Season 2 of Russel T Davies' revival of the hit British sci-fi show follows on from the first, and if the first put Doctor Who back on the map and introduced it to new generation, then season 2 ensured its global success for the next ten years. With a new Doctor played by David Tennant, an actor who perfectly captured the excitable nature of the character. How does this next step of the revival compare to the first, as well as the show as a whole?
The story picks up with a Christmas special, with an alien invasion threatening the planet while the Doctor recovers from his regeneration. It is a strange introduction to the character, but by reintroducing him with the supporting cast of season one (namely Rose's family and Harriet Jones) providing a familiarity for the audience, and a perspective to see this change to the character.
From there, the dynamics between the lead characters remains as strong as the first season. Since the audience is already somewhat familiar to the Doctor, that becomes much less of a focus on the character, instead his love for adventure and exploration is dialled up to eleven, making him immediately more likeable (although I personally preferred Eccleston's mysterious, lonely take - I'll leave that one up to you though). He also made the Doctor eye candy, hitting a whole other demographic of fans with his younger demeanour and relationship with Rose that hinges on the romantic, again changing up the format, although it's still up for debate as to whether or not this was a good thing, or a hinderance for the series going forward.
As for the episode quality? Well, I think that if series 1 was consistently great at an 8 out of 10, well series 2 fluctuates wildly between 4 and 10. There are some absolute classics this time around, with stories that can be watched in isolation or in canon - with the two-parter The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit being a standout that feels like a natural progression of the classic show, with fantastic production value, a creepy atmosphere, a great cast of one-off characters (that don't just feel like generic cannon-fodder like the Moffatt era). Another personal favourite of mine is the Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel story, bringing the Cybermen of the classic show back in a way that really resonates with me as a viewer, putting the whole of an alternate London under siege by the imposing metal creatures that always thrills me with how tense it gets, an underrated classic in my books.
However, there are also some real duds - and not just weaker or filler episodes. Absolute stinkers in the form of Love and Monsters, a story that focuses not on The Doctor or Rose, but a random civilian, who forms a group of people who had seen the Doctor, and ultimately comes face to face with a comic villain called the Abzorbaloff, who was the result of a Blue Peter competition, with a child designing the monster. It was and is cheap and really soils the reputation of the show. Other examples are The Idiot's Lantern and Fear Her, both appearing as budget saving episodes with cheap monsters and what looks like the same street redecorated, making the show feel very staged and cartoonish.
There are episodes of great quality, some truly abysmal television and everything in between here. As a result, I tend not to binge this series in its entirety, and instead pick out the best parts, and ignore the worst - a problem that series one never had - even its worst episodes had something unique about them, be it the character drama or the inventive premise. Unfortunately, series 2 cannot boast that.
That being said, the supporting cast all get space to grow and evolve from season one, with Mickey Smith and Jackie Tyler being highlights as they find their lives and the increasing alien activity the Doctor faces merging with some gut-wrenching consequences that you really wouldn't foresee by the end of series one. The way they can go from relatable humour to serious drama still astounds me, and through this series highs and lows, this never fails, you can be sure on that.
All in all, I have been pretty critical of this series, but that it probably because of all the fond memories I have of it growing up. Looking back on it, I can see where it falls flat, sure. But there is something special in it, something that even the most cynical viewer would have to give it credit for. 7 out of 10.
7 OUT OF 10
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