Not too sure about this one. Very mixed feelings about it. There were good bits of it and there were not so good bits of it and I canÂ’t decide which outweigh which.

At the beginning I thought I was watching the wrong show or that we still watching those stupid BBCÂ’s snippets they have between programs like the ones they have where the Salsa dancers are dancing in the rain. I know the show has progressed a lot but it was almost as if RTD had overdosed on Champagne as he suffered from writers block after the success of the first series, fell asleep then woke up and decided that the history of Queen Vikkie should be crossed with Crouching Tiger Hidden Tiger and decided to add a werewolf into the mix for the hell of it. DonÂ’t get me wrong the dialogue between Rose and The Doctor was fantastic but in some scenes both main characters seemed to interact woodenly with the other people in the story.

There is some other praise to be given Pauline Collins as Queen Victoria was exceptional except for the last speech about making Torchwood Institute, I think that was added later to tie up the creation of Torchwood and I donÂ’t think it worked that well here but we will have to wait and see how well it works later in the series and how they integrate Torchwood in the stories. I also think the Host was excellent he was very creepy and it was good that it was brought back into the story that Rose was the bad wolf and I also think excellent acting was shown by Lady Isabella and Flora the maid. Shame the same canÂ’t be said about Sir Robert who was dull as dishwater and had the chance to bring more of a presence to the role.

I also think some kudos should be paid to The Mill for the excellent werewolf which was better than other efforts I have seen in other shows and also for the really scary change from person to beast though I am guessing the Costume department was on holiday (The judo suits were just too red and so out of place in the scene. That was probably the point but still I donÂ’t think it fitted well with the episode). All in all I donÂ’t think the episode will top the list of all time best episodes though it was better than The Long Game from last series. In hope RTD looks at this and learns not to throw too many things together in one episode; either that or I will re-watch it and decide that my tablets had made me all funny and thrown my perception off.

Tooth and Claw was going back to the old hammer horror route and it had some genuinely scary scenes in it. Going back to Scotland for the second story of the new Doctor brought back reminders of "The Highlanders" and the Dr's nod back to Jamie McCrimmon was neatly done. The We are Not Amused scheme was a bit of a laugh. The reference to Bad Wolf was a neat bit of continuity with Rose and you wonder if this might lead on further again later in the series.

Getting used to David Tennant as the new timelord is intriguing and this business about going to an Ian Drury in 1979 was an unexpected start which would have gone over the heads of many of the kids watching though the Mums and Dads would be happy. Quite zany, and at least we got the Dr and Rose spinning around the console before the bumpy landing.

I did like how Queen Victoria turned the tables on the Doctor at the end and took a dim view of his escapades with Rose.

I found it a bit inconceivable though that the Queen could turn so quickly after knighting the Doctor and Rose. Eh? While the twist was a good one, I don't think the knighthood bit was necessary as it was a bit of a severe flip?

I definitely enjoyed the episode and the wolf was highly impressive. Pauline Collins made a good Queen Victoria and the way she treated Rose was intriguing.

There were some great scenes which really built up the tension as the wolf was on the loose. Very psychologically scary without seeing any blood! Clever stuff as it was all in the mind when the Dr and friends could hear the wolf lurking but they did not know where from. The transformation into the werewolf was quite horrific and the Who team can be justifiably proud of their efforts.

One minor issue with Tennant is he seems to spit out the dialogue at a ferocious speed sometimes, and as a Scotsman, even I have trouble understanding him!!!

I got a lot of enjoyment out of the episode because of its high production standards, the creepy wolf scenes and of course, the scary cage and those big brooding eyes of the wolfman.

Rose's attempts at a Scottish accent were funny. Hoots mon indeed!

But overall, I felt the programme was dark, atmospheric with some of the usual snappy dialogue we come to expect. The acting of the Scots was particularly good (Tennant included!) and the taking over of the mansion was an impressive.

All in all, a silky fun production with some good acting and great effects, setting us up neatly for next week's back to the futuresque K9 return.

