On a whim, I decided to watch the return of Dr Who, which was 15 years ago now and likely to be distant in my memory, especially as I only ever watched these when they were first shown. I felt, with the new lockdown, that perhaps I should revisit the series from the start, with fresher eyes...
Here's my episode-by-episode breakdown:
Rose: With hindsight, not the most auspicious of debuts and in many ways the shadow of wobbly sets and dodgy FX is cast on this immediately. The Autons - living plastic creatures - were never the most terrifying or even plausible villains, so I'm not sure if this first episode was more in homage to the past than scene-setter for the future, especially if memory serves me correctly Jon Pertwee's first adventure was also against the Autons.
However, as an intro for the new Doctor and for companion, Rose Tyler, it's a perfect way to become acquainted. In many ways it's a dreadful episode full of poor slapstick, unrealistic actions and a genuine lack of suspense. Plus the first of many implausible 'escapes' for major characters with no explanation as to why or how. What it also does is hint at a much darker Doctor - a man who seems to be sailing a little too close to deranged. There is also a lot of death wrapped up in an almost CBBC towel and it continued a theme that [ahem] runs through the series - that of lots of running around.
The End of the World: The main problem with the second episode is the lack of logic employed throughout it - from the reasons behind the villain's actions to the ridiculous Super Mario level to simply be able to turn the space station off. It's full of what would be token digs at consumerism, capitalism and selfishness throughout the series and also introduces the Face of Boe. It's a mystery set 6 billion years in the future at the end of the Earth's life; it's a uninspired idea marred by '21st century' thinking. At this point, even with excellent enigmatic acting from Christopher Eccleston, you could have started to wonder if this comeback was going to be a one-off series.
The Unquiet Dead: There is much to like about this episode, despite the fact that it seems so contrived. It is genuinely creepy at times and has an unsettling ending. It's also the first real indication of the 'Bad Wolf', the recurring mystery motif throughout the rest of the series. What seems to be a strange ghost/zombie story, with no obvious links to Charles Dickens - who plays a large part in this without really doing a lot - ends up being an alien invasion story about a rift under Cardiff (with Gwen from Torchwood playing a different role). The things we learn from this episode include the fact this doctor doesn't seem to object to collateral damage; while there's a darkness that is hinted at which seems like it could be blacker than we could imagine.
Aliens of London & World War Three: By the time I got to this first two-parter, my patience was wearing a bit thin. The Slitheen are grotesque and grossly unappealing; there is something that is neither menacing or scary about them (outside of the slightly better than poor special effects) and the added farting is just another concession to the FACT that Dr Who is essentially a family show. Again normal logic seems to have been thrown out of the window in favour of a mix of slapstick and altering facts to suit the story.
Aliens who want to do nothing more than reduce the planet to a heap of ashes for future sale deserve no mercy and get none. Yet again we see a Doctor more prepared to blow up the enemy than negotiate a peace deal; the problem by now is the frivolous Dr Who stories were getting in the way of his character development and the way Rose was being developed into a liability rather than an asset.
Dalek: And then something happened...
Forget the cod am-dram acting by supporting characters in this (and all the previous episodes), you realise that this isn't about the incidental music, it's about the rhythm section. For what seemed like the 5th time in six episodes, Rose was responsible, indirectly, for the deaths of hundreds of people, while flirting and giving middle aged dads hard-ons, and the Doctor is angry, alone and slightly mad. It has some excellent acting in it and with this episode you start to wish that Eccleston could have been persuaded to do a second series, because he becomes The Doctor with this - full of bitterness, grief and wrath.
The denouement is both weak and important. It ends up being just another 'episode' of nothing really changes, except we now know more of the back story that won't be really shared for a number of years. It is the stand out of the series.
The Long Game: After the darkness, comes the light... Or in real terms, more of the same frivolous something wants to control the Earth and the Doctor comes along and saves the day (or does he?). Set on board (another) space station channelling news 24/7 to the world below, all carefully chosen information designed to keep the population below in a constant state of fear. Again, the themes are about becoming something better while the past catches up with you. There is, obviously something wrong here, otherwise DW and Rose wouldn't be there.
At the time, this seemed like just another 'filler' episode and did nothing to forewarn us of the part this episode would play in the coming episodes. The title, in many ways, doesn't appear to have much to do with the events, except that maybe the title 'The Long Game' was signifying something else...
Father's Day: And back we go to something dark and nasty. Has Rose been planning something like this from the moment she met the Doctor? Was her intention to get him to take her back to the day her father died to save his life? It certainly seems that way as yet again Rose Tyler unleashes a deadly force on the planet that will result in everyone dying. It also walks that fine line between what the Doctor is allowed to interfere with and why some things he doesn't get involved with.
What this episode does highlight is why the Doctor taking human companions is often fraught with danger because humans inherently do the wrong thing. It also cements the relationship between Rose and the Doctor. If you took the two of them out of the context of the rest of the show, this is about a young woman infatuated with an older man, who in turn is infatuated with her. Not since the flirtatious days of Pertwee and Jo Grant (Katy Manning) has there been a dynamic between the Time Lord and his companion so charged with sexual tension and attraction. This is a love affair without the trappings of sex.
