1.2 - The Thousand Worlds

Very much a middle episode, this story doesn't stand well on its own. The plot bringing The Doctor back into the war is interesting enough but as part 1 of 2 it doesn't accomplish much more than whetting the appetite for the final part in the box. It does a good job of continuing some of the threads from the first episode and there is a definite sense of direction behind it. I wouldn't call it a weak link in the set but it doesn't do enough to stand out against the bookends.

Fantastic return for the War Doctor. You cannot ask for better acting than what you get from Sir John Hurt and Jacqueline Pearce in this one. And the new martial sounding theme and the soundscape are absolutely fantastic. Gives the whole thing a much deserved epic quality. I would only slight this one for being a not particularly imaginative Dalek story but I wouldn't expect them to get tricky with the first episode of a new series. I highly recommend this one.

The Doctor is summoned back to to find a missing Time Lord strategist.

The writing continues to be very good as despite all the agony this war has brought upon him, the Doctor remains the Doctor remains a lone wolf, going to the planet without the team Cardinal Olistra assigned him. All of the Character work in, "The Innocent" pays off as the emotional impact of what the Time War's done to Keska really has an impact as does the Doctor's meeting with an old friend, who is brilliantly played by Carolyn Seymour.

The episode also builds mystery around several the characters the Doctor saved from the the Time Destroy in Episode 1 and the cliffhanger is a classic Doctor Who standard of Dalek chanting but is perfectly placed as to leave the listener scrambling to listen to the next disc.

"Bog Off" did you think you would ever hear, either the Doctor or John Hurt as the Doctor, deliver that sentiment, well listen on has he does and you know what it is quite astounding the way he does. Certainly raises a smile on my face. This is cracking adventure held within this release, it brings the first episode and expands on the Dalek War, and joins it up with The Innocent episode. We find the Doctor, back at the bequest of Cardinal Ollistra to form part of a team of time lords who are going on a mission to find the rogue time lord Seratrix, whom they believe as gone rogue with the Dalek. However what the Doctor discovers after breaking free a little too early for the Cardinal's taste, landing on the now fallen planet of Keska. The combined forces of both the Daleks and Taalyens ruling and in some sort of pre neo-Nazi style encampment of the indigenous Keska inhabitants. What is the plan of the Daleks, doing drilling into the planet. When the Doctor finally meets up with Seratrix he appears that he has also been sent to Keska by the Cardinal, so what exactly is going on.