Holistic Review: A pleasantly introspective episode, highlighted by an excellent guest cast, that doesn't shy away from asking the difficult questions.

Back when I reviewed Aliens of London, I said that I wasn't really eager to see the Slitheen again. Well, while that may be true of their family generally, I must admit that I was tickled pink when I learned that the returning enemy in Boom Town was none other than Margaret Blaine. Pleasingly, this episode also managed to tie up some of the loose ends and questions about the Slitheen (I was, in particular, interested to learn that they actually do inhabit the skin suits of their victims - although there's still no answer to the questions of how they empty out the innards and bones, how they get into the suits without ripping them, and how they kill their victims without leaving an obvious mark).

I also like the overall feel of this episode. It's a very definite change of pace for the series - not only does it seem to be the calm before the storm, but since episode eight, Doctor Who has really begun to do the sort of character drama that was previously the forté of Buffy. This tendency practically reaches an apex here, in which any monstery sort of plot that happens to appear is essentially just an excuse to explore the characterization of the regulars and, to a lesser degree, the guest stars. The TARDIS crew are only even present because they're on a sort of enforced holiday. Let me go on record as saying that I really like this. I always enjoyed the monster-as-metaphor storytelling style of Buffy and I'm more than happy to see it being put to such good use here. It's very nice to finally see the Doctor have to confront the consequences of his actions (a plot idea which has surfaced from time to time in the novels, but never very much on television), and I also like the second-chances motif. I really love stories that revolve around that particular theme (the series Nightmare Cafe being a particularly prominent case) and its inclusion here is really nice. The basic plot actually took me by surprise - from the advance publicity, I was expecting the episode to be devoted to a race to stop the nuclear power plant from being built and destroying the world, so it was a surprise when that plotline was neatly wrapped up even before the midway point! I must hand it to RTD, his last couple of episodes have really been good, and I'm happy that I can finally give him all praise for more than just resurrecting the show so well. I'm even getting to like "Raxacoricofallapatorius".

The one downside to this episode is that Jack, who has just recently joined the TARDIS crew and therefore doesn't have so many issues to work out (at least, none that we currently know of), has to be packed off to the sidelines so that the Doctor and Rose can get put under the microscope. Unfortunately we don't learn that much about him in this episode, but he still comes across as likeable, handy to have around, and an all-around fun guy. This episode really belongs to the Doctor, Rose, Blaine (aka Blon) and - quite surprisingly - dear old Mickey. The Doctor gets great scenes with just about everyone in this episode - he and Mickey seem to have mellowed out, to the point where they can good-naturedly tease each other; his relationship with Jack is just fun and seems to be missing even the tension that is sometimes generated between himself and Rose (even going so far as to call him "big fella", and I wonder how much innuendo there was in that); and every scene between the Doctor and Blaine just crackles. Rose, meanwhile, gets to somewhat resolve her relationship with Mickey, which I think is good forward progress for her character. I've never been especially fond of Rose and Mickey as a couple, but I've warmed to Noel Clarke, so it'll be nice to see him back in future episodes as, presumably, Rose's very good friend. This also leaves Rose free to pursue the across-time-and-space romantic entanglements that most companions have enjoyed now and again. Billie yet again contributes some excellent deliveries worthy of Lis Sladen, notably her cute tongue-biting at "You see, I'm prepared for anything", her triumphant "But she saved the world and closed it", her gleeful cry of "I did it!" upon pronouncing the name of Blon's home planet correctly, and the mischievous smile after "I didn't really need my passport." We are lucky, lucky people to have this actress in our show, and I'm ecstatic that all the rumors were for naught and Billie is going to be staying for all of season two. Hooray! The three regulars also get a very cute scene with their "Into time! And space!" bit.

