So it’s finally arrived? Is it any good? Well, it’s certainly not like any other Doctor Who I’ve seen and that’s definitely for the better…

Lets get the Bad points out of the way first, such as they are. The music was a bit poor, leaning towards Keff McCulloch rather than Dudley Simpson. Some of the action was rather too fast and hectic. Some of the effects were superb, others not so and I’m still undecided on the Auton wheely bin, especially the burp!

Good points? The rest of the show basically. 

Initially I was a bit unsure of Christopher Eccleston, with him coming over rather too jokey to begin with. But my fears disappeared as the on-screen rapport with his new companion developed into something special and yet so traditional. He is definitely recognisable as the Doctor and has the right mix of humour, seriousness and mystery.

The revelation was Billie Piper. Never has a companion seemed so assured and real. Vulnerable but not wimpy, Billie’s performance was the focal point of the episode, dealing as it did with discovering the Doctor from her point of view and she nailed it right from the word go! Like the DWM interviewer, I am smitten…

And did you notice when swinging into action to save the Doctor, Rose says she’s got the gymnastics bronze. In shows like Star Trek, she would have to have had won the gold. Fortunately, this is Doctor Who, where even a robot can be told that even though he’s failed, it doesn’t matter because failures one of the basic freedoms. With Rose we can rejoice in a character who seems to know she isn’t perfect but isn’t bothered by it. Just like the Doctor himself. I thought that was a nice touch and perfectly in keeping with one of the series more human ethics; Do your best and don’t worry…

Making Rose the focal point of the episode was pure genius, as new viewers would be just as in the dark about the Doctor as she was, while us old fans could delight in her discovery of the character of the Doctor.

While the actual plot was a bit thin, the script was real, witty and fast. The supporting characters well-drawn, especially Mark Benton as Clive, a role which could have descended into the obvious caricature of a nerdy Doctor Who fan.

The reaction to the new series has been unbelievable. The series is fast becoming water-cooler TV and everyone but everyone has an opinion on it for me, largely positive as well.

All in all though, an enthralling start to the new series.

I could do my absolute best to consider Russell T Davies’ ‘Rose’ objectively, but that would be silly, and I would almost certainly meet with failure. I’m far too much in love with Doctor Who, or at least the idea of Doctor Who, to think about this as anything other than a new and special part of myself. So this can’t rightly be considered a ‘review’, since it’s impossible for me to separate myself from the thing in question. Instead, I’m obliged to tell my story.

For a start, I knew too much. A six-second trailer, and I had to go for a lie down. I’d already memorised the ‘falling through space’ sequence long before I had the opportunity to see it in context. And aside from not knowing precisely how the narrative would fit together, I pretty much knew what would happen, thanks to spoilers, speculation and the knowledge that the whole concept, and its associated iconography, had to be squeezed into forty-five minutes of screen time. The cynic in me would say that watching ‘Rose’ was merely a matter of joining the dots, so it’s fortunate I’ve decided to silence him.

What I’ve come to realise, over the fortnight preceding ‘Rose’, is how important the whole ethos of Doctor Who is to me. It’s hardly consistent, except perhaps in its ‘Britishness’, but the show’s multiple aspects – the horror of death, the secular sense of wonderment, the idea that one should ‘never be cruel or cowardly’, the desire to live your life in an interesting fashion – are what I’m working with here, in this life. It’s such a crucial part of my upbringing, I can’t imagine going forward without it.

So what’s important to me, and it’s the reason why the new series had me giggling to myself in the shower last week, is not that He’s coming back, but that He’s been away for so long. He hasn’t, of course, but suddenly it seems like that, because there’s a difference between reading Blood Heat on the train, and trying not to bend the spine of the book, and having the Doctor suddenly bounce into everyone’s lives, not just mine, every Saturday night. On television.

