Reviews

Well...as David Tennant said on 'Confidential' last week, 'a pivotal moment in Doctor Who history'.....correct-a-mundo!!!

First off our lovely Captain Jack is back.

Harkness, that is; Jack Harkness. Jack Sparrow is SOOO last year!

I have to admit, for anyone who watches 'Torchwood' it doesn't slot in exactly with the season finale....I know I was left wondering how Jack got past Owen, Ianto and Tosh and up to where the TARDIS sat without them noticing but that aside our Captain was brilliant.

The Doctor reacted rather harshly with Jack's return but I think that was perfect given Rose and what happened when they last parted. I wish they had divulged more with the Doctor's regeneration but the writers wrote that in so Jack already knew. Jack from season 1, then Jack from Torchwood are both completely different. The latter being MUCH darker, so dark in fact, that I don't think it would have worked on DW, which is, basically a family show. Jack has an edge now, very raw but this reunion with the Doctor seems to perk him up a bit and a favourite line of mine is when they are once again running for their lives and Jack laughs and goes, 'Oh, I've missed this!' The witty banter between the Doctor and Jack was great, and I actually think Jack responds better to Ten than Nine. They are both very similar, both haunted, both have lost so much yet are always ready to make a witty remark about anything that happens to pass by. I enjoyed the nice touching moment when they talk about Rose and what happened in 'The Parting of the Ways.' Martha is listening to all this the whole time and her expression is priceless.

The actual plot of the story is a bit weak, for one, how is Utopia Utopia if the universe is about to die? Shouldn't Utopia be destroyed too? But it was nice and simple, set at the end of the universe in the year 10 trillion, although it was really only a lot of the Doctor fixing things and pushing buttons not a lot of actual story. We never actually know if they find Utopia but this was a 'to be continued..' episode so watch for next week.

Then we have the Master....oh, yes...he's back in this episode which, personally, surprised me. I expected to see him next week. Never-the-less it was a stroke of genius.....it all ties back to the two-parter, 'Human Nature' and 'The Family of Blood'....think to yourself....how did a Time Lord survive the Time War? John Simm was BRILLIANT and you actually got the feeling that, oh no, the Doctor's met his match!

The last few moments are heartbreaking as the Doctor realises who the Time Lord is and then tries in vain as the Master steals the TARDIS. The Doctor, Jack and Martha are left at the end of the universe with the freaky, 'futurekind' creatures after them and no way back to earth. Gulp.

But have a look at the next time trailer after the credits, the Master's last words sent a chill down my spine, 'what this country really needs, right now...is a Doctor.' then he gives this evil little smile as he knows the Doctor is trapped 10 trillion years in the future. Wickedly wicked.

Very much like 2006's 'Tooth and Claw' this episode shows the alien origins of folklore and legend...not werewolves this time but the witches. Authentic sets and brilliant guest stars make this a great episode for the new series. Set in Elizabethan England we meet a rather handsome William Shakesphere at the Globe Theatre....but this next play to be performed is not by his own hand, but of the witches who have controlled him for years in a form of voodoo. Of course the TARDIS just happens to arrive in the thick of it all and soon The Doctor and Martha are trying to save the future of existence as the witches try and free the rest of their large and powerful family. Martha's character continues strongly from Episode 1 and although somewhat bewildered by it all,she handles it beautifully. A pleasing factor was that the writers did not ignore Agyeman's skin tone and fitted it in perfectly.....'its political correctness gone mad' The Doctor notes. Being a Harry Potter fan I quite liked the Book 7 reference at the start but felt the ending to be a bit over the top. There are only so many times the word 'EXPELIARMUS!!' can save the world.

A step above last weeks episode but I have to say, next weeks 'Gridlock' does not really appeal to me at all. An enormous traffic jam in the futuristic 'New Earth' does not seem all that pleasant but I am definitely looking forward to the return of The Face of Boe.

Well...he's back and so is Freema Agyeman, who some might remember from last year's episode 'Army of Ghosts'. Producers were so impressed with her portrayal of a Torchwood employee during that episode that they offered her the role as Martha Jones, the Doctor's new companion.

