Catherine Tate-related stories
Posted Apr 17th 2009 7:01PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free

I
previously mentioned that a few old faces would be returning to
Doctor Who in David Tennant's last hurrah for the series. Well, now there is one more old face to add to that list, as well as one or two new faces that are somewhat familiar to those that watch other Brit television programs.
Spoilers after the jump...
Continue reading One more piece of Doctor Who casting news
Posted Sep 11th 2008 4:40PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Celebrities, Casting, Reality-Free

This is being reported by the British "newspaper" The Sun, so I urge you to consider the source before going mad with anticipation. The Sun first reported that
Catherine Tate, Bernard Cribbins and John Simm would revisit their roles as Donna, Wilf and The Master respectively in one of the upcoming
Doctor Who specials slated for 2009. Later, it reported that
Paul McGann would return as the Doctor in a flashback capacity.
I would love for any of that to happen. Particularly McGann's return. But, it's The Sun. They're made it standard operating procedure to publish unsubstantiated rumors from unnamed sources. Much as I wish these were true, I'm not going to hold my breath unless I hear it from some sort of official source. Preferably the BBC.
Still, considering that I'm mentioning the articles here and including links back to the originals, we can conclude that this method of cheap publicity works. Bravo to The Sun! Thanks for eventually disappointing millions of
Doctor Who fans worldwide.
Posted Aug 1st 2008 10:00PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E13) The latest season of
Doctor Who gets resolved with a story that seems rushed, confusing and filled with self-love on the part of showrunner Russell T. Davies. But that doesn't necessarily mean it was bad.
To begin, the CGI and special effects are quite possibly the best ever seen on the show. Despite being in charge of the specials that will be airing next year, it seems that this episode was treated as the last that Davies will ever run. As a result, he wrapped up most every storyline he could think of going back to the first season.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Journey's End (season finale)
Posted Jul 28th 2008 9:38AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E12) Russell T. Davies seems to include everyone and the kitchen sink in this episode. Appearing in the parent program are Captain Jack, Ianto and Gwen from
Torchwood and Sarah Jane and Luke Smith from
The Sarah Jane Adventures. Also making appearances are Martha Jones, Martha's mother Francine, Harriet Jones (former Prime Minister...yes, we know who you are), and British celebrities Richard Dawkins (real-life husband of former
Doctor Who companion Lalla Ward) and Paul O'Grady as themselves. Oh, and Rose is back.
Continue reading Doctor Who: The Stolen Earth
Posted Jul 18th 2008 10:00PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E11) With this episode, Donna has become my favorite Doctor Who companion of all time. Yes, better than Sarah Jane. Yes, better than Rose (who finally reappears as a person and not in a cameo or on a video screen). I love her quick temper yet human personality (it's reminiscent of Rose's mother from the first two seasons), which makes sense since this episode is about the Doctor's adventures from the human perspective.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Turn Left
Posted Jul 11th 2008 10:00PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E10) Russell T. Davies proves me wrong...and right. I have said since the first season of
Doctor Who's relaunch that the man can't write science fiction. I still believe that. But I never said he couldn't write. Actually, he's a very good writer in terms of writing about emotions and relationships (which is why we're introduced to each companion's family in the new series). Fortunately, this episode's writing plays more upon his strengths.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Midnight
Posted Jun 27th 2008 10:00PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E09) In our last episode, the Doctor and Donna were trapped on a planetary repository of books called The Library along with a archaeological team and a microscopic, carnivorous species that hides in the shadows called the Vashta Narada. And somehow, all this is linked to a little girl who seems to be watching the events within the Library the same as the viewer.
