The 12th Doctor faces off against his oldest foe for the first time. Spoilers ahead: don't read the review if you have yet to see the episode!

Daleks. It's always the daleks. Thanks to an unfortunate agreement with the Terry Nation estate, the Doctor Who production team is obliged to use the famous exterminators at least once a year, lest their rights to use them be forfeited. As such, they're no longer the menacing monsters they used to be. In my opinion, we haven't had a fantastic dalek episode since 2005. But have writers Phil Ford and Steven Moffat broken the trend and given us a dalek episode to rival the greats? No, they haven’t, but it’s certainly one of the better ones.

Into the Dalek sees the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) miniaturised and injected into a 'sick' dalek in order to find out what's wrong with it, and rectify the fault if possible. All the while, the Doctor is pondering over the answer to the question: "Am I a good man?"

Whether or not the Doctor is a good man is a question that has been asked quite a few times since the programme was brought back in 2005. Interestingly, the general answer to it leans towards the negative; the 11th Doctor specifically denies being one in 2011’s A Good Man Goes to War. It’s implied that this drastic change in self-perception was a result of the Time War, but with that conflict finally brought to a resolution last year, it seems fitting that the Doctor wants to re-evaluate that position once more. Thus, as the episode plays out, we see the Doctor struggling to answer the question as he sticks to his long-ingrained prejudices against the daleks. Ultimately though, it’s the Doctor’s own hatred for the dalekanium dustbins that provides a possible answer to his question through his realisation that maybe he is no better than them. Despite his efforts, to prove himself a good man and ‘reprogram’ a dalek to be a force for beauty and peace instead of against it, hatred prevails. Rusty the Dalek is quite correct in pointing out that the Doctor is a good dalek. Daleks are fuelled by hatred, and when facing his oldest foes, so is the Doctor.

But, as Clara mentioned towards the end of the episode, it’s still not quite clear if the Doctor is a good man or not. He certainly made an effort to act like one towards the end, but this is all overshadowed thanks to his incredibly callous attitude throughout most of the episode. This lack of sensitivity is probably at its worst level we’ve seen since the Sixth Doctor tossed two guards into an acid pit on Varos, and it’s a rather shocking. After so many years of seeing the Doctor be ‘warm and cuddly’, having him be rather fierce and uncaring is quite a jarring change, but in a good way. It’s always a breath of fresh air for the programme to head in new directions, and this is certainly an interesting way to go. A Doctor who is less than compassionate to those around him will not be someone particularly likeable, and I wonder how Clara will cope with this, especially if she’s having to care so that he doesn’t have to. It’s a Doctor/Companion dynamic that I can easily see becoming one of my favourites.

This episode also sees the introduction of a new character, Danny Pink (Samuel Anderson), a former soldier who now teaches maths at Coal Hill School. In just a few short scenes, his character was given enormous depth, with the hint that he killed a civilian and suffers from PTSD as a result, and the fact that his former career means he’s not worthy of a romantic relationship. Danny’s very obviously set up to be a recurring character, so it will be great fun to see him explored in further episodes, along with his budding relationship with Clara. While I’m not too sure that Clara absolutely needs a love interest, the interplay between the two was great fun, and I hope we’ll see more of them together as the series progresses. Hopefully Danny’s existence as a love interest will be justified as well.

While the characters and their interactions are certainly the highlights of the episode, the same can’t be said for the practical side of things. Exploring the inside of a dalek is a good premise for an episode, but for the episode to work, the interior needs to look believable, and unfortunately that’s not the case here. Despite the efforts of the CGI department, it is painfully obvious that the inside of the dalek consists entirely of sets and location shooting in a large warehouse. It just didn’t look convincing – and the plastic tubes doubling for nerve endings didn’t help. Part of this problem though, might be that the trip through the dalek is quite confusing. One moment, the cast is at the top, then they’re in a chamber somewhere, then they’re down the bottom, then they’re in the middle, and suddenly they’re back at the top. It’s hard to form a picture of exactly where in the dalek they are. This problem could have been fixed if Ford and Moffat had gone into the episode with a clear idea of what the anatomy of a dalek actually is. There are plenty of cross-sections on the web that could have easily been used as reference points.