Two stories into the new season with the promise of Sarah Jane Smith and K9 to come, Tooth & Claw sees mention of another former companion as the Doctor assumes the identity of "Dr James Mcrimmon" of the lands of Balamory ("What's the story in . . . ??"). Yes - some typical RTD contemporary jokes come into this rather untypical RTD script - The Muppet Movie, Ian Dury and the Blockheads and Margaret Thatcher also get a mention in the first 10 minutes! This is a very dark story contrasting with the season opener "New Earth". The very classy looking opening daylight shots of the slow motion fighting monks and the Doctor and Rose's introduction to Queen Victoria leads into mainly night and dark interior shots - ideal settings for the werewolf!

This is a tight story fitting quite nicely into its 45 minute format with a small but convincing cast and, in true Doctor Who tradition, lots of corridor chases. A slightly less than usual invasion concept - the monks plan to take the monarchy from Queen Victoria and a suitable trap is laid with the Doctor and Rose becoming unwittingly involved. DT is totally centre stage again, commanding a fine performance - especially his curiosity and fascination in the werewolf. A slightly more casual look too with no tie and an open necked blue shirt under the suit.

The comedy is there - Rose is determined to win her £10 bet with the Doctor that Queen Vic will say her infamous catchphrase - but is pleasantly restrained to allow the action to take place. And the action is convincing with some good morph scenes for the werewolf and some good fight scenes. This is adult DW at is best and, as writer Steven Moffat DW Confidential later alluded to' the fear factor very close to a later screening time, The late Mary Whitehouse will no doubt be turning in her grave!!! Unlike many others, I love the incidental music - I think it is so far more effective than the very repetitive electronic background of the 1980s.

There is much for everyone in this story - because the plot is not too complicated it leaves for the suspence to take lead. And then, just as the references to Torchwood have been building up, a revelation at the end that Queen Victoria herself set up the organisation that will play an important part for Captain Jack and indeed the Doctor in coming months.

One week to go to K9 - am I enjoying this run so far? Affirmative master!!

This is the episode I've been waiting for. Simply and utterly amazing. This beats most of my favourite Doctor Who episodes to the top spot, and so it should. When Liverpool won the football 2-1 I breathed a sigh of relief as I awaited what I thought would be another average RTD story, and oh how I was wrong!

The story starts with a bang as a group of monks with a hint of Quientin Tarantino style directing, raid Torchwood House in 1979 and inprison the house keepers in a basement with a caged Werewolf. The werewolf is his human form is almost as scary as his moonlight inspired appearence; the washed out colour of the whole episode makes it seem movie-like and very dark and eerie.

Pauline Collins as Queen Victoria was playing the part brilliantly and brought a sense of normality to the story which was later broken by the discovery of her late husband Albert's invention, which by the way was a great plot twist.

One niggle though - I think that the Doctor and Rose are getting far too confident of themselves. They are laughing at atmospheric and creepy scenes as if they are under the assumption that they will definately solve yet another mystery, and will continue travelling through time and space. This was the best thing about the new series. It seemed as if the audience were learning the wonders of time travel at the same time that Rose was. As Queen Victoria rightly mentioned that this was not the time for jokes.

The ending was the worse part for me. The Doctor EXILED!? This hasn't happened since the Jon Pertwee years. The story ended as if Victoria hated them both; which was clearly not the case throughout alot of the episode. It was a nice twist with the whole Torchwood Institute idea and the "Werewolf-blood"; which just so happened to occur a day after Queen Elizibeths 80th. Are we to believe that our Queen turn into a hairy beast every full moon?

Anyway, overall a thrilling episode that scared me (and I'm not a coward to admit it). The direction, the writing, the scenery and the massive link the ending had to future episodes. See my New Earth review and I will have mentioned how I believed RTD can not write Doctor Who stories. I go back on that. This just goes to show how good Doctor Who 2005-6 really can be.

Phew! Well thank Gallifrey for that ...

Firstly, some irony. Russell T Davies mentioned in an interview that he wasn't supposed to write this episode - the writer who was commissioned ended up leaving out the werewolf and monk aspects and so the original script was passed upon.

