caleb Woodbridge, P.G. Bell and Swithun Dobson in our commentary on Episode 1, ‘The New World’, as we discuss John Barrowman’s “acting”, the dangers of immortality, dodgy Welsh geography, the talents of Michael Bay and much more! What did you think of episode 1? Is Russell T Davies’ latest effort another classic, or has it yet to hit the mark? Is the American/Welsh combo a match made in heaven or a dog’s dinner? Let us know in the comments, and don’t forgot to read our spoiler-free review of The New World! 

Caleb Woodbridge and Swithun Dobson look ahead to Torchwood: Miracle Day – we’ll have our commentary on episode 1, The New World, online immediately after UK broadcast. Don’t forget to check out our Children of Earth commentaries (Day 1, Day 5) and interview with Gareth David-Lloyd!Caleb’s spoiler-free review:

Miracle Day opens with Oswald Danes, a murderer and a paedophile, about to be executed by lethal injection. It’s a clear statement of intent: Toto, I don’t think we’re in Doctor Who any more. Like its immediate predecessor, Children of Earth, this series looks set to take a twisted sci-fi look at the dark side of our humanity…

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Are you a fan of Doctor Who‘s new format? Podcast commentator Swithun Dobson (a.k.a. “The Great Intelligence”, a.k.a. “The Beast”) certainly isn’t and turns his critical eye on the past to suggest how the show might evolve in future.

Deafening Silence, River Melodies and “shenanigans”. Are story-arcs the future of Doctor Who? Since Steven Moffat acceded to the showrunner’s throne, the series has tended toward more heavily-arced narratives. Last year it was the Crack, this year it’s the not-so-silent Silence.

For the purpose of this article a story-arc will be defined as a continuing narrative which is directly related to each individual episode over a significant period of time, normally a single series. This definition should be treated as the gold standard against which other series can be compared, to determine their arcedness. (Bad Wolf, for instance, wasn’t an arc – it was an afterthought).

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James Willetts reviews the mid-series finale, with a somewhat less positive take than that of this week’s commentary team. Who do you agree with? Let us know in the comments!

If the first half of the episode was all about building the Doctor to be an all-destroying Action Hero, crushing everything in his path, the second was all about drawing him back from that path.

I’ve written a couple of times this season about my unease at the way the Doctor seems to solve problems with battles, and I’m glad that it was addressed here. I recognise that there is an intrinsic problem in television in showing conflict-resolution which doesn’t involve stuff blowing up. The problem many people have with much of Star Trek is the endless diplomacy. No one wants to see the Doctor changing people through dialogue and mediation with no running around and shouting. That’s boring, even if it is a better, more realistic route.

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River Song’s identity is finally revealed as ‘A Good Man Goes To War’! The Doctor and the Last Centurion, otherwise known as Rory Williams, husband to a kidnapped wife, father to an abducted daughter, go chasing after Amy and Melody Pond.

Find out what we thought of the latest developments in the Moffat Master Plan in our commentary!

Join us as we discuss ‘The Almost People’s’ many twists and turns, as the Eleventh Doctor, Amy and Rory attempt to escape the island and bring peace between humans and flesh, and face some startling discoveries of their own. We discuss everything from Roman Rory through to Moffat’s alleged sexism, and of course, that cliffhanger!

James Willetts reviews the twists and turns of ‘The Almost People’. Let us know what you think in the comments below. Don’t forget to download our commentary!

Cliffhangers seems to be the Doctor Who stock in trade these days, being dropped into episodes whether they make sense or not. Gone are the days when a cliffhanger ending meant an impending disaster to be resolved though, because these are more about setting up the next episode.

I’ve got mixed feelings about this week’s episode. On the one hand, I wasn’t at all a fan. It felt more like a slight miss than a big one and it never felt like a total disaster along the lines of ‘The Doctor’s Daughter’. It’s a big drop off from the greatness of the last few episodes. Yet at the same time this episode lives on unfairly thanks to another game-changing coda, presumably written by Moffat, that undoes much of what we thought we knew about the series so far and completely rewrites the Doctor’s motivation for this two-parter. (more…)

Join us as we discuss ‘The Rebel Flesh’, in which the Eleventh Doctor, Amy and Rory encounter a solar tsunami, acid mining, programmable matter and  renegade dopplegangers!

