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
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