Doctor Who Series Five in Eleven Words

Ok the title is a bit misleading I'm going to sum up my thoughts on the new series of Doctor Who in eleven words as Matt Smith is the Eleventh incarnation of the popular time traveller. I've really enjoyed this series and I thought it was the best series of Doctor Who since it was bought back in 2005.

Episode One: The Eleventh Hour

Brilliant opener from Moffat. Matt and Karen are fantastic. David who?

Episode Two: The Beast Below

A great focus on the new companion and an interesting story.

Episode Three: Victory Of The Daleks

Interesting take on the Daleks nice to see this Doctor's rage.

Episode Four: The Time Of Angels

The return of River brings with it some light hearted moments.

Episode Five: Flesh And Stone

Only Moffat could make an inanimate monster so much more menacing.

Episode Six: Vampire's In Venice

Amy's fiance brings a new dynamic to the show and humour.

Episode Seven: Amy's Choice

Interesting choice for a 'villain' delving into the Doctor's dark nature.

Episode Eight: The Hungry Earth

A some what weak first part to this two part story.

Episode Nine: Cold Blood

An improvement on the last episode though the narration was unnecessary

Episode Ten: Vincent And The Doctor

Great story from Richard Curtis and a fantastic performance from Curran.

Episode Eleven: The Lodger

This episode feels like a filler but it is a fun episode.

Episode Twelve: The Pandorica Opens

Revelations, surprises, heartache, villains galore and the most intense cliffhanger ever.

Episode Thirteen: The Big Bang

An insanely brilliant end to this series of Doctor Who

End Of Time Review: Part 2

So that was it, the last David Tennant as The Doctor, welllll... that is if that half human, half Time Lord version of himself doesn't come back but never the less it was a thrilling episode, well I say thrilling it was a tad bit too long and drawn out towards the end but I guess thats artistic credit for you. However with the way Russell T. Davies ended his run as Head Writer on Doctor Who, it feels like all the characters were going to disappear for good and in most cases (except for Sarah Jane Smith and Jack Harkness) they probably will.

Other than that though it was a fantastic episode from the 'Worst rescue ever' to the final moments of Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor in a burning TARDIS shouting 'Geromino!' (looks like that will be the new 'Alons-y') as not only does The Doctor (David Tennant) have to face every single person on the planet, now that they look like The Master (John Simm) but also the return of the Time Lord race, led by Rassilon. Played by former James Bond actor Timothy Dalton who cleverly uses The Master to accomplish their return.

Like the previous episode, John Simm's Master is a scene stealer, literally, and while his insanity is played down Davies' explains why The Master is insane and when both The Doctor and The Master learn the truth behind The Master's insanity Simm's acting really makes you feel sorry for the character. While Rassilon is portrayed as quite the power mad ruler with selfish intent which Timothy Dalton plays magnificantly giving the audience some insight as to the inner workings of the Time War which up until that point was only mentioned in passing by The Doctor and exactly why The Doctor ended up being The Last of The Time Lords.

It wouldn't be a Russell T. Davies story without a chase sequence in it and unlike his love for vertical/horizontal chases, this story lacked that but in a good way as The Doctor in The Vinvocci spaceship raced towards the Naismith Mansion hoping to stop the arrival of The Time Lords all the while being chased by missiles which were being blasted by one of The Vinvocci and Wilf, it really added a bit of action and adventure often seen in films to the episode.

Once again the dialogue between The Doctor and Wilf Mott is a real highlight,there is a kind of 'father-son' bond here (even though they aren't related) and you can tell that Wilf doesn't want The Doctor to meet his fate but with this being a Doctor Who story even when The Doctor wins he still loses. The way Tennant's Doctor is forced to regenerate is somewhat similar to that of the 5th Doctor's and Tennant's predessecor, putting the life of their companion first although Tennant's 'noble' sacrifice comes after an out of character moment for The Doctor, who once again like in The Water's On Mars becomes angered by preordained events and once again we see The Doctor's selfish side.

The episode showed a minute of Matt Smith as the newly regenerated Doctor, finally, as much as I've enjoyed Tennant's reign as The Doctor, I have been looking forward to Matt Smith's arrival since he was first announced, mainly to see what he would bring to the role that has been going for 47 years and I enjoyed what I saw. Role on Spring 2010.

And here's what Whovians have to look forward to:

End Of Time Review: Part 1

It was the beginning of the end for the Tenth Doctor in the first episode of the two part End Of Time story, not only was it David Tennant's last outing as The Doctor, it was also head writer Russell T. Davies final story before handing over to Steven Moffatt.

