DOCTOR WHO 2006 SEASON: A THUMBNAIL REVIEW. Well, I've now seen the entire new season of Doctor Who starring David Tennant. Let's get this outta the way immediately, shall we, and say that it is not equal to the 2005 Christopher Eccleston series. But, of course, what COULD be? Lightning very seldom strikes twice, after all. But. The 2006 season was very good, all in all. David Tennant makes a perfectly respectable new Doctor. The fault seems to lie in the writing, which has fallen a notch below the previous season. There is also a disturbing tendency for episodes in this season to mirror (in tone) those in 2005. For example: The Christmas Invasion, Tennant's first as the new Doctor, reminds one strongly of Christopher Eccleston's first episode "Rose" (homicidal wax dummies in 2005/homicidal artificial Santas in 2006), New Earth resembles 2005's "The End of the World" (Granted, New Earth is a sequel but still), TOoth and Claw reminds one of the Dickens episode "The Unquiet Dead", The Idiot's Lantern reminds one of The Empty Child, etc. Well, here's what I thought. I'll be given each episode a rating: 5 stars is excellent, 1 star is poopy. THE CHRISTMAS INVASION -- David Tennant's first chance to strut his stuff. Sadly, he spends half of the episode in a coma from his regeneration. But, the episode still manages to be a great deal of fun. Rose, her mother Jackie and Mickey are solid anchors for the episode. The homicidal plastic masked Santas and the whirling Christmas Tree of death are priceless. Jackie's mournful cry that she's going to be killed by a Christmas Tree is a great laugh. The aliens are nicely nasty with their blood curse and the fate of a good chunk of the world's population, perched on rooftops ready to jump, is very suspenseful. Add to that the return on now Prime Minister Harriet Jones and a brilliant twist ending, and the episode's a winner. Also, the first mention of the mysterious "Torchwood" occurs; this seasons "Bad Wolf" thread which will run throughout the season. Rating: ****

NEW EARTH -- The Doctor and Rose journey to the far future to visit the New Earth (which was helped along by Captain Jack at the end of last season). Before you ask -- No, Captain Jack does not appear this season. The story here is a bit of a disappointment but there are several very nice moments including the return of a character from last season as well as some nurses evolved from cats. Oh yes, and I would love to smell apple grass! Rating: **

TOOTH AND CLAW -- The werewolf story. This one is strangely unsatisfying. Maybe I should watch it again. The Doctor and Rose journey back in time to the 19th century where they meet Queen Victoria and a werewolf. The usual CGI limitations make the werewolf adequate but vaguely unreal. Pauline Collins as Queen Victoria is perfect casting and provides the performance of the episode. We hear Torchwood again; this time revealed as a secret government agency created by the Queen in response to the Doctor's alien presence on Earth. The opening sequence involving a group of martial arts monks in red is quite spectacular; Doctor Who's "Crouching Tiger" moment. Rating: ***

SCHOOL REUNION -- This is it! The reunion of the Doctor with his former companion Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) and K-9. The nostalgia factor alone gives this episode an extra star. Add to that the scene-stealing performance of Anthony Stewart Head (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as the slimy, evil headmaster Mr. Finch and this should be a spectacular episode. Sadly, the plot is rather flimsy and, to me, seems to have been rushed. I think it would have worked better as a two-parter so that such an important event as Sarah Jane's return could have been more fully explored as well as giving more needed time to develop mood and suspense in the strange school. Oh well, even so this is a pretty great episode and the final goodbye between the Doctor and Sarah Jane made me cry. So what's to complain?!?!? Rating: ****

THE GIRL IN THE FIREPLACE -- This is the best episode in the season so far. It's 1727 and the Doctor (3000 years in the future) peers thru a fireplace into the room of a little girl named Reinette. He appears periodically at different times in her life when she's in danger. The girl happens to grow up to become Madame de Pompadour; mistress of King Louis XIV of France.

