DOCTOR WHO - a tale of two series

SEASON 11

It's fair to say I didn't like it. It's also fair to say it ruffled a lot of feathers amongst dedicated fans. There was no new theme tune and titles in the opening episode (WTF?), no new Tardis until the end of episode two, no familiar foes, no through story for the series, several of the episodes were TV copies of major sci-fi films and TV shows (Preditor, Pitch Black, Aliens and Quantum Leap amongst others) and the tone of the series was overly preachy.

The focus was so firmly fixed on the diversity of the show and the issues it dissected and preached about in each episode, I think they forgot it was meant to be a piece of entertainment and a drama. Also, three companions made it difficult to get to know them as individuals. We spent far too much time flitting between the three in each episode, rather than spending enough quality time focused on them so they could be fully rounded, fleshed-out, interesting characters like Rose or Donna.

That's not to say season 11 wasn't without its merits. Two episodes stood out - the Rosa Park episode and Demons of the Punjab. But that wasn't enough for me, the whole series was a disappointment and it's the first series where I haven't watched every single episode. I only managed to watch 6.5 episodes before I became so disillusioned with it I couldn't carry on. I'm not even going to comment about the Christmas episode being on New Years Day.


SEASON 12

What a difference a year makes. The new series kicked off with a thrilling double episode reintroducing the Master (a real crowd pleaser) and I was beginning to get excited again. The only blip was episode three (Orphan 55) and that was really down to the rather disappointing monsters. Standing there roaring with arms stretched wide and showing your bad teeth isn't scary. They were so ineffective as a foe I was expecting the Doctor to kick the leader in the bollocks any second and it would have easily been 'game over'. And that preachy speech at the end... sigh!

But then came the episode Fugitive of the Judoon... and OMG did Chris Chibnall and Vinay Patel deliver one hell of an episode. For me, it was one of the best episodes I've ever seen, easily on a par with season 2's Doomsday. The introduction of another Doctor was an act of genius and a fabulous 'WOW' moment I'm still not quite sure I've recovered from. I was sat there stunned, staring at the TV as the credits rolled, unable to quite process what I had just watched. I was beginning to believe that the Doctor Who I've loved since a child was back.

Praxeus managed to do what most of season 11 couldn't achieve, take an important issue and make a damn good drama out of it without resorting to preaching. A very entertaining episode.

Then Chris Chibnall gave us The Timeless Children. Mr Chibnall, you bloody clever fantastic genius of a man. The episode didn't rewrite the Doctor's history, it added to it, giving it depth and colour, beautifully expanding the Doctor as a character and bringing greater meaning to all his/her past adventures. I didn't even notice the first Doctor who came to Gallifrey was a young girl... and you know something, it didn't matter because it felt right. I can't wait to see what Mr Chibnall gives us in the Revolution of the Daleks.

Happy writing!