Doctor Who - Series 5

WARNING THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE WHOLE SERIES AND SARCASTIC UNDERTONES! As I set off on this review I actually haven't given it a rating yet, mainly because I want to give it 4.5 stars. Why? Well because although I feel the series was spectacular I am begrudged to give anything 100% unless it absolutely deserves it, so I guess I will just have to write the review and then work out if I can come to terms with 5 stars! It seems to me this series is a little like marmite - you either love it or you hate it - and there are some obvious reasons for it. One reason is it's another reset; new doctor, new companion, new sonic screwdriver, new tardis layout, new production team... basically new everything, so you are always going to lose some fans who just can't come to terms with new! Another reason is Steven Moffatt delivers a completely different style of Who to us than RTD did. "The Moff" - as I believe he is affectionately called by t'internet - delivers clever stories with twists that are simple yet beautifully effective and his stories are well thought through from beginning to end. RTD on the other hand is a fabulous character writer - remember Tennant's amazing emotional departure - and lacks the story driven creativeness of "The Moff". There are merits and flaws to both these writing styles but in my opinion Moffatt's style of writing is far more effective for Who than RTD's, because Doctor Who is a kids show (that yes us adults love as well but nonetheless, it's a kids show) and kids want thrills, they want excitements, they want monsters and they want to be scared, they frankly don't give a crap about the inner workings of the Doctor's soul and were no doubt bored through RTD's character pieces like Boom Town. The Doctor is the child's gateway into this world of monsters, the doctor is meant to be an eccentric, crazy, completely alien individual, the sort of character kids can completely get behind and this is why I feel Matt Smith is the best of the "new" doctors because he has the right blend of seriousness, eccentricity and humour. So I suppose two lengthy paragraphs in I should start talking about the series. Doctor Who is all about standalone adventures so I suppose we should look at each episode individually. The Eleventh Hour - A new doctor story and a new companion story, never an easy thing to pull off. The shear amount that has to happen in this sort of episode leaves little room for a meaningful plot but "the Moff" pleasantly surprises us with a simple engaging story about an alien on the run, whilst allowing us time to adapt to the new characters. In my opinion a triumph of writing considering what he had to do in this hour slot. The Beast Below - So here we are, one episode in, feeling pretty good about all the new stuff. The Beast Below offers us a chance to see Amy Pond in action, whilst delivering a story with more twists than a pretzel, that culminated in a reminiscently RTD style ending investigating the darker character of humanity, I did get the feeling "the Moff" might have been trying to keep an element of RTD Who with this episode and for me it felt like trying to keep this link to the past was weighing "the Moff"'s ability down. Victory of the Daleks - So this episode got slated by critics and fans alike, all I can say is FINALLY... Finally a Dalek story that didn't kill every last Dalek off leaving the writers an Everest like challenge to find someway to bring them back, finally a Dalek story that didn't result in the Dalek's being defeated by the stupidest things ever... I'm sorry whichever brainiac thought Catherine Tate pressing some buttons resulting in the Dalek's exploding was an acceptable end to Journey's End is a complete prat. Oh yeah beyond my rant about the failings of past Dalek stories, I liked this episode, and I like the new Dalek's, come on even the Dalek's must think about their appearance. Time of Angels and Flesh & Stone - I must admit I was the most skeptical person about the Weeping Angels return, fearing they wouldn't work as a "real" baddie! Well how wrong was I, this amazing two parter in which the enigmatic River Song returns (what an amazing character she is!), was brilliant, just top class. Vampires in Venice - A good all round enjoyable adventure, brilliant setting, simple story, good monsters. This is what Doctor Who is meant to be. Amy's Choice - So here we have an episode put in at the last minute to replace Neil Gaiman's budget demanding episode which has been bumped to next series; bet you didn't know that! This is the second episode of Doctor Who that has been hastily written and shot to fill a gap left by writing problems, the first was Fear Her, the dreadful series two episode involving the olympic games, an alien flower and the scribble monster, which we almost forgave because it was hastily written and shot in a rush. Alas for Fear Her we must now realise even a quickly written episode of Who can deliver the goods, Amy's Choice was one of my favourite episodes, a great story coupled with a look at the Doctor's darker side... but not done in an RTD the monsters turn round and say the Doctor is the same as them way, nope this episode manifests the Doctor's darkness and this works because he's another entity, it's another actor, to kids it's not the Doctor, it's the Dark Doctor and this works. The Hungry Earth and Cold Blood - The less I say about this the better really, written by Chris Chibnall of Torchwood and RTD era Doctor