- Christmas Eve, 1851, and the Cybermen stalk the snow of Victorian LondonWhen the Doctor arrives and starts to investigate a spate of mysterious deaths, he’s surprised to meet another Doctor and soon, the two must combine forces to defeat the ruthless Miss Hartigan. But are two Doctors enough to stop the rise of the CyberKing? Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION Rating: NR Age:&
Christmas Eve, 1851, and the Cybermen stalk the snow of Victorian London. When the Doctor arrives and starts to investigate a spate of mysterious deaths, he’s surprised to meet another Doctor and soon, the two must combine forces to defeat the ruthless Miss Hartigan. But are two Doctors enough to stop the rise of the CyberKing?Broadcast under intense speculation as to whether it would lead to David Morrissey taking over the title role (he didn’t), Doctor Who: The Next Doctor actually turned out to be a really enjoyable 2008 Christmas special for the show, crammed with action and ideas. The premise of The Next Doctor, that there are two Doctors on the go, is set up early, as David Tennant’s Doctor encounters Morrissey’s character wielding a screwdriver, talking of the TARDIS, and fighting foes. This allows Tennant to slip into the role of the assistant, and his double act with Morrissey is excellent, with the latter making the most of a meaty, evolving role.
Also winning the acting plaudits though is the villain of the piece, played by Dervla Kirwan. She’s scene-stealingly good here, and next to her, the returning Cybermen look surprisingly tame, even considering the surprises that the episode throws up as it enters its final act. The Next Doctor isn’t a perfect episode by any means, and the terrific Christmas Invasion is surely the best Yuletide installment to date. But it’s an entertaining, busy, and ambitious hour, and worth seeing for Morrissey and Kirwan alone. –Jon Foster
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March 18, 2010
#1
The Doctor finds himself in Victorian England, where he runs into… the Doctor? He also runs into the Cybermen (yet again the alternate universe Cybermen. Why not just bring in the ones from the “real” Doctor Who universe? Why keep bringing in these alternate ones?), and gets to fight a giant, steampunk battlemech.
There’s a lot to like in this story: the “other” Doctor is great, as is his TARDIS. The overall feeling of a Victorian-era Christmas is well done. There’s shots showing the previous nine Doctors, which are a wonderful treat (especially Paul McGann! Come on, producers! Find a way to bring him onto the program once more!). The steampunk mech is a wonderful design, if a bit iffy in execution.
But there’s something about it that doesn’t quite gel. It’s not a bad episode by any means, but it’s not anything great, and given how few 10th Doctor stories are left, I’d hoped for more. As it is, it’s entirely due to the charisma of the two leads that the episode works as well as it does.
Ultimately I liked this story more than “Planet of the Dead”, which was a real disapointment.
March 18, 2010
#2
I’m a Dr. Who fan from way back – I spent my early years in Scotland and watched him on the BBC. I stopped soon after Tom Baker left. The new Doctors were just too way out there. When the new series started, I was thrilled. I’ve enjoyed almost all the episodes and specials. There are only two exceptions. “Daleks in Manhattan” was terrible. Laughable. Then giving individual Daleks time travel capabilities? Where did that come from? The Dalek / human hybrid? What was the costume budget – $5 and a dead squid? This special reminds me of that episode.
The Cybermen rely on a human as a control circuit? Rely on inefficient kids as labor, when adults or automation would be a lot faster. What was the power source, coal?!? And again, all Daleks have time travel technology built in?
Now let’s add the method the new “Doctor” becomes the Doctor. By contact with what is a digital version of “Doctor Who for Dummy Cybermen.” Not watching it – touching it. Totally unbelievable, even in the DoctorVerse. Just because you watch someone fire a gun, does not mean you can instantly build one from scratch, or use every firearm ever made. A key plot point that does not pan out.
Overall it was a good romp, the the mistakes are really grating.
March 18, 2010
#3
The first 25 minutes of this 2008 Christmas special is great! The Doctor meeting the next Doctor includes some great dialogue moments. The chemistry between David Tennant and David Morrissey is fantastic! The plot takes a turn for the worst however. The Cybermen, the so called villains of the story, are extremely underused and the main villain, while the actress does a superb job, the character just never works for me. I really don’t mind the cyber-shades as they are a kinda update for the cyber-mats of old. The Cyber-King, once it is revealed turns out to be really absurd, even for DOCTOR WHO!
Spoilers
A few things that bothered me about this episode:
1. The infostamp with video on all the doctors. How did the cybermen get this information? From the Daleks? Possibly from Torchwood 1 it’s never explained!
2. The CyberKing is a fully functional Dreadnought class space ship. How did the Doctor know this considering no cybermen ship in the past has ever looked like a giant Cyberman, and these cybermen are from a parallel universe!
3. There is no real resolution to the Jackson Lake character.
4. The Resolution for the main villain just didn’t make any sense.
While this episode does have some fun moments the story quickly falls apart. As a completest I will buy it but I really don’t think it has much replay value.
March 18, 2010
#4
I am a fan so it is hard to give a bad review, but I wish the Who team would have made season collections like seasons 1-3 instead of releasing the titles separately.
March 18, 2010
#5
I saw my first episode of Doctor Who last year and fell in love. Since then I’ve bought, borrowed and watched on TV every episode I could find.From the old to the new to the end of David Tennant. I’m not too sure of the next Doctor but I will definitely give him a try. I’ve laughed, I’ve cried and I want more. Great series.