As the most prominent of the non-villainous guest characters, Noel Clarke's Mickey gets to carry a sizeable portion of the show. It's interesting that he's begun to work rather well with the Doctor, even joining the team to go after the surviving Slitheen, although you still get the sense that he wouldn't be cut out for regular TARDIS life (although at this point, it would actually be rather interesting to see him attempt it... a sort of modern-day Harry, only not as likeable). The character continues to improve, helped enormously by his friendlier relationship with the Doctor and his endearingly cute embarrassment at asking Rose to spend the night with him. Clarke's acting in the latter scene, in particular, is quite good. It's also very sweet that, despite the fact that it must be incredibly painful for him, Mickey is willing to wait for Rose if she wants him to, although it's also interesting that he actually has tried to move on. And I'm astonished to find that, after rolling my eyes at it in Rose and Aliens of London, I actually find his clumsiness (failing miserably to leap over the cleaning lady's cart, then clomping down the corridor with his foot in a bucket) to be hilarious. The apparent end of his relationship with Rose is nicely handled - although I'm not entirely sure why he didn't go up to Rose when he saw her come looking for him, I think Rose's decision at the end was the right one. Their relationship just wasn't healthy, for Mickey at least, and he does deserve the chance to get on with his life. (However, given that Rose took six months, rather than ten seconds, to get back to Earth, why didn't Jackie come along for the ride?) This episode features two other notable guest stars - Mali Harries as Cathy Salt and Aled Pedrick as Idris Hopper (who, as far as I can tell, isn't actually named in the episode). And it's not just because I love both their accents. (I'm clearly just a sucker for the Welsh. Sigh.) Harries is likeable enough at first, but when Cathy manages to get Blaine's sympathy with the story of her boyfriend and her baby, she suddenly because extremely sympathetic, and Harries gives a beautiful delivery to her line "Thank you." (nicely echoed by Blaine herself later on.) I also like how Blaine vastly underestimates her at first, being alternatively worried about her inquiries and then dismissive of the questions they raise, until Cathy pinpoints Blaine's plan with precision accuracy and thus becomes too dangerous to have around. Pedrick, meanwhile, has great comic timing and really good facial expressions. It's amazing how much these actors are able to put their all into the few lines they have - in Pedrick's case, it's his delivery of "Yes, she is" that made me love him. The casting folks on this show really do their job well, I have to say!

And this is nowhere better demonstrated than in the brilliant casting of Annette Badland as Margaret Blaine. Honestly, she is captivating every single moment she's on the screen. The range of emotions she pulls off is fantastic, and she nuances her lines brilliantly. Is it terrible that by the end, as Margaret and the Doctor were racing back to the TARDIS, I wanted her to become a companion too? (Her reaction to the TARDIS was great!) It's hard to even know where to start praising her; RTD was right, she didn't get nearly enough lines in Aliens of London, but he makes up for it here! One of the scenes that impressed me the most was when Blaine started discussing her lost family with Cathy - amazingly, through her vocal performance alone, Badland made Blaine seem very compassionate, sad and sympathetic. I almost feel cheated that we didn't get to see Badland's face, because I'm sure it would have been a superb performance. One of my other favorite performances is when Blaine sees Rose chasing her and hisses at her - Badland's expression matches up with the sound effect really well, and it's quite a startling moment, conveying her alien nature perfectly and succinctly. She also has a great reaction to Jack's description of the electric-shock bracelets ("dzzzzzt!") and one of her best deliveries is "I become soup, and still alive." If nothing else proves that we should kowtow at her feet, it is the fact that she is actually able to pull off the line "Stand back, boys. Surf's up!" Her conversation with the Doctor in the restaurant is certainly one of the episode's high points, because it just isn't predictable. Their discussion constantly takes the more difficult road - the Doctor doesn't believe Blaine's claims that she has changed; Blaine accuses the Doctor of understanding her because he's a killer too; Blaine turns the Doctor's argument against him and asks him to spare her... it's just all great stuff that keeps you constantly on your toes as you mentally work through the implications of every line. In the end, although she does wonderful villainy, I was kind of sad that Blaine turned out to still be evil after all. And the bottom line is, I want Annette Badland back. Is there any way this is possible? I would really like to know that Blon's new life was a much better one, and she became a better person, but I want to have my cake and eat it too. Perhaps a parallel-universe version! Or... I don't know, anything! But, if this is the last we see of her on the show, it was certainly a fulfilling experience that capitalized perfectly on her appearance in Aliens of London.