And that’s why it was so important that Davies and Billie Piper (and, to a lesser extent, Christopher Eccleston), got Rose right. She was at least as important as the Doctor, and thank Verity, she worked. A beautiful person leading a dreary life, and immediately the Doctor’s best friend. It’s necessary, I think, that the Doctor-friend (she’s no companion, and definitely not an assistant) dynamic has the suggestion of ‘fate’ scribbled on it somewhere, and that’s the episode’s first big success. The Doctor and Rose have a destiny together; that much was clear from the moment she dragged him playfully through the front door of the house. Rose’s TARDIS entrance is the flipside of the same coin, and played beautifully, as are her subsequent tears and the Doctor’s warm-yet-alien reassurance: ‘It’s OK.’

Attention to the wonderful Piper does Eccleston a massive disservice, of course. His awareness of what is required, and how much he can get away with, is masterful, and the Doctor of ‘Rose’ is a great stride forward for the character. His laughter with his new best friend and his dismissal of Mickey might seem too much like Russell T Davies ticking the boxes marked ‘human’ and ‘alien’ in his masterplan, but these are inevitable flaws for an episode with so much to do, and Eccleston has an unprecedented lightness of touch (unless you were witness to 2004’s Electricity).

Keith Boak’s job, it seems, was to make Doctor Who look like television drama for the twenty-first century, and this involves a corruption of sorts. ‘Rose’ was basically shiny and restless, leaping hyperactively from one jazzy shot to the next. This isn’t good for tension, and the Autons were not as scary as they might have been with a more patient approach to editing, but for the generation of kids we hope were watching, this might, sadly, have been necessary. Visually, ‘Rose’ was never less than interesting, even if there were often too much superficial goings-on, without the depth that would give the show a helpful suggestion of realism.

Murray Gold’s music suffered in exactly the same way, being incredibly ostentatious, and occasionally drowning out the dialogue. It was brash, too exciting for its own good, and incredibly appropriate. The episode had such a frenetic pace, it didn’t require such urgency in its incidental music, but it didn’t jar, because this is the kind of music video-style of television that we – and Doctor Who – are dealing with here. What’s true is that with a budget of millions, Doctor Who can’t yet risk being as downright weird as it once was. Hence the quasi-orchestral theme, relentless pace, and CGI. This is 2005, and the new Doctor Who is, in many ways, a child of the movies.

Thankfully, we’re still on a budget, and Rose having her face menaced by an amputated plastic arm is a fantastically cheap moment, superbly conceived. The hungry wheelie bin works less well, if only because of its ill-judged belch, and Noel Clarke’s obvious struggle with the illusory CGI. And the writing’s rooted in the great Doctor Who tradition of solving the problems of the universe by having a chat with a gooey blob on your doorstep. The difference between ‘Rose’ and ‘The Horror of Fang Rock’, which the climax pays homage to, is that this is so bloody loud, we can hardly hear the Doctor single-handedly conjuring up a whole new mythology for us to deal with. ‘I fought in the war!’ he screamed, and across the UK thousands of fans started to invent their own stories. This kind of half-explanation is exactly what Doctor Who’s so good at. It’s there in ‘An Unearthly Child’, Damaged Goods, and now ‘Rose’. This is just the beginning, and we can excuse the first show its lack of narrative substance. There just wasn’t enough time. Next week, it should slow down, and actually tell a story worth telling. As it stands, ‘Rose’ was the best trailer ever made. He’s come back to save the world, and yes yes yes, it needs saving.

Like last time (November 1963), the first episode contained an aerial view of Central London and I loved the way time was speeded up to show us a day in the life of Rose Tyler (Billie Piper). 

The new series has now got that filmed look and it was very tense watching Rose approach the store basement surrounded by what we knew at first glance to be Autons. The cheer that greeted her from BBC3 actually added to the scene - as it seemed the plastic nasties were luring her into a surprise birthday party, horror film style. But I didn’t mistake a couple of brief snatches of Graham Norton. Ironic, because he was reported to have wanted a role in the new series, having trained as an actor. I trust whoever was responsible for the sound transference will be exterminated, though it didn’t spoil my enjoyment. How could it? Rose needed someone to rescue her and the way The Doctor just burst onto the scene - sideways into the story - hadn’t been done before and is effective. 

