The new Doctor Who series so far demonstrates Hitchcock's adage that a good movie needs three things - a good script, a good script and a good script. Russell T Davies proves the point of course with his offering, but with the new Doctor Who you have the special effects, the costumes, the performances, the whole 'superior production values' too... and left feeling wanting more. This is entertaining stuff for anyone, it just so happens to be Dr Who.

Davies puts in gags that you would swear came from Douglas Adams - how the National Trust moves mountains, literally, to create a 'classic Earth' and he builds deep and meaningful relationships between characters with a single word. There is wonderful economy in his writing - the old series would have spent an entire episodes in what Davies can do simply by making the Doctor exhale!

On the downside, the Doctor's heroic rescue came straight out of the movie 'Galaxy Quest' - a hilarious Star Trek spoof movie. Davies ripping off a spoof of Star Trek? Well, genius steals and talent borrows and Davies almost gets away with it. Almost.

The Doctor sheds tears (for the first time?) on the subject of the fate of Gallifrey five billion years into the future - how this will pan out in the Doctor Who Universe remains to be seen, but it is about time we pushed things on here. Gallifrey (at least the bits run by the Time Lords) has always been to me a sort of 'Oxbridge in a Police State' planet. There's lots to be uncovered there.

With the Doctor's 11 regenerations now runnning out, how about 'The Guilty Secret of the Time Lords' that reveals the weakness that lead to their demise and the Doctor gaining an unlimited number of regenerations to keep the series going?

We see a human exploding - blood and bits everywhere - and we've got a 7pm timeslot for family viewing. At long last, someone, somewhere is going to complain about Doctor Who - as Dr Who writer Mark Gatiss expressed recently, we've got back that Dr Who 'Saturday feeling'!

On the evidence of this episode, the Americans just have to buy the series now. If BBC Wales and Russell T can keep this up we've got to be seeing plenty more where this came from. Christopher Eccleston would be advised to stay put!

For those of you not currently in the UK, and have so far resisted the urge to watch the downloaded copy - Nya-nya nya-nya-nya. We've just seen a totally awesome, 2005 version of a timeless classic. And we'll have seen several more before you lot do!

Sorry, had to get that out of the way. But I guess the reason you're reading this is to find out if its any good. The short answer is no. This is not good. Russell T Davies, a respected TV writer, and Dr Who fan, has taken our classic show and done something that is just not good. Because good does not even begin to describe what happened on BBC One at 7pm.

Let's take it in order: The titles. I'm still not sure about the new logo, and the names are displayed in a style reminiscent of the Superman movies but the graphics are superb. They seem to some how encapsulate the best bits of all the previous title sequences since 1963. And of course the music! Far better than the slightly pompous version on the TVM, this time we stay true to the Darbyshire classic, but with a fuller, cleaner sound.

Onto the drama. This is where Who 2k5 really scores. It out with a montage of a fairly typical day for Rose - which automatically gives it the gritty, realistic grounding we were, let's face it, we expected from RTD. However, its not Eastenders gritty - with misery surrounding our heroine at every corner. It shows a side of working-class Britain not often revealed in TV; the poor are often very happy with their lot - with enough love, and small bits of joy in their life. 

Bearing in mind that a lot of the old 25 minute Who eps seemed to drag, the 45 minute format could have worsened this problem. Oh contrare! Rose is almost instantly propelled into the thick of the plot - as is the Doctor. Considering the mass audience has not seen the Doctor since 1996, we waste no time re-introducing him. That is left to little clues dotted throughout the piece.

Eccleston is superb, if a little too over the top in this first episode. However, this may be down to a combination of needing time to settle into the role, and the fact that the Doctor exhibits a different kind of intensity and mania than the darker roles the actor is famous for. There are some overdone pieces in the story that take the comedy a smidgen too far, but that amounts to about 30seconds in the whole episode.

As for the Autons, we have a dilemma here. Whilst they do look a lot more realistic, and therefore less naff than the originals, in some ways this detracts from their innate creepiness. Some of the CGI effects with them adapting or reacting are more Roger Rabbit than Terminator, but again these are small gripes. The already legendary Wheelie Bin sequence could possibly have done without the burp - but I defy ANYONE to write a scene where someone is eaten by a wheelie bin where it doesn't burp!

