Back in 2008, the coming soon trailers for Series 4 got me more excited than I’d ever been before for Doctor Who. Every Trailer I saw got me more excited than previously. I remember when I was waiting throughout that break between ‘Voyage of the Damned’ and ‘Partners in Crime’; I kept watching the trailers on the Doctor Who Website wondering what gems Russell T. Davies would offer up this year. So does Series 4 of Doctor Who hold up compared to the previous years? Holy Hera, Yes! Anyway…let’s get straight into this retrospective.
[‘Voyage of the Damned’ will be covered within a future article as will the 2008-2010 Specials]
EPISODE ONE: Partners in Crime by Russell T. Davies
Although I admit that ‘Partners in Crime’ isn’t as good as ‘Smith and Jones’ or ‘The Eleventh Hour’, I really feel as though the episode is underrated. Sure, the Adipose look stupid. But the comedy in the episode is hilarious, for example the window scene. And the scenes between Donna and her grandfather, Wilfred are truly heart warming. I really enjoy ‘Partners in Crime’, although not my favourite series opener it certainly isn’t my least favourite.
EPISODE TWO: The Fire's of Pompeii by James Moran
‘The Fire’s of Pompeii’ is a fantastic historical episode; I’d go as far as to say that this is one of my favourite historical episodes. Because of the Doctor’s beliefs, we get to see the Doctor leave many innocent people to die for the first time in the show’s history. I really love Donna in this episode; it shows just how compassionate the Doctor’s newest companion (at the time) really was. We also see for the first time this series (and it wasn’t the last) that Donna was right; the Doctor does need someone to stop him.
EPISODE THREE: Planet of the Ood by Keith Temple
2006’s two parter ‘The Impossible Planet/ The Satan Pit’ raised many questions about the Ood, like “Who are they?”, “Why are they slaves to the Human Race?” and “Where do they come from?” And two years later we got the answers in Series 4’s ‘Planet of the Ood’. I really enjoyed this episode, first and only time Who writer (as of 2013), Keith Temple really impressed me with this beautiful and devastating episode. Another great thing about ‘Planet of the Ood’ is that for the second episode in a row, Donna shows how compassionate she is. This episode shows that sometimes the monsters of the episode are actually the Human Race.
EPISODE FOUR & FIVE: The Sontaron Stratagem/ The Poison Sky by Helen Raynor
Helen Raynor who previously wrote ‘Daleks in Manhattan/ Evolution of the Daleks’ returned to Doctor Who in 2008 with another two-parter, which reintroduced the Sontarons. And like the previous Raynor story it wasn’t as well received as the other two-parters within their respective Series’. But to her credit, this episode isn’t nearly as bad as the previous episode written by her. I liked how the episode gave us an update on Martha Jones and after three series; we finally got a UNIT story. Unfortunately, the late Brigadier was stuck in Peru. ‘The Poison Sky’ has an exciting and flawless ending in my opinion and I think it was a great way to end the two-parter.
EPISODE SIX: The Doctor's Daughter by Stephan Graham
Another episode which divides fans some people hate it, some people like it and some people love it. I’m the second one, not my favourite episode of the series but I enjoy it. There’s a lot of great acting within this episode coming from David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Freema Agyeman and Georgia Moffett. As much as I love Tennant, Tate and Agyeman, I’ve got to say in my opinion the stand-out performance of the episode comes from Georgia Moffett who plays Jenny, the Doctor’s Daughter. Jenny is a great character; she’s an entertaining and amusing character. As much as I’d love for Jenny to return, I really doubt she’ll return any time soon.
EPISODE SEVEN: The Unicorn and the Wasp by Gareth Roberts
Now as of late, I’m not the biggest Gareth Roberts fan but…I’ve got to say I really enjoy this episode. I think like Roberts’ previous episode the setting seems very real, I think the production team in this episode need a round of applause because they done a fantastic job. I also think that Fenella Woolgar was perfectly cast as Agatha Christie; I think she had one of the best guest performances of the entirety of Series 4. I love the exchange between the Doctor and Donna about ten minutes into the episode.
