We Don't Need Two Metaphors

There's some spooky 'n' scary goings on in this excellent "ghost" story Neil Cross' return to Doctor Who , after an absence of just 1 week, with a much less divisive episode than The Rings Of Akhaten  (though I was much more positive about it than many others). Hide  is an episode which finds the balance between the divisive whimsy of Akhaten  and the steady ground of Cold War,  and is the best episode of this 2013 run so far. Hide  is assuringly old fashioned in its set-up. A pair of ghost hunters are working in haunted house in the 1970s. The illusive spectre is most definitely with them, but never hangs around for long. The Doctor and Clara show up to try and solve the mystery of the Witch of the Well.

Broadchurch approaches its denouement at an encouraging pace. That's more like it. Broadchurch  has often struggled to balance the investigation and dramatic aspects of its story, but this penultimate episode found the desired equilibrium. After collapsing at the end of last week's episode, DI Alec Hardy's secret illness is out in the open. DS Miller is naturally both furious and worried (mostly furious). It would appear that Hardy is on his last legs, which makes finding the culprit even more urgent. In Hardy's temporary absence, DS Miller gets her chance to shine as she attempts to rally the troops. While Hardy's near constant berating of Miller throughout the series was a little over the top, it's forced Miller to toughen up and probably made her into a better detective. If Hardy does leave/die, DS Miller is now much better suited for the job than she was in episode 1. In the suspect's chair this week was the ever suspicious looking Susan Wrig...

Mark Gatiss' chilly thriller falls just short of greatness After last week's divisive The Rings Of Akhaten , Cold War  finds Doctor Who  on much more familiar ground. Familiar, but wonderfully entertaining. It's 1983 and a Soviet submarine crew uncover what they believe to be a mammoth. Except it's very much not a mammoth, it's a Martian Ice Warrior. Living underneath the ice for nearly 5000 years, the Ice Warrior is lost and confused. The Doctor and Clara arrive just in time to see the Russian crew provoke the Ice Warrior, turning the proud soldier into a very dangerous foe.  Last year, Doctor Who  delivered an episode called Dinosaurs On A Spaceship , and Cold War  could easily be re-titled Alien On A Submarine  as not only does the episode take place within the confines of the underwater vessel, but it bears a significant resemblance to Ridley Scott's 70's masterpiece ( Alien) . It's behind you... and slightly to your right

The people of Broadchurch try to return to normality following another death After last week's magnificent episode that dealt with the harassment and death of Jack Marshall, it was expected that this episode would struggle to live up to what went before. Even with that consideration, this episode of Broadchurch  really tested my patience. With each passing episode that reveals next to nothing about the case, the likelihood of Broadchurch  providing a satisfying conclusion diminishes. The main problem is that it's trying to juggle too many suspects. With all that juggling going on, none of the suspects really feel like they could legitimately be considered as suspects. Given that not a lot of people have been definitively ruled out, there's still the possibility that Chris Chibnall could pluck a murderer out of thin air and pull the rug from under all of the series' work so far. Look no further than Joe Miller, Olivia Colman's nice and cheery husband. He'...

The Doctor and Clara's latest adventure is thematically rich despite a thin plot Last week's installment ended with Clara describing the leaf in the pages of her book as "page 1"; the comment went unexplained. I eventually thought nothing of it and was pleasantly surprised to see it brought up again so quickly. The Rings of Akhaten  not only allowed Clara to demonstrate her worthiness as a companion, but explored themes of fear, loss and religion. The Rings of Akhaten  (or Indiana Jones and The Sunshine X-Factor as it could be called) started with a sweet prologue which charted the story of the leaf and its importance. The leaf brought together Clara's mother (originally named Ellie Ravenwood. Ravenwood as in Marion Ravenwood from Indiana Jones) and father, and is of significant emotional value to Clara. Not only does this help to develop Clara as a character,  but plays a pivotal role in the episode's conclusion. The Doctor and Clara explore the...

The best episode of the series is a haunting glimpse of a very troubled man I've said in my previous two reviews how Broadchurch  had raised its game from those opening episodes, but this episode was something very special indeed.  With the police investigation taking a back seat in this episode, for the most part (more on that later), this episode focuses on the community's reaction to the accusations surrounding newsagent Jack Marshall. Poor Jack Marshall; a man who has done so much to escape his past, only to have it uncovered by scoop-hungry reporters. It's important to note that, in the eyes of the law, Jack was a paedophile and that he served his sentence. Yet as with many cases, the sentence alone does not represent the whole picture. Writer Chris Chibnall drip feeds Jack Marshall's story throughout the episode, and gives David Bradley the stand out scenes of the series so far. After building our suspicions at the end of last week's episode, Chibnall ...

The Doctor makes his return to our screens with a new TARDIS, a new look and a new companion So here we are; part two of season 7 of the reboot of Doctor Who. Got that? Good. Whilst season 6 was a season of 2 halves, season 7 is very much two mini seasons. As such, The Bells Of St. John  should be seen as a season opener, and whilst they never tend to be the best of episodes; their main aim is to successfully introduce the new companion or Doctor. I'm pleased to say that The Bells Of St. John  worked very well indeed. Only Doctor Who  could follow a teaser about the dangers of Wi-fi with a trip to 13th century Cumbria. Here we find The Doctor contemplating the impossible girl, Clara Oswin Oswald. Moments later the TARDIS phone begins to ring and The Doctor has found his impossible girl once again. Jenna Lousie Coleman as Clara Oswald After 2 and a half seasons of Amy Pond, or Amy and Rory, it was important to establish Clara as a sufficiently different comp...