Rose is an OK introduction, suffering from a paper-thin plot and the need to re-introduce a sense of mystery and danger to the character of The Doctor. The special effects were hardly ground-breaking, and suffered a lot in places from being too 'obvious' (e.g. the signal emanating from a famous London landmark). The Nestene Consciousness was better realised than in Spearhead From Space (which could be interpreted as being damned with faint praise), and it was good to see The Doctor at least trying to interact with it rather than destroy it straight away. 

The main problem I feel is that the story blasts on through at 200mph. The forty-five minutes allotted passed in seemingly half that time, with nary a pause for breath. The few character moments we had ("I can feel the Earth turning in Space" and "There's a strange man in my bedroom") were good, but too few and far between. Rose would have benefited from another 15 minutes to give the plot more meat and the characters more room to breath. 

But there is plenty which is good: Eccleston's first outing shows promise, The Doctor being less certain of himself and more distant at times. When Rose chides him for not telling her that Mickey might be OK, we realise that this isn't the Doctor we're used to: not Jon, who would have had consoling words for Jo, nor Peter who would have tried to buck up Tegan with 'Brave Heart.' This is a more alien Doctor, one hurt and de-sensitised by the events of the War he has fought in. Eccleston has put a lot into creating this part, and it shows in his performance. From his first speech (“Run!”), he makes the part his own, in a way no incoming actor has done before. Only Hartnell, the original, showed such confidence and presence as The Doctor from the word go. 

Billie Piper as Rose is a revelation. She can act. Not only that, she can act well, and makes one believe in the part. She is a shop-girl with a nose for trouble, she is a humanising influence on The Doctor, she could be our new best friend. Giving Rose the limelight for the first story was a bold decision, but it worked. For the first time since An Unearthly Child we get to meet The Doctor through the eyes of a real person, one not used to Time Travel and alien invasions. It was a masterstroke, and one we should applaud Russell T Davies for. 

The Auton dummies are reasonably well realised, and we finally get to see them smash out from the windows in which they are displayed. What was missing was the “first part” of the story, showing how the Autons were made (I’m assuming there is a factory somewhere in Kent where the owner has been supplanted by an Auton duplicate) and insinuated into so many shop windows in such a casual fashion.

Indeed, when Rose (we) get into the story, the adventure is half over. The Doctor is in the process of making Henrik’s department store ‘safe’ and has (presumably) dealt with other Auton outposts. There is something unsatisfying in this, a sense that there is more to be told, that we don’t have all the facts. 

Who does have all the facts? Clive doesn’t, but he has a lot of them. He’s the 21st-Century Doctor Who fan, all internet-savvy and anal retentive geeky. Why is he obsessive about The Doctor? We aren’t really told. But he has amassed lots of information and sightings about the Ninth Doctor (without ever really picking up on the trail left by his predecessors) and shows Rose that this is someone special. There are a couple of nice in-jokes there, including his presence at the Kennedy Assassination (22nd November 1963, of course) and more of these are included on the website (unpromoted) which the BBC have set up. It can be accessed via the BBC Doctor Who site, and is a clever piece of fluff to demonstrate how the series has moved into the Computer Age. 

The rest of Rose’s life is well detailed, from her slightly flirty mother to her deadbeat boyfriend. Noel Clarke plays the part well, and it is easy to see why Rose, given the choice of staying with him or travelling with The Doctor, would jump into the TARDIS. It’s a nice touch that Rose is stronger than Mickey, and shows both how capable she is and how much of a foil for The Doctor she will be. 

No review of Rose would be complete without mention of the infamous ‘wheelie-bin’ scene. Suffice to say that, as a tension-breaker for the little ones (who might not have ventured near bins ever again if traumatised by the shot) it worked well. It wasn’t overdone (as the farting was to some extent in Aliens of London), and there could be a plausible reason why the burp occurred (which I’ll leave out in the spoiler-free environment we still have). One scene does not deserve to be held up to ridicule this show, when there were entire stories in the 1980’s with more childish stupidity than in the two seconds of television shown here. Deriding the entire show because of this is truly clutching at straws. 

If this is Doctor Who for the 21st Century, then I like it. It is bold it is witty , it has great special effects and it is able to attract great actors to appear in it. Despite the shortcomings in the plot and structure of Rose, its sheer bravado carries it above much of the lacklustre, by-the numbers episodes of Doctor Who seen in its declining years. 

Overall: bold and beautiful.