And now, part two.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Forest of the Dead
Posted Jun 20th 2008 10:00PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E08) Thank you very much, Steven Moffat. You can't satisfy yourself with making me terrified of statues, now you have to make me afraid of the dark as well. Besides scaring the pants off me, this episode is the highlight of this season so far (having seen the second episode already, I can assure you that one is just as good). Since all the remaining episodes after this two-parter are written by Russell T. Davies, I may be able to stand by that statement before watching the rest of the season. As I've mentioned before, Mr. Davies is an excellent writer (and recent O.B.E. recipient) and I will always be greatful for his actions in returning Doctor Who to television, but the man just can't write science fiction.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Silence in the Library
Posted Jun 13th 2008 10:00PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E07) The Doctor and Donna are caught in the middle of an Agatha Christie murder mystery adventure. Literally.
The British have always been proud of their history. This is evident in the excellent quality of most historical dramas done by the BBC.
Doctor Who, being a BBC production, has displayed this in spades having had the Doctor already meet two of their most famous writers in previous seasons (Charles Dickens and William Shakespeare). The tradition continues in this episode when the Doctor and Donna travel to England in 1926 and meet Agatha Christie in the midst of a set of murders.
Spoilers after the jump...
Continue reading Doctor Who: The Unicorn and the Wasp
Posted Jun 6th 2008 10:03PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E06) The Doctor gives birth to a daughter. And he didn't even get any snu-snu out of it.
A quick synopsis: The TARDIS suddenly dematerializes unexpectedly before Doctor Martha Jones has a chance to leave and finds itself on the planet Messaline in the year 6012. There is a generations-long war between the two occupying races, the humans and an alien race called the Hath.
Continue reading Doctor Who: The Doctor's Daughter
Posted May 30th 2008 11:29PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E05) When we last left our intrepid Time Lord, the Sontarans had released poison gas from every car fitted with their ATMOS device. Donna Noble's grandfather, Wilfred Mott, was trapped in one of those cars and suffocating on the gas while the Doctor and Donna looked on in horror as every car on the street released deadly clouds of smoke. And now, part two...
Continue reading Doctor Who: The Poison Sky
Posted May 17th 2008 12:02AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: OpEd, Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E05) Yet another classic
Doctor Who villain gets an update. This time it's the Sontarans in their first television appearance in 23 years.
For a revision, it's actually pretty accurate to the original series. The only difference with the Sontarans now is that they're all short. This is actually an improvement on the original series since they've always been from a heavy gravity world yet appeared at normal size (which always struck me as a little odd, unless the Sontarans we've seen historically were the professional wrestler versions).
Continue reading Doctor Who: The Sontaran Strategem
Posted May 10th 2008 11:23AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E04) The Ood return.The race was seen two years ago in the two-parter "The Impossible Planet" and "The Satan Pit" as a servant race. In this episode, we learn exactly why they're so good at being servile. Here's a hint: it's not by choice.
Arriving on the planet known as the Ood-Sphere in the year 4126, the Doctor and Donna find the planet's Ood-production factory which prepares them for shipping throughout the three human-occupied galaxies.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Planet of the Ood
Posted May 3rd 2008 7:00AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E03) The Doctor and Donna land in ancient Pompeii, and it's Volcano Day (a phrase used by Christopher Eccleston a few seasons ago to describe when Mount Vesuvius erupted). As usual with
Doctor Who, a race of aliens are involved and this time they're called the Pyrovile. They are trying to harness the power of the volcano for their own nefarious needs and are turning local humans into creatures like them as a side-effect.
Continue reading Doctor Who: The Fires of Pompeii
Posted Apr 26th 2008 8:21AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E02) Catherine Tate returns as Donna Noble from last year's Christmas Special "The Runaway Bride" and this time she's going to stick around for a little while. While investigating a shady weight-loss company called Adipose (named for the scientific name of fat tissue), the Doctor and Donna run into each other.
For a
Doctor Who episode, this was a great episode of
The Sarah Jane Adventures. This goes back to my statement from last week in which Russell T. Davies, while not a bad writer, simply cannot write science fiction.
Continue reading Doctor Who: Partners In Crime
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