James Willetts shares his thoughts on ‘The Rebel Flesh’ – our commentary will follow shortly is now online. Let us know what you think in the comments!

As we kick off the second of this season’s two-parters, it’s great to be able to say that this was a good episode. I feel it’s necessary because the last time we got to this point in the season, last year’s Silurian double-feature The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood, I ended up giving up on what had been to that point an uneven start to the series. To say this has been the strongest New Who run ever is now surely a moot point. Further than that though, this episode means we’re now in the almost unprecedented position of having five straight episodes without a single stinker is more contentious but no less of an achievement. For the first time it feels like this is the programme that I have been waiting for Doctor Who to become.

Post-Industrial, low paid workers in peril is a recurring Doctor Who theme, as seen in Waters of Mars, 42 and The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit. Matthew Graham, this week’s writer, has fortunately managed to remove the majority of what made those episodes uniformly terrible, and in their place has crafted an excellent storyline with an interesting new monster.

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It must be noted, before I continue, that I have long been an ardent admirer of Neil Gaiman’s work. That’s not because I’m worried about the Johnny-Come-Latelies hijacking the Gaiman bandwagon. He’s too big for this to be a break out piece of work. Instead, I need to say that because this review will be so gushing, so enthusiastic and so pro-Gaiman that anyone would think I had gone into this with low expectations and been surprised by an unknown and unexpected quantity.

So let it be noted that this is not the case. I am well aware of Neil Gaiman’s talent. He can be directly credited with my love of comics (in the same way that without A New Hope I wouldn’t love Film, without Sandman I would never have discovered, or grown to love, comics). His writing, especially his children’s books and short story collections, is wonderful and his blog is brilliant. I love the films he has been involved with, whether as writer (Mirrormask), translator (Princess Mononoke) or as creator (Coraline, Stardust). He is one of my favourite authors, and I would purchase anything and everything he puts out.

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The Eleventh Doctor, Amy and Rory answer a Time Lord distress signal from a junk-yard beyond the universe, and meet the mysterious and beautiful Idris, in a story penned by top fantasy writer Neil Gaiman. But does it live up to the hype?

Join us as we discuss kisses to the past, exploring the TARDIS, the identity of Idris and much more!

What did you think – was this the best new series episode yet? Will this story change the way you see the show forever? What other parts of the TARDIS would you like to see on screen? Let us know your thoughts, in the comments below, or on Twitter, Facebook or by email.

Anyway, we discuss disappearing pirates, green glowy Lily Cole, dodgy editing and much more in our commentary on ‘The Curse of the Black Spot’!

Inconsequential, thy name is ‘The Curse Of The Black Spot’.

If ever a stand alone episode has suffered from the excessive momentum of its predecessors this was it. Whatever followed the massive cliffhanger from last week was always going to be a little bit of a let down, so instead of explaining anything, we’re just moving on. All those questions that we have are to be put to one side for a little bit as we get a lighter, less ongoing-plot heavy episode instead.

This is very much Doctor Who by the numbers. That’s not to say it’s a bad episode. It’s a pretty good episode, with one or two really good ideas, and an intriguing narrative. It’s just that it was exactly what you might expect from Doctor Who. There was no effort made to make it more than your standard Doctor Who, no twists, just your monster of the week time again! There’s pirates, and a mermaid, and a spaceship and everything. This is totally what Doctor Who is all about.

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Wow. If last week left me reeling with just how they could possibly square the opening ten minutes then this one has totally blown apart any theories, thoughts or expectations that I might have built up over the previous 40 minutes.

It’s almost impossible to describe how excited I am about that.

For a long time Doctor Who has been a monster of the week piece. Word is there are two types of series. There are your monster of the week style series, like Doctor Who under RTD, where each week the villain is introduced and wrapped up in one. Think of your Scooby Doo’s, your early Smallville or Buffy. Great episodes could be thrown in but there’s no through line. Characters may develop, there may be consequences, but the plot of that monster doesn’t follow through over a series in an important way. What happens in that episode may be referenced, the villain may pop up again but there won’t be anything in that episode that you need to have watched in order to understand what happens next week, or in the season finale.

