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Rating: Country: UK Release Date: February 2, 2010 Distributor: BBC Warner Director: · Andy Goddard Cast: · David Tennant · David Morrissey · Dervla Kirwan · Velile Tshabalala Related Sites: · IMDb: Doctor Who - The Next Doctor Grade: A+ Doctor Who, "The Next Doctor" is part of the Doctor Who - The Complete Specials boxed set.

The last time I had watched a broadcast episode of Doctor Who, Colin Baker was playing the role (although I suppose I could count the SyFy movie, but I just don't remember enough about it.)

As I don't get BBC America through my provider, the boxed set of Doctor Who: The Complete Specials is thus my first exposure to David Tennant as the Doctor. My first thought, upon looking at the box art was, "My God, who died and left the BBC a production budget?" Because the look of this thing is about as far removed from the old series as two really far apart things can be.

But how about Tennant himself, particularly his interpretation of the errant timelord who has entertained generations of television viewers?

Tennant's Doctor is like none other I've ever seen, and I say that with great affection for history. But Tennant's vision -- this is a multi-faceted Doctor with an array of passions. This is a Doctor who rages against the world, who shows compassions for people; a man of action, with a real fire and a warmth -- even a love -- for others. He switches seamlessly between moods of good humor, sarcasm, and honor. In short, I believe at this moment that Tennant is now my most favorite Doctor of the entire franchise.

With this one-hour Christmas special, we find the Doctor arriving in Victorian England (and is there any other kind for Christmas stories, thanks to Charles Dickens?) when he hears a call for help -- specifically, he hears a call for the Doctor, and it's off to the rescue.

Imagine his surprise when the lady calling for help isn't wanting his help, but rather the help of the Doctor (hold on, we're getting there), which leaves our Doctor initially thinking he's met up with one of his future selves -- albeit one with severe gaps of memory. But this Doctor's sonic screwdriver is a simple screwdriver (you hit it, it makes noise, thus it's sonic), and his TARDIS -- his own creation -- is an aereal balloon (Tethered Aerial Release Developed in Style). In short, this Doctor is the Doctor that might have been created if the franchise had been dreamed up over a hundred years ago -- a steampunk Doctor Who.

This Victorian Doctor (played by David Morrissey) and his companion, Rosita (Velile Tshabalala) fight to keep London safe, and while his weaponry (well, the bulk of it, but that would be telling) is decidedly old school, his enemies are not -- for London is the focal point of an invasion by the Cybermen, and they've culled together all the child labor of the city into building an engine -- that is, into building the CyberKing, which towers above the city and whose mind is that of scorned woman Mercy Hartigan (Dervla Kirwan, who plays the role with a verve reminescent of Miranda Richardson's Queenie on Black Adder.

Of course, resourceful as he is, this amnesiac Victorian Doctor has definitely taken on an enemy greater than he can handle. It's a good thing the genuine article is on hand to set things aright, in a thrilling climactic battle sequence that takes the fight to the skies.

Bonus features on this disc include "The Next Doctor Confidential," an appropriately lengthy piece (one hour) that takes us behind the scenes of the creation of this adventure. Of course, the actors and crew -- including writer Russell T. Davies -- contribute their explanations of the story. And then, of course, there's how the special effects were all pulled off -- because it's not quite so bloody obvious as it was back in the old days! Speaking of old days, we get quite a few shots of the Cybermen through the years, facing down various Doctors. And because this is a Christmas episode, we get a retrospective on "The Christmas Invasion" episode, and several comic sketches that sent up Doctor Who. This is an hour that is not to be missed.

Following this is another special, Doctor Who at the Proms. And for you American viewers, that doesn't mean they mixed up "Sixteen Candles" with a TARDIS and brought a young timelord to the annual high school dance. Rather, this is a classical music event done on a stage with appropriate settings, all music from Doctor Who. The Royal Albert Hall is the place, and celebrates the music of Murray Gold. Again, this is a real treat, as conductor Ben Foster leads the way through Who-dom via this one-hour musical special.