The Parting of the Ways

If ever I have truly felt like a geek, it was this past week (sorry, didn't mean to do some cheap rhyming verse there!). The anticipation of this final episode has weighed far more heavilly on my thoughts than it ought to for a grown man of 34! And even though, once again, I had read all the spoilers and knew how the story would resolve, I had to see how it was going to be executed. Had to see if the grand season finale would live up to itself.

Quite amazingly, it did. Simple as that, really. Some of the hardcore geeks that are never happy with anything, I'm sure, would beg to differ - but this was truly the best story of the season and so, deserved to be the grand finale.

Of course, the Doctor taking on an entire Dalek army would probably be enough to satisfy most followers of this current series, but it was so nice that we got so much more. And the very fact that good Russell T. Davies handled the battle royale as well as he did is a testament to his abilities as a writer. I particularly liked how we didn't get the "monster slaughterfest" that many of the old Who stories would do in the final episode. Where, suddenly, just sneezing the right way can kill off a Dalek. This was often done in the old series so that the production team can have thrilling visuals for the audience. The fact that, up until Rose steps in, we don't really see too many Daleks get hurt, seemed almost a conscious effort on the production team's part. It made the Daleks seem all the more powerful and deadly.

Anyway, if "Bad Wolf" moved at a delightful breakneck speed, the pace of its sequel pretty well ripped your head clean off. Rose's rescue at the beginning is prompt (I love the way the TARDIS even appears to be "speeding along" as it collides with the missiles) and gets that particular plot complication out of the way quickly. And the Doctor stepping out of the TARDIS and being able to tell the Daleks off (and even scare them a bit!) from behind the safety of a forcefield is the stuff fanboy pipe dreams are made of. Nice to finally see his little "Dalek nickname" being discussed on camera since it's been referenced a million times in printed fiction over the last decade or so.

How the new Emperor Dalek is treated visually is about the only mild beef I have with this episode. First of all, the long shot done of him during most of the confrontation makes it kind of difficult to even make out what he looks like. But he did grow on me. And I even liked how the Kaled Mutant within is the visual focus of him in most shots rather than the more traditional focus of the dome and eyestalk. And with the Emperor now introduced, we, once more, have that "spokesman" for the Daleks that Terry Nation liked to have in his Davros stories. And I like that device.

Even moreso, I liked the new "religious" spin put on the Daleks. Although one can't help but see how making the villains of the story "fundamentalist wingnuts" developped when the writer of the story is openly gay. But the "agenda" doesn't seem too obvious so I'm not bothered by it. Instead, the device makes the Daleks just all the more scary since they seem to be even more fanatical than they've ever been. Especially since they are now spawned from the species they hate most. And, because of this, "they are more dangerous than ever!".

Now, aside from all the Dalek stuff, we also have a story that very skillfully weaves together various elements throughout the season. This begins in "Bad Wolf", of course, with the return to Sattellite Five. But here, we see even more references being made to stuff that went on earlier in the season. We have the heart of the TARDIS being dabbled with again - as well as the replicator device that the Slitheen woman had stolen. We have a vague mention of "Dalek" and a discussion of the events of "Father's Day" coming in at the most pivotal point of the story. We have Mickey and "Mama Rose" getting re-introduced. And probably even a few other references that I won't catch until I watch this another fifty-eight times as I wait for more new Who to get made! The nice thing, though, is that none of this gets overdone. It's there and it's nice for Russell to show us just how comprehensive this season is, but it doesn't start to grate or become too obvious. It's not like he's trying to get every single story to somehow get mentionned before the episode is over. But he is trying to get a really nice strong sense of continuity to culminate in this final tale. And that just gets the whole sense of "season finale" to be all the more poignant. I know the mention of "Trial of a Time Lord" will bring many mixed feelings to a lot of you - but I do liken this story a bit to "The Ultimate Foe". Where references to the previous stories of the season I felt were also well-handled.