Fortunately, not every aspect about the daleks in this episode is bad. Of note is the fact that, for the first time since 2010’s Victory of the Daleks, we actually see them exterminate people! Granted, the people who are killed are only background soldiers and not any characters of mention, but the fact that the daleks finally follow up on their threat of extermination instead of shouting it repeatedly for several seconds is a definite step in the right direction. I do think that the dalek platoon was defeated a little too easily though; Rusty should have encountered some opposition instead of simply steamrolling his way through.

In conclusion, Into the Dalek is a serviceable and enjoyable dalek episode, and probably the best we’ve had since 2005. It’s not fantastic, but is by no means bad either. The characters shone throughout, but some poor set design and realisation of concepts did let it down somewhat.

7/10

Doctor Who cruises past the 800 episode mark with the debut of the 12th Doctor! Spoiler Alert: don't read if you haven't seen the episode!

Dinosaurs, robots and the aftermath of a regeneration - a rather strange combination for a Doctor's debut episode. But if anyone was up to the task of making it all work perfectly, it was Steven Moffat, who also penned the fantastic opening episode of the 11th Doctor's run. And did he live up to expectations? Yes, he did, and while Deep Breath isn't quite on the same level as The Eleventh Hour, it's still a fantastic episode in it's own right.

Deep Breath sees the new Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) 'crash' in Victorian London, where they are quickly embroiled in a case of mysterious spontaneous combustions. With the help of Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh), Jenny Flint (Catrin Stewart) and Strax (Dan Starkey), their investigation of the murders quickly lead them to the Half-Faced Man (Peter Ferdinando), who wants nothing more than to reach the Promised Land.

From the moment the episode began, it was obvious we were in for a very enjoyable ride. The Doctor's grand appearance in the form of the TARDIS stuck in a t-rex's mouth may quite well be the strangest beginning to a Doctor's debut episode (but by no means the stupidest; sorry Time and the Rani!), but things immediately became interesting once Peter Capaldi stepped out of the blue box. And wow, what a performance he gave! Much like Matt Smith 4 years ago, Capaldi had me sold on his Doctor within seconds. The way he delivers the dialogue, the way he moves around on set is such a drastic change from Smith's often manic acting that it makes a refreshing change. That's not to say anything against Smith, though, but it can't be denied that Capaldi does bring a certain gravitas to the role that's been missing since Christopher Eccleston's time on the programme. However, if there's one complaint I had to make, it's that he often mumbles his lines. I'd like to think that this is a fault of the episode's sound design, as he was rather difficult to hear and understand at certain points. Hopefully this will improve as the series continues, and we get the full Capaldi experience.

The episode also gives us Jenna Coleman's best performance as Clara. While the fact that Clara is somewhat struggling to cope with the Doctor's regeneration does seem heavily contrived, Coleman nevertheless completely sells the discomfort and sense of loss her character feels. It's also nice that Clara's beginning to get some serious character development as well. While she always had nuances to her personality, I occasionally felt that they were somewhat buried in the subtext of an episode - though this is no doubt due to the prominent 'Impossible Girl' arc during Series 7 Part 2. Here though, she's begins to get fleshed out a lot more; her egomanical and control freak tendencies are brought to light, but it's also shown how much she trusts Doctor after she is chillingly abandoned by him in the monster's underground lair. The moment where she had to hold her breath and failed was great stuff indeed.

Deep Breath also sees the reappearance of the Paternoster Gang, and for the first time since they debuted in 2011's A Good Man Goes To War, they finally received some character development. Unfortunately though, this is rather limited - the extent of Strax's is a midly funny conversation with Clara and an attempted suicide when cornered by the clockwork droids. Vastra and Jenny's, on the other hand, consists entirely of them reminding the audience that they're married every two seconds. It feels as if Moffat's constantly trying to shout how 'progressive' he's being, but by doing so, he's shooting himself in the foot. We know that Jenny and Vastra are married, and perhaps you only needed to mention it once for new viewers, but four or five times? It's like being hit over the head with RTD's Jesus imagery all over again.

Every so often in my review of an episode, I will lament that the villain doesn't actually do anything (The Snowmen, The Power of Three). And in a way, that is the case here - the Half-Faced Man basically talks and nothing else, and the clockwork droids attack some main characters before being dispatched Phantom Menace style. But in this instance, I think it actually works to the episode's benefit. With the 12th Doctor debuting, naturally the focus should be on the new Doctor, and not the threat. And that's what I was expecting. Thus, nothing could have prepared me for how amazing Peter Ferdinando's performance is. The way he moved, the way he ennounced his words, it was all pitch perfect, and he managed to give quite a lot of depth to an otherwise generic villain. In fact, I would go as far to say that he gave the best villain performance in the entirety of the revived series. He was that good.