I must admit that my heart was racing as we fast approached a brand new series of 'Doctor Who', all the way through Graham Norton's dire 'Strictly Dance Fever' and even through to the opening credits I was terribly excited! What a fantastic moment when the theme tune kicked in coupled with the lovely visuals of the Tardis in flight. This new slant on the theme tune is very good, but I did prefer the 'TV Movie' version, just because it felt more dramatic and had more louder musical punches through it. 

The opening shot of the moon then the Earth hurtling towards the screen as we entered through the atmosphere was a perfect intial shot. But it did take a while to adjust to this new 21st century version of 'Doctor Who'. We see Rose herself first climbing out of bed, then seing her mum, going to work at 'Henricks', meeting and fooling around with her boyfriend, and then back at 'Henricks' again at closing time in the space of one minute, whilst in the middle of all this, the rest of London is in super-fast mode, and the incidental music feels overdone. Things do start to pick up and yet slow down a bit in pace when Rose goes to the basement, and we see spare shop dummies moving, this feels more like 'Doctor Who' now. 

Although, blink and you would have missed Christopher Eccleston's first appearance and word as the Doctor...I did! His hand pops out from nowhere grabs Rose's hand as the shop dummies draw closer, and says "Run", and then we see them running down a corridor being pursued by the nasties, something very much a running theme within past 'Doctor Who' adventures, so nice to see that legacy continued.

Eccleston does take a while to get used to, certain traits are identifiable as Doctorish, although others such as how he reacts to Rose's mum are certainly very different to the norm, as indeed they must, otherwise it would get laughed off the screen. I did find Noel Clarke's acting as Mickey to be a bit questionable, although when he got swallowed up by the bin I found that to be highly ammusing and visually well achieved even if it did look computerised. Billie Piper though is the star of the opening episode, as Rose she really makes her a very strong believable character, and as the episode is named after her that is rightfully the case.

Doctor Who fan Clive was an interesting feature, but it was a shame to see him written out of the series so soon, as he had the makings of being a good returning character. Although that particular scene was the highlight of the episode seeing the shop dummies come to life in the shopping precinct and wreaking havoc, however, this didn't last too long and was over far to quick in my view. Nice scene at the end though with the Doctor giving Rose the chance to travel with him, and then having a brief preview of next weeks episode tagged on at the end was a nice new feature and very welcoming.

Overall then I would say this was a reasonable start to new 'Doctor Who' , I don't think it could be much else, with so much hype, and so many introductions having to be made in the first episode, it's surprising that there was any sort of coherent story at all. Yes, the plot is fairly straight forward and yes the anti-plastic thingy is very convenient, but you couldn't really have it any other way. After several more viewings the story has grown on me, and it must be noted that rarely has 'Doctor Who' visually looked so impressive. There are a number of classic moments that stand out, inparticular the shop being blown up near the start of the episode, the Doctor's 'Earth spining' monolgue, and as stated the Autons (brief) invasion.

One thing I did greatly miss was the regeneration, I can understand why it clearly wasn't there, as it would have meant being another extra explanation to have been squeezed into the action-packed forty five minutes, and also it would have probably not made any sense to a new audience, and yet so much was introduced to the audience in the first few minutes that I don't think it would have mattered if we had seen the Doctor's distorting and changing face thrown into the mix anyway! I still feel that the Doctor's first introduction to the audience did feel a bit rushed and a bit low-key. Maybe a dramatic regeneration would have been a more startling and visually stunning opening, I think you could even have got round it by not even re-hiring Paul McGann! Russell T Davies is certinly a good and intelligent enough writer that he could have pulled it off and still kept nostalgic fans and new fans happy and none the wiser. Rose stumbling across the Doctor convulsing in mid-regeneration would have been much more of a dramatic and disturbing opening!

Anyhow 'Rose' as it ended up was a fairly good episode, and Eccleston looks like he's going to become a great Doctor, so all in all things look pretty rosy...if you pardon the pun! 7/10

A short seven days on from the fervent anticpation that preceeded the previous week's debut episode, this Saturday's airing of "The End Of The World" was unfortunately overshadowed by the news of Christopher Eccleston's departure. One can easily picture a substantial share of the hordes of dithering die-hards, willing to embrace Dr Who 2005, but still undecided, giving up at the first hurdle. After all, why go to all the bother of climbing the mountain if someone coming back down tells you the view is rubbish? Better to find out in the foothills.

As a result this imaginative slice of Who was probably greeted with less fan interest than it deserved, and this is a shame as it was really rather good. Perhaps, after 16 years of hiatus and of imagining our "perfect Who", that we all need reminding that sometimes the fun lies in making the effort and journeying to the summit regardless.

