Rose

Before any retrospective of the opening episode of “Series One” of “Doctor Who” can take place, it’s important to realise that, traditionally, the first adventure of ANY new Doctor’s tenure usually leaves a lot to be desired.

For instance, had “An Unearthly Child” not been followed by an iconic serial such as “The Dead Planet”, would the series ever have caught the public’s imagination in the first place? Are there many weaker Pertwee serials than “Spearhead From Space”? How out of place was “Robot” in arguably the best season in the show’s history? Did anyone really understand “Castrovalva” apart from its esteemed writer? And how hard were “The Twin Dilemma” and “Time and the Rani” to love? Also, if this theory holds true, what a big problem for Paul McGann, who needed his first episode to buck that trend to even have a second episode. And, of course, it didn’t . . . although I believe McGann could have been (and still could be) a great Doctor.

So, despite my delight at the end of the nine-year wait for the return of the legend, I did wonder if “Rose” would follow in this rather-inglorious tradition? And you could say it did – but only in comparison with a series which must have exceeded everyone’s expectations. Mr Russell T Davies did “exactly what he said on the tin” – and masterminded a 21st-century “Doctor Who”, sitting comfortably alongside the classic series, while creating a dynamic new era of its own. And perhaps the latter is more significant, which is why it should call itself “Series One” rather than “Season 27”.

And, if “Rose” won’t be many people’s favourite episode from “Series One”, that doesn’t mean it was without appeal. Far from it. There was so much to pack into that 45 minutes to ensure enough viewers were hooked enough to come back the following weeks, there was always a chance it could be accused of being “style over substance”.

However, who wants to dwell on that suggestion when there were so many positives to accentuate? Pre-“Rose”, the “givens” for me would be the quality of Davies’s writing and Mr Christopher Eccleston being a wonderful choice as The Doctor. And those predictions were quickly realised. Davies’s opening story structure – and indeed his treatment for the whole series – was excellent, and his dialogue of the highest order, executed superbly by the cast, headed by Eccleston. At the risk of being ungracious, one expected nothing less from a writer of Davies’s calibre.

Even from the pre-series teaser trailers, Eccleston was, for me, The Doctor. Romantics may – and I’m sure have – suggested that, within “Rose”, he wove elements of all his predecessors into his characterisation, and I’m sure he paid more than a cursory glance to those who came before, but he was more his own man, or Time Lord. He grasped the nettle of what was required in the role from his opening scene and grasped the viewer at the same time as he grasped Rose’s hand and took her away from the pursuing Autons. This was a character worth getting to know, full of dynamism, full of intrigue, full of humour, full of life.

And talking of dynamism, intrigue, humour and life brings me to Rose herself. I have to say I wasn’t too familiar with Ms Billie Piper’s acting work – but she more than lived up to the daunting challenge of playing a character who actually had such an important episode named after her.

I think Davies wrote an amazing part for a young actress, but Piper’s the one who breathed life into Rose, and how impressively she did just that.

I don’t quite hold with the view that The Doctor having an intelligent and “ballsy” companion is a new concept. What was Ace? Peri? Tegan? Leela? Sarah? Hardly shrinking violets – and I think Rose follows in the tradition of good companions rather than being out on her own.

Admittedly, Davies gives her a bigger piece of the action than her predecessors – saving The Doctor and the world in her first episode is quite a starting point (but, as we discover in Episode 13, you ain’t seen nuffin’ yet!) and, even at this early stage, Rose and the Doctor are more of a pair than the teacher/pupil relationships favoured by the past.

But the relationship worked from the off. Love at first sight? Of sorts. We won’t find out, and we shouldn’t find out where it could go. Davies had a great unrequited love story between his two principal characters in “Queer as Folk”, and elements of the depth of Stuart and Vince’s unspoken affections are there in Rose and The Doctor – if you look closely enough! And if you want to.

Having to establish Rose and The Doctor – plus the TARDIS (just one of the many stunning special effects which really marked this show as being from the 21st century) in this opening episode did mean the plot would almost have to take a back seat. This was always the problem of the two-episode (in old money) serials in the past. Pleasant enough, but no-one ever marks them down as classics (there is an exception to this rule and it’s called Episode Six of Series One!).

And, in “Rose”, destroying a creature which controls all things plastic with a phial of anti-plastic does rather confirm the assertion that plot was of secondary importance. It was just a bit too convenient. But understandable. And probably unavoidable. Poor old Nestene Consciousness, I didn’t think it got much of a deal plot-wise in “Spearhead From Space” either!

But minor gripe about the actual story aside (and it did hang together quite well) there’s no doubt “Rose” marked a triumphant return for the series. It was well-written. The lead characters were quickly established as being worthy of the importance attached to them. The back-up characters were also beautifully crafted by writer and actors (I really enjoyed Clive – but you know characters like him have to die!). The effects were stunning throughout, and now I know what the phrase “high production values” means – you splash the cash, and the rewards are there for all to see. And the whole thing crackled along at a breakneck pace, enhanced by the ever-excellent incidental music.

“Rose” did what it had to do – established “Doctor Who” was back, and was back for good. And, as I know now, it was the tasty hors d’oeuvres for the feast to come.