"Doctor Who" The Stolen Earth (2008)

Director:

Graeme Harper

Writer:

Russell T. Davies (written by)

TV Series:

"Doctor Who" (2005)

Original Air Date:

28 June 2008 (Season 4, Episode 12)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

Plot:

The return of an old enemy leaves Earth along with 26 other planets stolen from their places. As the Doctor and Donna look for the whereabouts of Earth, former companions of the Doctor assemble a resistance against the new Dalek Empire. |

Plot Keywords:

Dalek | Dyson's Sphere | Evil Genius | Crossover | Alien

Cast

David Tennant	...	The Doctor
Catherine Tate	...	Donna Noble
Billie Piper	...	Rose Tyler
Freema Agyeman	...	Martha Jones
John Barrowman	...	Captain Jack Harkness
Elisabeth Sladen	...	Sarah Jane Smith
Penelope Wilton	...	Harriet Jones
Gareth David-Lloyd	...	Ianto Jones
Eve Myles	...	Gwen Cooper
Tommy Knight	...	Luke Smith (as Thomas Knight)
Bernard Cribbins	...	Wilfred Mott
Jacqueline King	...	Sylvia Noble
Adjoa Andoh	...	Francine Jones
Julian Bleach	...	Davros
Michael Brandon	...	General Sanchez

Runtime:

45 min | 45 min (50 episodes)

Company:

BBC Wales

Trivia:

Midshipman Alonzo Frame from 'Voyage of the Damned' was originally set to make a return appearance in earlier drafts of the script but was later dropped.

Goofs:

Continuity: Before Martha uses Project Indigo she doesn't have an ear piece. A shot later when she says "bye Jack", she does (and then takes it out).

Quotes:

Rose Tyler: Have you got a webcam?
Wilfred Mott: [points to Sylvia] No, she won't let me. She told me they're naughty.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs "The Paul O'Grady Show" (2004)

Fantastic

I was wrong. Russell T. Davis IS a great Doctor Who writer. I don't even care what came before it, because "The Stolen Earth" is the most insanely entertaining and epic Doctor Who story since "Remembrance of the Daleks" and really a fine, thrilling piece of writing from Davies. I'd go as far as saying that this is his best work since his New Adventures novel "Damaged Goods".

I didn't love "Doomsday". I hated "Last of the Timelords", and I'm really hoping I won't hate "Journey's End", and chances are I won't because "The Stolen Earth" is beyond just an good setup, it really is half a story, a half so intense and jam-packed that there is literally no time to look away from the episode and, you know, BREATHE. I like the foundation of this story a heck of a lot more than any season finale in the RTD era of Doctor Who, and it would take a LOT to mess this up.

"The Stolen Earth" is absolutely crazy, it's like RTD had a checklist of everything that had appeared in his era and decided to include all of them in this episode. What's surprising is that the story doesn't feel even remotely disjointed! And the best part of this story is that we've got space-Nazi Daleks back! Oh, and Davros. Oh my oh my Davros. How brilliantly-realized was Davros here? THIS is what I've wanted from the Daleks in this new Doctor Who series. THIS is it. THIS is a classic Dalek story updated with fantastic effects and production values. THIS is how they should always be used in Doctor Who.

Absolutely wacky, insanely intense, dramatic, thrilling, and featuring one of the best Doctor Who cliffhangers in all its thirty seasons of existence. What more could a fan ask for?

10/10