The Empty Child & The Doctor Dances: The second two-parter and the introduction of two vitally important things - Captain Jack Harkness and a level of seriousness that was lacking in all but a couple of the previous shows. Set during the blitz, it's a simple story of alien nanotechnology attempting to save a dead child but failing to recognise the species and causing humans to gradually be taken over by gene-rewriting technology condemning the race to a kind of zombie existence behind a humanised gas mask.
This in many ways is classic Who. A race to save the planet from a villain who is neither a foe or malicious entity. The underlying theme is honesty and not being true to oneself and like in Father's Day a sacrifice needs to be made, except this time round everyone lives. A happy ending, of sorts.
Boomtown: This is what would be called a 'filler' in old Star Trek parlance; a wordy, almost talking heads episode that explains much and gives away little. The last surviving Slitheen is attempting to destroy the planet to help her get home, except she might not be, because it's difficult to tell what this Slitheen really wants. Mind games abound between the Doctor and his prisoner; between Rose and estranged boyfriend Mickey, while Jack ensconces himself into the team without a hitch. The dialogue is suddenly more zippy; there's a sense of purpose that was lacking and even though this specific segment does little to move the story on, it does have major issues in it that suddenly seems to tie all the previous 10 episodes together.
Bad Wolf & The Parting of the Ways: There's a real sense that the first 30 minutes of the first part of this final double header is just a bit self-indulgent. We return to Satellite 5, the headquarters of what was the news streaming satellite that is now a 24/7 games station, with 'games' that seem to provide little but death to the contestants. Featured 'reality' TV shows from 200,000 years earlier are still popular but now with a charnel twist. 100 years earlier the Doctor saved the planet from one threat to leave it wide open to another, far more serious, unknown threat. Something he has no idea about, but believes it to be connected to the recurring Bad Wolf motif that has been following him throughout time.
The Earth circa 200,100AD lives on a diet of rubbish in industrialised cities and all the time being secretly manipulated by the Doctor's sworn enemies The Daleks, who, apart from the one long survivor in an earlier episode, were believed to have been wiped out in the much hinted at Time War between Time Lords and their mates in metal boxes. When this is finally realised, the Doctor, Jack and Rose help the remaining people on Satellite 5 make a last stand against a half a million Daleks and their new fleet.
Having promised Rose's mum that he would look after her daughter, the Doctor tricks Rose into returning home in the Tardis, with instruction to bury the box to allow it to die without him. However, we've recently learned the Tardis is a living being, considerably more powerful than anyone ever imagined and Rose uses this knowledge to override the Doctor's instruction and return to the space station to save him. The thing is to do this Rose has to look into the soul of the Tardis and in so doing she literally becomes it's human interface. The Daleks' are wiped from existence before the Doctor kisses Rose to steal the last of the Tardis energy from her to save her life. Rose was the instigator of Bad Wolf all the time; she is a paradox.
By saving her life, the Doctor triggers his own transformation and we say goodbye to Eccleston and hello to David Tennant - a real jolt to the system in many ways.
The Christmas Invasion: Is not strictly season 1 or 2, it's the bridging point and, in many ways, is more satisfying even if it's all a wee bit contrived. Earth is invaded while the Doctor recovers from his change; it's down to Rose, Mickey and Rose's mum to try and save the day, with the help of the PM - an old friend from the first Slitheen encounter. The Doctor recovers to save the day, yet again, but this time there are consequences and old friends are now no longer considered friendly.
One thing that does appear to be carried over is the sexual frisson between Rose and the Doctor and the growing raging jealousy that old beau Mickey seems to be harbouring.
Overall: I actually think the first series is one of the best; it treads a fine line between comedy and drama; it allowed a bit of camp humour the Doctor was always renowned for and it had a dark undertone that was used to its full effect. Ecclestone was the real shining light; an unorthodox DW, one we've never really seen before, one with more grey areas than you could imagine and definitely not the benign benefactor he becomes the longer the series goes on. This Doctor killed without any problems; with no conscience, little grief. He is portrayed as a lonely man, craving the attention of a young gorgeous girl and unaware of the genuine problems he causes wherever he goes. An ambiguous hero with as much darkness as light.
Billie Piper will have surprised many with her acting and range; she struggled to start with but as the series grew so did she. Her 'companion' has never been equalled - although one later came close (ruined by bad writing rather than anything else) and there was always the sense she wasn't so much picked to be a companion as maybe paradoxically manipulated it to ensure the events of the first series played out the way they did. If you read into the underlying story, you realise that it's actually cleverly written even if the episodes themselves all struggled to find that authentic Sci-Fi series vibe that US shows excel in.
It was incredibly ambitious without overstretching itself and compared to the current incarnation's adventures, it was brimming with ideas and genuine shocks. There are absolutely bang on parts in this; real lump in the throat, watching from behind your open fingers moments and as I said before managed to stay faithful while updating it to the 21st century. I don't think Russell T Davies probably got the recognition he deserved, especially as his replacements have all struggled to match the heights he managed.
As the years rolled by, the series became more frivolous, in many ways more complicated and there were very few standalone episodes that compared to some of the first series. I may venture through the Tennant and Smith years, because, as I stated, I've only ever watched the series once, I'm not a huge fan, I haven't watched shows I adore more than once.
In comparison to today's incarnation, of which I have no real issues with other than poor scripts and crap companions, this is high quality stuff and we might need DW cancelled and rejigged in ten years time to appreciate what a unique character he is.
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