I'm glad, since it's proven that he IS a Who-writer.

This was the best Davies-penned episode (with the possible exception of The Parting of the Ways) so far. Indeed, it was one of the finest episodes of new Doctor Who overall. Maybe Russell should write historicals more often.

The story was the tightest piece the much-maligned writer has produced for the show - very traditional Doctor Who in many ways, from the 'Doctor ingratiates himself right into the situation' opening, through the 'hiding from the monster' moments to the Doctor's final realisation of how to save everyone. And it didn't feel even slightly compressed into the 45 minute timeslot. In essence, it was the anti-New Earth. And it was all pulled off with aplomb - no unnecessary pop culture references (the royal family gag was actually funny), no random running around to fill time (a werewolf in a claustrophbic house is far easier to buy into than dull zombie patients in a future hospital which looks uncannily like a modern exhibition centre) and a real sense of danger throughout.

Kudos also to the production team on this one - the entire episode was beautiful, full of rich, dark colours and moody lighting. The direction, too, was excellent - from the cinema-style acrobatics of the monks (entirely pointless, but great fun) to the tight shots of the characters in danger and the chaotic fleeing from the werewolf.

And effects? My, oh my ... The werewolf is by far the finest special effect Doctor Who has EVER had. Clearly CGI but intricately detailed and possessing of a terrifying realism.

Both David Tennant and Billie Piper (in a much more traditional companion role) acquit themselves well, and Tennant's manic incarnation (great jerky cuts when he starts to work everything out) is becoming more Tom Baker and less Peter Davison every week. His very-human wit and chemistry with Rose is tempering this nicely, though.

An all-round success, then. Where I winced a little and peered at my watch once during New Earth, Tooth and Claw held me riveted, a smile spread across my face throughout.

And a few more clues about the arc, to boot. Rose's aspect of the wolf might not be finished with, and it looks like Torchwood is a lot more sinister than just a new stomping ground for Captain Jack ...

THIS is where season 2 begins.

What can I say? Absolutely everything I look for in Doctor Who and more. There were a few minor blemishes here and there but the overall package here is impressive it would get tops marks from on any viewing. Whilst it may not be the best Russell T Davies script yet (his witty lines were lost amongst all the atmosphere) it was great to see him trying something totally different (ie not a soap or a space opera) and pull it off with real style. If horror aint your bag bugger off, but I love horror and this was without a doubt one of the finest Doctor Who has ever dished up.

It all starts out so brilliantly with that dynamic opening. Aside from The Unquiet Dead has their been a better pre titles sequence yet? The way Simon commented gruffly “Its not like Doctor Who at all” made me beam with delight, he is not used to being swept of his feet by such fancy camera and stunt work but this is exactly the sort of thing the show can achieve now that it couldn’t before. I was dazzled by these balletic yet arse kicking monks and their raid on the house was truly terrifying. The slick camerawork not only adds a great deal of energy and style but also doesn’t really let you look at the damage these guys are causing so the kids can be scared but only with the implied violence of what is going on.

Hop to the TARDIS for some more rock and roll fun (I love how Russell has introduced more music into the world of Doctor Who, it could often be something of a drab show so it is nice to see the TARDIS spinning through the vortex to some groovy music). David and Billie have a fine rapport already and like the best Doctor/companion teams (Second Doctor and Jaime/Third Doctor and Jo/Fourth Doctor and Sarah/Seventh Doctor and Ace) it is clearly they are absolutely in love with each other and their adventures. The running gag throughout the episode is great and a lovely postmodern touch. The Doctor’s accent slipping between Scottish and English is another fine choice, it’s a shame he should slowly regain his ‘natural’ voice because David’s natural accent is too sexy for words. The best Doctor moment in the entire episode: When he sees the werewolf for the first time…it is not the reaction you would expect when a slavering beast is tearing from a cage and trying to kill but it was 100% the Doctor. Rose isn’t exactly idle either, proving her worth when she manages to escape her manacles and turn the serving staff into a fighting force.