Of the other characters, only Mickey fails to engage our emotions - he's a bit wet, cowardly, and too self-absorbed. In a way, his only purpose is to be the catalyst behind Rose's departure with the Doctor. 

There are those who posted reviews about the downloaded version that complained about the "cheap" look of the show being shot on video. Whilst its true that it makes the show look a little cheaper than the TVM, it is in keeping with the style of shows aimed at Doctor Who's target audience. Shot on film, the show would have been darker in film, and ended up in later slot more in keeping with Sea of Souls.

Wobbly sets have indeed gone, but there are points where the use of Green Screen techniques are obvious, as CSO overbleed used to be in early 70's Who. 

However, none of these criticisms and little niggles are enough to overcome the fact that Doctor Who is back - and on the basis of Rose, could be around for quite a while.

I was a bit disappointed this week after learning that Christopher Eccleston had quit as the Doctor and I was determined not to enjoy this episode. I surprised myself...this was surely the best episode of Doctor Who ever! From the teaser sequence opening inside the TARDIS to the fabulous new opening I realised the Doctor could survive without Eccleston. 

Platform One and its many inhabitants enthralled me. Gone are the days of rubber suited aliens. These aliens look almost real and put shows like the dull and insipid Enterprise to shame. Jabe is my favourite out of the lot; Yasmin Bannerman puts in a wonderful performance and her sexual chemistry with the Doctor was funny and interesting, seen as the Doctor hasn't been shown to have any interest in sex whatsoever in the past. The Doctor's shameless flirting doesn't come off as wrong and out of place; it fits in with his character. Their friendship is great to watch, and the Doctor's grief at her death is poignant.

There are some very interesting tit-bits about the Doctor's past that come up in this episode. Gallifrey has been destroyed! The Doctor is the last of his race! (Do the Daleks have anything to do with this I wonder...) I have a feeling we'll get to know why and I for one can't wait to find out. This type of innocent continuity between episodes will make the series that much more rewarding to watch. The Doctor, as a result of this, seems to become more of a tragic hero than before. We feel sorry for him. Christopher pulls this off brilliantly.

Next stop the story. Not exactly complicated, but it's a good mystery none-the-less, and seems to me to be a classic Who story; Doctor and companion in a confined setting with people getting killed. It works even better here because of one thing; the special effects are amazing. I always thought the effects were good on Stargate but here it's much more than that. The scene of Earth being destroyed; Rose trapped while the sun's rays tries to disintergrate her; the Platform One station; it's all good. Last weeks dodgy wheelie bin CGI effects are almost (but not quite) forgotten.

Good points: Zoe Wannamaker as Cassandra is a hoot. Totally evil and totally funny. I would like to see more of her, except she gets killed. And Rose reacted the way any normal person would at being confronted with so many weird aliens; she freaked out. That was a nice touch.

Bad points; the Doctor and Rose were separated quite a lot through the episode. This early on in their relationship it was a bad idea. And at the end of the episode I felt very emotional; Christopher Eccleston put in a flawless, solid performance. To me he IS the Doctor. It's just a shame his performance wasn't marred by the fact that he's leaving.

Good

The Autons. They felt like a mysterious Alien force and then went out to full blown Halloween-esque unstopable terror. Shame it didn't last longer.

The ending. Rose deciding to swing ont that chain was a great defining moment, and the way it was inter spliced with shots of the Autons and their guns worked brilliantly.

Generally excellent dialogue, which is what you'd expect from such an acclaimed writer.

The references to time in the whole episode. Could have been better if it wasn't so rushed, though.

The Tardid looks great. It looks Alien, and it looks like it's actually been used. Before Star Wars everything "future" was white and curvy and clean, and Lucas made it look realistic by making it dirty, worn down and broken - which is also what the BBC have done. It's easier to believe that the Tardis has been through time and space since forever, and that the buttons and levers actually do something.

The Doctor is pretty good, though I still prefer Pertwee. ;

The end finale was great, but I wish it wasn't all wrapped up in one episode. The scene of devastation at the end somehow felt unsatisfying - I kind of felt like there should be some Men in Black style mind eraser, because even though they'd wrapped up the Doctor and Rose, they hadn't bothered to explain what humans would make of the Auton invasion.

The sonic screwdriver and the way the Doctor is shown as being very mortal.

They way get got in the London Eye. Makes you proud to be British, sort of.

The special effects, obviously. It never felt too blue-screeny either, which is good - there was a good mix of CGI and actual sets.