Eccleston's Doctor had some memorable moments in this episode, some might even dare to say at least one **classic** Who moment (the fleeting appearance of tears in his eyes as Jabe mentions the fate of Gallifrey) that would have served to utterly dismiss the doubts of the undecided and gain him acceptance, were it not for the fore-knowledge that his days piloting the TARDIS were already numbered.

"The End of the World" boasted several similarly small, but impressive touches that served to raise the show above the simple premise as a sum of its parts. The "core" story was uncomplicated, and the eye-pleasing menagerie of aliens smacked of the BBC effects department showing off for the sake of it (but brought back quaint memories... "Curse of Peladon", anyone?) but all this can be forgiven in the light of (pun unintentional) the impressive sun-expansion and orbital Earth shots, and especially the subtle development of both the Doctor's and Rose's characters, which, let's face it, was the object of the exercise and what we all wanted to see. It's notable that for an episode during which the pair spend most of their time apart, their relationship has by the end of it all cemeted into a closeness some Doctors and companions never achieved, even after dozens of episodes. It is also ironic that for the first time a companion has a home to return to, and the Doctor hasn't.

OK, what was good? Rose, and Billie Piper. Her disorientation and culture shock, her standing up to the Doctor, and questioning her decision to join him. The one-liners ("Wait til you see the bill"). The big big news about Gallifrey. The mercurial Doctor. The I-Pod. Stepping through the fan blades.

What was bad? The Platform One computer's ponderous and irritating attempt at sampling. "Sun-Filter descending, Sun-Filter rising, Sun-Filter descending", etc. anon (a latter day "Vacuum Shield Off" for all those "Enlightenment" fans). The drawn out "suspense" sequences. The Shrek 2-like stabs at contemporary in-jokes (the National Trust would never be around in the year 5 Billion - who would pay the subscriptions and display all those car stickers in their spacecraft?) The glib resolution, and linear plot (more mystery and intrigue, please, Russell).

In summary, if "Rose" was the first tentative step forward, the character development in "The End of the World" represents both feet firmly on the ground and Dr Who 2005's format being successfully established. Time to have some fun with it, and find out where it can take us.

OK BBC.... show us what you can do.

If the first episode was all about Rose, then this second outing belongs to Christopher Eccelston. He gives another superb performance as the Doctor, making his announcement to quit all the sadder. The story is based on a space station called Platform One, where the rich come to see spectacular events in VIP luxury. The event the have come to witness this time is quite literally the end of the world. The Doctor, plainly trying to show off to his new companion, travels to the Platform and gatecrashes the party. Of course this being Doctor Who, things soon start to go wrong. But who is behind the sabotage?

The visuals are very impressive, without ever being overwhelming. The aliens are pretty good, although a few are very much of the "men in masks" variety so beloved in the classic serials. However a few do standout. Most notably Yasmin bannerman as Jabe, a tree creature, and Jimmy Vee as the Moxx of Balhoon, an odd man boobed little blue pixie in a floating chair. The space station is superbly done and the CGI 'Cassandra' wonderfully realised.

However, this story is all about relationships and character acting. Billie Piper is once again a revelation as Rose, who is rapidly emerging as a contender for best ever companion. Yasmin Bannerman is the sexiest tree i've ever encountered. But it is Eccelston who shows why so Davies wanted him for the role. He is quirky, funny and dynamic. But most of all he makes you care for his Doctor.

The script is ones again excellent. Davies is superb at this sort of story telling. Light, pacy and just a little bit scary at times. This tale is very much a thriller rather than a chiller, and is delivered superbly well. The End of the World will be be a hard act to follow.

While “Rose” was enjoyable with many wonderful moments, I experienced a sense of unease watching it. This was due to the following: the gag about breast implants, the reference to “gays and aliens”, lazy scripting (as indicated by the repetitive use of adjectives e.g. “stupid”), rather trite social commentary (Rose’s speech about “no A levels, no job, no future”) and the overuse of incorrect and poorly delivered English. All this suggested to me that Russell T Davies had no actual respect for the series, and was using it as a vehicle for scoring points on pet issues. It is this type of self-indulgence that killed Dr Who off last time. 

Having watched Episode 2, The End of the World, I see more of this. I make the following criticisms: 

The plot was extremely weak. There was an unacceptable reliance on “magical solutions”: the Doctor’s hypnotic note paper, the tree lady knowing about the duct behind her suite, the way the Doctor just walks through the rotors, the amazing way he knows all the answers at the end, and the convenient way that the teleport is reversible and catches the skin lady but not her attendants. These magical solutions were to make up for the lack of decent story construction and were very disappointing. 

