Day Two Hundred and Three - Dr.Who: Series 2, Episode 3, "One of our more 'frumpy' queens... they're ALL 'frumpy', aren't they?"

Finally, after episodes of dreck, there's actually some Dr.Who worth watching... and it's about an alien werewolf, no less.

Set back in the late nineteenth century, during the reign of Queen Victoria... specifically because she is actually THERE... "Tooth and Claw" pits The Doctor and Rose Tyler against a Lupine Wavelength Haemovariform (nee: Alien Werewolf) and some mad Catholic Monks who have somehow developed super-awesome Shaolin bo-fighting styles such that they wire-fu their way around the Torchwood manor house's entire compliment of staff and aristocrats.

I especially liked the touch where they shuck their brown robes for orange garb... which is rather typical for Shaolin monks.

Anyways, the episode starts with the wolves baiting their trap and continues with Rose and The Doctor talking their way into the company of Victoria Regina herself, who happens to be riding through the Scottish countryside thanks to a felled tree blocking her train's progress. The wolves (well, only one wolf, really... and a crap ton of mad monks with staves/guns) want the Queen specifically to infect her with the intelligent lycanthropy virus and usher in the "Reign of the Wolf" which the Doctor hints would be filled with steampunky glory.

Kinda makes me wish they had succeeded, really.

To make a long story short (too late), it seems that the Torchwood Estate was really built to be a trap for the Wolf, not the Queen, and after all the obligatory Whovian chase scenes where extras buy it and Rose, the Doctor, and any plot important characters survive, a MacGuffin is revealed to thwart the beast and save the day.

Really, "Tooth and Claw" is like most any bad Dr.Who episode in its conception, but somehow Russel T. Davies managed to produce an actually believable story arc, from its prologue to its filler scenes to its denouement. Maybe it's all lengths that Rose goes to in pulling a catchphrase from the queen or jokes about her "nakedness" or the primordial Torchwood roots, but nothing ever seems out of place or really all that stretched.

It's been forever, but I've actually managed to watch an episode of Dr.Who that I really rather enjoyed... and I had gotten to the point where I wasn't expecting to ever have that feeling in conjunction with this series again.

Go fig.

Plus, I was treated to the previews of the next episode which features both Anthony Steward Head (GILES!) and the return of Classic Who Companion K-9~! Things are definitely looking up!

Until tomorrow, Potatoes~

Day One Hundred and Fifty-six - Dr. Who: Series 2, Episode 1, "Harriet Jones, Prime Minister? Yes, we do know who you are, Mum."

Alright, it's been long enough, I think, to recover from the terrible cheese that was Christopher Eccleston's run of Dr.Who. It's time now for the slightly less stinky Roquefort that was David Tennant's tenure (see what I did there?) as he assumes the mantle of the last Time Lord.

Well, not really, but that's a bit of a spoiler, now, isn't it?

Anyways, freshly regenerated after sacrificing his ninth incarnation (supposedly there's a limit of thirteen, so we're getting close), Rose (Billy Piper) doesn't exactly know what to do considering the man that she's heavily hinted to be in love with has just changed right before her eyes.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, it's Christmastime... and right on schedule for yet another alien crisis, the TARDIS crashes down with an unconscious Doctor and befuddled Rose, right into the waiting arms of Mickey and Jackie. Of course, it doesn't take long for "pilot fish" to get a whiff of The Doctor's leaking Time Lord energy, and a small threat in Santa suits with whirling Christmas Trees of Death provide a distraction until the real big bad appears, The Sycorax.

It's all your rather typical deus ex tripe, but there are a few gleaming moments that shine through. For one thing, there's Harriet Jones who has become Prime Minister after her involvement in the first season run-in with the Slitheen. Still introducing herself to everyone, she has just the right amount of quirky charm to make me smile immensely.

That is, of course, until the end of the episode where she makes a statesman's choice, activating the much hinted at Torchwood and earning The Doctor's ire.

Overall, the episode is just another instance of silly aliens with overly hostile designs on the planet being thwarted, at the last minute, by The Doctor... said hostile aliens, of course, having been previously delayed in their conquest by the companion's mincing/dithering.

At this point, I pretty much have given up on expecting superior quality from Dr.Who. But, I think that I'm better for having had said realization. It means I'm much more forgiving when it comes to how terrible the show actually is.

For instance, there are quite a few good one-liners... I mean, a Lion King quote that is lampshaded? Fun! A Hitchhiker's Guide reference? Even better! It's just that there's way too much that is just thrown about, like The Doctor's punishment of Harriet Jones... way too easy.

I will say this, though... it's soooooo much more palatable thanks to Tennant's plucky charisma. I realize I'm slighting Chris Eccleston a bit in saying so, but his run was just atrocious. With David, I think I might not go into fits after each new episode. That's a tremendous plus in my book.

Until tomorrow, Potatoes~