The other really effective undertone to this story is the sense of progression that has occurred with the TARDIS crew and some of the ongoing supporting cast. Rose, the Doctor, Captain Jack, Mickey and Rose's Mum have all had "issues" that they've needed to face in themselves and many of them are resolved in this story. We have seen development in all these characters building up gradually throughout the season but it finally comes to a full head here. This, I feel, is also done with great skill and doesn't actually hamper the development of the plot (as it so easilly could have) but enhances it instead. Sadly, it would seem that some of you missed the point of this. I seem to recall a reviewer or two bitching about the "coward" moment. One of the issues the Doctor had to face within himself was how his hatred of what the Daleks had done to his people in the Time Wars was consuming him. And the fact that he chooses to be a "coward" shows that he has regained his sense of balance. That the delta wave solution may purge the universe of the Daleks once and for all - but it's still not the right solution. And, had it not been for the confrontation he and Rose had during the end of "Dalek", he might not have made the right choice regarding it. And yes, it does harken back to the "have I the right?" moment "Genesis of the Daleks" quite nicely.

There's so much else I'd like to comment on here regarding the strengths of this story but I'll try to drone on about only three or four more aspects - and then I'll shut up.

Of course, another really great strong point are the "tearjerker" moments. We actually get two of them this time, I feel - which just goes to show how Russell is making sure to "one-up" everything in this final story! Again, like "Father's Day" and the resolution of "The Doctor Dances" the moments are not overdone (so much of this series' strengths lie in its ability not to overindulge in anything - so much so, that on the rare occassions that it does - it becomes glaringly obvious). The Doctor's recorded message where he demands that Rose has "a great life" is beautiful. And the moment where Rose reminds her Mum of the "mysterious blond woman" at Dad's death was equally touching. So great that this Troughtonesque "base under siege" storyline can take such nice breaks and have such great humanistic moments.

And it's also quite amusing that it can have a wonderfully absurd moment where we spend a whole scene watching Rose eat chips. I actually giggled to myself a bit during that sequence. The juxtaposition was so well done! And the speech Rose ends up making at the end of the scene was great. Not only did it basically outline what Doctor Who is all about (standing up and making a difference) but it also helped Rose to finally resolve one of her major issues that had been working in her throughout the season. And that is that, no matter what, she's going to be on that frontline with the Doctor combatting the evil he faces. No matter what kind of promise he makes to her Mum - she won't leave him to fight alone. More great stuff!

Again, I find myself trying to figure out what I can praise next rather than go on forever. And that is probably the strongest point of this whole story. That it really is just great sequence after great sequence after great sequence. I'd love to go on about Captain Jack's heroism for a paragraph or two. Or extoll how great the use of some of the "local" characters were. Like the two station programmers or "Lynda with a y". Or the really effective incidental music that borrows all kinds of themes from earlier stories. Or how great Mickey is. But there just isn't enough time. So let's move on to the final climax.

Billie Piper's performance as Rose when she's possessed by the vortex is great. Sure they modified her voice a bit to make her sound more otherwordly, but she had to have the right tone there to begin with and she did it so well. We can see that, although she is solving all the problems of the plot, she is also being destroyed and the Doctor must do something about this. And the kiss he gives her is perfectly done. It saves her life, yes. But it also brings their whole relationship to the point it's been progressing toward the whole season. And it was a nice touch to have the dialogue in there that references back to the very first story. Where Rose finally now knows how the Doctor feels. Thus making their kiss seem even more fitting. For that brief moment, they are both on the same level intellectually. And so, the Doctor does what he ought to do during that moment. He shares just a touch of physical intimacy with her.

And then, it's time to regenerate. Yep, some definite shades of "Tenth Planet" here. But with a proper explanation of regeneration this time. And some nice dialogue to sum up the whole feel of the season. Rose and the 9th Doctor have both been fantastic - and, once more, the undertones of the moment are kept economical. But they're still there. That, essentially, these two characters have had quite a run together in the last 13 weeks and a slightly symbolic remark should be made about this before we move on to a whole new era.

And then, just the briefest snippet of the new Doctor. As much as I loved Eccleston's portrayal and am sad he didn't hang around longer (it's just been so long now since we've had an incarnation of the Doctor with some real "tenure" - it'd be nice to even have someone do three full-length seasons like Davison did) I'm already looking forward to what Tennant has to offer. Will he wear a proper costume again? What will his feelings be like for Rose? Will he be a harsh contrast from Eccleston like say Pertwee was from Troughton or will they seem to "blend" a bit better like Colin Baker and McCoy did? We'll have to wait til Christmas to find out. In the meantime, we can re-watch a great season of the first "new Who" in well over a decade. And enjoy all the elements of this season all the more as they culiminate beautifully in what is probably one the best season finales in T.V. history. Season Two will have a tough act to follow!