I thought Christopher Eccleston was eccentric and likeable. Russell T set the character up quickly and well. In seconds we had established from his checking out the ears that he’d just regenerated, could scan-read quicker than humans and was quick at social comment: “he’s gay, she’s an alien - it won’t work”. I also laughed when he confirmed to Rose’s mother, who had her eye on him, that he was a strange man. As to the Ninth Doctor’s outfit: it suits Eccleston. As velvet smoking jackets & long scarves suited Jon Pertwee & Tom Baker. One or two of the subsequent outfits had been OTT (what Russell T said about “layers of association” over the years...re the costumes, going one farther than something that had worked for a different actor) and I guess it had reached the point where it was considered one of the factors standing in the way of making DR. WHO accessible to a 21st Century audience. But Sylvester McCoy was actually the first Doctor to speak with a regional (non-RP) accent. 

It’s a good move to base DR. WHO on contemporary Earth in a domestic set-up, as it answers it’s critics on the question of social relevance and will hopefully attract a lot of new viewers. The use of London - red buses, Big Ben & LondonEye - is a good selling proposition for overseas sales. I sincerely hope a lot of the episodes start & end on present-day Earth as I’ve heard. Yet within that, historical stories & outer space will be present. There seems to be a deliberate contrast in the arrangement of the episodes.

I loved the lighting of the TARDIS in RADIO TIMES. A butterfly design in it’s lines from a distance - which is pretty appropriate as they metamorphose. I’m not sure about the new console so far. But I was taken with the slightly chunkier TARDIS exterior, which reminded me of the films - both of which have been on in the last week. The lights being full on is another neat idea that perhaps should have been used before. 

The Autons are perhaps my favourite monsters, so a re-imagining of the famous scene of them smashing their way out of shop windows to go slaughtering innocent members of the public scores top marks for me. The new Autons - the male business suit with lilac shirts, the Classic Brides, the Auton Children - absolutely brilliant and instantly iconic. The fact Mickey was recognisable to us as an Auton before Rose was an acceptable dramatic device. 

Fast paced, contemporary, witty & scary. This featured the best SFX I’ve seen on TV. This single episode certainly compared well with Hollywood. 

DR. WHO is back and, boy, he’s better than he’s been in years.

For me, 'Rose' has a number of tributes: firstly, to Jon Pertwee (the Autons, two if you count the 'mickey head off' scene! (Worzel Gummidge!). Secondly, to Dead Ringers, with the use of the London Eye as a source of alien activity and thirdly, to the fans (Clive).

However, this dosen't take anything away from the episode. What with Rose's disbelief at both the Autons (although not named as such), and the Doctor's TARDIS (did anyone else notice the Time And Relative DIMENSION In Space?), it all seemed rather believable, with Billie Piper giving a more than adequate performance as Rose. (I still can't forgive her for 'Because We Want To!')

Chris Eccleston proved to be an inspired choice, although I fail to see anything 'fey' about his performance. (By the way, I am writing this after his announcement, and also apologies for the number of brackets in this review.).

The performance of Noel Clarke as Mickey has received mixed reviews, but surely the willing suspension of disbelief must still apply, or there's no point in remaking the programme in the firat place. Mind you, saying that, the belching wheelie bin was a bit too Light Comedy for my tastes!

Well, that's it really, just sit back, have a cup of tea (or coffee), and enjoy Doctor Who on Saturday nights at seven o' clock. Believe me, you won't regret it!

OK first things first, confession time. I am a backslidden Doctor Who fan. I only got 4 or 5 right on each round on the recent Mastermind. I had turned my back on all the books, animated and audio adventures that have followed since the end of the series. I watched and bought the film, but only because I felt I had to. I guess thinking about it, I had ‘buried’ Doctor Who in my head, and wanted to move on from it. For me the books, cds and paraphernalia were an unsatisfactory substitute, and just reinforced the sense of loss.

