Russell T Davies (OBE)'s self-penned episodes don't have the best reputation, but I thought this was pretty good. An interesting change of pace for the series, with a handful of people trapped in a spaceship with an enemy that isn't actually doing anything threatening, just repeating what everyone else says (though of course that's creepy in itself, and there is always the possibility it will turn nastier). A good examination of the unfotunate human tendency to latch on to anything remotely suspicious and turn on others; and particularly notable for the way in which the Doctor's usual techniques of asserting his authority don't work this time.

And, after watching Doctor Who Confidential looking behind the scenes of the programme, may I compliment the sound team and actors on their sterling work. It looked exceptionally difficult to me!

Wasn't that a good episode? For all that the talk about Steven Moffat's episodes seems to focus on how scary they are, what really struck me is that he comes up with great ideas and great stories in general. Now I'm certain he's the best person to take over from RTD.

Idle speculation time:

I wonder if Professor River Song will turn out to be...

(a) the little girl;

(b) Rose Tyler;

(c) the Doctor's companion in a future series.

Russell T Davies will be stepping down as executive producer of Doctor Who, to be replaced by Steven Moffat. Should be interesting...

I won't be blogging regularly about Doctor Who (David J. Howe does that much better than I ever could); but, since I've mentioned it previously, I might as well post some first impressions...

I quite like the idea of the Doctor's new companion being a little older than the previous two, but is it a good idea for her to played by Catherine Tate? Sometimes I found myself wondering if she's too recognisable from her own show to convince as another character (yes, that is another way of saying I expected her to say, 'am I bovvered?'). Actually, she wasn' t too bad overall, and I thought the idea of creatures made of fat was quite amusing. Then again, the early sequences where Donna and the Doctor kept missing each other were a bit too daft; and I'd have liked a little more drama for the series opener.

I wasn't expecting Rose Tyler to appear so early on in the series, though. Hopefully there will be more surprises to come.

Doctor Who: Forever Autumn by Mark Morris (2007)

I don't tend to read much in the way of novelisations these days, but I won this one in last year's FantasyCon raffle, and Mark Morris is a safe pair of hands, and the new series of Doctor Who was starting, so I thought I'd read this to get me in the mood.

Of course, it's not autumn, but I couldn't expect the timing to be absolutely perfect...

It may not be autumn where I am, but it's nearly time for the Hallowe'en Carnival in the small American town of Blackwood Falls. And the monsters are coming out to play: nine-foot-tall ones with pumpkin-like heads and seemingly magical powers of possession and control. Along come the Doctor and his companion, Martha Jones, and the truth is revealed: the creatures aren't supernatural but (of course) aliens called the Hervoken, who crash-landed there long ago and became the stuff of legend. Their science looks like magic to us, and they draw power from human terror. They're planning to go home, but need large amounts of power to do so -- which is bad news for the people of Blackwood Falls. Can the Doctor and Martha save the day? Silly question!

Any story based on a TV series has to get the programme's characters right, and I think Morris captures the manic energy of the Tenth Doctor perfectly; his depiction of Martha perhaps isn't quite so distinctive, but I still found it easy to imagine David Tennant and Freema Agyeman acting out their roles in this story. It's also good fun, Morris writes some vigorous action sequences... That's the good news.

The bad news is that there isn't as much dramatic tension as there ought to be. Morris relies too much on the (apparently) endless functionality of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver as a means to get out of almost any difficulty; and he doesn't place enough restrictions on the Hervoken's abilities, either. In effect, both sides can do whatever they want -- and the story is weakened as a result. So, Forever Autumn is a decent enough romp, but that's about it.

...and I have a bad feeling about it. I really hope I'm wrong, but I can't help thinking that -- since not only is Donna Noble from the 2006 Christmas special coming back, but also Rose Tyler will make an appearance -- the new series is in danger of getting too wrapped up in its own continuity. Surely the format of Doctor Who works best when it's constantly moving forward and discovering the new? Of course there can (and should) be the underlying melancholy of the Doctor's situation, forever leaving his (to him) short-lived companions behind; but it can't see that it's good for the series long-term to keep revisiting old storylines and characters to such a degree...

Anyway, as I said, I hope they prove me wrong. We'll see.