“It’s a murder, a mystery, and Agatha Christie.”
“So? Happens to me all the time.”
EPISODE EIGHT & NINE: Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead by Steven Moffat
Back when this episode aired, I wasn’t bothered on who was writing what episode. So in all honesty, I had no idea what to expect except for what I saw in the next time trailer. I never knew this was written by Steven Moffat, let alone cared who was writing it (give me a break, I was Ten years old). But now in 2013, I will voice my opinion on this two-parter…whoa…Steven Moffat you genius (at the time). This episode is truly brilliant, there are many themes sprinkled throughout the narrative ranging from horror, mystery and even romance. Moffat created a fantastic enemy in this story, the Vashta Nerada; which are terrifying upon first watch. Oh and another thing if you haven’t watched this story, Moffat also manages to create one of the biggest mysteries in Doctor Who History, River Song (not as much as the Doctor’s name, John Hurt or the Time War but still…).
EPISODE TEN: Midnight by Russell T. Davies
What I love about Doctor Who is the character of the Doctor – especially when he’s pushed out of his comfort zone. When he’s pushed out of it, in my opinion it makes the episodes even better. Episodes like ‘42’, ‘Blink’, ‘Human Nature/ The Family of Blood’, ‘Last of the Time Lords’, ‘The Fire’s of Pompeii’ and ‘The Waters of Mars’ are always brilliant. These episodes I have just mentioned showcase the Doctor at his best and ‘Midnight’ does this perfectly. ‘Midnight’ came alive as soon as the Doctor stepped onboard the vehicle, Russell T. Davies is at his best during personal moments between characters. You truly get to know these characters and it’s horrible to see them go through this situation. My favourite moment of ‘Pyramids of Mars’ is when the Fourth Doctor is being forced by Sutekh to kneel before him and my favourite moment in ‘Midnight’ is when the Doctor been taken over by the entity – you can literally see the Terror in the Doctor’s eyes. This is an utterly brilliant story, one of David Tennant’s best.
EPISODE ELEVEN: Turn Left by Russell T. Davies
I love ‘Turn Left’ a lot. This episode had a simple premise, what would happen if
the Doctor wasn’t around? And this episode takes that premise and does it like a champ. This is without a doubt Catherine Tate’s best performance in Doctor Who as Donna Noble. Like ‘Midnight’ with the Doctor, ‘Turn Left’ pushes Donna out of her comfort zone. She goes from a Temp from Chiswick to a Refugee in Leeds; it’s a really strong piece of writing on Russell T. Davies’s part. My only gripe in the episode is Rose, she came off really annoying. She tried to be like the Doctor, “I've crossed too many different realities. Trust me, the wrong word in the wrong place can change an entire causal nexus.” Yeah…I didn’t like that. But overall, I really enjoyed ‘Turn Left’.
EPISODE TWELVE & THIRTEEN: The Stolen Earth/ Journey’s End by Russell T. Davies
‘The Stolen Earth’ was fantastic, before ‘The Pandorica Opens’ it was my favourite penultimate episode of a series. In my opinion, it had everything to make a great penultimate episode: old enemies, returning characters, drama, action, tragedy and a great cliff-hanger. ‘Journey’s End’ is still fantastic but I will say that it’s not as good. Don’t get me wrong, I love ‘Journey’s End’, it’s just I preferred the build-up. It was great seeing Davros in the episode, Julian Bleach was amazing as the villain – I feel as though he was the perfect for the Davros they were going for in this two-parter. My favourite moment within the two-parter is when Davros is taunting the Doctor about the people who have died helping him, it was really chilling hearing Davros talking about all those people. Close second, would be the TARDIS scene where everyone pilots the TARDIS – I just couldn’t help smiling at that scene. Oh…and the ending...I’ll admit, this was the first time I ever cried watching Doctor Who, I really felt sorry for bother the Doctor and Donna. Sad for Donna because she was forgetting everything about the Doctor, all of their adventures together and I was sad for the Doctor because he lost his best friend and he knows that he can never talk to her ever again otherwise she will burn and die…poor Donna. This proves my point that the best people in the world have the worst luck.