The End Of Time sees The Doctor's arch rival The Master (John Simm) returning from the dead, which sees the start of The Tenth Doctor's regeneration into the Eleventh Doctor however this time The Master has come back more insane and more powerful than ever, meanwhile The Doctor has been summoned by the Ood and has been told of a coming 'darkness' and 'the end of time itself' so off he goes on one last trip on the TARDIS to confront his age old enemy this time teaming up with Donna Noble's grandfather Wilf (played by Bernard Cribbins).

The End Of Time had been built up as a bit of a dark, scary story but to in all honesty, Davies can't write dark stories, he litters his script with too many lighter moments (such as The Doctor meeting up with The Silver Cloak a group of pensioners Wilf enlists in finding The Doctor) these moments sort of see-saw through Davies darker or more serious script moments i.e. he'll have one scene which has a serious tone to it and then in the next scene Davies will lighten the tone, very rarely combining the two but when he does, it comes off very well and natural.

However, Russell T. Davies excels at character moments, the dialogue between The Doctor and Wilf in the cafe is fantastic you really get the sense that both characters feel defeated, Wilf, by the realisation that he is the only person on Earth who can remember the nightmare the entire universe is having and The Doctor, by the prophesies that have been foretold to him as well as the knowledge of his impending death. Bernard Cribbin's is fantastic as the companion for this episode and it is interesting to see him act as a sort of fatherly figure to the 903 year old Doctor.

The scenes between The Doctor and The Master are also well written especially with The Master's constant ramblings, which John Simm makes completely believable and so flawlessly switches from his insane ramblings to his need for The Doctor to hear the sound of the drums. Simm's maniacal Master is a lot more powerful this time round but he is a man without purpose until the climax of the episode where he creates his 'Master Race'. It's here that Russell T. Davies brings about not one but three chilling cliffhangers involving The Doctor's former travelling companion and Wilf's granddaughter, Donna, the aforementioned 'Master Race' and the revelation of another, more familiar race watching from the sidelines led by former James Bond actor Timothy Dalton, all of which should make for an entertaining if not sad ending to the two-parter on New Year's Day.

Spoiler Alert

The Doctor: These books are from your future. You wanna read all ahead, spoil the surprises, not peeking at the end.
Donna: Isn't travelling with you one big spoiler?
The Doctor: I try to keep you away from major plot developments.
From the Doctor Who episode Silence in the Library

The Doctor: River, you know my name. You whispered my name in my ear. There's only one reason I would ever tell anyone my name. There's only one time I could…
Professor River Song: Hush now. Spoilers.
From the Doctor Who episode Forest of the Dead

Spoilers have probably been around as long as modern forms of entertainment have, perhaps even longer whether its sneaking a peak at the end of a whodunnit to see who actually did it or giving away plot details of a recent film. When Psycho was being released in the sixties Alfred Hitchcock came up with different measures for stopping audiences from knowing anything about the film going as far as buying as many copies of the book the film was based on and sending messages to theater bosses instructing them not to allow anyone in to be admitted into the film once it had begun. There were even advertisements in newspapers that told people to not give away the ending as it is the only one they had.

With the internet containing pretty much everything on it these days spoilers are easily accessible especially when you consider that Hollywood films, TV shows and comics are generally released in the US before they are released in the UK which means that blogs and forums (or even Wikipedia) which are frequented by American's will contain some spoilers. Often the spoiler tag is there and so users have the choice as to whether or not they click onto the link. Of course with adaptations there is the case of having experienced the original and knowing what happens in it but there is also the case of experiencing it in a new form.

Having the choice whether or not to click for spoilers can be a double edged sword, on the one hand it may entice you enough to check something out, but then its a case of seeing if something lives up to the expectations that have been built up by the spolier.

I used to enjoy being spoilt by spoilers, it often helped me decide whether or not to grab a comic, or to go see a film/TV show based on the spoilers posted by users on the internet. However while it has gotten me into things I may or may not have tried myself, it has also ruined what I was once enjoying because there isn't a surprise anymore, now its more 'lets get to the part of the story that everyones talking about' so I've gone cold turkey from spoilers. While watching all five series of The Wire I was able to resist the urge to read about what happens to characters and so when something did happen it was unexpected and made the experience of watching the show much more enjoyable. In comparison I was reading the spoilers for DC Comic's latest event Blackest Night the day the comics where being released in the US (Wednesday) before going to check it out in stores the day after, often leaving it behind.

But how about you? Do you like being spoiled? Or do you hate it when someone talks about something your interested in?