What I was amazed by was how well this episode adhered to the clichés of horror and yet still managed to seem fresh and interesting. Lets face it, a spooky house, people being chained up with a monster, a full moon, the monster escaping and rampaging through the house…these have been done to death in every film, TV show and book you can think of. Maybe it was the crazy ninja monks or the fact that the werewolf was an alien (his story enhanced beautifully by the TARDISode), maybe it was the inclusion of Queen Victoria or the fact that answers to defeating the creature were scattered around the house and well built into the structure of the episode, but this werewolf story managed to be both scary and a wee bit different to those you have seen before. Certainly it tops the other science fiction shows I have watched attempts to pull it off. Buffy was a bit post modern with Phases, an embarrassing costume and far too many gags spoiling what could have been a scary episode. The X-Files offered up Shapes which did have a genuinely chilling transformation sequence but it was tacked on to a ruthlessly boring episode that hardly featured the creature at all.

The direction was right on the nail, astonishingly classy for television and the sort of standard the show needs to maintain if it wants to stay at the top of its game. What impressed me most was how far they were willing to go to scare the audience, there was a few moment in this episode where I was scared so I dread to think what the kiddies went through! The way the episode builds towards showing us the monster, manoeuvring Rose into its path just in time to see it turn is perhaps the best build up for any monster since Terror of the Zygons episode one. The creature in the cage was frightening enough with his silky voice and horrid tar black eyes but once his skin began to stretch and tear…brrr! The actual werewolf was fantastically designed but just cartoony enough to let the kids know they are watching television. Frankly the scariest moment in the entire episode was when the Doctor and Rose are trapped inside a room and the wolf is prowling around outside, purring and growling. Not knowing where he is was much scarier than actually having him right in your face! The biggest cliché comes when one guy says Aha the danger is over, I’ll just investigate over here before he gets yanked up to the ceiling and savagely torn to pieces. How many times have I seen that before…and why does it keep getting used? Because it works and its damn funny! And scary!

The inclusion of Queen Victoria makes the episode far more than the monster fest than it could have been. Pauline Collins turns in a surprising performance with none of the gravity I was expecting but with much humanity and grace. Colour me impressed. RTD tries to pull of his surprise ending again, almost exactly the same as what he did with The Christmas Invasion having an authority figure and the Doctor who have been acting friendly suddenly at odds with each other in a most dramatic way. It’s not quite as good because we don’t know Victoria as good as we knew Harriet Jones but it still comes out of the blue. Its always nice to have a bit of history in Doctor Who and the regulars’ reaction meeting the famous Queen is a delight. There were some lovely touches like Albert’s death being utilised as part of the plot, the giant telescope, which made the episode much more thoughtful than the run-around it clearly is.

Any complaints? Well the running time again I suppose. Does this story feel rushed? Not really because it is basically a bunch of people running around a house and this time RTDS has wisely confined one bloody great idea to the episode rather than chucking a thousand at the wall and hoping that some of them stick. But saying that I still feel these 45 minute stories would benefit from being an hour long, just so you can flesh out the characters a bit more, maybe add a touch more detail. These New Series episodes are being praised for being far faster paced and exciting compared to the drab, slow moving old Doctor Who TV series but they can’t really help that having to squeeze in as much plot in half the length! What I’m missing is the exploration of ideas, the new series has imagination in abundance but we are not have the opportunity to explore these crazy, wonderful ideas in any great depth in case the kids fall asleep so we’ll just have another action set piece instead. The only story that had managed to marry the modern day need for crazy action and the old series joy at exploring the bizarre (and adequately delve into the characters) is The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances. Had Tooth and Claw been as long it would probably feel overstretched but just fifteen minutes more to allow us to find out a bit more about the monks, see the household in operation before the invasion, look a bit deeper into the history of the wolf, it would be just as classy but all the more rich.

But I refuse to complain, this has been one of my favourite episodes so far and on the strength of its broadcast viewing, easily my most exciting experience with new Who. The production was sparkling, the writing crisp and the show is clearly still firing on all cylinders after the over stuffed New Earth. Compelling viewing for all ages and a real shit scarer for the kiddies.