Joe Ahearne is back in the director's chair, and I continue to really like his style. The opening shot, of Cleaver silhouetted in the doorway, is great. I also really liked the shot of the TARDIS crew (plus Mickey) marching up the steps to City Hall, and the last shot of Blaine looking into the light is just amazing - she looks angelic. And I absolutely love the final shot, of the TARDIS dematerializing in front of the Millennium Centre, which just feels very traditional along with being very beautiful. They picked some great filming locations, too. It was delightful to see Cardiff Central again - it brought back great memories of looking for the ffordd allan and not-so-great memories of my mother and I (well, mostly me) hauling our huge suitcases in a race against time while trying not to knock anybody else over. The location on the bay is also really beautiful - I wish I'd gotten down there while I was in Cardiff, although it may all be so new that I wouldn't have been able to see it anyway. I was hoping they'd actually do some filming in Cardiff Castle (the exterior and the keep with its flock of peacocks would both have been great locations), but at least it was not, in the end, demolished to make way for a nuclear power station!

This time, with little CGI to interfere with the senses, the Slitheen costumes really look great. (Even Blon's emergence from the Blaine-suit is well-handled, with her long neck sidestepping the problem from Aliens of London of them tugging and tugging with no noticeable effect.) The effects shots accompanying the rift are also well done, both the beam making the clouds boil and the cracking of the ground. Then we've got the heart of the TARDIS, which is just as beautiful as one would expect it to be. I'm a little surprised to find it right under the console, but there you go.

The music here also isn't bad; it gets a little cheesy when everyone goes out on the town, but I really like the music as the gang marches up to the city hall, and there's some very nice music as Blaine looks into the heart of the TARDIS. Murray Gold also seems to be improving - while his scores still don't tend to be exceptional in the Ayres sense, they're hardly ever annoying these days, and overall manage to be quite pleasant. I was again amused by the sound effect accompanying Blaine's teleportation, and it sounded to me like there were some Hartnell-era TARDIS sounds in the console room once or twice. The final thunderclap as the rift closes was also very satisfying, and creepy... I think we need more stories with thunderclaps in. But why is it that we really can't hear the thunder that so alarms Rose and the Doctor?

Minor points:

• The whole teaser has a nice creepy feel to it, with a great burst-out-grinning moment (for me, anyway) when Blaine is revealed as the mayor of Cardiff.

• I find it funny / a relief that after the vast amounts of flatulence in Aliens of London, the Slitheen gas exchange now largely manifests itself as (in the first quarter) mostly tummy rumbles and (in the last three-quarters) nothing at all. I'm sure it goes without saying, but Blaine really is more sinister when she's not flatulent.

• There are two absolutely huge infodumps at the beginning, one between Rose, Jack and the Doctor (to Mickey) about the temporal rift, and the other between Rose and the Doctor (to Jack) about the TARDIS' disguise. It's difficult to understand why the former needed to be explained in such great detail, but at least the latter explanation played a minor role in subsequent events (namely, Blaine's imprisonment inside said police box).

• It's never made quite clear, but the implication in this episode is that the TARDIS actually needs to refuel... but why? Isn't that sort of thing usually only done in emergencies, like a sudden loss of zeiton-7? (I do like Steve Manfred's theory that it's because Gallifrey no longer exists, so the TARDIS can't draw on the power from the Eye of Harmony any more - but a quick throwaway line to that effect would not have hurt, if that is indeed what the production team had in mind.)

• A great, great exchange, no doubt aimed at all the people shaking their fists in the air over the 1996 TV movie's Trekification of Doctor Who:

  Rose: (re: the TARDIS exterior) "It's a cloaking device."
  Doctor: "It's called a chameleon circuit."

• This exchange demonstrated to me all over again why I adore Billie Piper as Rose:

  Jack: "Why don't you just fix the circuit?"
  Doctor: "I like it, don't you?"
  Rose: (hugging the TARDIS) "I love it."

• Two great deliveries by Annette Badland, the first being one of those "I'm saying what you want to hear but my precise choice of words leaves a lot of wiggle room" lines:

  Blaine: "As long as I walk upon this earth, no harm will come to any of my citizens."

  and

  Blaine: "And believe me, it will glow."

• Two hilarious exchanges between Blaine and Cathy:

  Cathy: "The number of deaths associated with this project. First of all, there was the entire team of the European safety inspectors."
  Blaine: "But they were French! It's not my fault if 'Danger: Explosives' was only written in Welsh."

  and one of my favorite lines in the whole episode:

  Cathy: "And then just recently, Mr Cleaver, the government's nuclear advisor."
  Blaine: "Slipped on an icy patch."
  Cathy: "He was decapitated!"
  Blaine: "It was a very icy patch."

