Series 2

 

The revival of BBC's Doctor Who has now been ongoing for over 13 years, making it one of the biggest shows on TV all over again and taking it global too. I've been rewatching from series 1 again (god knows how many times I've done this now) alongside our very own HausofTove, who is watching all of these episodes for the very first time. So I thought, what better to do than a new series of threads in the run-up to Jodie Whittaker's debut as the Thirteenth Doctor?

 

Please post your opinions on series 2, and vote for your favourite episode in the poll above!

 

The Details

 

As the Doctor adjusts to his new regeneration, he takes Rose to see the aftermath of the Earth's demise and how the human race continues to live on. However, the Doctor is outraged when he sees that the nurses are breeding humans for testing against diseases, infecting them like lab rats. They also meet a werewolf which is trying to bite Queen Victoria, as well as two of the Doctor's old companions, Sarah Jane Smith and K-9 as they investigate strange happenings at a school. With Mickey hopping on board the TARDIS full-time, the new team meet Madame du Pompadour from 18th Century France through a spaceship from the 51st Century. A spanner is thrown in the works as they arrive by accident on a parallel world, just in time to meet newly designed Cybermen. When Mickey meets his dead nan, still alive on Parallel Earth, he decides to stay behind. Travelling on, the Doctor and Rose stop a virus feeding in Magpie Electricals TVs from ruining the Queen's coronation, save a team of archaologists from a planet inhabited by the devil on the brink of a black hole, meet a team of people investigating them (LI'n'DA) and a girl inhabited by a tiny alien that has terrifying drawing abilities. However, their lucky streak finally ends when the Cybermen invade our Earth. Although Mickey returns too, they find the Daleks hiding away, and with both species at war, Rose gets caught in the crossfire, ending up on Parallel Earth with Mickey, Jackie and parallel Pete. Grief-stricken, the Doctor finds Donna Noble, a bride who vanished from her own wedding, in the TARDIS, and befriends her despite her mouthiness. She saves his life against the Empress of the Racnoss, before leaving him lonely once again.

 

 

Starring

 

David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor

Billie Piper as Rose Tyler [episodes 1-13]

Catherine Tate as Donna Noble [Xmas]

 

Guest Starring

 

Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith [episodes 1, 3-6, 12-13]

Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler [episodes 1, 5-6, 10, 12-13]

Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith [episode 3]

John Leeson as the voice of K-9 Mk III and IV [episode 3]

Shaun Dingwall as Pete Tyler [episodes 5-6, 13]

Andrew Hayden-Smith as Jake Simmonds [episodes 5-6, 13]

 

 

Episodes

 

01: New Earth | Written by Russell T. Davies

02: Tooth & Claw | Written by Russell T. Davies

03: School Reunion | Written by Toby Whithouse

04: The Girl in the Fireplace | Written by Steven Moffat

05: Rise of the Cybermen | Written by Tom MacRae

06: The Age of Steel | Written by Tom MacRae

07: The Idiot's Lantern | Written by Mark Gatiss

08: The Impossible Planet | Written by Matt Jones

09: The Satan Pit | Written by Matt Jones

10: Love & Monsters | Written by Russell T. Davies

11: Fear Her | Written by Matthew Graham

12: Army of Ghosts | Written by Russell T. Davies

13: Doomsday | Written by Russell T. Davies

 

XX: The Runaway Bride | Written by Russell T. Davies *

 

(it's debatable as to which series the Christmas episodes count for but I've generally seen each episode as belonging to the series that aired before!)

 

 

Aliens & Villains

 

Lady Cassandra [New Earth]

Robot Spiders [New Earth]

Sisters of Plenitude [New Earth]

The Face of Boe [New Earth]

 

Werewolf [Tooth & Claw]

Father Angelo & The Monks [Tooth & Claw]

 

Krillitanes [school Reunion]

 

Clockwork Robots [The Girl in the Fireplace]

 

John Lumic [Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel]

Cybermen [Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel, Army of Ghosts / Doomsday]

 

The Wire [The Idiot's Lantern]

 

Ood [The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit]

The Beast [The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit]

 

The Hoix [Love & Monsters]

Abzorbaloff [Love & Monsters]

 

Isolus [Fear Her]

 

Daleks [Army of Ghosts / Doomsday]

 

Robot Santas / Pilot Fish [The Runaway Bride]

Empress of the Racnoss [The Runaway Bride]

Lance Bennett [The Runaway Bride]

 

 

See Also

 

Feel free to contribute to past topics still!

 

Series 1

 

My favourite episode from this series was The Idiot's Lantern. The Wire used to scare the life out of me when I was younger, but I absolutely love this episode now. I've always found the years right after WW2 quite interestings.