She is being hunted by a bunch of creepy clockwork aliens who want to harvest her brain. This storyline is very involving and one of the stronger of the season. Sophia Myles as Reinette/Madame de Pompadour is the standout performance. Rating: ****

RISE OF THE CYBERMEN / THE AGE OF STEEL -- The season's first two-parter and a rather good one. This one features the return/creation of classic villains The Cybermen. Granted, it's on a parallel earth but still. Shaun Dingwall returns as Pete Tyler, Rose's dead daddy, on his parallel earth version. To add to the fun, we get TWO MICKEY's running around. The dirigibles (again reminiscent of The Empty Child) that fill the sky are interesting but seemingly an afterthought. All things considered, this is one of the better Cybermen storylines. Rating: ***

THE IDIOT'S LANTERN -- The Doctor and Rose travel back in time to 1950's London just in time for Queen Elizabeth II's coronation and the introduction of the new medium of television. Sadly, there's something not quite right about the TVs in this particular neighbourhood. This episode is much-too reminiscent of "The Empty Child" where people had their faces morphed into gas masks; here the TV steals their faces. The plot again is kinda flimsy but the performances are worth watching. The Wire (played by a scenery-chewing Maureen Lipman) is fun. Rating: **

THE IMPOSSIBLE PLANET / THE SATAN PIT: Another two-parter, this one I enjoyed even more than the Cybermen one. The storyline is equal parts H. P. Lovecraft, Ridley Scott's Alien and the old 70's Tom Baker Doctor Who adventure "The Robots of Death" with a dash of Disney's "The Black Hole" thrown in for good measure. None of this, however, is a negative thing. I enjoyed this two-parter a lot. The planetoid unnaturally perched on the edge of a black hole is interesting and the subterranean ruins are so nicely realized that one expects Cthulhu to appear any minute. The archaeologist Toby possessed by the "devil", covered in ancient demonic runes, is a startling image and the Lovecraftian slave-aliens (The Ood) are splendidly tentacly. Standout performance is by Claire Rushbrook as Ida Scott. Rating: ****

LOVE AND MONSTERS -- There is quite a bit of (intentional) humour in this episode and it has gotten quite a bit of flak from fans but I quite enjoyed it. Sure, the alien menace is crap but that's not the point. The real focus of the episode is the bizarre group of "Doctor hunters" that obsessively tracks down every Doctor sighting they can. The group entitled L.I.N.D.A. (don't ask) is the whole reason to watch. Sure, the ending is pretty weak but the rest of the episode is very enjoyable. Standout performance goes to Marc Warren as the ELO-loving Elton Pope. Rating: ***

FEAR HER -- Easily the weakest episode of the season and, in my opinion, the plot is swiped from the little seen but excellent 80's British horror film "Paperhouse". The Doctor and Rose travel to 2012 London to see the Olympics. Seems a neighbourhood is having trouble with their children disappearing into thin air. A little girl (inhabited by a lonesome alien) has the ability to make any person she draws disappear.

The episode's conclusion makes practically no sense and, to up the stupid-o-meter to maximum, the Doctor even carries the Olympic Torch. Whatever. This is the definite nadir. Rating: *

ARMY OF GHOSTS / DOOMSDAY -- The season finale two-parter is a slam-bang adventure from start to finish and, saddest of sads, the departure of Billie Piper from the series. The Cybermen return, the world is plagued by ghosts and we finally get to see the long-awaited reveal of Torchwood. Besides all this, Army of Ghosts has perhaps one of the best one-two punch cliffhangers in the 40 year history of Doctor Who. Then, the final reel of "Doomsday" has the extremely emotional goodbye between Rose and the Doctor. Did I cry? You bet I did! A very respectable way to end the season. Standout performance in Army of Ghosts is by Tracy-Ann Oberman as Torchwood director Yvonne Hartman Standout performances in Doomsday were provided by Rose, The Doctor, Jackie and Mickey: the bedrock upon which the season stood. Rating: ****

FINAL VERDICT: While the 2006 season doesn't compare with the classic 2005 Christopher Eccleston series, the first year of David Tennant's Doctor Who was quite good (as was David Tennant himself). It's just a shame that the writing wasn't up to last season's standards. Tennant can have a tendency to go too far but, when he is given excellent material, he always rises to the occasion.

Now, all we have to do is wait for the new companion Freema Agyeman as medical student Martha Jones and the Christmas episode "The Runaway Bride".