Apart from the steward, there was an absence of characterisation. The tree lady and the other delegates looked wonderful, but there’s no point being visually good if they do not have personalities. The alien guests in this 44 minute episode had less characterisation than the delegates in the first 23 minute episode of Curse of Peladon. What is the point of trying to feel sorry for the tree lady’s firey death if we do not get to know her in the first place? 

There was unnecessary and intrusive use of coarse language (“bitchy”, “prostitutes”). I do not want this language in Dr Who. In the case of the word prostitution, this could have been changed to “mistress”. But there is another question: why go down this route? Is Russell T Davies trying to prove how daring he is? Oh, please! The scene would have been better had the tree lady asked the Doctor: “Is she your wife? your mother? your grandmother?”

Remember all the hype about Billie Piper being the assistant equal to the Doctor, who would not have to be rescued and would play a full part in the stories? Well, she spent half this story locked in her room – needing to be rescued. 

There was complete overkill on the political commentary. I’ve only seen the episode once and cannot remember it all, but I was conscious of it while watching. Russell T Davies should have spent less time looking to make references to contemporary issues and more on plotting. He’s writing for Dr Who, not Panorama. 

The script was remarkably crass in some places, such as “can we get chips”? I respect that the writer is trying to draw contrasts between five billion years into the future and our common, everyday existence. Nice idea, but he is not doing it very well. There is an absence of subtlety, an overuse of colloquialisms and poor pronunciation. I appreciate the latter is intended, but it should not be apparent in every other line. Otherwise, it just irritates. 

Piper’s performance was very good, but Eccleston was disappointing (and I’m not just saying that because he’s leaving). I was looking for development in his performance and could not see any. He grins a lot. I want to feel I’m watching a Time Lord, not someone out of Eastenders. 

Finally, the Doctor’s standing by while the skin lady died. Disgraceful. The character of the Doctor is sufficiently established for us to know that he would not let another being suffer distress and death, even if they are a baddie. The Doctor kills but only to save life, and even then as a last resort. He does not kill out of vengeance. To refuse the villain aid and to gain smug satisfaction from their painful death is so out of character as to make me wonder whether the new production team have any real sympathy or respect for the programme at all. How could such a scene happen? I wonder whether Russell T Davies is content to rip it all up, make something different but rely on the Dr Who “brand name” to get the ratings.

If Episode one bent the rules a little as a pre-cursor to brillance, then episode two had to excel. With reputations hanging in the balance with this second offering from Russell T Davies, I was on the edge of my seat before Graham Norton had finished waving his hands in mock enthusiasm.

Putting my feelings for Christopher Eccleston's recently announced departure on hold, for the time being, I expected a lot and was renumerated ten-fold.

The effects ridden tour-de-force that is The End of the World showcases everything that is great about this 21st Century, BBC Who-niverse:

You see, Mr Davies and co. have realised that if the setting is supplied by post-production via special effects, then characterisation is the key and quite simply - it oozes out of this episode and most importantly, it works!

CGI starships and stations, believable, organic-looking alien make-up, fantastic, on-screen chemistry between The Doctor and co-star, Yasmin Bannerman (Jabe) and a do or die ending - make terrific television.

My suspension of disbelief at the impending doom of Platform One was complete, I was gripped by the goosebump inducing, heart-poundingly simple idea that the Doctor WOULD NOT MAKE IT.

Ecclestone shines as The Doctor, more so in this episode than its predecessor 'Rose', he is charming, thinks on his feet and fleetingly becomes his previous selves, most noticably when grilling Rose on how she feels about being 5 million years in the future. It was as if the Sixth Doctor's persona had wrestled this Ninth incarnation to get to the podium - argumentative and sulky.

The Doctor performs 'jiggery pokery' upon Rose's Nokia Mobile phone and though it is a touching and grounding conversation, the subtle reference to Rose's past (the call seems to have been placed before her encounter with the Autons) is all important - she must leave her past behind to get on with it.

Not only did we get a pre-credit sequence, a la Bond, but we got an Epilogue which counterpointed what it was to be human and revealed in full that a war had left the Doctor without a home to return to.

It is this single statement that left me a little disappointed, for if there are no other Timelords, then we can never go to Gallifrey, or see other TARDISes. Will the Master return and will we ever see another Castellan or Keeper of the Matrix?

These questions unanswered are a bitter pill to swallow at the end of what I consider to be a proper and auspicious start to the new series.