Bad

I thought they wrapped up the story far too quickly. In fact, they really packed too much in full stop (though to be fair they did all the explaining really well - they were always on the move which meant that it wasn't too dull, though that 5 minute walking sequence when the Doctor explained everything was a bit much). The Autons were too easily destroyed and we didn't feel their terror as much as we did in Speerhead from Space, which gave them a lot more time.

Why didn't Rose's boyfriend just die? They set it up so well. It doesn't make sense that he survives, and it means that Rose following the Doctor is even less plausible. They could have even gone the way of killing Rose's family and had the "well I've got nothing left for me here" route. At least it would have made sense.

Missed opportunity

The Who nut was great (and a good reference to the fanbase), but it would have been really cool to have had a link to the past Doctors there. Something like "I've been tracking this guy for ages and he seems to change faces, but it's definitely the same guy because he comes out of the same police box. (Shows pictures of Hartnell, Pertwee, etc. in appropriate photographs)

They missed out the best bit of the Who theme. It usually plays at the end credits and is the best bit.

The music

I didn't like the tech music they used, but the sort of Gothic like ones they had were great. At the end finale they had undertones of the main theme, which was also cool.

The main Who theme is great, with a good ochestratic beat replacing the old 80s style thump. Shame they missed out the best bit, though.

Coming up next

Now that they've got all the explanatory storytelling out of the way, the next episode looks really great. The last remaining human looks fantastic, and it's good to see the old style weird Aliens (but this time without lines where you can see where their masks end)

What I want is a main storyline that continues over each Episode, and isn't wrapped up neatly at the end. I'm presuming the BBC will do this.

To sum up...

Pretty damn good, but not without its faults. I'll be eagerly anticipating the next one. 8/10

This second episode shows that the excellent work started by "Rose" was no accident. The Doctor takes Rose to witness the end of the world 5 billion years from now. On the observation platform orbiting the now deserted Earth are a host of various Aliens, very rich and powerful who have come to watch for fun the last minutes of our Earth as the sun expands and swallows it up. The Earth is now no longer viable as a tourist attraction. The shields having kept the sun from expanding are now being shut down for one final spectacle.

Among the Aliens are the Trees, a race of aliens made of wood who long ago originated on Earth. The Doctor strikes up a friendship with one called Jabe who seems very curious about the Doctor. Ross having meet various aliens from Jade to Cassandra, the last "pure" human to exist becomes depressed and out of her depth and decides to go for a walk round the observation platform. The whole experience of having met so many aliens having overwhelmed her.

The Doctor concerned goes looking for Rose with Jabe's help and before they met Rose again, a murderer has been at work to sabotage the whole event. The final death throes of the Earth become redundant in the face of the threat that now faces the stranded Alien spectators in the observation platform.

Normally this would make for just exciting viewing but along the way minor threads about the Doctor are revealed which for casual viewers who are unfamiliar with Dr Who get an emotional resonance rarely seen in Doctor Who. But for long terms fans of the Doctor, the ending is quite shocking and leaves the viewer wondering what the future holds for the Time Lord we have grown to love over the years.

Russell T Davies pulls no punches in this second episode. As the Doctor said in the first episode, it would be a dangerous journey for Rose but the discovery for the viewer along the way is quite unsettling. Make no mistake this is Doctor Who back with a vengeance after 16 years of sleeping.

The downloadable screen saver which until seven o'clock tonight has been counting down until the start of the new series of Doctor Who now simply says 'The Invasion Begins...' Somehow I don't think it means the brief sound bleed of Graham Norton creeping in from BBC3 just as new companion Rose was being menaced for the first time by the Autons (who oddly weren't named this time out). It was an own goal from the BBC on what is one of the most important broadcasting nights of the year. But you know what I'm willing to forgive them.

Because he's back. He's bloody back. Bless him.

To be honest considering how much has been written about the new series off and online, all the tv and radio documentaries, the actual first episode, Rose, felt beside the point. As the busy new title sequence swished by part of my brain wondered if I was actually watching another trailer. But as Billie Piper strolled into view, and camera overcranked in Trafalgar Square during her lunch date with her boyfriend, my attention snapped back into view as I realised that it had started, I was there and nine years of wait were over.