Also noteworthy was the pace of the episode; it was noticeably slower than the tail end of the 11th Doctor's tenure. And while this slower pace did mean the episode dragged a bit in the middle, it also allowed for longer scenes - something that worked very well. The Doctor's discussion with the tramp regarding his face and his 'attack eyebrows' is an example, as are both of the restaurant scenes. They all contained very important character moments, and had some of the best dialogue in the episode - the aforementioned 'attack eyebrows' in particular. However, it is the second of the restaurant scenes that will undoubtedly be the most discussed and talked about for the remainder of the series: did the Doctor push the Half-Face Man out of the doorway, or did he convince him to jump? The answer to that question is thankfully left ambiguous, no doubt in order to give a sense of uncertainty regarding how far the 12th Doctor will go. I personally think that the Doctor did push, but I look forward to the answer no matter what it is.

However, the highlight of the episode, for me at least, was the 11th Doctor's phone call, but not because 11 had a cameo. No, instead, I thought the exchange between 11, Clara and 12 was simply wonderful, and is the most the show has ever done to demonstrate that two Doctors are actually the same person. It's a brilliantly written scene - probably one of Steven Moffat's best. As that brief, wonderful scene ends though, we are introduced to the person who will obviously be the 'big bad' of the series. Who exactly is Missy? Only time will tell, but it's always fun to speculate until the answer is revealed.

In conclusion, Deep Breath is a wonderful debut episode for Peter Capaldi and the 12th Doctor. The acting is phenomenal, the longer scenes shine with brilliance, and, despite not doing much other than talking, the villain is very compelling. Other than a few minor niggles concerning characterisation and sound design, this episode starts of Season 34 of Doctor Who with a bang.

 8/10

ABC WHOVIANS has regenerated!

Welcome to the new look ABC WHOVIANS!

Here are some of the main changes:

• New Logo. After over 18 months we have retired the former logo for a fresh new one
• Light Background. After consultation with the membership earlier this year we have decided to switch the site to a light background with dark text. Many will find this much easier to read than previously.
• No Sidebar. This makes the site look less cluttered and easier to view on mobile devices. Items previously found in the side bar can now be found in the site footer.
• Simplified Navigation Bar. Many pages previously located in the navigation bar are now grouped together under a main heading in the top navigation bar. For example the "Members" page and "Who are We?" page are now in a sub menu below the "About Us" heading.
• Facebook. ABC WHOVIANS now has a facebook page. If you're on Facebook, give us a like! Visit our page here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/ABC-Whovians/283865171793285?fref=ts
• Administration. The site is now served by three Admins- Patch, SonicR and myself (SM). Please contact any of us if you need assistance.

While i have spent considerable time in trying to make sure the new look site was complete before publishing, there will no doubt be some teething problems. If you experience any problems please let me know by emailing me via my profile page or by posting a message on our Facebook page.

While the default colour of text in the forums will change to suit the new light background, where a member has manually changed the colour of their text in a post it will remain that colour. This may make it difficult to view some older forum posts.

I hope you like the new site, and enjoy the return of Doctor Who tomorrow night!

SM

By 6.30pm I had joined the crowd gathering outside the State Theatre for the 7.30pm start of DWWT.

A few fans were in costume as the various Doctors and many others were wearing some kind of DW accessory (Tardis hoodie, scarf, bowtie).

I didn't see any extreme costumes (like daleks or cybermen) although one of the "Doctors" was holding a replica of cyber-head Handles.

Some of the passersby seemed amused and curious (doesn't everyone know about Doctor Who?).

The foyer doors opened at 6.30pm and everyone was able to cram into the foyer to look at merchandise. I say "cram" but, despite the crush, DW fans are the best and there was no pushing, shoving (or "exterminating"!) amongst the crowd. Everyone was polite and cheerful.

The merchandise counter had some event-specific T-shirts and posters and a small range of generic DW items (like beanies and scarves) - not a large range of merchandise but people were certainly buying it up.

The auditorium doors opened at 7.00pm and there were official warnings and pleas about no photography or filming inside. 

The stage was in darkness with the TARDIS off to one side and we were reminded that the schedule had been altered so that episode Deep Breath would now be screened *before* the Q&A - to make for a more interesting Q&A session that could discuss elements of the episode.

