doctor who

A mixed episode: it was good to see an Ice Warrior back (and very cool to see him without his armour), but what was the point of a story set on a submarine in 1983?

Clara's first trip in the TARDIS as a proper companion was one of the weakest stories in a while. The Doctor also looked into Clara's past, but found everything to be normal, much to his perplexment.

A solid story to kick off the remainder of Series 7. In classic Doctor Who fashion, this episode takes something familiar, in this case, wi-fi, and makes it something to be feared. We're also re-introduced to Clara Oswald in her third (?) incarnation. All up, a pretty good episode.

A very solid Christmas special featuring some recurring characters and a new companion, who is clearly someone special, but it's not clear in what way yet. The Doctor has retreated from his role for some time, but is finally drawn out of it by Clara. The story was pretty good with lots of humour, plot twists and the odd quibble.

This abbreviated series is over before it has even begun. But what an ending! This is one of the best episodes involving the 11th Doctor. The script is dense and superb and the plot is sound. The ending, which we've building up to all series, is desperately sad but plays out well. The overall theme is one of love; the love story between Amy and Rory - a love that has survived so much. They were separated in every episode of this series, but they finish this one together.

A reasonable episode, a little slow in parts, but with lots of interesting bits. There are two themes intertwined: the coming separation of the Doctor from Amy and Rory; and the mystery of the small, black cubes and its resolution.

Doctor Who does Western (for the first time in a long time) and it's pretty good. Not quite hitting the heights, but a lot better than last week. In essence it's a morality tale, like many Westerns I suppose. Seeking to define the good guys and bad guys with some surprising twists.

This is a dense story that defies a quick summary. Read the Doctor Who Wiki article for the outline. There are so many themes: morality, justice, good vs evil, redemption all interwoven.

A very ordinary episode built around a frankly absurd title. It had the feel of "designed by committee". As if they tried to come up with a cool idea, fill it with lots of amusing characters and mash it all together. The end result was very disappointing.

The series resumes with the Doctor still dead in the eyes of most. But there are those who hope. Somehow a hooded woman got a message to the Doctor and lured him to Skaro. The Doctor realises it's a trap, she turns into a dalek and he is captured.

On Earth we discover Amy and Rory completing their divorce before also being captured (separately) by the Daleks. They all wake up on a ship containing the Prime Minister and the Parliament of the Daleks.

A solid, but not spectacular Christmas special, loosely based on The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, although in truth there were only a few similarities. The Doctor crashes to Earth (literally) and is helped by Madge Arwell. He re-pays the favour three years later (her time).