Actually I think the plotting would have come as something of a shock for anyone who hasn't been catching the Doctor's adventures off screen in the gap. Atypically, The timelord already knew what the problem was and how to solve it even before the episode began (it was a bit like turning up for the last episode of a six parter in the old series). The Nestene Consciousness was using a transmitter (the London Eye) to control all the plastic in London in preparation for invading the Earth, with the help of shop dummies. The Doctor had a vile of anti-plastic, which he could use to destroy the Consciousness if needed to. It's exactly the sort of thing you'd find in one of the many short story anthologies (Short Trips etc) which been published in the interim.

This was clever move number one. Because just like best of the classic series, we were seeing him through the eyes of the companion, Rose Tyler -- she became our eyes and ears during the mad adventure. We needn't understand what it all meant, because she didn't really -- for her it was about going with the flow, enjoying the spectacle and the adventure -- much as it was for us. Like a prologue or opening act, it's about introducing the concepts and ideas to a new audience and reintroducing them to the old, and show what's changed to those who've never gone away. The was absolutely nothing in here which could alienate fans, well not this fan anyway.

The next clever idea was casting Christopher Eccleston. I think it was Tom Baker who said that the series is actor proof, that anyone could play it. That may be true, but its playing it well, and in a way which carries on the tradition. Eccleston's playing was just spooky; look into his eyes and you can see the other eight incarnations looking out at you. The moment on the bridge when he explains to Rose about the TARDIS moving around and says that 'She wouldn't understand' was just like grumpy old Hartnell. At the other end of the scale, as he fought the ships control panel as it melted the fake Mickey's head, McGann was back with us briefly. He's energetic, funny, sober, philosophical yet authorative when he needs to be. Standing over the the Nestene Consciousness trying to negotiate a truce using galactic law was just amazing.

Also amazing was Billie Piper. I don't think I was quite prepared for how much charisma she has, having not seen her in any of her previous acting roles. There is a real spark to her, an instant likeability. There is an edge of vulnerability in there, that kind of Alyson Hannigan (Willow in Buffy) huggability -- you really care if she gets hurt and I imagine they'll be playing that card somewhat as the series progresses. As a character, Rose Tyler is absolutely the right choice. Everything will be new to her, and there is that sense of wonder which was missing too much from in previous companions.

The tone was also just right. Some will no doubt knock on about the humour, especially in the scene when the Auton arms comes to life and attacks the Doctor without Rose noticing, or the wheelie bin burp, but I that's not much better or worse than John Pertwee's cleaning lady, or any number of Jelly Baby scenes. It's an important part of the series and in the Whedon age, vital other it would all look a bit ernest and silly. The episode's director Keith Boak hasn't 'done' sci-fi before (depending on your opinion of NY-LON) and was no doubt chosen because this is a story very much grounded on Earth, and these elements, quite right felt like they were intruding on the setting. Photographer Ernest Vincze, comes from a film background and that showed. At no point did the visuals feel flat; the moment when the London Eye created a halo around The Doctor, as well as feeling like a sneaky Second Coming reference (in that Russell T Davies series Eccleston played the new Christ) offered a perspective you don't often see on tv.

And yet. It wasn't perfect. Murray Gold's music was annoying. Considering how good his work has been in Casanova, here it just feels misjudged. Some sections felt desperately late Eighties. Every now and them there would an excellent spot effect, then a drum beat would clatter in and ruin it for everyone. We can't all be Alistair Locke or Dudley Simpson (both great incidental musicians from different eras of the show), but it just felt out of place somehow. That said, his mix of the theme is very good, but Delia Derbyshire's version was perfectly fine no matter what he and Russell might say about it seeming 'a bit sad'. Also, and I hate to single out any actor like this, but what did Noel Clarke think he was doing with that performance as Mickey. Yes, the character's a sap, he needs to be, otherwise Rose would shack up with The Doctor in the TARDIS, but why did he feel the need to play every scene as though he was auditioning to replace Craig Charles aboard Red Dwarf? Perhaps he settle down as the series progresses -- we'll be seeing more of him in later weeks as there as re-occurring characters this time around ... oh yes ...

But if that's all I can think of then something must be very right. This isn't another Phantom Menace. I keeping asking myself why I'm so excited about a new television series when there is still lots of other really good Doctor Who going around. It's about hope. It's about the fact that if enough of the right people care about something, and enough of those people are in the right position to doing something about it, wonderful things can happen. If that doesn't make you choke up, you must be an Auton.