During the next half hour we were entertained by Adam Spencer chatting with various audience members and some of us assembled a mini Tardis cardboard cut-out and wished that 7.30 would hurry up already so we could watch the episode.

Those of us high up at the back had a distant view of the stage but we could watch all activity on the screen including Adam Spencer roving the audience and a featured video compilation of fan tributes to Doctor Who.

Then came time for episode Deep Breath and, well, spoilers!

I have to say it was a good decision to delay the Q&A till afterwards because, having not yet met him, when watching the episode I was not watching Peter Capaldi. I was watching the Doctor.

When the episode ended at 8.50pm, there was a 25min interval before the hour-long Q&A at 9.15pm. The evening was nearly over and still not a glimpse of Peter Capaldi!

After the interval, we watched a video tribute to previous companions and then Jenna walked alone on stage to much applause (did you know she has relatives in Australia?) and was joined by Adam for an interview on life with Doctor Who.

We then had a tribute to Doctors past and (finally!) Peter Capaldi walked out of the smoke and shadows on stage.

The new Doctor! It was definitely a goosebump moment.

And then began a Q&A session with Adam and Peter, rejoined later by Jenna, the non-spoiler version of which can be seen on iview.

The highlights of this for me, were the poignant description of Matt's handover to Peter (a big hug and "the TARDIS is yours") and a comic description of Steven Moffat, in the kitchen, enacting the whole of S8 for Peter Capaldi.

On the whole, Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman were warm, entertaining and very gracious.

Roll on August 24!

-- Lightspeed

(Photography by Lisa)

After three succesful tours in the last few years, the Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular will again return to Australia early next year! In 2015, the tour will visit Adelaide and Perth for the first time before returning to Sydney once more. The event will be hosted by Fifth Doctor Peter Davison, and will be accompanied by a plethora of monsters from the show. Tour Dates are as follows:

Saturday 24 January 2015

Adelaide Entertainment Centre, SA

Sat 31 Jan

Perth Arena, WA

Sat 7 Feb

Qantas Credit Union Arena, Sydney, NSW

Times to be arranged

The BBC and Ticketek are offering exclusive pre-sale offers, from Tue 5 Aug, 2pm - Mon 18 Aug, 10am (AEST) and Thu 7 Aug, 2pm - Mon 18 Aug, 10am (local time) respectively. Tickets will be available to the public from Mon 18 Aug, 10am (local time).

Pre-sale tickets can be booked at http://bit.ly/XzAsNi

'Ultimate Fan' and VIP packages are also being offered: http://premier.ticketek.com.au/Content/pdf/DRWHOSYM15_Packages.PDF

Following on from the successfully screenings of The Day of the Doctor in cinemas worldwide, the BBC has announced that Deep Breath, the feature-length first episode of Series 8, will also be seeing a cinematic release.

Directed by acclaimed Director Ben Wheatley (Sightseers, A Field in England) and written by lead writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, the beginning of the Twelfth Doctor’s era stars Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, Jenna Coleman as his companion Clara Oswald and sees the return of fan favourites The Paternoster Gang - Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh), Jenny Flint (Catrin Stewart) and Strax (Dan Starkey) – in a pulse-racing adventure through Victorian London.

Head over to http://www.doctorwho.tv/watch/cinema for more details.

UPDATE:

The ABC has confirmed that the new series of Doctor Who will once again be fast tracked for Australian fans, going to air on the 24th August on ABC1.

Sorry if anybody has made their wedding plans based on our earlier incorrect prediction of the 17th August

Here is our previous predictions and our reasons:

 Doctor Who Series 8 will (likely) air on the 17th August on the ABC.

Why do we say so?

Well, starting from tonight (Saturday the 21st June 2014) ABC2 has begun airing repeats of 2 Doctor Who episodes each week starting from the Series 7 opener- Asylum of the Daleks. At this rate they will be up to showing Day of the Doctor and Time of the Doctor on Saturday the 9th August, just in time for a brand new episode to air the following weekend 16th/17th August. If the new tradition of a broadcast on Sunday night- within 24 hours of the British broadcast- is maintained we should be seeing Peter Capaldi's debut on Sunday the 19th of August on the ABC. This fits in with the Doctor Who World Tour promoting the new series being scheduled between the 7th and 19th August with Sydney as one of the stop offs, as wellas a previous announcement that Series 8 will begin some time in August.

Bring on August!

