Bad Wolf & The Parting of the Ways (Joint review)
Bad Wolf and The Parting Of The Ways have a lot to live up to. They have to conclude Series One and lead into Christopher Ecclestons departure, they have to reintroduce the Daleks, they have to wrap up the Bad Wolf plot thread that has been running through the Series, and they have to also be damn enjoyable in their own right. On top of all this too, they have to sustain enjoyment over two separate Episodes, something that I feel has been a bit of a weak link throughout this Series.
Both Aliens Of London and World War Three had their really great moments, but I felt that they were also severely lacking, with the latter Episode seeming a bit too much like padding when the two Episodes are watched back-to-back.
The Empty Child was one of the best Episodes of Doctor Who ever made, balancing really eerie and frightening with a light touch; The Doctor Dances on the other hand began well but ended terribly, with the final fifteen minutes being totally deprived of all suspense- you want to feel the tension, but there is no tension there to be felt. It is no surprise then, given that these are my opinions on the other two-parters, that it was the two Episode format that I was most worried about prior to transmission.
Fortunately then, I think that Russell T Davies pulls it off perfectly here. Watched alone, both Episodes are hugely enjoyable, but watched together and you get a far more explosive effect. The emotions are heightened, the frights are more shocking and the story hangs together in a way that simply cannot be appreciated if watched with a week long gap between Episodes. From the very beginning when the Doctor appears in a Big Brother house to the very end when David Tennant beams a winning smile into the camera, everything has been carefully crafted to make for a sense of completion within both the story and the Series as an entity.
The actual story itself is a great idea, and again it is one that manages to make the Series feel even tighter. Returning to Satellite Five from The Long Game provides a neat inter-continuity fro the Series and it also enables Davies to explore territory that he had dipped his feet in merely an Episode beforehand: what happens after the Doctor has saved the day? In Boom Town we have the Doctor face the consequences of his actions head on, but here we take it one step further. There is no cop-out ending this time, we are flung straight into the centre of what the Doctor has accidentally created. No amount of Daleks later on can escape the fact that everything which occurs in the next ninety minutes occurs partly as a consequence of his meddling and swanning off (to coin a phrase). What makes the Doctor the hero of the piece though is that this time he faces it without hesitation. He sees the problem he has helped create but realises that someone has manipulated it further. Its his fault as well as theirs, and so he sees it as his duty to stop it before its too late. The revelation that it is the Daleks who have done this provides not only a satisfying moment for the return of an enemy, but also provides an emotional impact when you consider the Doctors back story. It was the Daleks who destroyed his home and his people. It was the Daleks who changed the Doctor forever, and now it is time for him to finish this chapter in his life forever. By facing them head on, this incarnation of the Doctor turns a corner in his healing following the Time War, and by facing his fears he is able to remember exactly who he has always been.
The most satisfying moment of the entire Series, in my opinion, is where the Dalek Emperor asks the Doctor just what he is- killer, or coward? For one moment, you think that the Doctor will go over the edge and use a weapon to save the day
but he doesnt do it. He chooses coward. He chooses his death over slaughter; he prefers to be killed than kill. One criticism that has surfaced again and again throughout the Series is that the Doctor here is rather unlike the Doctor seen elsewhere in the history of Doctor Who, but with this moment you realise that this has been the Doctor as we know and love him all along. Theres no bravado this time, no avoiding the situation or getting angry at it. He stands there, exposed, ready to die rather than kill others. He says he chooses coward, but he does not. He chooses heroism. He cannot commit genocide here as he knows it will make him no better than the Daleks themselves, and rather than leave Earth to its fate as many people have claimed he is doing, he is instead showing his optimism: it doesnt require the Doctor to save the day, because he knows that humans will do it instead with or without his intervention, and with the sudden spectacular entrance of Rose, that is exactly what happens.
Rose Tyler as a character is able to sum up everything that Davies knows Doctor Who to be about. She is able to show everyone that no matter who they are, they can better themselves and make a better life for everyone around them. Her speech to Mickey and her Mum in a Chip Shop in The Parting Of The Ways just sums it all up. It also shows just why Adam, earlier on in the Series, was not companion material. So many people have again levelled criticism at the character, saying that the Doctor treated him poorly, but here we hear just why the Doctor is right to dismiss him. Rose does not travel with the Doctor for the Aliens and the different Planets and the History. She travels with him to learn how to get a backbone and live a better life. Adam on the other hand travelled to get a better position in life. He was not concerned with the ins and outs of becoming a different person, but instead wanted to have a more comfortable position in life. The only time Rose attempts to do what Adam does, it all goes disastrously wrong, but she sacrifices something to repair the mistake. Adam makes no such sacrifice and learns no such lesson.
The very ending with Rose saving the day is the very message that Davies tries to get across throughout the Series. Rose is not possessed with unique abilities or super powers or any advantage over anyone else in the Series. Bad Wolf or not, she is ordinary and just like everyone else. This is why it is so important for her to save the day. It shows just how much she has learnt from the Doctor; it shows just how much she is willing to sacrifice to make a better world; it shows us just how much of a team the Doctor and Rose are. Rose travels forwards back to the Doctor, knowing it could kill her, to save his life. The Doctor sees it happen and kills himself so that she may live, and how does he do it? With something as human as a simple kiss. No magic gimmicks, no large explosions, no alien abilities. I must admit that when he went to kiss her, my entire family including myself all groaned and even screamed No, dont do it! until we realised just what he was doing. He was killing himself in the most human way possible, as the most human of humans had just saved the day. The kiss in Doctor Who (The TV Movie) was so wrong because it represented nothing other than bestial instincts, the like of which had not been displayed by the Doctor so explicitly before, but here it works perfectly as it represents the very crux of the story: humanity saves the day.