Who, this story really was (and I don't like to do this because I think the man's a brilliant writer but it was) a bit RTD. Filled with whiney characters you didn't like, shoving grey morality in the face of the audience in a way that suggests the writer doesn't know what subtlety is, and a pretty lack lustre conclusion. Nevermind a blip on this series that I can forgive. Vincent and the Doctor - Here we get a character piece RTD style, but it works. Why? Because it's not about the Doctor or his companions, it's about someone else and while other stories are us watching the Doctor and his companions fight monsters in this episode the monster is a man's torment and it works amazingly. Top class! The Lodger - I will be the first person to admit I wasn't convinced about this episode it looked (I'm gonna use the phrase again) a little bit RTD and it had James Cordan in it, a man I personally feel is utterly unfunny and unlikable. I was pleasantly surprised this was a great fun episode that was again simple but effective. The Pandorica Opens - The first of a two part story involving... well everything and everyone. Characters from past episodes are cleverly used to guide the Doctor back to Roman times and to Stonehenge where he discovers The Pandorica. In a move everyone said was unfeasible and a lot of people didn't like all the monsters of the universe descended upon Stonehenge to "collect" the Pandorica... or so we thought. Also Rory returns but since I've focused on plot not character in this review I probably shouldn't start now, so I'll quickly say the characters and companions throughout this series were brilliantly done with very few that were unlikable (for very few read most of the cast of The Hungry Earth). So all the monsters in reality aren't there to collect whatever is within the Pandorica they are there to lock the Doctor in it in a classic "Moff" style twist that is so simple yet brilliant. A lot of people had a problem with all the monsters turning up at once and having formed an alliance against the Doctor but I say, it's original, it worked nicely (the Roman autons were a stroke of genius!) and all in all it was enjoyable so get off your high horses! The Big Bang - A different take to all other Doctor Who finales. The stakes are just as high as in any of the other episodes but the enemy has not revealed itself and it's a nicely separate yet linked in story before to the part before, in a way no other 2 parter has achieved and I thought it worked amazingly. It was fresh and original because for once everything wasn't resolved within the series (yes this pissed a lot of people off) but television becomes stale when it becomes to formulaic, we've had 5 years of the last episode of the series will have a big baddie who is openly out to destroy everything. Here the Doctor for once doesn't have the chance to find the root cause or cut the head of the snake he has to deal with the problems caused by it which was a nice change. So there you have it; my episode by episode review of series 5 of Doctor Who, perhaps a little sycophantic towards "the Moff" in places and perhaps overly harsh on the failings of RTD, in fairness he did bring it back, and his writing for Torchwood is brilliant, but all in all my true opinion, that Doctor Who has never been stronger has hopefully shined through. There are holes in this review yes, and there are some positives I haven't justified but lets be honest it's long enough as it is, so I suppose I am going to give it 5 stars because it is spectacular and I'll just have to deal with any agruments in the comments section below...

Without a doubt Doctor Who series 5 literally grabs you within the first opening sequence of a newly regenerated Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor hanging on for dear life on a TARDIS catapulting itself through time and through the Earth showing stunning cinematic scenery and pure slapstick fun, then the new titles and theme tune! powerful,thematic and scary, just the way it should be by the ever amazingly talented Murray Gold. With The Eleventh Hour we are provided a whole new production and world form the mind of the amazing writer Steven Moffat with a sensational back catalogue of writing and production credits as he takes over from Russel T Davies amazing 5 year run on the show. Of course some were going to be judgmental of his clear pristine direction for fans of the RTD era of Eccleston and Tennant but i say welcome it with visions like that of Tim Burton and very James Cameron style cinematic quality production and taking the simplest of scenarios and creating so much suspense through the direction much like the powerful Alfred Hitchcock...and that's JUST The Eleventh Hour so far let alone the following 12 episodes! now for the episodes themselves- The Eleventh Hour-simply the greatest way to start the series in the entire show's history! not even Rose can match this behemoth of an episode! straight away i fell in love with Matt's doctor and Karen Gillan became instantly likable as a companion(by the end of the series i say she ranks alongside Donna Noble,Jack Harkness and Sarah Jane!)her feistiness,attitude and humor comes through thick and thin and becomes iconic in her own right. Arthur Duvall is also incredibly likable as Rory Williams and he makes a few more appearances later on in the series(more on that later on). We are given quite an apocalyptic situation for a plot line to, more so than Tennant's disappointing final episode. An alien force is