Desert of Zin

Oh.  My.  God.

Yep, Russell T Davies, executive producer of Doctor Who, is stepping down. But not until after the proposed two hour specials planned for next year instead of a full season.

And will David Tennant go at the same time? I would think so. Actually I’d expect him to go at the end of this season but it makes more sense his leaving with Davies. That gives the new guy a fresh start.

And who is this new guy? Why none other than Steven Moffat, writer of Press Gang, Jekyll, Coupling and several really good Doctor Who stories. I’m hoping he’ll bring a fresh feel to the series.

Not that it needs it, but it would be good for the series to be a bit, well, tougher. Sometimes it feels like the current stuff although good, doesn’t really go anywhere particularly quickly, or it is just me?

Anyway, interesting times with Davies and Tennant going with Moffat and a potential new Doctor on the horizon.

I was feeling a bit on the dubious side when faced with the prospect of watching the new series of Doctor Who.

To explain, it was the majority of series three that spoiled it for me, with the Christmas special (the Kylie episode) being the final nail in that particular coffin. But more on that train wreck some other time…

So it came to Saturday evening and I was, at best, ambivalent in the face of watching more New Who. But after talking about it with Ruthy, the voice of reason, it was then decided I’d give it a go.

I have to admit it was better than I was expecting. But then, to be honest, it couldn’t be much worse.

The story was fair for an series opener, a diet company drawing the fat off people to create new bodies for a new race.

The typical chase wasn’t as pointless as usual, the Tate woman was reasonable and the Doctor was his usual effervescent self.

That’s the thing. Perhaps by series four it should be trying harder? Not that it was a particularly bad job of the first episode. As I said, Tate was good. Well, not good, but not bad. She was just, well, she was there. She fulfilled the basic requirements of a companion. She was there, she got in the way and she gave the Doctor someone more immediate to save.

The Doctor was played with the usual gusto by David Tennant. He had some quality moments, any of the scenes in the company building and the scene with him and Tate through the windows on either side of Miss Foster’s office. Quality stuff.

And the supporting cast were good, Sarah Lancashire was excellent as Miss Foster and Bernard Cribbins was a star as the grandfather.

So, final words: good, a mild return to form but must try harder.

Did anyone see the Christmas Day special of Doctor Who?

It was… good?

I’ve got mixed feelings about it. Don’t get me wrong though, I thought that David Tennant was very good and didn’t ham it too badly as the post regeneration Doctor.

But the story was below par and it seemed a bit too contrived, even for Doctor Who.

That’s the problem with post regeneration stories. It’s heavy on the post-regen trauma (which is traditional Doctor Who fare) and has plenty of “who am I going to be this time?” and the stories tend to suffer as a result.

Still, it was more than watchable and after the credits there as a teaser for the new series.

Overall, it was a success. But next Christmas I hope they try harder.