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!

This Episode is a bright shining star in an otherwise very poor second series. Up to date I have been underwhelmed by the 2nd year of the new Doctor Who, I have found the writitng to be infantile, cliched and and at times downright cheesy. A few episodes were a bit above average but that's the best I have been able to say about this series, that is until now.

Army of Ghosts has got me pumped!

Don't get me wrong, this episode still has a lot of the faults mentioned but the scope of the plot and sheer magnitude of the event just overshadows any flaws.

I mean we have Cybermen AND Daleks!! The episode built up very nicely to the climax and the reveal was very well done.

I am a Cyberman fan from childhood and was disappointed with their first appearance this year and did not hold out much hope for this episode. But somehow they seemed more menacing this time round than before! The scene with the kid trying to escape up the stairs only to see another Cyberman appear was great and I am sure will scare a lot of kids.

Mickey, who I do not normally like always seems to be at his best when directly involved in action. I liked him a lot this episode and his new can do attitude. I definitely felt he was competant enough to really save mankind.

The acting in this episode was actually much better than the norm. Even the minor characters played thier part unlike normally when we have been subjected to minor characters being overly theatrical. Raj the scientist was paticulary good.

The Torchwood Director, Yvonne actually came across very well, I expected her to be your normal TV baddie boss, who never listens till it is too late. She actually listened to the Doctor without appearing to be in awe of him or kow towing to him.

The Doctor himself was less his irritating self despite the Alonso cracks and the Ghostbuster bit. He did not gurn as much and I found him a lot more bearable! Rose was great as usual and I liked how she got caught out with the psychic paper. It seems to me she did not really believe it would work anyway!

I love Jackie Tyler and she can do no wrong in my eyes and really look forward to the second part where she meets her husband from the alternate Earth.

And lastly we have the Daleks and they look as evil as ever and this is coming from someone who always favored the cybermen but in this episode the Dalek appearance was justifibly the climax of the episode and has got me all excited for the conclusion.

Only good episodes give me the impetus to right a review and this has been the only one I have reviewed this season, lets hope the final episode lives upto all expectations.

Exterminate!!

A lot of us Who fans first fell in love with Doctor Who because of the cliffhangers. They were always well executed and always left you fearing the worst for the Doctor and his companions. But this week's episode finale for me was one of the best ever and it is full marks for the Doctor Who team for teasing us all the way that the cybermen were going to invade earth ... and then what do you know, the mysterious sphere has nothing to do with the metal meanies at all, and in all their glory, the Daleks take centre stage at the end of a thrilling episode.

In last week's review of "Fear Her" I had suggested that the new season of Who had not quite lived up to the same atmosphere as last season in terms of gravitas. Well, score that out. This was the episode we have been waiting for to showcase David Tennant at his best as Doctor Who.

From the opening scenes with Rose admitting she was on her final journey, to the generous homecoming and, fourth on-screen kiss for the Doctor, though arguably the least enjoyable, the episode had begun at a rattling pace.

The arrival of the ghosts was suitably mysterious and the Doctor's efforts to pin one down and find out what they were all about had more than a touch of Ghostbusters about it.

The arrival at Torchwood was similarly impressive and I really thought that Tracey-Ann Oberman was first class in the part and suitably sexy as well. I am sure a few of us wouldn't mind if she was the new companion but we'll move swiftly on! She was fantastic and gave Torchwood an air of true professionalism and authority.

The appearances of Derek Acorah, Tricia and Barbara Windsor were neatly done. The glorious finale with the cybermen invading Earth was marvellously done right down to the little boy trying to escape from the cybermen by running up the stairs only to confront another one! How many times were you in that situation as a kid when watching Doctor Who and imagining what could happen! Don't have nightmares, do sleep well is the BBC Crimewatch's message. Whether the same can be said for the Doctor after the finale of this epic story remains to be seen but it is shaping up to be one hell of a battle next week. The cybermen versus the Daleks and the Doctor, Rose, Mickey, Jackie and Rose's Dad re-united, I can't wait till next week's encounter. Just like it always used to be. The cliffhangers were the best!