So during the lead-up to the new series I was worried - worried that they would a) produce something of quality but not Doctor Who at all or b) produce something laughably bad that would have Tom spinning in his armchair! Worried that it would be good but I would be unable to enjoy it as I was not 11 any more. And on top of that I was worried I was going to be so worried about it I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it even if it was good!

Given all of these misgivings and negativity, when I say that it was fantastic it’s high praise. Firstly the pace; it swept me along at such a speed that I didn't have time to stop and think. And it was pitched perfectly, at 8-12 yr olds like they said, but with one eye on adults so I was able to enjoy it despite my age.

In retrospect now the plot was a little thin and rushed. It seemed like no sooner had the aliens been introduced and their plan divulged than they had been defeated! But this was made up for by the йlan, verve and sheer sense of fun which covered the whole enterprise. It is acknowledged that every piece of created work gives you an insight into the soul of the creator. Well, this Doctor Who was the product of someone who loves life. And that’s what it should be. 

Monsters and all that. I didn’t expect to be scared or even impressed by the ‘monsters’, and I wasn't. The only monster in ANY sci-fi which has managed to scare me was the Alien. But really it was never about the monsters for me, but more the concept; being – or meeting – someone who is totally free to travel through time and space and the possibilities this throws up. (to give you a clue where I’m coming from, my favourite story is Warriors Gate – no monsters. I've never even been that keen on the Daleks!) The most effective part for me 'monster'-wise was the scene in the cafe when her boyfriend had been copied; I found him genuinely a bit creepy. But judging from the posts on the cbeebies website, kids found the Auton shop dummies scary so that’s OK!

Bits and bobs. Doesn’t the closing theme music end a bit abruptly? Clive – an interesting character thrown away too early. In response to those nit-pickers saying that how come Clive saw the Doctor in various eras when he had only just regenerated – those were places he is going to be! (mangled tenses). And Clive happens to live in the same area as Rose after she does an internet-wide search for ‘Doctor Who’ – what’s the chance of that?!

But these are just footling concerns. I really loved it and I can’t wait for the rest of the series. It’s like being 11 again!

Being a casual, rather than devoted, Who fan, I was unperturbed by rumours of a new series, the McGann movie came and went but by March 26 2005 I was excited beyond belief by the prospect of a new series. It’s funny that in 2005 Star Trek dying (regenerating if you're an optimist!) doesn't seem as bad as it should and the most exciting return of a sci fi icon is a 900 year old time traveler, as opposed to a Jedi gone bad. We live in interesting times but did series premier Rose live up to expectations?

The TARDIS, SFX, theme and title sequence were all present and correct, the new TARDIS interior being suitably alien and yet reminiscent of previous incarnations. Chris Eccleston combined grinning maniac with sensitive elder admirably and his Doctor, despite his protestations, was reminiscent of previous incarnations. Billie Piper shut a few people up convincing us of Rose's dichotomy of perplexed and spunky. Mickey on the other hand seemed to need an Atomic Thunderbuster to get him going with enough kid friendly elements in the script acting like this week's Chuckle Brothers guest star is not enough. 

The pace was frenetic and the story was patchy and full of more holes than Mrs. Tyler's knickers drawer, if you were expecting traditional Who that is. However the title of the episode is Rose and from that we must take our cue. This story is not about the Nestene Consciousness, the hinted at war it is simply 'council estate girl meets time traveling alien' in that context plot holes and a lack of exposition fall by the wayside and we can forgive any quibbles. 

The Internet man was a genuine revelation a loving and fun poking way of getting over a load of exposition whilst giving a thumbs up to everyone out there on sites like this. The Autons moving menacingly at the episode's beginning were scary enough and apart from Mickey's transformation from wooden to plastic the individual scenes worked well. The incidental music was a bit Byker but we can't have everything can we? 

Overall this was exciting stuff, welcome back Doctor, I fear for the 45 minute format but with Star Trek, X Files, 24 and a host of others (heck the Simpsons does it in 20!) all managing to produce quality multilayered storytelling in that amount of time (with mini advert cliffhangers) then there is no reason Who can’t do the same.