Written by Steven Moffat
Directed by James Hawes
“EVERYBODY LIVES…JUST THIS ONCE! EVERYBODY LIVES!”
That’s right. For one of those rare occasions in Doctor Who history, everyone is saved, everyone comes out a winner, and we get a happy ending.
We get a continuation of the creepy, frightening, scary, funny moments of last week, with an extra dose of action adventure. It could be the greatest, most exhilerating conclusion to a Doctor Who story EVER!
We get sly commentaries on sexuality, Coupling-like banter between the (now 3) regulars, and some astonishing scenes with Nancy and the owner of the house she was raiding.
We get an extraordinary performance from Florence Hoath as Nancy, who I believe to be the best guest star in the series to date…and that’s saying a great deal for this series. Hoath’s acting skills are truly stunning — she creates an amazing, touching, brave character that could easily have been reduced to cliches. She’s breathtaking to watch.
We have a nice introduction to Jack-as-new-regular-companion. We get nice little clues to his past, but not enough to ruin any future character exploration or reveal any mysteries. So a hearty welcome to John Barrowman…you have great potential.
We get a lovely, LOVELY conclusion, with the recovered victims of the nano-genes exchanging some interesting thoughts:
OLD LADY: Dr. Constantine! My leg’s grown back. I comes to the hospital with only one leg!
CONSTANTINE: Well…there is a war on. Are you sure you didn’t miscount?
Finally, we get Rose and the Doctor, dancing away inside the TARDIS, in a scene that sums up their relationship, the series, and this story. Bravo, yet again, to Mr. Eccleston and Ms. Piper.
Ok…this wasn’t exactly a deeply-critical or insightful review. Bollocks to critical…The Doctor Dances is one of those glorious peaks that Doctor Who hits time and time again — it’s the reason WHY I’m a fan of this wonderful show. If you’re not joyous after watching this episode — the ultimate expression of writer Steven Moffat’s genius — you’re hopeless!
10