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The Impossible Astronaut, or ‘Silence in the White House’, starts off Season 6 of Doctor Who in the most ridiculously explosive way imaginable. In the run up to this series two things have been vigorously advertised; it’s American credentials (simultaneous broadcast with America, shot on location in America, set in a quintessentially American locale of the White House, featuring the American space programme) and that one character would die in the first episode.

Now, if you’ve ever seen any Sci-Fi at all, you’ll know how that works. One character will die means it’s a hoax or a dream or a clone, or there’s a handy hand lying around to siphon off regeneration energy into*. The character will come back, or a clone of them will, or their body will be possessed by a primal force, or there will be an alternate reality version of them appearing soon, who’s left handed or has a beard or something. What it never means is that that person is gone.

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Evil spirits, monsters, ghosts, the undead, fatal curses, mysterious powers… Of all genres, horror has the clearest links to the folklore and fairytales of the past and still relies heavily on supernatural tropes to drive its stories. And yet, just as with science-fantasy, the genre has been undergoing a secular revolution in the last handful of decades.

Bela Lugosi (and friend) in 1932’s “White Zombie”

Take zombies, for example. Throughout the first half of the 20th Century they stuck pretty closely to their Voodoo origins. A powerful, charismatic but ultimately malevolent figure uses black magic to raise a workforce of mindless slaves (sometimes living drones, sometimes re-animated corpses) in an attempt to further his power over society. At the same time, he usually pursues a beautiful and virtuous young woman who resists his advances until she too succumbs to the zombie curse and has to be rescued (or dispatched) by the heroes.

In such scenarios, the zombies are little more than a psychological threat while the true danger is posed by the zombie master himself (it’s always a man – has there ever been a zombie mistress?) whose role is to remind us that even the strongest will and most upright morals can be undermined and usurped. (Not unlike the character of Dracula. Is it a coincidence that Bella Lugosi was cast in 1933’s White Zombie?)

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Sir Terry Pratchett ruffled a few feathers recentlywhen he claimed that only ‘people who don’t know what science-fiction is, say that Doctor Who is science-fiction’.

‘Vampires in Venice’ is schlock. Pure and simple. It’s cheesy and silly and daft and sort of naff and everything about it is just brilliant. I really enjoyed this episode.

Now, much like Daleks in World War 2 this is an entire storyline that is entirely set up to appeal to people like me. It’s an entire storyline, much like Werewolves in Scotland, which is perfectly crafted for people who love period creature features. I have a love of alternate history which Doctor Who is a regular vehicle for appeasing. Vampires have a similar place in my heart, being one of those monsters with an iconic set of features that can still be rewritten and crafted to fit the demands of the writer.

There’s almost nothing else that could be so universally malleable as the Vampire. From Anne Rice to Stephanie Meyer, Bram Stoker to Joss Whedon, you have as diverse a range of monsters as is possible. Personally, I don’t care what my Vampires are as long as they suck blood. Make them friendly, let them fly, or walk in daylight, make them mutants, infected, aliens, whatever. Vampires in my book are always cool. It takes a lot more than sparkling in sunlight to turn me away from this.

Making them into fish aliens, yeah, I’ll manage.

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‘Amy’s Choice’. Right.

They should just have called it ‘Boring’s Boring’. Because it was boring, you see?

Yeah, this was an episode in which Doctor Who finally managed to cross the threshold of common sense and end up in the world of dreams. Not the good world of dreams, mind you, where anything that can happen isn’t just your everyweek Doctor Who plot involving aliens in old people. No, this is the land of boring dreams. Welcome to the land of boring dreams!

Repetition. That’s funny isn’t it. Key to comedy repetition is. Key to comedy repetition is. So it’s a good thing that we get so much repetition in here. It must be funny, right. Here they all fall asleep, here they have a conversation, here they fall asleep again, and then we’ll have that same conversation. Now repeat, through the episode. I guess it saves on them learning new lines, and it makes the writing easier when you can just cut and paste.

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