threatening to blow up the entire planet if Prisoner Zero (another alien species who is actually rather frightening in appearance) it's an exciting mini-thriller of an adventure and really is fast paced and puts you right on the edge of your seat! 24 eat your heart out! and come the end of the episode, Matt Smith more than proves that he IS the Doctor and we are instantly given the story arc mystery of this series...what is the crack? what is the pandorica? and who or what is the silence? overall a masterful debut and 10/10 gold! The Beast Below-an episode that rather split opinion with fans, i felt the story was strong and the creature effects very effective, but the episode comes off as slightly rushed and if it were 10 minutes or so longer than the audience could really get into the storyline more, but we are given an interesting setting of Starship UK, some ingeniously directed sentences, and the instantly powerful and recognized quotation "I'm The Bloody Queen!" by Queen Liz 10 who makes a very good supporting character and is instantly likable if slightly mysterious. The Smilers are some of the creepiest beings i have ever seen on the show that i feel they're somewhat underused in this storyline, and the winders are very intriguing...but the main twist is what the beast actually is. Despite a few shortcomings and a quickly identified resolution it is a very solidly made episode and demands a few viewings to gain more understanding and actually is a really good episode indeed. 7/10 The Victory Of The Daleks-This is an episode that i actually rather liked despite being another episode which some have distaste for but it brings forth why the Daleks are some of the most powerful and skin crawlingly formidable foes of the entire run of Doctor Who and they provide the scenario, should the Doctor save the earth and let the Daleks run free to create a new empire? or should he destroy the new species of Dalek and also face the destruction of Earth itself? so whatever the outcome is the Doctor must face these repercussions and ultimately whatever the outcome...he has lost! Ian McNeice is a surprising turnout as Churchill with some of the most cuttingly funn quotes you will hear and the new look Daleks despite a mixed reception i think grabs the vibe of the Dalek's in the 70's with a very retro look about them and despite being coloured red,blue,white,yellow and orange imagine a colony of new and improved and vastly more violent Daleks! it's a horrifying thought on so many different levels and i look forward to seeing this! overall i rank this episode an 8/10 and Gatiss' best work of the series yet as he makes full use of the World War setting. The Time Of Angels/Flesh & Tone- makes Blink feel neutered in comparison, this terrifying and horrifically suspenseful two parter is the Aliens to Blink's Alien. It's a full on assault on the nerves and puts you directly on edge, the script is fast paced, the direction is so very cinematic and the settings are so claustrophobic and so wonderfully used for the storyline it creates so many twists and turns throughout and an entire army of Weeping Angels!! it's genuinely scary stuff that i recommend that you don't watch alone in the dark!River Song's return to the show is the icing of the episode's cake and she's much more fully fledged and three dimensional in comparison to her previous Moffat written episode in series 4 Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead and by the end of this storyline instantly became a favourite of mine! Alex Kingston really makes her a character so very iconic and super heroine but also so mysterious,who is she? who is the most important man she killed? i imagine Steven Moffat is planning something that will slap us all around the face in awe.Amy is also given a few of the most scariest sequences as she falls victim to a Weeping Angel steadily approaching her out of a TV (it's scarier than The Ring!) and when she becomes slowly stalked and surrounded in the 'forest' in Part 2. An absolutely brilliant two-parter and such a classic! 10/10. The Vampires Of Venice-Rory Williams returns in this romp of an adventure and despite being occasionally slapstick it is beautifully filmed and makes use of it's setting and yet again the script is what makes the episode so darn fun! and the 'vampires' are pretty freaky in a very traditional Hammer Horror style of writing sense. It's a favourite of mine and what i call the guilty pleasure episode of this series, it's alos a bit grim in places and continues that fairytale theme of series 5.This episode is wonderful in so many ways and on so many different levels, 9/10. Amy's Choice-for me this could be the greatest single episode of the series if put in any of the previous episodes ( i even rank it higher than Midnight and Turn Left!) it creates a very surreal scenario and the subdued direction of Murray Gold's soundtrack add's to the mystery of the plotline. The TARDIS crew must make the decision of which dreamworld is the dream and which one is in fact the reality, it is a character growth storyline but also has some of the most hilariously grotesque aliens in recent memory OAPS with a viscous edge! no other could write it than Simon 'Men Behaving Badly' Nye. It's quirky,it's fun but it's also very deep and provides a 'what if?' situation that Amy must have been questioning while on her adventures with the Doctor and having liked her character all the way through this episode made me fall in love with her, playing vulnerability and strength in the blink of a second! Matt Smith shines again and Arthur Duvall is again purely fantastic! Toby Jones makes a very intriguing Dream Lord...with a twist! 