The Empty Child

Blimey! What an episode! It's difficult to know where to start.

The obvious place is with the crowd-pleasing special effects. They were every bit as good as anything in "Revenge of the Sith" or its overblown like. Where did the BBC learn to do that? Isn't "Doctor Who" supposed to be the programme that defines the phrase "cheap and cheerful"? No longer apparently. The blitz sequence was simply awesome: exciting, beautiful and totally justified by its context.

It was at the level of story, however, that this episode really scored. I cannot remember the last time television was as downright creepy as it was during just about every scene involving the gas-masked child of the title. I'm not sure I'm ever going to be able to hear the word "Mommy" again without my skin tingling. Only Richard Wilson's alternative "Doctor" turning into an adult version of the little monster even came close as a moment of horror.

But any suspicion that "The Empty Child" was no more than a frightfest were quickly dispelled. The period trappings were all spot-on. There was, moreover, some hugely inventive character drama in the subplot about street urchins helping themselves to the meals of families sheltering form the bombs. There was even a little humour when Rose bumped into the rogue time agent with a space ship moored by Big Ben.

And there was - a cliffhanger! Yes, I know we had one at the end of "Aliens of London", but that story was so camp I didn't know whether to hide behind my sofa or cry into the nearest cushion. "The Empty Child" climaxed with a moment of genuine threat, one which prompted the all-important question, "How are they going to get out of this?"

This episode had a little bit of just about everything and is second only to "Dalek" in terms of all-round excellence. Another one not written by Russell T. Davis ... it might almost be thought that a pattern is beginning to form. But, let's give credit where it's due; RTD is the man who mapped out this series and what I have found hugely impressive about the whole thing is the sheer variety he's built into it. No two episodes seem to be alike. Roll on the DVD box set!