• An amusingly faux-cheerful delivery by Badland:

  Blaine: (pulling Cathy into the ladies' room) "All girls together!"

• I do wonder, though, how Blaine manages to get rid of the modulation in her voice? It only lasts for a couple of lines, until Cathy points it out, then she coughs and clears her throat and it's gone.

• The characters in this episode really aren't terribly circumspect: first we have Jack talking loudly about space lanes in a Cardiff café, then later on we get Blaine unsubtly begging for her life in a Cardiff restaurant!

• I'm glad that when the Doctor asserted his authority after Jack had just outlined a potential plan of action, he did not then fall into the cliché of repeating the previous plan and claiming it as his own. Actually, I think it's a cliché because of Doctor Who, but it was funny when Tom Baker did it, and it would just have been old hat here. Complimenting Jack on his plan was actually a far better solution.

• I love that when the Doctor keeps reversing Blaine's teleportation, she keeps reappearing closer and closer to him - it makes perfect sense but I'm not sure the average writer would have thought of that little detail.

• There are also a couple of nice links to the past here - Blaine's teleporter works in a similar way to Jack's in The Empty Child, and the later mention of the TARDIS' telepathic abilities hearkens back nicely to The End of the World.

• A Blaine quote that had me cheering:

  Rose: "Isn't there someone in London checking this sort of stuff?"
  Blaine: "We're in Cardiff. London doesn't care. The south Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice. Oh... I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone native."

• And then there's this line, which John Barrowman, bless him, just doesn't quite manage to pull off:

  Jack: "Is that a tribophysical waveform macrokinetic extrapolator?"

• I'd also like to know why exactly Blaine decided to hide said tribophysical waveform macrokinetic extrapolator inside her model of the nuclear power station? I suppose it had to be conveniently placed for any passing advanced alien to find, but somehow that just seems like an odd place to put it.

• When Blaine says "And it would have worked..." I keep expecting her to follow up with "...except for you meddling kids!"

• Great delivery:

  Doctor: "How'd you think of the name?"
  Blaine: "What, Blaidd Drwg?" (dismissively) "It's Welsh."

• I'm also glad that the Doctor offhandedly dismisses the Bad Wolf connection here - it's played just sinister enough to be an obvious clue, but of course it's not time to dwell on it yet, so we get to move right past it and get back to the episode. Nicely done. Also, funny.

• Blaine asks Mickey, "You're very quick to soak your hands in my blood. Which makes you better than me how, exactly?" Well, despite my general distaste of death and my wish that everyone could be rehabilitated, I have to answer: Mickey has not previously attempted to wipe out an entire planet for his own personal profit, whereas you are a known murderer who is likely to strike again, given the chance. I'm sorry, I'm just not swayed by that argument!

• The bracelets that Jack gives the Doctor deliver a 10,000-volt shock. Now, there seems to be a lot of debate over what exactly a lethal dosage of electricity is (for humans, anyway; it seems to depend upon a variety of factors), and perhaps this shock is just a brief one and would not therefore be lethal (tasers, after all, seem to deliver a shock of around 50,000 volts, and those are widely considered safe) but 50 volts is apparently the minimum truly safe level and, under the right circumstances, 10,000 volts can be lethal, so I'm not exactly sure why the Doctor would be okay about using such a device on her. (although he was prepared to send her to her death; and it's very possible that 10,000 volts is only lethal under very restricted conditions of which this was not one!)

  What do you know, somebody other than me is reading these reviews! Many thanks to my friend down under, Matthew Clark, who informs me: "The reason for this confusion is that voltage is not the only factor that contributes to a lethal electric shock. Put simply, voltage is a measure of the force behind an electric charge. A 10,000-volt shock would be extremely painful and incapacitating because of the force with which electrons were pushed through the body. If the shock was very quick, then it would also be non-lethal. The measure that more adequately denotes whether a shock is lethal or not is the amp-age. Amps measure the current or the amount of electrons flowing. An electric shock of 1 to 2 amperes can be lethal even at 500 volts." And now don't we all feel better? (not to mention more knowledgeable! ...well, at least, those of us who were complete idiots about electrical current before...)

• Blaine's attempts to kill the Doctor are hilarious (particularly the bit with the breath spray), and I love the way Badland sticks out her tongue!