If you haven’t guessed already by reading this article, Series 4 is my favourite series out of the Seven Series we’ve had in the past eight years. There were great stories, great acting and great effects. I couldn’t think of a better way to mark forty five years of Doctor Who. Yes, I mean it, Series Four was Five Years ago. Time flies when you’re having fun being a Whovian. Anyway, I could go on forever about Series Four, I love it that much. Anyway, below is my order of preference when it comes to the Episodes.
1, Midnight
2, Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead
3, The Stolen Earth/ Journey’s End
4, Turn Left
5, The Fire’s of Pompeii
6, Planet of the Ood
7, The Unicorn and the Wasp
8, The Sontaron Stratagem/ The Poison Sky
9, Partners in Crime
10, The Doctor’s Daughter
I really love Series Four, just because ‘The Doctor’s Daughter’ is at the bottom, doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy it because I do enjoy. I just feel as though it’s the weakest episode. Anyway thanks for reading this article, comment below and let me know what you thought about Series Four. What’s your favourite episode? What’s you’re least favourite episode?
[‘Voyage of the Damned’ will be covered within a future article as will the 2008-2010 Specials]
EPISODE ONE: Partners in Crime by Russell T. Davies
Although I admit that ‘Partners in Crime’ isn’t as good as ‘Smith and Jones’ or ‘The Eleventh Hour’, I really feel as though the episode is underrated. Sure, the Adipose look stupid. But the comedy in the episode is hilarious, for example the window scene. And the scenes between Donna and her grandfather, Wilfred are truly heart warming. I really enjoy ‘Partners in Crime’, although not my favourite series opener it certainly isn’t my least favourite.
EPISODE TWO: The Fire's of Pompeii by James Moran
‘The Fire’s of Pompeii’ is a fantastic historical episode; I’d go as far as to say that this is one of my favourite historical episodes. Because of the Doctor’s beliefs, we get to see the Doctor leave many innocent people to die for the first time in the show’s history. I really love Donna in this episode; it shows just how compassionate the Doctor’s newest companion (at the time) really was. We also see for the first time this series (and it wasn’t the last) that Donna was right; the Doctor does need someone to stop him.
EPISODE THREE: Planet of the Ood by Keith Temple
2006’s two parter ‘The Impossible Planet/ The Satan Pit’ raised many questions about the Ood, like “Who are they?”, “Why are they slaves to the Human Race?” and “Where do they come from?” And two years later we got the answers in Series 4’s ‘Planet of the Ood’. I really enjoyed this episode, first and only time Who writer (as of 2013), Keith Temple really impressed me with this beautiful and devastating episode. Another great thing about ‘Planet of the Ood’ is that for the second episode in a row, Donna shows how compassionate she is. This episode shows that sometimes the monsters of the episode are actually the Human Race.
EPISODE FOUR & FIVE: The Sontaron Stratagem/ The Poison Sky by Helen Raynor
Helen Raynor who previously wrote ‘Daleks in Manhattan/ Evolution of the Daleks’ returned to Doctor Who in 2008 with another two-parter, which reintroduced the Sontarons. And like the previous Raynor story it wasn’t as well received as the other two-parters within their respective Series’. But to her credit, this episode isn’t nearly as bad as the previous episode written by her. I liked how the episode gave us an update on Martha Jones and after three series; we finally got a UNIT story. Unfortunately, the late Brigadier was stuck in Peru. ‘The Poison Sky’ has an exciting and flawless ending in my opinion and I think it was a great way to end the two-parter.
