'BoomTown'

"Guess whose back? THE SLITHEEN!"

That’s basically what we got in last week’s trailer, and I can almost here Phil Collinson saying the above word in his excited 'trust me it'll be good' voice. 

The thing is it’s not half bad, and actually saves the Slitheen from having to be wiped from our minds.

I'm back bitches!
And I've brought a motherfucking visible zip!
(A.K.A. a good director)

First things first - Boomtowns plot is utterly ridiculous. It’s daft and silly and really doesn't make a huge amount of sense. HOWEVER - It is a brilliantly written episode with some great character moments (the Mickey stuff isn't 'great' but the rest more than makes up for it). It’s also incredibly sweet and quite funny.

It’s different and incredibly camp - but I enjoy this episode and its one of the tightest scripts RTD has written for the show.

But enough of that, let’s see what’s in the episode!

This is one of those times when he get to prove ourselves right. It’s like in series 5 where we see some pretty terrible looking Daleks. In fact they then look pretty good when seen in the two-part finale.

The same thing happens with the Slitheen here, sure they don't look 'great' but the look a hell of a lot better than when Boak was directing, then again most things do as he's one of the least inspired directors to work on New Who.

The opening to this episode is overall pretty creepy and very well lit. Under Joe Ahearne's directing the show really improves the Slitheens look and also the tone to the monsters. They stop being silly and really seem like a threat which speaks wonders to the episode as there is only one here, Margaret, the survivor from the Downing street who teleported out.

Ahearne's builds up brilliantly to the scientist’s death, helped by some great dialogue. Not to mention RTD basically telling us the exact danger in the episode within the first few moments, it introduces a rather different episode.

From there into a great establishing shot of Cardiff - I'm sold. So far, so good.

One of the greatest things about this episode is the banter. It reads more like a Steven Moffat episode in terms of the continuous jokes between all the episodes, helped along by Christopher Eccleston and John Barrowman’s humorous acting.

Oh and 'Into Time and Space' is brilliant, yes it’s smug and silly but it’s funny and cheeky.

Margaret’s 'No Photographs' line is another pretty daft bit of the episode. It seems everyone has forgotten who she was in Aliens of London during the entire election and everything after it. Maybe we should ignore this big fat and rather obvious plot hole, the line is only to draw attention to her hiding from The Doctor, unfortunately RTD is concentrating on this

Don't take photographs of the plot hole!

It does lead to some great jokes, as the journalist rattles through the different deaths surrounding the project and Margaret trying to give explanation - again very funny.

As we learn more about the Nuclear Plant it also becomes obvious this is another mammoth plot hole. Firstly the electorate haven't just forgotten Margaret was a mass murderer but also they quite like their castle and no one would want it replaced by a Nuclear Power Plant.

Its only when Margaret stops herself from killing the Journalist because she is pregnant and in a relationship. Some might call this another plot hole since Margaret was planning to blow everyone up anyway, but arguably Margaret up to now is just doing what she thinks she should do and only now is she reminded of her now dead family and of those she has killed.

For a Slitheen to look sad and for us to sympathise with it after Aliens of London making them look like men in over-sized rubber suits, once again Ahearne gains some points.

The Doctor arriving in the Mayors offices is another really brilliant and very memorable moment. Every moment is light and fluffy but in a very funny and once again cheeky way. The best part being the teleport scene but also the 'She's climbing out the window isn't she?' line.

So sure the teleport scene makes no sense, but it’s very funny and it’s here that really solidifies the fact that RTD is just having complete fun in this episode. 

As I watched the episode I found that I wanted to write down every single line in my review. Depressingly I can't, so you'll have to go watch. Least to say it’s very very funny and light and really quite great. This seems to be what RTD planned

Bad Wolf is solidified as a concept with this episode as well just in case you haven't noticed it at all.

Is that a meme?
Is that a fucking meme?

From here it gets dark. The Slitheen world has execution. The Doctor really becomes her executioner in this episode, choosing not to help her. This takes over as the theme of the episode, mixed with the idea if someone should be forgiven and where the line between deserving to die and deserving to kill someone is.

The look in the eye scene where Margaret goes around each of the group, testing their resolve is very good, and RTD really sets the dark/light tone of the series here after a full series of very mixed tones in each episode we see the series deal with some more serious themes.

The Doctor taking Margaret out for dinner is a pretty fun scenario. Its half him proving his unwavering resolve and her constant attempts at escape. The best bits are of course The Doctors swiping them all aside very easily and Eccleston once again really manages to make it funny.

It’s an odd episode this, especially from RTD - he isn't afraid here of going very dark and very slow. There really isn't an overall plot. It’s just one long conversation. The best part of it

Right...a downside...Rose and Mickey. It’s odd and strange and really makes Rose just seem pretty selfish. Mickey's knock back at her is well deserved, she just doesn't deserve to complain about who he's dating and she seems to lose her ability to think. It’s good that she seems to understand his anger when he explains what she does to him, but she never seems very sympathetic or clear with Mickey.

Mickey asking Rose to come back to him when she eventually does only for her to turn and run is very very sloppy writing from RTD, he just refuses to give Mickey any kind of resolve except for his continuous and frankly tiring writing of the 'unrequiented love'. It’s dull and lazy and basically adds to the pointlessness of Rose and Mickey’s conversation.

So Margaret’s real plan is shown, she's linked the Extrapolator to the TARDIS, using it to blow the planet and escape.

Now this is the other downside to the story. It basically falls down when they need to introduce the heart of the TARDIS. It’s all slightly easy and the TARDIS giving her what she wants is kind of a cheat to the themes being dealt with for me. It’s still a very emotional moment however and gives Margaret what she wants; it’s just done too easily for me.

It is needed for the finale set up of course, but I think it could have been done differently personally.

Sorry, forgot to foreshadow this in anyway for the episode.
Sorry, forgot to foreshadow this in anyway for the finale.

I do quite like the end with Mickey looking at Rose but not going to her. Mickey continues to get thrown around as a character, servicing whatever RTD wants to do with Rose. Here however he is almost the downside to travelling in time. The person who gets left behind.

Rose does sort of realise this, and I really love how she almost wishes she could change her choices and how she deals with Mickey.

It makes up for the earlier dialogue between them which was no more than filler material.

Overall am giving this a shocking 9/10, I expect more a 7, but I really really enjoyed this episode.

Sure it’s all 100% filler material and yes some of the themes are given a far too easy fix and ignore button but the banter and humour is just very very good. This is the sort of good smugness that should have been in series 2, instead we got some pretty two dimensional stuff though, but more on that later!

Unfortunately we don't get an episode like this one till Series 5's 'The Lodger', at least in terms of complete humour.