• It took me all of three viewings to finally figure out that Rose (ha! I just typed 'Wose') was talking about a planet named "Woman Wept" with a continent shaped like a woman lamenting. For some reason, I found that very difficult to understand.

• I can't quite figure out how or why, but it sure seems like Noel Clarke flubs this crucial line:

  Mickey: "I can't even go out with my stupid girl from the shop because you pick up the phone, and I come s- running."

• A wonderful line for Blaine:

  Blaine: "Some date this turned out to be!"

• During the last commercial break, those of us watching on CBC (or, for those of us who were on vacation that week and had to catch up the following week, on TiVo) were treated to "Ted's BBQ Tips brought to you by Williams Food Equipment: the Chef's Store". This was an unusually long commercial in which a man (Ted) put a variety of things on the grill (BBQ) and talked about it (Tips). Amusingly, when you actually pay attention to it, the number of actual barbecue tips is, well, zero. Let's take a look:

  Ted: "Hi folks. Today is veggie day in our backyard. What I'm gonna do is, I'm gonna start by putting some nice wood chips on the grill, and we'll let them get nice and smoky, drop the lid down, we'll go over and tell you all of our veggie items. I've chosen about four items to do today. We're gonna do some portabella mushrooms, which I have marinated previously in olive oil, wine and a little rosemary. This is a veggie burger, it's very very popular. I've done some veggie kabobs that I've marinated in oil and rosemary, and I'm gonna make some garlic. Okay? Let's start with the garlic. First you're gonna cut the garlic in half, just take the top off, I'm gonna put it in a little foil with a little oil. Oil in the foil. We're gonna put this right on the grill. And this is great, if you've been to an Italian restaurant, just put this on your bread. So let's put that on."
  (he puts the garlic on the grill and closes the lid)
  Ted: "Okay, the next item I'm gonna put on the grill, this is a veggie burger. They're very nice, there's a lot of variations of them, they're very very popular. So it's all seasoned, ready to go, and with these, you can't handle them too much, you only wanna turn them once. And I find that the cooking is about seven minutes per side. So let's put that on."
  (he puts the veggie burger on the grill; there is a time cut)
  Ted: "All right, let's put the rest of the veggies on. Vegetable kabobs, portabella mushrooms, just move the hamburger over a bit. The hamburger's looking great. Vegetable burger."
  (he closes the lid; there is a time cut)
  Ted: "All right, we're gonna check and see how everything's doing."
  (he lifts the lid)
  Ted: "Oh, everything looks just great. There's the burger, our beautiful veggie burger."
  (he takes it off the grill and puts it on a bun, on a plate next to some salad greens)
  Ted: "There's the veggie kabob, put this right on our greens."
  (he does so)
  Ted: "There's a piece of portabella mushroom."
  (he puts it on the plate; there is a time cut; he cuts the burger in half, and picks up one half)
  Ted: (to himself) "Have a nice bite." (he takes a bite) "Mmmm."
  (we cut to the interior of the store)
  Man 1: "Shop where the professionals shop."
  Man 2: "We're Williams Food Equipment, truly the candy store for cooks."

  Granted, you miss out on some of his visual cues (like wrapping the garlic up in the foil), but this is still a relatively authentic depiction of the tips : airtime ratio. I love how the actual barbecueing happens entirely between cuts! So, his actual tips are: (1) what to marinate your vegetables in, (2) how to barbecue garlic, and (3) the average cooking time of a veggie burger. His plating of the cooked food alone takes up more time than those tips! Where are our priorities, Ted, hmmm?

• Blaine's "Thank you" and the beatific look on her face as she smiles up at the Doctor is a lovely, lovely moment. I love the implication that, for all her evil ways, she really did want the chance to be reborn and start over.

• When the Doctor pulled the Blon-egg out of Margaret's skin suit, I momentarily thought that, in an Adams-esque moment, she had been turned into a potted plant!

It's surprisingly free of "action" and doesn't reveal much about Jack, but Boom Town benefits from beautiful filming, an introspective plot that raises some issues that have been bubbling under the surface, and a star turn by the magnificent Annette Badland, who cannot return to my TV screen soon enough. Whatever missteps this show may have made in the beginning, it's recovered from them with confidence, and we seem to be heading into an excellent season finale.