Father's Day
Sunday, 15 May 2005 - Reviewed by Andy Smith
Eight episodes in, and I feel duty-bound to finally put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard!) and praise this series which is fast becoming one of the most consistently wonderful TV programmes I can ever remember.
It's not that the episodes so far haven't been worthy of praise; "Dalek", "The Unquiet Dead" and "The End of the World" all deserving of the gushing eulogies which have been heaped upon them, and only "The Long Game" failing, in my view, to engage in the same way the rest of the season has; but "Father's Day", while relatively predictable in plot devices right down to the climax, was without doubt one of the most perfect pieces of TV you could wish for (and do be careful what you wish for...!)
In writing, direction, and acting, this was top-notch stuff, plucking on our heartstrings in a way Dr Who has never done in all its glorious past. I hope this doesn't get lambasted by those fans who have compared Rose and Jackie's previous domestic scenes to EastEnders; this series has decided to show real, genuine, fleshed-out characters and these scenes have all been important in this respect, and I feel for the most part (though not always) they have been successful. And if it hadn't been for the audience slowly learning and empathising with Rose's personal life and history, this episode would never have been as poignant as it was. Billie Piper - wow! - she just goes from strength to strength, and without a doubt is the best companion the show has ever had. In this episode's scenes with her father, it was difficult to imagine anybody handling them better. This series has made us laugh alot and now has made us cry. Shaun Dingwall was fantastic as Rose's father, a much better-written character than I was expecting from his first few scenes, and even Camille Coduri - who I feel has been the weak link so far in the ensemble cast, more so than Noel Clarke - put in a solid performance as Jackie. The cast were all aided by a quite wonderful script from Paul Cornell, along with "Dalek" without doubt the most mature and thoughtful script of the season so far.
As we've come to expect (dare I say take for granted) this season, the effects - such as they were - were of a high quality, the Reapers being another well-realised monster for this series, despite having perhaps not quite enough to do. Of course, this was because the episode was so wonderfully dialogue - driven, with the Reapers feeling almost incidental to the plot.
And I haven't even mentioned Christopher Eccleston yet...I've read various views on his performance with interest, and can understand to an extent some viewers' irritation with the humour, silly faces etc. But was Tom Baker's Doctor - surely THE Doctor in most fans' eyes - really too far off that with his staring eyes, wide grin and jelly babies? The only problem I have had with this Doctor is occassionally with the way his relationship with Rose has been portrayed - last week's "that's your boyfriend" comment being the sort of juvenile comment which has at times sat a little uncomfortably with me - but here I felt that relationship was judged perfectly, the purile humour nowhere to be seen, and Eccleston, as with "Dalek", showing that with a little longer in the role he could have staked a very real claim to being the best Doctor yet. As it is, I feel personally only Pertwee and Tom Baker have been better - but I know that's all a matter of taste. What is beyond question is that Eccleston is a fine actor who has been consistently good, with flashes of outright superlative excellence. What a shame we're over halfway through his tenure.
Much was said in praise of Joe Ahearne's direction of "Dalek" - with good reason - but I think he's topped this with "Father's Day", creating what felt like quite a pacey episode despite the relative lack of action. And Murray Gold's music - well, I'm not a detractor of his anyway, and have been a little surprised at some of the comments that have gone his way, but I can't imagine anyone having a gripe with the incidental music for this episode - again, perfectly judged.
Yes, Jackie of 17 years ago looked like Jackie 2005 with a different hairstyle. Yes, if you look even vaguely closely, there were holes in the plot - any show that deals with changing time etc will have holes big enough to climb through (what of the driver who killed Pete, surely his life must have been dramatically changed, and surely Rose would have then grown up knowing that the driver had stopped and wasn't a hit-and-run) - but any niggling criticisms are just that - niggling - this was superbly - crafted, quality TV, setting the standards for everybody out there that works in this medium. And shame on ITV for even beginning to think that churning out yet another bunch of Z-list "celebs" for an idea that must have taken about half a nanosecond to think of - Celebrity Wrestling - would even begin to dent the fantastic ratings that this series has got.
A final word - intelligent criticism is always useful and important, but some of the whingeing comments from so-called Who fans about this series has made my blood boil, especially that aimed at RTD. Without this man we wouldn't be enjoying a series of Dr Who at all, let alone such an incredible one. Comments such as the Dr wouldn't have said that, done this, etc - yes, this is Dr Who, but it's a new Dr Who, it has changed with the times as it had to, and at this moment in time nobody knows what the Dr would say or do better than RTD himself. Russel - you are a star and keep up the amazing work!
And one final final word - have to agree about the preview of the following episode at the end of the "Aliens of London" cliffhanger - didn't work - but for the single episode adventures, this is a great hook for the next week. My jaw was already dropping at what I'd just spent 45 minutes watching when the preview for "The Empty Child" came on, and it dropped further still. From those few seconds, it looks like the most amazing spectacle yet, and I just can't wait, and can't believe that something so near-perfect can keep getting better still.