Well, that was one to raise the hairs on the back of the neck! As he did last year, RTD provides a penultimate episode that leaves me thinking “how the hell are they going to get out of that?”. I hope this year the ending is more satisfactory. If it proves to be so, this could be another story to go down in history as a true great – and we’ve already had at least two of those this year.

OK, so I had an inkling that the Daleks were going to make an appearance, and if the Cybermen broke through from their universe then I expected Mickey to follow. But both were handled cleverly. No, I didn’t notice that it was Mickey working in the sphere room until Rose saw him.

As for the mysterious sphere itself, I did realise the colouring in the room was rather like the Daleks from last year, and the sphere could almost be an enlarged ball from a Dalek case. So no mystery there for me, but even so it was quite hair-raising when the three Daleks emerged at the end of the episode.

But I am getting away with myself. Early in the story there was humour, as the “ghosts” appeared and the Doctor went ghostbusting. But it was handled well, even the scene from East Enders and other TV programmes. Perhaps RTD has learned how to package the humorous moments, for example I have no fondness for East Enders but I laughted out loud.

It was almost a Pertwee moment with the Doctor rushing out with his ghost detecting cones, and surmising that they might not be ghosts at all but that people just wanted them to be. With horror it slowly dawned on me that the ghosts might be Cybermen, I think there’s even a hint of cyber voice.

In the Torchwood Tower when the Doctor stops the “ghost shift” by gleefully telling Yvonne to go ahead and pulling up a chair from which to watch, I almost felt the script was very typical of Tom Baker at his best. But David Tennant handles it differently, with a zeal that even Tom didn’t have. That is why Tennant really is the Doctor in a way that Chris Eccleston wasn’t.

Oh the scene with the polythene in the building zone, quite terrifying. Graeme Harper knows how to pull off a frightening scene for sure! As it becomes clear that the Torchwood office employees have been taken over by the Cybermen, who have already broken into our dimension our attention turns to the sphere…and when the Cyberman states it is not theirs, the look on the Doctor’s face is wonderful.

So the sphere opens, and the Daleks are revealed. How will our friends get out of this one? Lets hope this time nobody swallows any magic dust and wishes the baddies away.

9.5/10

I thought it woould be interesting to add a review from a faithful Dr. Who fan who has been paying attention to things happening across the pond. I have always felt that the BBC has had something against Americans. I was extremely disappointed when they cut us off from Dr. 7 episodes for awhile (back in the 80's)and at that time, we had very little option but to wait. Now, we have the glorious internet and thanks to you Brits, we can watch Dr. Who without the year wait.

This episode has to be one of my favorites of the past two seasons, with The Impossible Planet close behind. However, I feel like the Satan Pit didn't live up to the first part and I was rather disappointed. I felt as though they had such a good setup that it could have been knocked out of the park. Sadly, it wasn't. Here, we see another perfect pitch and let's hope that this time that it is a home run and that the second part lives up to the first.

I too have felt that shows have been rushed. In Fear Her, we find the Dr. and Rose noticing a complicated mystery, and figuring it out in record speed and time and it's almost so unrealistic that it's hard to watch. I'm in my thirties now and would like to see things move at a bit slower pace and be a bit more realistic. I would like to see more two and possibly even three part stories. If you have a good story, don't ruin it by condensing it down too much.

This brings me to my last review and thoughts on this episode and the series as a whole. The character of Jackie and the one of Mickey are severely underused and overlooked. I understand the producer wanting to appeal to a younger, more hip crowd and that 20 something Rose was their answer to that end. But again, I like things a bit more mature and I would love to see Jackie go with the Doctor for a season or two. I loved their banter in this episode and would enjoy seeing more of it. Jackie would be a good anchor for the bouyant tenth incarnation of this Time Lord. Plus, she would allow this "aged" Dr. to act a bit more mature at times. I would also like to see Mickey join the Doctor. He could represent the younger crowd and appeal to them. How long has it been since the Doctor has had more than one young female companion at a time on air? Can anyone say Peter Davidson? That's an awful long stretch and I think it's a good time to try the multiple companions again. Any good show has a mix of personalities to play off of and the bubbly Doctor, grounded Jackie, and young, hot headed Mickey would make a splendid combination that these writers could use to make terrific stories.

So, here's to another good Dr. Who episode and hopes for many more. I will keep watching from this side of the pond in hopes for some more good things from the new Dr. Who.

