Smith and Jones

Taken on its own terms, this was probably the strongest of the three season openers so far. The idea of the huge hospital building suddenly appearing on the moon made for an arresting image (even if the ensuing hysterics didn't really ring true), and the big rhino fellahs looked great and had a real purpose, rather than just being ?baddies' killing for the sake of it. Anne Reid was deliciously evil too - the Doctor sacrificing himself to pollute her essence was an interesting plot point. (The reference to Planet Zovirax will be meaningless to anyone unfamiliar with a very specific British commercial about a cold-sore cream). This was definitely a better episode than the reheated-feeling Runaway Bride, with Martha Jones probably the most tolerable of the three female new series companions so far. The Doctor latching onto the resourceful and imaginative Martha, while rejecting her friend clearly not up to his standards, was nicely done and gave us a good window into his workings.

But there is a niggling feeling of this all now being done to a formula. On a superficial level the story shares a lot of elements with last year's opener New Earth ? the hospital setting, the animal-headed aliens, peoples' essences being passed around and jumbled up; but deeper than that, it just all felt very familiar. It's Russell T. Davies by numbers ? albeit a good, well-made and enjoyable example of Russell T. Davies by numbers ? rather than Russell T. Davies pushing the envelope and tearing down the boundaries. It didn't leave me with that, "wow, I just watched a brand new Doctor Who" feeling. I was a big RTD supporter during the first two seasons, but now it's time to see what else he can do. Could he give us a Robots Of Death or a Warrior's Gate or a Mind Robber or a Carvival Of Monsters? Or are stories about aliens arriving in London or Cardiff and making ordinary people panic as far as his talent stretches? Now I think back to his impressive (if badly concluded) drama Second Coming, it did contain many of the elements familiar from any average RTD Doctor Who story.

Worse still was the "next time" trailer ? yet another historical featuring an iconic figure early on in the run. For a show whose possibilities are so limitless, it seems ridiculous to do it to such a strict template.

That said, there was a lot to enjoy about this episode. The family stuff was kept to a refreshing minimum (though RTD would do well to remember that the UK population isn't comprised entirely of these kind of people, no matter how hard he wants to appeal to the EastEnders-loving masses ? a bit of variety would be nice), and the plot rattled along at a decent pace with some nice twists and turns. But it really really is time to see some worlds of wonder now and less dull ordinary British people. Heck, even a story set in a village would be nice. For all his talents, Russell has an extremely narrow view of the world, the universe and especially Britain.