EPISODE SIX: The Doctor's Daughter by Stephan Graham
Another episode which divides fans some people hate it, some people like it and some people love it. I’m the second one, not my favourite episode of the series but I enjoy it. There’s a lot of great acting within this episode coming from David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Freema Agyeman and Georgia Moffett. As much as I love Tennant, Tate and Agyeman, I’ve got to say in my opinion the stand-out performance of the episode comes from Georgia Moffett who plays Jenny, the Doctor’s Daughter. Jenny is a great character; she’s an entertaining and amusing character. As much as I’d love for Jenny to return, I really doubt she’ll return any time soon.
EPISODE SEVEN: The Unicorn and the Wasp by Gareth Roberts
Now as of late, I’m not the biggest Gareth Roberts fan but…I’ve got to say I really enjoy this episode. I think like Roberts’ previous episode the setting seems very real, I think the production team in this episode need a round of applause because they done a fantastic job. I also think that Fenella Woolgar was perfectly cast as Agatha Christie; I think she had one of the best guest performances of the entirety of Series 4. I love the exchange between the Doctor and Donna about ten minutes into the episode.
“It’s a murder, a mystery, and Agatha Christie.”
“So? Happens to me all the time.”
EPISODE EIGHT & NINE: Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead by Steven Moffat
Back when this episode aired, I wasn’t bothered on who was writing what episode. So in all honesty, I had no idea what to expect except for what I saw in the next time trailer. I never knew this was written by Steven Moffat, let alone cared who was writing it (give me a break, I was Ten years old). But now in 2013, I will voice my opinion on this two-parter…whoa…Steven Moffat you genius (at the time). This episode is truly brilliant, there are many themes sprinkled throughout the narrative ranging from horror, mystery and even romance. Moffat created a fantastic enemy in this story, the Vashta Nerada; which are terrifying upon first watch. Oh and another thing if you haven’t watched this story, Moffat also manages to create one of the biggest mysteries in Doctor Who History, River Song (not as much as the Doctor’s name, John Hurt or the Time War but still…).
EPISODE TEN: Midnight by Russell T. Davies
What I love about Doctor Who is the character of the Doctor – especially when he’s pushed out of his comfort zone. When he’s pushed out of it, in my opinion it makes the episodes even better. Episodes like ‘42’, ‘Blink’, ‘Human Nature/ The Family of Blood’, ‘Last of the Time Lords’, ‘The Fire’s of Pompeii’ and ‘The Waters of Mars’ are always brilliant. These episodes I have just mentioned showcase the Doctor at his best and ‘Midnight’ does this perfectly. ‘Midnight’ came alive as soon as the Doctor stepped onboard the vehicle, Russell T. Davies is at his best during personal moments between characters. You truly get to know these characters and it’s horrible to see them go through this situation. My favourite moment of ‘Pyramids of Mars’ is when the Fourth Doctor is being forced by Sutekh to kneel before him and my favourite moment in ‘Midnight’ is when the Doctor been taken over by the entity – you can literally see the Terror in the Doctor’s eyes. This is an utterly brilliant story, one of David Tennant’s best.
EPISODE ELEVEN: Turn Left by Russell T. Davies
I love ‘Turn Left’ a lot. This episode had a simple premise, what would happen if
the Doctor wasn’t around? And this episode takes that premise and does it like a champ. This is without a doubt Catherine Tate’s best performance in Doctor Who as Donna Noble. Like ‘Midnight’ with the Doctor, ‘Turn Left’ pushes Donna out of her comfort zone. She goes from a Temp from Chiswick to a Refugee in Leeds; it’s a really strong piece of writing on Russell T. Davies’s part. My only gripe in the episode is Rose, she came off really annoying. She tried to be like the Doctor, “I've crossed too many different realities. Trust me, the wrong word in the wrong place can change an entire causal nexus.” Yeah…I didn’t like that. But overall, I really enjoyed ‘Turn Left’.