Wow.....just wow.........

Not every episode can be hands down kick ass Doctor and enemy action, and as a matter of fact neither was this episode. This, however, IS Doctor Who. There have been a couple of episodes this season that just didn't seem to click. Love and Monsters was one of them. I know what they were trying to do, and kudos to them for going out on a limb and trying something different (which almost no show does anymore), but it just didn't work for me. The point is, when I was a kid growing up and watching this show, an episode like Army of Ghosts would have not only cemented me as a Doctor Who fan for life (oops too late) but pulled in anyone around me who even remotely enjoyed science fiction.

To start off, I am really....really sad that Rose is leaving the show. Sounds pretty much like she will die but whether she dies or not, this episode truly shows how great a team they are. As her mother says in the show, she has changed so much since the first episode of this new Doctor Who. Essentially she's the same girl who took the rope off the wall and saved the Doctor from the Autons but she is so much more confident and has simply grown as a human being. I disagree with Jackie though that she is turning into someone other than Rose Tyler just by spending time with the Doctor. Sure she isn't as much of a child but most parents would be happy to watch their children grow up into someone responsible and mature. So she cares more about the human race as a whole then working at a shop and eating fish and chips...this is a bad thing?

It is cool that Torchwood knows the Doctor, that they greet him the way they do and the dialogue is excellent.

"Wait, everything alien is yours...does that mean I'm a prisoner?"
"Of course, but we will make you comfortable...."

One of the admittedly nitpicky problems with the episode is how easy it is for the Cybermen to infiltrate Torchwood. I sure hope Captain Jack is able to help them turn into an operation that is prepared for that sort of thing. Which leads me into problem #2... would it have been so impossible to include Captain Jack in these last two episodes?! He was only the absolute best companion ever to appear in Doctor Who--so good he gets his own show for pete's sake. Besides an embarassing K9 and Company pilot, what other companion has gotten the kind of response that a new show is built for them? It simply would have been very cool for him to be there to see Rose off, and to show how he ties in with this mostly inept little group that was created to stop "the alien horde". Maybe he'll appear next week, but I'm not holding my breath.

Once again it's the alternate reality Cybermen which is not as cool as the ones that would actually know the Doctor and what kind of a threat he is but still...pretty cool. I am sad to say that the sudden appearance of ghosts around the world would actually cause us to destroy ourselves but in this episode I can suspend my disbelief enough to actually really enjoy this episode. Seeing Mickey was cool too. I'm not English so I'm not privy to any rumors or news but any chance he will be a companion? I know they were looking at some woman I never heard of but Mickey could be cool too. I couldn't stand his character at first but talk about growing up! He went from a cowering off and on boyfriend of Rose to a freedom fighter against Cybermen!

Overall, I got goosebumps watching this episode. Funny episodes are good, I don't mind space filler when there is good character development and acting in it but THIS is why I love this show. It has bits of humor to be sure but from the time the Doctor sees these ghosts he is on the ball trying to discover what they really are. When he sees the void ship he knows how wrong it is and when he is told that it does not belong to the Cybermen, his shocked reaction is so perfectly done, it makes me even happier David Tennant is such a perfect Doctor.

Other favorite scenes are when Rose tries to use the psychic paper and is caught because all Torchwood employees have psychic training and they can tell the paper is blank. Also how Torchwood has found all the alien tech that has crash landed on Earth for years and how they are using it to create a new British Empire. Also, the Doctor giving in, pulling up a chair and waiting for the inevitable "ghost shift". It freaks out the head of Torchwood so much she actually stops the shift!

Of course it would have been nice to have a different villain from the past emerge from the void ship but hey, I am not complaining. The thought of Daleks AND Cybermen on Earth, fighting each other AND us....wow!!!!

Last off I am very glad Rose's end will be on Earth. It was really the only way to do it. I'm sure it will be a sacrifice of some kind so as to alleviate any blame Jackie and Mickey would place on the Doctor, and it's the way her end needed to be. This was a near flawless presentation, and I really hope Doomsday will be a great send off for Rose and the Doctor (until next season that is...which starts WHEN?!).

Truthfully though with this kind of setup, I see no possible way it will be anything but...fantastic.