Last of the Time Lords

A year has passed and the Master continues to reign with terror. On the Valiant, the Jones family are slave servants, Jack's in chains and the Doctor lives like a dog however...

Round and round the world she goes, north and south looking for what who knows, until she returns to where she disappeared, with a masterful plan for the Master to jeer.

Jeer he might, as Martha, in her full time curtain call, harnesses all she can to bring the world back to the way it was, and send the Toclafane back from where they came. Unforgettable, but not for everyone.

Quite a lot of dodgy stuff in this that really goes against the shows cannon. The Martha and Tom (Tom Ellis) partnership was the best thing about this episode and saved the whole thing for me at least. I really do think Martha was one of the best companions, I would have loved to have seen Tom continue as well.

We are now being told repeatedly that Martha is a legend, it's a year on, and things are bleak, The Master has conquered the Earth, and is now running wild, tormenting his pet Doctor and abusing his very own staff of the Family Jones, and it falls on Martha to save the world.

John Simm is stunningly good again, he never disappoints as an actor. He does all he can with the script, which is sadly a little under par, his dialogue is down on the Sound of Drums. There is a definite glee when it comes to his torturing the Doctor.

The lovely Lucy, 'Alexandra Moen' is wandering around looking empty and beaten, with a vagueness about her that's totally contrasted to her glamorous red dress. She's understated but very very good. He describes her as his human companion, I like that concept of the Master having a companion.

Some welcome additions to the cast Ellie Haddington and Tom Ellis, both of whom i've admired and do pretty well.

Sadly there are quite a few disappointments, the first half of the episode it pretty good, the second half sadly falls apart a little, the concept of the Paradox machine allows the script to cheat badly, and it sure does.

Martha's travels across the Earth in the one year are a little bit much, especially as her makeup is flawless and even her teeth glisten beautifully (she has great teeth!!)

The conclusion is a shambles, it's like they ran out of ideas, the whole storytelling and human consciousness bringing the Doctor back is nonsense, it was hideously out of place, the lasers and magic don't fit at all, that scene 'and nothing ever happened,' torture!!!

The saving grace of it was the Lucy Saxon incident, she's stood around looking vague and aloof throughout, but somehow there was something waiting to happen, she was very good. The subsequent Doctor Master scene showcases both Tennant and Simm's talents.

Freema is very good, her character has progressed and developed a lot throughout the series, more constructively then Rose, it was sad that she left after a single series, but Donna lay in wait :-)

There are real mixed reviews, I don't see it as the disaster some claim, nor do I see it as excellent, it falls between the two. Possibly the weakest series finale, due to the absence of the Doctor, after all it is his show. That said it is imaginative, it is different, they just totally ruined the ending.

6/10

Spoilt brats. Those are the words I'd use to describe fans who've been griping about this episode. I thought it was magnificent, showing a breadth of imagination rarely seen on the small screen. The trouble with a lot of Doctor Who fans is that they're never happy, and never have been. At the time of Season 14, the season that was later reckoned to be the best ever, they were complaining that it wasn't as good as the Pertwee era. It was clearly a lot better. And the current show is much better still. Last Of The Time Lords was better than ANY episode of the old series. ANY episode. Easily. Why? Because it was audacious, it had an epic sweep to it, it had meaty sci-fi ideas that the likes of HG Wells and Philip K Dick would have been proud of (I'm thinking of concepts like the Paradox Machine), it boasted John Simm's fantastically enjoyable, streetwise performance as The Master (rather better than dire pantomime villain Anthony Ainley), it took risks, and most of all, it was vastly enjoyable. Sad little Doctor Who fans love to pick, love to criticise Russell T Davies, a man who has almost single handedly resurrected the show and turned it into one of the most popular and talked about on television. If the fans aren't careful they'll force him out, which would be a tragedy. This was a great end to a great series, albeit one that dipped in the middle a little. Anyone with anything to do with the making of this show: take a bow.

Although it never reaches the heights of The Parting of the Ways, Doomsday or Journey's End, Last of the Time Lords is still a fine conculsion to series 3 - a flawed one at that, but it's certainly ambitious, with lots of aspects to love.

Picking off after the cliffhanger ending of Sound of Drums, Last of the Time Lords mostly focuses on Martha Jones and her quest to stop the Master's reign of terror over the world. What I like about this story is the sense of hopeless it builds up - the world has been in ruins for a year, and Martha and her team have the last chance to stop the Master's torture of humanity. And beneath the silly scenes of the Master dancing to pop, this is a very dark story - the Tocalaface reveal is truly disturbing, as is the Master's monlouge of what happened after the end of Utopia.

The 'Doctor Dobby' CGI is really rubbish, sure, but it's a good idea, just executed poorly. And that exceeds to the ending, where the Doctor gains powers from the Master's technology to become immune to bullets and any other obstacles, floating through the air. Now, I don't really mind this moment, but at the same time... I can't defend it.

Still, I do enjoy this episode. There's lots to love despite the flaws, as the ambition of the episode alone is enough to praise. 8/10, that's a little high considering it is hugely flawed, and no where near on the level of Silence in the Library, which I gave the same grade, but I don't know, I just enjoy this one.