Davies script is frankly amazing. The tension is constantly maintained and the viewer is always eager to see what happens next. His use of the Daleks is great as well, making them servants to the Dalek Emperor and ruthless killers. The Dalek Emperor, whilst not as visually impressive as the original one from The Evil Of The Daleks in my humble opinion, is a great creation, updating the very representation of the Daleks to something easily recognisable unfortunately in todays society. Visually, they are very impressive too. The fact that whole CGI fleets of them are seen gives a real sense of scale, but more so it makes the CGI less noticeable. Whereas in Dalek it was all too easy to play the game of spot the CGI, here an advantage is had by having hundreds of CG Daleks, making the effect blend far more seamlessly into the overall story. Davies also makes them truly horrible. When people say they are afraid of the Daleks, its not because of what they look like but what they do. They kill nice and innocent people- Lynda for example- without a care in the world, they massacre a room of humans just because they can, and they taunt the Doctor for no reason other than to intimidate him. The moment when the Doctor is on the Dalek Ship, resting his head against the TARDIS doors as all you can hear are Dalek guns going off says it all: even the Doctor is frightened. Davies also provides some of the most eye-watering emotional moments in the Series here; the Doctors optimistic answer phone message to Rose is a real tears-in-the-eyes moment, as are his final words before he regenerates- okay, so they may have been written to be remembered, but when theyre that good, Im not going to complain.
He is also able to really show just what a better life Rose has with the Doctor by flinging her back to Earth. After everything has been so quick and frantic, you suddenly get meaningless conversations in a Chip Shop, dreary surroundings with dull colours purposely contrasting the colourful Satellite Five, and a lot of sitting around doing nothing. The moment when the big Yellow Truck arrives driven by Jackie Tyler represents not just a turning point in her character but also a sign that the Doctor has been here- things are loud, colourful and anything but dull again. You just know that everything will be okay.
This isnt just Davies finest hour, this is everybodys. Billie Piper has never been so good as she is here, and it is testimony to how much she has invested in the role of Rose that when she apparently dies in Bad Wolf, even though we knew she was going to be alright, my family still gasped. John Barrowman too is magnificent, making Captain Jack a hero and even more likeable than before. The very ending, when the Doctor leaves Jack behind, not realising that he is alive, is heart wrenching, and is superbly played by Barrowman, as is his farewells to the TARDIS crew earlier on, with his kissing both Rose and the Doctor managing to be touching rather than amusing.
Despite only appearing so she can die, the character of Lynda Moss is instantly loveable, and her death is absolutely devastating, and Jo Joyner is more than a little responsible for this, having made her such a wonderful character throughout. Sweet doesnt sum her up- she is adorable. Not only is her death chilling, but it also provides an amazing moment in Dalek history: you can lip-read them! You see them float, you hear nothing, but you know what is coming up next. Farewell, Lynda.
As Mickey, Noel Clarke undoubtedly turns in his finest performance of the Series and it just goes to show how good an actor he is when given a great Director to work with. Camille Coduri has never been better as Jackie either, with her shouting at Rose in the TARDIS when she tells her all about how the Doctor took her back to see her Dad being a brilliant moment in terms of character and acting.
Joe Ahearnes Directing is great throughout the Episodes too, and is perfectly complimented by Murray Golds musical score- his best of the Series. Together, they help create one of the most memorable, terrifying and tense Doctor Who stories to ever grace the show.
Of course, it is almost unnecessary to say, but Ill do it anyway, that Christopher Eccleston is the person to impress most throughout the two Episodes. From his look of total devastation when he thinks Rose has died, to his answer phone message, to his final moments, to his declaration of cowardice, he is on top form and reminds every person watching just why he was the perfect choice for the Doctor. Fantastic says it all.
I couldnt pass off the opportunity here to not mention someone who is in my opinion the unsung hero of Series One, the Director of Photography, Ernie Vincze BSC, who really makes every shot count and has brought this Series to life in a way that I never thought could, but always hoped would, happen.
Then of course there is the actual Regeneration. Yes, its sad to see Eccleston go, and yet it just a few moments David Tennant is able to win over the entire audience and convince us all that Doctor Who is in safe hands. In fact, the actual Regeneration itself is a great idea for the Series, as it means that new Viewers are now aware of pretty much the most important parts of the Doctor Who legacy, and it also fulfils the whole trip of a lifetime criteria in a very literal way!
Never before has Regeneration looked so painful, nor has it been so clearly explained, which makes the whole process just that bit sadder. I never understood what it meant when people said it was sad to see their Doctor go, but now I get it: I was simultaneously devastated and overjoyed. The Doctor is dead, long live the Doctor.
And so, that is that. No more Eccleston, no more Series One, and no more concerns over whether it would all go swimmingly well. It did, and thank goodness for that. It ends on a high. Series Ones highlight? Without a doubt. These two Episodes can do nothing wrong in my eyes, and I am sure that many other people agree with me.