EPISODE TWELVE & THIRTEEN: The Stolen Earth/ Journey’s End by Russell T. Davies
‘The Stolen Earth’ was fantastic, before ‘The Pandorica Opens’ it was my favourite penultimate episode of a series. In my opinion, it had everything to make a great penultimate episode: old enemies, returning characters, drama, action, tragedy and a great cliff-hanger. ‘Journey’s End’ is still fantastic but I will say that it’s not as good. Don’t get me wrong, I love ‘Journey’s End’, it’s just I preferred the build-up. It was great seeing Davros in the episode, Julian Bleach was amazing as the villain – I feel as though he was the perfect for the Davros they were going for in this two-parter. My favourite moment within the two-parter is when Davros is taunting the Doctor about the people who have died helping him, it was really chilling hearing Davros talking about all those people. Close second, would be the TARDIS scene where everyone pilots the TARDIS – I just couldn’t help smiling at that scene. Oh…and the ending...I’ll admit, this was the first time I ever cried watching Doctor Who, I really felt sorry for bother the Doctor and Donna. Sad for Donna because she was forgetting everything about the Doctor, all of their adventures together and I was sad for the Doctor because he lost his best friend and he knows that he can never talk to her ever again otherwise she will burn and die…poor Donna. This proves my point that the best people in the world have the worst luck.
If you haven’t guessed already by reading this article, Series 4 is my favourite series out of the Seven Series we’ve had in the past eight years. There were great stories, great acting and great effects. I couldn’t think of a better way to mark forty five years of Doctor Who. Yes, I mean it, Series Four was Five Years ago. Time flies when you’re having fun being a Whovian. Anyway, I could go on forever about Series Four, I love it that much. Anyway, below is my order of preference when it comes to the Episodes.
1, Midnight
2, Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead
3, The Stolen Earth/ Journey’s End
4, Turn Left
5, The Fire’s of Pompeii
6, Planet of the Ood
7, The Unicorn and the Wasp
8, The Sontaron Stratagem/ The Poison Sky
9, Partners in Crime
10, The Doctor’s Daughter
I really love Series Four, just because ‘The Doctor’s Daughter’ is at the bottom, doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy it because I do enjoy. I just feel as though it’s the weakest episode. Anyway thanks for reading this article, comment below and let me know what you thought about Series Four. What’s your favourite episode? What’s you’re least favourite episode?
My name is Andrew Hawcroft, I'm an English playwright and writer of teen fiction e-novels living in Ireland.
A while back, being a huge Doctor Who fan, I wrote for my own pleasure, a DOCTOR WHO stageplay called DOCTOR WHO: A LIGHT IN THE DARK that had been in my head for a long time. It is fan fiction only. I know I’m never going to get the rights to get it made, but I really would like DOCTOR WHO fans to read it and let me know what they think.
I’ve already had a few fans read it through DOCTOR WHO fansites, and the responses have so far been great. (See REVIEWS section under my blog.) I have also made a little Youtube promo reel to let people know about it online, and to let them know the tone and mood of it. See it here; link
Should any fans request the play through Twitter (@WriterLad), Facebook or email at andrewhawcroft1( at ) gmail.com, I will happily forward them a copy for reviewing.
Best wishes
Andrew Hawcroft
A while back, being a huge Doctor Who fan, I wrote for my own pleasure, a DOCTOR WHO stageplay called DOCTOR WHO: A LIGHT IN THE DARK that had been in my head for a long time. It is fan fiction only. I know I’m never going to get the rights to get it made, but I really would like DOCTOR WHO fans to read it and let me know what they think.
I’ve already had a few fans read it through DOCTOR WHO fansites, and the responses have so far been great. (See REVIEWS section under my blog.) I have also made a little Youtube promo reel to let people know about it online, and to let them know the tone and mood of it. See it here; link
Should any fans request the play through Twitter (@WriterLad), Facebook or email at andrewhawcroft1( at ) gmail.com, I will happily forward them a copy for reviewing.
Best wishes
Andrew Hawcroft