It's not that the episodes so far haven't been worthy of praise; "Dalek", "The Unquiet Dead" and "The End of the World" all deserving of the gushing eulogies which have been heaped upon them, and only "The Long Game" failing, in my view, to engage in the same way the rest of the season has; but "Father's Day", while relatively predictable in plot devices right down to the climax, was without doubt one of the most perfect pieces of TV you could wish for (and do be careful what you wish for...!)
In writing, direction, and acting, this was top-notch stuff, plucking on our heartstrings in a way Dr Who has never done in all its glorious past. I hope this doesn't get lambasted by those fans who have compared Rose and Jackie's previous domestic scenes to EastEnders; this series has decided to show real, genuine, fleshed-out characters and these scenes have all been important in this respect, and I feel for the most part (though not always) they have been successful. And if it hadn't been for the audience slowly learning and empathising with Rose's personal life and history, this episode would never have been as poignant as it was. Billie Piper - wow! - she just goes from strength to strength, and without a doubt is the best companion the show has ever had. In this episode's scenes with her father, it was difficult to imagine anybody handling them better. This series has made us laugh alot and now has made us cry. Shaun Dingwall was fantastic as Rose's father, a much better-written character than I was expecting from his first few scenes, and even Camille Coduri - who I feel has been the weak link so far in the ensemble cast, more so than Noel Clarke - put in a solid performance as Jackie. The cast were all aided by a quite wonderful script from Paul Cornell, along with "Dalek" without doubt the most mature and thoughtful script of the season so far.
As we've come to expect (dare I say take for granted) this season, the effects - such as they were - were of a high quality, the Reapers being another well-realised monster for this series, despite having perhaps not quite enough to do. Of course, this was because the episode was so wonderfully dialogue - driven, with the Reapers feeling almost incidental to the plot.
And I haven't even mentioned Christopher Eccleston yet...I've read various views on his performance with interest, and can understand to an extent some viewers' irritation with the humour, silly faces etc. But was Tom Baker's Doctor - surely THE Doctor in most fans' eyes - really too far off that with his staring eyes, wide grin and jelly babies? The only problem I have had with this Doctor is occassionally with the way his relationship with Rose has been portrayed - last week's "that's your boyfriend" comment being the sort of juvenile comment which has at times sat a little uncomfortably with me - but here I felt that relationship was judged perfectly, the purile humour nowhere to be seen, and Eccleston, as with "Dalek", showing that with a little longer in the role he could have staked a very real claim to being the best Doctor yet. As it is, I feel personally only Pertwee and Tom Baker have been better - but I know that's all a matter of taste. What is beyond question is that Eccleston is a fine actor who has been consistently good, with flashes of outright superlative excellence. What a shame we're over halfway through his tenure.
Much was said in praise of Joe Ahearne's direction of "Dalek" - with good reason - but I think he's topped this with "Father's Day", creating what felt like quite a pacey episode despite the relative lack of action. And Murray Gold's music - well, I'm not a detractor of his anyway, and have been a little surprised at some of the comments that have gone his way, but I can't imagine anyone having a gripe with the incidental music for this episode - again, perfectly judged.
Yes, Jackie of 17 years ago looked like Jackie 2005 with a different hairstyle. Yes, if you look even vaguely closely, there were holes in the plot - any show that deals with changing time etc will have holes big enough to climb through (what of the driver who killed Pete, surely his life must have been dramatically changed, and surely Rose would have then grown up knowing that the driver had stopped and wasn't a hit-and-run) - but any niggling criticisms are just that - niggling - this was superbly - crafted, quality TV, setting the standards for everybody out there that works in this medium. And shame on ITV for even beginning to think that churning out yet another bunch of Z-list "celebs" for an idea that must have taken about half a nanosecond to think of - Celebrity Wrestling - would even begin to dent the fantastic ratings that this series has got.
A final word - intelligent criticism is always useful and important, but some of the whingeing comments from so-called Who fans about this series has made my blood boil, especially that aimed at RTD. Without this man we wouldn't be enjoying a series of Dr Who at all, let alone such an incredible one. Comments such as the Dr wouldn't have said that, done this, etc - yes, this is Dr Who, but it's a new Dr Who, it has changed with the times as it had to, and at this moment in time nobody knows what the Dr would say or do better than RTD himself. Russel - you are a star and keep up the amazing work!
And one final final word - have to agree about the preview of the following episode at the end of the "Aliens of London" cliffhanger - didn't work - but for the single episode adventures, this is a great hook for the next week. My jaw was already dropping at what I'd just spent 45 minutes watching when the preview for "The Empty Child" came on, and it dropped further still. From those few seconds, it looks like the most amazing spectacle yet, and I just can't wait, and can't believe that something so near-perfect can keep getting better still.
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