 

Most people's least favourite episode from this series is Love & Monsters, which I can understand why, but I quite like it! It's very different to other DW episodes, and whilst the villain is quite silly, Peter Kay does a great job of bringing it to life.

 

(though the ending is quite... strange!)

My very first Doctor Who series! I began watching with School Reunion on a whim and was gripped immediately. I watched without fail every week after and of course went back to watch what I'd missed. It will always have a really special place in my heart for that alone, but it's a high quality series all round.

 

In the poll, I had to pick Army of Ghosts / Doomsday! My second favourite episode of New Who and packed full of brilliant moments of all kinds. The reveal of the Daleks was amazing, and I loved the bickering between the Daleks and Cybermen. Rose's departure broke my 9 year old heart, I sobbed for ages :lol:

 

1. Army of Ghosts / Doomsday

2. School Reunion

3. The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit

4. The Girl in the Fireplace

5. Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel

6. The Runaway Bride

7. Tooth & Claw

8. New Earth

9. The Idiot's Lantern

10. Fear Her

11. Love & Monsters

 

School Reunion will always be high up for sentimental reasons, particularly given how much I adore Sarah Jane too. It's a fun episode away from the sentimentality, and I find it exceptionally rewatchable. The other two-parters this series are great watches too, Rise of the Cybermen in particular seems to get a hard time more for how the Cybermen come about (ie. they're a whole new strain of Cybermen as opposed to the originals from Mondas, plus the "delete" catchphrase) but it's a harrowing episode at times and I love the parallel Earth concept.

 

Love & Monsters remains my least favourite episode of New Who though. It's just so ODD. They proved later on that Doctor-lite episodes can work but this just didn't. The characters weren't likeable enough and they spent far too long singing bloody ELO songs. The concept of the Abzorbaloff is interesting but executed poorly with hammy acting from Peter Kay. Fear Her gets a hard time but it's not a classic either, I find it a decent enough watch. New Earth has suffered a bit in recent rewatches but there's some cracking dialogue (mainly from Cassandra).

 

The relationship 10 and Rose have is pretty divisive among the fandom - some people ship them while others detest it. I'm somewhere in the middle - I'm not really here for romance between the Doctor and his companions but they have brilliant chemistry nonetheless. Mickey is a great addition to the dynamic when he joins the team and I wish he did so for longer! Catherine Tate portrayed Donna brilliantly, although I prefer her in series 4. That said, The Runaway Bride is a huge part of her progress as a character so it's important for that reason alone!

 

There's some brilliantly memorable villains this series too. The Ood make an instant impact due to their appearance and make for a superb concept - a race of slave creatures. The Clockwork Robots are eerie, the Racnoss had a brilliant design.

My favourite ep is The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit but The Girl in the fireplace, School Reunion the Cybermen featured eps.

 

I do have a soft spot for new earth too for how funny it is.

The series that turned me from a fan into a STAN and I’ve never ever looked back since! It will always remain my absolute favourite series because of that! It also contains the best ever Doctor Who story in The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit :wub:

 

will comment in full in due course~

Certainly up there with my favourite series' :heart: I just loved the Rose-Tennant dynamic, their chemistry really made some of the episodes that more gripping and that final was just </3 Not all of them have aged perfectly but the highs are massive.

 

01. Army of Ghosts/Doomsday (I mean at the time I had NO IDEA it would be Daleks and Cybermen and it was a thrilling conclusion with a perfect ending)

02. The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit (Brilliantly tense, love the lost in space storylines *cue Michael*)

03. The Girl in the Fireplace (one of the most beautiful stories <3)

04. Tooth and Claw (Love the atmosphere, some of the humour's a bit off)

05. New Earth (here on out is just solid)

06. School Reunion (much love for Sarah Jane/K9 tho <3)

07. The Runaway Bride (I don't tend to remember the Christmas specials much oops)

08. Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel (disappointing in retrospect D:)

09. The Idiot's Lantern (bit forgettable)

10. Fear Her (Let's PLEASE forget these last two EVER aired)

11. Love & Monsters

 

I'm also obliged to post this, twitter beefs got nothing on this *.

 

Girl In The Fireplace. Always has me in tears at the end :cry: Definitely my favourite of Series 2!

 

Overall I do find the stories in series 2 weaker than series 1, 3 and 4 but certainly enjoyable and a great debut for David Tennent!

I've just recently gone back and rewatched Series 2, and it really is a brilliant series! Definite filler material in the form of Love and Monsters and Fear Her, but besides that everything else is so strong!

 

Army of Ghosts / Doomsday, The Girl in the Fireplace and School Reunion are all fantastic, the latter in particular due to Sarah Jane's appearance. :wub: The Girl in the Fireplace is Moffat's second best contribution to Doctor Who following The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances.