10/10 The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood-If in any other series this would be the strongest two parter but with the BIG one to come later and the terrifyingly amazing one prior this episode is the weaker of the bunch, but nevertheless is a brilliant watch that works as one feature length episode as it is rather cinematic, i love the rural scenery(yet again on the series as a recurrent theme!)the Silurians return at their viscous best!it has been somewhat controversial amongst fan bases that they don't have the third eye from their previous appearences on the classic series but they are a malicious tribe and a fabulously detailed in the make up department and re also quite terrifying at the same time. The supporting cast allows for the tension to build in this somewhat Torchwood-esque episode (well it was written by Chris Chibnall!)where the acting plays up to the visual effects. there's a nicely horrific homage to Saw (all i am saying is poor Amy!)towards Part 1's cliffhanger and the end of Part 2 will have you at the Kleenex and also on the edge of your seat. Meera Syal grew into her own as Professor Nasreen in a rather comically dramatic way! this episode in it's own right is stronger viewed in one full swoop as part 2 literally plays up to the suspense of part 1. but i would definitely give this a 10/10 on many levels, a brilliant two part plot. Vincent & The Doctor-Again, this must be a classic episode on so many accounts and if in any other series would be viewed as one of the best! it's quirky,surreal and in many ways 'artistic' and somewhat eccentric. The plotline and science fiction takes a backseat as we delve into the mind of Vincent Van Gogh played superbly by Tony Curran, this may also render the waterworks as the message by the end of the storyline hits you really deep. Some sequences are even really intense with the creature of the plot.Richard Curtis shows why he is an impressive writer and lends the drama,the humour and the action together so very smoothly much like series 5 as a whole has managed to do. This episode is a toure-de-force on many accounts and i love the homages to Gogh's artwork and the visual interpretation's of Starry Night. This is Doctor Who at it's most artistically relevant best! 10/10 The Lodger-Gareth Robert's best episode of his run on the series is this masterful Doctor-Lite (well companion-lite so the case may be as Amy is present in 6 scenes!)James Corden is on top form here as Craig, Matt is just hilarious trying to be a 'human' and playfully slapstick! this is definitely a hidden gem that despite not being entirely perfect makes way for the high on drama and action finale that is to come. 9/10 The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang-The finale that tops ALL finale's! it has it all and more, each checked spot on the list comes with it's very own superb twist, we have action,adventure,scares,genuine horror,suspense,claustrophibic settings,superb script,skilled direction,iconic sequences,iconic villains,brilliant cast and the most definite cliffhanger to top ALL cliffhangers! this is why Doctor Who is the greatest of British television! TPO begins ith the greatest ever pre-titles sequence the show has ever done! with River Song escaping from her prison cell (WHY is she there?!?! you scream!)which allows for ALL significant characters to be brought back from sries 5 in a full swoop! (Liz 10,Churchill and Vincent across 5 minutes)and to top it all a reference to Jack Harkness in an alien bar and the most visually impressive gag i have EVER seen...Hello Sweetie engraved in the oldest cliff face of the universe! TPO also boasts the most terrifying scene in Doctor Who history as a Cyberman arm comes alive and attacks the Doctor and Amy beneath Stonehenge and a very The Thing/Alien directed cyberman sequence when the head literally sprouts legs (face hugger anyone?!?) it's shocking on many levels. Then you have the iconic shock of the Doctor approaching the alien armies arriving above Stonehenge and the single shot of every iconic foe to be seen on television and the cliffhanger that will have you on the edge of your seat! it crosses time and the universe and the screen encapsulates you in the moment and the universe literally blows up to a silence! it's visually eyegasmic! Part 2 elevates the tension to off the scales as the Daleks are then made TERRIFYING again! an impressive scenery of an apocalyptic Earth and some of the most intese sequences to ever be seen! and the most twists to be seen in a finale! but it all concludes wonderfully and it all pay's off leaving two ends to the plot still open for series 6 next year! WHAT/WHO is The Silence, and WHO is River Song?!?! 10/10. overall, this is the finest set of episodes on one series of the show, the themes are very mature the direction is ALWAYS superb on many levels. Matt Smith is officially MY doctor, Amy Pond is a superb companion, Rory Williams is an amazing supporting character, River Song is definately full of mystery and wonderfully iconic on many levels! this is a must for those who love a genuinely tight knit plot and the most impressive science fiction,thriller,drama in British history! amazing, and the special features are set to be really jam packed full of awesomeness! with Confidentials,video diaries,commentaries and apparently much,much more!