As part of the lead up to Doctor Who Series 8, current leads Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman, along with current showrunner Steven Moffat, will be embarking on a 12 day World Tour in August this year, visiting 5 continents and 7 cities along the way. Part of this tour will bring them to one city Down Under - Sydney!

UPDATE!

Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman will be live onstage at Sydney's State Theatre on Tuesday 12 August! Hosted by Adam Spencer, the Q&A session will also feature a special screening of 'Deep Breath', the feature-length first episode of Series 8!

Sign-up to www.doctorwho.tv/worldtour for pre-sale information. Tickets will be available for general sale through Ticketmaster from 11.00am on Monday 21 July.

For further information please contact:

Phoebe Price, Communications Executive, BBC Worldwide ANZ

02 9744 4507| 0403 457 533 | [email protected]

JOIN THE LIVE STREAM FROM THE SYDNEY Q&A EVENT HERE

As I said in my review of the Sydney concert last year, I'm a very musical person. I think this trait is incredibly obvious now that I've been to three Doctor Who Symphonic Spectaculars! Do I get bored? Nope, because each one is bigger and better than the one before. The performances in Melbourne and Brisbane earlier this month (I went to the Brisbane one) didn't just have monsters roaming around, they had an Ice Warrior and the latest design of the Cybermen - even the wooden one! Fittingly, the TARDIS was present, which was probably why Peter Davison was present to host the event. Seeing a real live Doctor was amazing...just a shame the lights blocked out his face.

The venue was very large, roughly the same size as Melbourne's, and it was packed full. Strobe lighting was utlised to enhance the video shown on three big screens, and on occasions, it worked well. Most of the time, though, I simply found it distracting, as I couldn't get a good look at the orchestra without being blinded.

The music, as expected, was absolutely sublime. While the programme predominantly featured music from Matt Smith's run on the show, there were a couple of nice surprises, including a wonderful Classic Who medley, the Companions Suite featuring the themes of all NuWho Companions before Clara, and 'All the Strange Strange Creatures', one of the 10th Doctor's action themes. I loved all the pieces performed, but if I had to choose a favourite, it would be 'Abigail's Song' from the 2010 Christmas Special. It's a beautiful composition and always moves me whenever I listen to it. In fact, I love it so much that I've even managed to find some piano sheet music for it!

Peter Davison was a fantastic host; instead of simply walking on stage and introducing the next piece, he engaged with some hilarious banter with the audience about the results of the Ashes, how he'd asked Australian actress Janet Fielding (Tegan Jovanka from 1981 to 1984) for advice during his visit to the Land Down Under, and how he'd played the Doctor before most of the audience was even born.  Ben Foster, the conductor, also joined in on the fun, 'overacting' against the daleks in an attempt to fend them off with his sonic baton.

If there was one thing about the night that I was disappointed with, it was the lack of atmosphere in the foyer. Unlike Sydney and Melbourne, barely anyone was dressed up for the occasion. There were a few 10th and 11th Doctor costumes scattered around, and someone did put on some Time Lord robes with a cardboard headdress, but for the most part, people just wore their formal clothes.

All in all though, the concert was a resounding success. If another one appears in the next few years, definitely buy tickets, it's money well spent. As for me, I think I'll plug in my headphones and start listening to the Series 7 soundtrack. The conert may be over, but the music never ends!

The Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular has landed in Australia again- with performances this time in Melbourne and Brisbane, and for the first time hosted by a real life Doctor- the fifth Doctor- Peter Davison. If you have photos of the event you can share with us please post them here: http://www.abcwhovians.com/apps/photos/album?albumid=14875616

You can even post video by clicking the Video link in the the navigation bar above.\

Or you can write a review of the event here in the comments section of this blog.

ABC Whovians member Entish posted this review in our Doctor Who forum:

"Went to see the Dr Who Symphonic in Melbourne last night. It was fantistic (and so was I). It was way beyond what I had expected even after having watched Dr Who Prom. The music was brilliant and I had no idea that the Melb Symphany Orchestra would play so beautifully. As was mentioned on this thread the fifth Doctor was the host and he was funny. There were a couple of surprises which I will not mention here as there are few of you are yet to see it. The only downside is there weren't many monsters and a lack of photo opportunies with them. I will not mention what I did in case the Judoon pays me a visit. Will definately go again."- Entish

We look forward to Sonic and Madman in a Box's reviews when they attend the Brisbane show!