 

1. Army of Ghosts / Doomsday

2. The Girl in the Fireplace

3. School Reunion

4. Rise of the Cybermen / Age of Steel

5. The Idiot's Lantern

6. The Runaway Bride

7. The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit

8. Tooth and Claw

9. New Earth

10. Love and Monsters

11. Fear Her

Edited August 1, 20186 yr by Calum

The Girl in the Fireplace is my favourite non-finale episode, along with Turn Left, so I totally went for it. Series 2 was such a great series overall.

Oh btw A full rank

 

1. The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit

2. The Girl in the Fireplace

3. Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel

4. Army of Ghosts / Doomsday

5. School Reuinion

6. New Earth

7. The Runaway Bride

8. The Idiot's Lantern

9. Tooth & Claw

10. Love & Monsters

11. Fear Her

Army Of Ghosts / Doomsday (probably) has to be the best ever New Who story for me. It had everything.

 

Excluding certain episodes, it's a very strong series, The Girl in the Fireplace is one of the all-time best too.

 

Still can't decide if I'd put Season 2 or Season 4 as my all time fave until I've rewatched both, but this season is definitely in the top 2 (again, taking out those episodes).

1. The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit

2. Army of Ghosts / Doomsday

3. The Girl in the Fireplace

4. Tooth & Claw

5. Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel

6. School Reunion

7. The Idiot's Lantern

8. New Earth

9. The Runaway Bride

10. Fear Her

11. Love & Monsters

 

tbh at least Love & Monsters and Fear Her were experimental. Love & Monsters doesn't even feel like a Doctor Who episode though, more like a fan made spin-off. Fear Her is interesting in that it is a visit into the very near future, but that does make it even more dated now considering we're SIX YEARS past that future year!! I think the worst bit though is the fact that for budget reasons, you don't actually see the Dad drawing 'coming alive' but that means he takes a year to walk from the bedroom to the top of the stairs, so the tension just becomes so fake.

 

Anyway, bad episodes out of the way, the rest of the series is SO strong. The Impossible Planet is a masterpiece for me, I remember feeling so engrossed in it. It's such a great set up, and the black hole looks AMAZING, as does when poor Scooti dies. It is all incredibly CHILLING and creepy too, just perfect <3 Exploring the Devil too, SO SO dark but that's what I love :kink:

 

Army of Ghosts is the perfect finale, with the ultimate Daleks v Cyberman showdown and Yvonne Hartman is an icon. The Girl in the Fireplace is beautiful, although I remember thinking the Clockwork people were going to be more scary then they were, I was actually frightened by images of them beforehand oops. Tooth & Claw is quite chilling too though, very dark in parts and I love the scene where they're in the basement where the odd boy is about to turn into the werewolf. The parallel universe thing works very well with Rise of the Cyberman.

 

I love the focus on Sarah Jane and the Doctor's relationship in School Reunion, it's SUCH a bold step to introduce a character/companion from 30 years before so early on in rebooting the new series. Yes, she was the most remembered companion of the classic series but it just showed the risks the show was taking. I liked that it helped solidify the continuity from the classic series to the new series too whereas, as I said in the other thread, they could have just done a complete reboot. I love all the setting/design of The Idiot's Lantern and interesting that it basically explores domestic abuse! New Earth is just so much fun and you can tell that David/Billie are having the best time - which helped to make them such a memorable and favourite partnership! The Runaway Bride, like most Christmas specials s alright throwaway fun!

 

 

I do think what makes the series so good is David/Billie's chemistry - I think if you look over the romance parts, they are just the best of friends which is what the Doctor/companion partnership should be imo. They just have so much fun and that is just INSTANT to see. It makes the ending so devastating </3

My ranking

 

[ [GOLD] ]

 

1. Army Of Ghosts/Doomsday

2. New Earth

3. Rise Of The Cybermen/The Age Of Steel

4. School Reunion

5. The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit

6. The Christmas Invasion

 

 

OUTSTANDING

7. Tooth And Claw

8. The Girl In The Fireplace

9. The Idiot's Lantern

 

 

BRILLIANT

10. Fear Her

 

 

FAIR

11. Love And Monsters

 

 

 

In case anyone is wondering this, "how come The Christmas Invasion is on there and not The Runaway Bride?"

 

On Wikipedia's article of Series 2 as well as the Series 2 DVD, both list The Christmas Invasion at the beginning as episode "-", with New Earh as episode 1

On Wikipedia's article of Series 3, The Runaway Bride is listed as episode "-". So, you can see my rating for Runaway Bride once I finish Series 3.