I add the caveat that I am a Doctor Who fan (the modern Doctor Who). This is a great series with some wicked twists and turns. There are really great episodes that are well-written and really grab your attention. The villains were awesome. And not to mention that Churchill was in this series! The new companion Amy Pond is brilliant, clever, and a nice change from the previous companions (although I do miss Rose). Matt Smith's a great doctor, does an awesome job of replacing David Tennant (who I still miss!). The bow tie is definitely super cool and then add to that the wicked suspenders. Great combination! Some aspects of it certainly will anger sticklers (mostly I'm thinking of the iPod coloured Daleks) but most of it is great. It's a series that can be watched by anyone, good family fun. I do agree that it is a bit pricy but it's well-worth it, especially to promote good, quality programming and I am a bit of a sucker for BBC.

... the future of our favorite Time Lord is safe and sound in the capable hands of Matt Smith and Steven Moffat. Yes, we all knew it was going to be tricky watching after the departure of David Tennant, which was a shock to the system, but after thirteen episodes with Smith and Moffat at the helm, I am a believer. The series opens with one of the better season openers of the revived series, 'The Eleventh Hour', and we are introduced to the Doctor's new persona as he descends on Amelia Pond's life and home. Moffat did something really good with this episode: he didn't waste a lot of time on the regeneration and instead dove head first into the action, which I thought was a great decision, especially after the harrowing end to Tennant, and he needed to move Smith in there fast and get people acclimated as quickly as possible. Our introduction to Amelia ~ or Amy ~ as a child, was something new as well, and was a poignant bit of storytelling. As the series progresses, Amy sort of becomes a confusing character, and a bit irritating at times, but I think that was the way she was meant to be written, considering that her life, as the Doctor said, made no sense, up until the final episodes. As for the writing, I think this season was a lot sharper, a lot tighter than the previous four and Moffat and the other writers definitely stepped it up a notch. There were one or two weak spots ~ there always are ~ but on the whole, I think this was the best season yet, especially the episodes penned by Moffat himself. We saw the return of River Song and the Weeping Angels ~ two episodes that will give you the creeps; we saw the return of the Silurians and the Daleks (who just can't seem to go away), the advent of the mysterious Dream Lord, and a few vampire fish thrown in for good measure. One of the finer episodes of this season was 'Vincent and the Doctor' ~ there was something very touching about that episode and it was beautifully written. The two-part finale was the best of the finales of the current show, and there was something very visceral about that Pandorica and what it was designed for. Now to Smith. Well, when I first heard about his casting, I was more than a little skeptical. He seemed too young for the role and I knew he would either make or break the future of the revived series. Luckily, he made it. His portrayal of the Doctor is breath of fresh air, I think. After Tennant's reign, I think Whovians needed to be reminded of the fact that the Doctor is NOT a human, as much as we love him and wish he were. We needed to be reminded of his alienness, and Matt Smith has done that in a brilliant fashion, while maintaining a certain empathy and affection for those in his company; however, he's quirky, he's weird, he's random, he's explosive, he's arrogant, he has an old-soul quality... he's all the things that the Doctor should be as the last of the Time Lords, the last of his species, and this series deserves the five stars for Smith's portrayal alone, because it CANNOT have been easy, especially on the heels of the most popular Doctor ever (Tennant). And if you quit watching just because Tennant left, well, that's a shame, because you don't know what you're missing. In closing, I loved the new series, I love Matt Smith, I adore Steven Moffat, and I think we can all breathe a huge sigh of relief... and I CANNOT WAIT to see who exactly River Song turns out to be...

Mi è piaciuta molto. Confezioni Perfette.

この手のものにはよくありがちですが、なんかどこかで見たことがあるような、いわゆるデジャビュというのでしょうか、、、。思い出してみたら、とてもマイナーなウルトラマンでしたが、ウルトラマンネクサスの設定によく似ているような気がします。でもそれはそれ。楽しめます！

Magníficamente presentado, muy buena edición en formato BD. Subtítulos en inglés para todo el contenido, eso sí, nada en castellano, como es habitual.