What you notice first about Martha Jones is....inquisitiveness. Unlike Rose (who was undoubtedly brilliant), Martha immediately asks how the TARDIS is bigger on the inside and what type of species he is if not human. She has a sharp mind and is asking the Doctor questions he himself hasn't worked out yet. Once or twice you catch him staring at her in amazement, like he finds it so hard to believe a human could actually work their heads around it all but still question why.

The second thing you notice is Martha's qualities as a leader. The Hospital was just materialized on the moon and many staff are panicking but Martha is attempting order, trying to get worried patients back to bed and assuring them there is nothing to fret about. Also as she communicates with her family (and you thought the Tyler's had problems!) you can see all of them, even her parents, would be at a loss as to what to do without her. She keeps them all together.

Personally I find Billie Piper a far superior actress to Freema but Martha as a character has far more....depth than Rose. She is interesting to watch.

I also like how they worked Rose leaving into it. At the end The Doctor feels like he owes Martha something in return for her help and offers her just ONE trip in the TARDIS. He stresses that she isn't replacing Rose nor does he need anyone to accompany him. (Yet I think they both know he needs someone in that big blue box whether that person is 'replacing' Rose or not)

Martha aside, the episode had a nice simple, well thought-out plot with the Judoon Police searching for a wanted Alien while the oxygen supply in the hospital slowly runs out. Not to keen on the whole aspect of the 'Kiss', bit wishy-washy but other than that an awesome episode.

Also keep an eye AND an ear out for Mr. Saxon references...............

Well, I've seen it. I like to call myself one of POTC's biggest New Zealand fans, but I am going to be as honest as I can. So this is my first impression. In the first ten minutes my thoughts were, well, this is a bit dark and bleak. The very first opening scene shows a right royal set of teacups being drenched by rain. Very dismal and eerie. Then we get a close up on Elizabeth sitting in the rain with the most depressed look on her face, surrounding her are the ruins of the wedding. Several bleak scenes later we have been introduced to Lord Beckett and the lives of Will and Elizabeth are in shaky hands. We shift to Gibbs singing, 'fifteen men on a dead man's chest' looking out upon a rather frightening fortress. Then we are re-introduced to Jack Sparrow, who is escaping this fortress. This intro is nothing compared to Jack's original entrance in POTC1 but it still is rather amusing. There are a few sharp, graphic, jabbing images throughout this but luckily, at this point the movie seems to take a turn (thank goodness, several young children next to me looked scared to death). We learn of Beckett's task he has given Will and Will meets up with Jack and his Crew on the cannibal island. I really enjoyed this part of the movie, some of the close-up, special effect shoots were a bit cheesy but we saw Captain Jack doing what he does best, escaping.

The movie progresses, I won't tell you much more but to say Davy Jones was excellent, Norrington was a surprise (I wish they had given him more screen-time), Elizabeth's little tantrum on the beach was rather funny but a little too over the top, Tia Dalma was great but I think she could have been so much more. And lastly we have the ending. It was Great. That Elizabeth Swann, my, my, my……………..I was actually quite surprised the writers decided to let Will witness that little…...um...peck (?) at the end. I also didn't consider the fact that throughout the whole movie, when Elizabeth had Jack's compass, it didn't always point to Will and the chest?!??! That's definitely something to ponder about. The final scene is at Tia Dalma's shack were everyone is feeling numb with disbelief. Suddenly everyone is agreeing to 'sail to de end of de eart and beyond' and we meet the captain for that voyage. A man most of us never expected to see again. That final shot of Barbossa munching on his apple, grinning at everyone's shocked faces was awesome. All in all….umm…..it was different, fresher, darker than the first. I also thought it was a little forced. Filming the first movie, they had no idea how much of a hit it would be. This time around they did. They had the money for all the big over the top special effects and they also, well, so it seemed, tried to make Jack Sparrow entertaining. What worked last time was the fact they wrote it with no idea how Johnny Depp would interpret it, this time they did. It just seemed like everything in the movie was the crew trying to hard. But I think I loved it none-the-less. Most of this I've written is me being picky, I think the only thing I truly disliked were some of the special effects shots, not the computer generated stuff but some of the others. Was it as good as the first movie? Yes it was, but in a different sense. They both have the same characters but they are both very different to each other. Was I disappointed when I left the cinema? After months of anticipation, was I disappointed? No, thankfully not. Expect to see me watching it again, and again over the next few weeks.