Smith and Jones

Previous season openers and The Runaway Bride had individual opening scenes before the famous theme tune starts, but such a prelude was conspicious by its absence as we were immediately plunged into the time vortex and the tune which Captain Jack sung to such great effect during The Weakest Link the night before this episode was broadcast.

I was expecting great things given the publicity and build-up with Jonathan Ross saying how marvellous it was. But like the Borat movie, which again everyone said was brilliant, I felt Smith and Jones lost out a bit and could have been much, much better.

The high points were the two lead actors who were terrific. David Tennant had some great one-liners and was full of exhuberance but that was neatly played against his inner hurt at the departure of Rose.

The new season opener was all about Martha and she fared magnificently. I thought she came across as independently minded and there was real mutual affection between her and the Doctor.

I thought the old granny that turned out to be the blood-sucker was a bit of a disappointment and I didn't think a lot of the Judhoon. While the rhino faces were brilliant effects, they just seemed a bit too comical - a bit like The Slitheen. The black helmeted flankmen who looked like security guards were far better and much more sinister because you didn't see their faces.

Russell T Davies sometimes hits the spot with his scripts, and the dialogue is always top class, but I felt the storyline was a bit lacking. I loved the moon stuff but this obsession with blood... what with the Christmas Invasion and the different blood groups, and the forthcoming "Family of Blood"...

I just think Russell, as he shows in his Doctor Who Confidential broadcasts, picks out some vital ingredients for that particular episode and then hopes everything else just falls into place. I don't think it did. A bit more investigation of the Moon would have been good too!

The reference to the Doctor's brother was interesting, and the dramatic bit where Martha saves the Doctor and then vice versa reminded me a bit of the Doctor and Peri in Caves of Androzani. The kiss all seemed a bit quick and it was almost blink and you miss it. A cleverly publicity trick all the same.

I loved the start and I do like stories which start a little bit differently. Not just simply the Doctor turns up in the Tardis. This and School Reunion were in a similar vein and I would like more of the same.

Martha's complex family life seems very different in tone from Rose's and will be an interesting sub-plot. I will greatly miss Rose's Mum and Mickey who were both very good supporting characters.

For me though, the best part of the show was the final five minutes and the Doctor appearing on the scene and Martha's first look aboard the Tardis. The Doctor's mimicking of 'it's bigger on the inside than the outside' was a fantastic touch, apparently provided by David Tennant, and I loved the scene where you see the Doctor shaking hands with Martha over the console as it rocks through the time vortex.

A promising start, Tennant and Freema were first class, the story was good without being wondrous (RTD set such a high standard for himself after Army of Ghosts/Doomsday which were wondrous), and roll on the new series which looks like it has every chance of being absolutely thrilling.