Army of Ghosts

Is this the script where Russell T Davies has finally sold himself out to the fans? I would say yes and no with an emphasis on the no. But more on that later…

Season Two has been such an odd beast. Personally I think it has been stronger than year one, but not in the ways that I thought it would be. I thought by the latter half of year one that the series had found its groove but certain episodes this year have proven that there is still a lot for Doctor Who to learn in its new format. Certainly they seem to have mastered the new episode length with very few episodes this year feeling rushed or crammed (New Earth is probably the only exception to that rule but that for me is a bleed over from year one). The episodes I thought I would LOVE, I have been a bit indifferent about (New Earth, The Idiot’s Lantern, The Satan Pit) and the episodes I thought would pass by unnoticed have turned out to be real new highs for the show (School Reunion, Love and Monsters, Fear Her). I have already re-evaluated my opinions on some episodes; The Girl in the Fireplace has proven extremely re-watchable and given its mix of SF and history to be one of the best examples of its kind with a genuinely sumptuous production and Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel are not quite as brilliant as my initial impression, being basically a huge action adventure but I will still champion its outstandingly visual direction. And astonishingly my absolute favourite of the year is still Tooth and Claw, easily my favourite episode of the series so far, tensely written, beautifully performed and with possibly the best direction Doctor Who has ever seen, this is an astonishingly good piece of television.

So how can Army of Ghosts possibly live up to all this excitement? It doesn’t really but then it is only part one of two and as a build up to an explosive climax it certainly tops last years Bad Wolf. There are a lot of plusses to this episode that I feel I should mention simply because they have never been done before and yet are such obviously winning ideas. Having Jackie travel in the TARDIS is fabulous and Camille’s gorgeous portrayal of this most ordinary women is (as ever) treasurable. Her reaction to being kidnapped (“If we end up on Mars I’m gonna kill you!”) is genius and the Doctor passing her off, as his deluded, aged, rubbish at tea companion is worth the admission price alone! Jackie reminds me a lot of Quark from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (no I don’t mean you can wank her off by tickling her ears!). Quark played such an important part in that show because he was the only person who pointed out the flaws and faults of the optimistic, jolly, nobody-can-beat-us Federation. Jackie fulfils a similar role in Doctor Who, asking the questions nobody wants to answer. Will my daughter survive this life? Can you guarantee her safety? In Army of Ghosts Jackie has an uncomfortable moment with her daughter when she confronts her with how much she has changed, how much she acts like the Doctor now and how if she continues this life of hers she will no longer be Rose Tyler. It is another (unsubtle but well written) that Rose is on her way out and I hope when the next companion steps into her shoes there is a Jackie to point out these very real dangers with travelling with the Doctor.

There was something gloriously off kilter about all the early scenes, which is deliberate thanks to the ghosts and their effect on society. The idea of the Doctor and Rose returning to London to discover something is amiss and has been happening for a while is not a new one (Invasion of the Dinosaurs springs to mind) but works a treat at making the Doctor feel uncomfortable. Flicking through the TV channels didn’t really work that well, I did like the mental Chinese women and the ghost weather report but I wasn’t that impressed with Barbara Windsor or Trisha Goddard’s contributions. They really did feel like RTD going look how cool we are! What was exceptional is how he sets the stories on such a grand scale with ghosts swarming about across the globe. Since the show has come back it is no longer just London that sees the brunt of alien invasion, like The Christmas Invasion this convincingly puts events on an international scale which makes it seem all the more real.

Nobody who has been following the show could have missed the Torchwood references and now at last we get to see inside the institute. I can understand that fans are cross because this secret organisation has never been mentioned before and yet it has supposedly been under the noses of UNIT and the Doctor throughout all of his adventures. Come on guys if they are going to keep this show running they need to keep on adding new elements and this is the sort of conspiracy-cum-government organisation that really could have been kept a secret. Visually, it wasn’t as impressive as I was expecting being little more than a hangar and a control room but the ideas behind the organisation more than make up for it. Following on from Tooth and Claw’s inception of Torchwood it is wonderful to see that Her Majesty’s ideals have been nurtured and abused by this organisation, Yvonne’s suggestion that its sole purpose is to exploit alien artefacts and weapons to ensure Britain’s independence as an Empire is terrifying (but very interesting). The fact that Torchwood seems to be under the impression that it is better than the general public is also slightly worrying, as Yvonne says to Jackie the knowledge they have gained from alien effects are for their benefit alone. Nice continuity with the mention of the destruction of the Sycorax spaceship too.

The first half an hour is take it or leave it Doctor Who, with lots of nice scenes for everybody but really just marking time for the stunning last fifteen minutes. RTD has certainly learnt a thing or two about cranking up the tension because the climax to this episode is almost unbearably exciting. We all knew the Cybermen were coming back thanks to their appearance in last weeks teaser but that doesn’t affect their suddenly appearance behind the plastic sheet in Army of Ghosts. The design is so fantastic, isn’t it? And Graeme Harper shoots them so damn well that even just one comes across as a real menace. So how much better is it when suddenly the ghosts are revealed to be the Cybermen army bleeding through the fault lines of dimensions? The shots of them materialising around the world and smashing their way through a family home and menacing them on the stairs is truly classic Doctor Who. Suddenly this feels much more important (and especially more deadly than The Age of Steel because this is our world). Cybermen clunking through the streets has been done before but not with a budget like this and finally an invasion can look as realistic as it can be.

Of course this being the lead in to a season finale the surprises don’t end here…oh no there are two more returns which are punch the air fantastic. Surprisingly it was the appearance of Mickey (looking so lickably gorgeous I want one!) that thrilled me more. I was devastated at the end of The Age of Steel to see him leave and genuinely thought it was the last I would see of him. He seems more confident, more sure of himself and much more ready to take on nasties than he did before. If you watch this season from beginning to end (including The Christmas Invasion) it is Mickey not Rose who features the most development.

And of course there is that ending which half of fandom will be ecstatic about and the other half will want to crawl up and die. Cybermen and DALEKS? Is this the work of a producer who wants to deliver a genuinely classic slice of Doctor Who or a man who wants heavy ratings to continue by appealing to the very thing kids will salivate? Personally I think they can pull it off, given what I have seen so far but I can understand the scepticism, this is after all the ultimate fan wank.

It could be great, it could be dreadful but by the look of the teaser; Daleks, Cybermen, Jackie, Mickey, Jake, Pete, Rose’s departure…it certainly will be one to watch!