Sunday, April 4, 2010

Doctor Who S05E01-The Eleventh Hour

Amy Pond once met a man who fell into her backyard in a tiny blue box. He promised to take her with him five minutes after they met. Years later, this mysterious stranger storms back into her life…but not to make good on him promise, at least not yet. Barely holding on after his latest regeneration, The Doctor must convince Amy to trust him if he is to save the world in twenty minutes from a vicious escaped convict. The price of failure is the roasting of Planet Earth. The new adventure has begun.

Four months ago, many of us shed a tear when David Tennant uttered his final words as The Doctor, “I don’t’ want to go.” Then we watched him regenerate and we got an all too brief yet interesting first look at Matt Smith, a.k.a The Eleventh Doctor. As we watched him falling to Earth in his burning TARDIS screaming, “Geronimo,” we were left to wondering if this young hotshot could continue the role whose bar had been raised considerably. I am here to announce that one full length episode later, I think we have a winner folks.

While I am sure there are still many people out there, myself included, who will always miss David Tennant and remember him as “our Doctor,” Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor is everything his predecessor was with a bit of a twist. After crashing into the backyard of young Amy Pond, he bursts forth running around with manic energy (granted this could still be attributed to his still regenerating state). It’s the same guy with a new face and a somewhat more…sure of himself personality. I like Matt Smith and think he will carry on The Doctor’s legacy well. It was also a nice proper introduction at the end when we see his previous ten incarnations flash on screen before he steps forward in his new threads. Most Badass Entrance Ever!!!

Of course we must touch on Amy Pond. Ever since I first saw the first images of her in Doctor Who Magazine I’ve fallen head over heels for her character. And now having seen her in action I have more reason to like her. Amy, played by Karen Gillan, is a breath of fresh air for The Doctor. She’s a feisty Scottish red head who’s got a lot of spirit and has a great take charge attitude. Her questioning The Doctor at every turn will definitely be a nice spin on the usual Doctor/Companion relationship. Like everyone else she’s a bit unsure of traveling with The Doctor but after a couple of episodes I think we are going to see a nice bond form between the two. I did think it was a nice story twist to start their friendship off when she was a child, a nice nod to Steven Moffat’s Series 2 story “The Girl in the Fireplace”.

Speaking of Steven Moffat, I should touch on his first story as head writer for the show. Mr. Moffat gives Matt Smith’s first story a proper injection of energy with all the running around. I did think that some of the spots where we simply stopped for introductions to the other characters kind of killed the pacing a bit. But once it picked back up with the running again it worked fine. The introduction of (Amy relative?) Jeff and Amy’s Boyfriend Rory establish that we will visit present day Earth again every now and then as with previous companions. Rory I felt was kind of a Mickey knock off, but it’s still to early to tell with him. Oh and Prisoner Zero…a python that can take the form of others. Not as formidable or memorable a villain as some of Moffat’s other creatures but still you’ve got to love its interactions with the new Doctor.

So now we have a new Doctor, a new TARDIS, a new Sonic Screwdriver, a new companion (whose going to get married?) and a new set of adventures to look forward too. I have been hesitant to say this for months. But now that I’ve seen the first episode of SERIES 5, I can’t wait for the fun to continue. The Doctor is back and so is the adventure we all love. Let the new era begin.

Next Time-It’s Amy’s first trip in the TARDIS with The Doctor. What happens next is anyone’s guess.

Rating-8/10

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