EDITOR’S NOTE: The following review is spoiler free. Since season two of Doctor Who ran on the Sci-Fi channel and many readers don’t get that service, we’ve made every effort to ensure that this review is free of major spoilers. DIMP’s got your back, dog!

I think it’s fair to say that American fans of Doctor Who, if not fans generally, were skeptical when the BBC announced it would be reviving the series after a sixteen-year hiatus. At the time of its cancellation, the original Doctor Who had been on air for twenty-six years and had gotten a little long in the tooth. The classic Tom Baker period was a distant memory and many people felt that the show had run its course. In the intervening decade and a half, several attempts to bring the show back had failed miserably, leaving devotees of the time-traveling curmudgeon with only fan fiction, radio dramas and home video to get their fix.

But in March of 2005 all doubts were dismissed. In the capable hands of Russell T. Davies (Queer as Folk), Doctor Who returned to the small screen with a big bang. Produced by BBC Wales and shot primarily in Cardiff, the new show featured higher production values, faster pacing and a modern sensibility that gave it the kind of legitimacy that had eluded the original series toward the end of its run. Through Doctor Who, Davies quickly established himself as a creative visionary in the mold of Joss Whedon and someone who clearly understood and respected the standing Doctor Who mythology.

Perhaps the most critical element to the show’s success was the casting of The Doctor himself. Eight actors had played the role over the years, none more emblematic in the minds of American fans than Tom Baker. With his dry wit, floppy hat and unreasonably long scarf, Baker’s Doctor established a powerful template for what the character could be. His influence was evident in the performances of each of the subsequent Doctors. Though it would have been easy for Davies to follow the established trend, he chose instead to cast Christopher Eccleston (Elizabeth, eXistenZ, 28 Days Later) in the role. Eccleston was far from the ideal of most fans. Young, energetic, charismatic and displaying an almost Bruce Willis-like action hero gravitas, Eccleston fitted The Doctor into a contemporary mold that suited the new incarnation perfectly.

Another key to the new series’ success was the addition of British pop-tart Billie Piper in the role of The Doctor’s companion, Rose Tyler. In the classic series, with a few notable exceptions, The Doctor’s companions were used as simple plot devices (they got in trouble and The Doctor had to save them) or as eye candy for parents and older fans (many episodes found The Doctor’s nubile late-teen companions running around the TARDIS and various alien environments in the most skimpy of outfits.) Though Billie certainly is easy on the eyes, her character Rose was written as a partner to The Doctor. Rather than stumbling and twisting her ankle in the first ten minutes of the story, hampering The Doctor’s efforts, Rose often found the key piece of the puzzle, reasoned out the critical conclusion or just plain saved The Doctor’s bacon when he needed it the most.

With these and other elements in place, Doctor Who re-launched in 2005 to great critical acclaim and unexpectedly high ratings. The first season (or series in British parlance) brought thrills, chills and Daleks, Daleks and more Daleks! There wasn’t a single filler episode and fans were left clambering for more of the same. But more of the same simply wasn’t in the cards for Doctor Who. At the end of season one, Christopher Eccleston announced that he’d be leaving the program after only thirteen voyages in the blue police box. On the one hand this caused some concern since Eccleston had been so suited to the role. On the other, it wouldn’t be Doctor Who without a splashy “regeneration” scene and a change of face for our hero.

In season two, stage and screen actor David Tennant (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) took control of the TARDIS. Freed by Eccleston from the task of reinventing The Doctor, Tennant builds on the role by folding in elements from the classic series. He has a breezy quality about him that’s reminiscent of Peter Davison’s Doctor, he flashes a knowing smile while delivering dryly comical lines like Tom Baker and his physical appearance, decked out in an antiquated but tasteful suit and long overcoat, harks back to William Hartnell, the first actor to play The Doctor. He also brings his own unique take to the character by giving The Doctor more self-awareness and evincing an almost alien inner calm at times.

Billie Piper is back as Rose, and her character is as sympathetic as ever. Her arc in this season is surprisingly deep and carries an emotional impact that reaches a satisfying crescendo in the final episode. At times, however, she’s given a few too many cheeky throwaway lines and the chemistry between Rose and Tennant’s Doctor seems a little off to me. Still, Piper does an admirable job handling a sizable chunk of the dramatic duties. Her work in the first two seasons firmly establishes her as one of, if not the, most accomplished companions in the show’s history.

Episode by episode, the second series holds its own against the first—there are a couple of duds, but these are balanced out by others that hit higher highs. We encounter a wild menagerie of enemies and scenarios. Queen Victoria fights vampires, Charles Dickens fights ghosts, Cybermen run rampant over London, television sets make the entire city into zombies, Anthony Stewart Head – you may remember him as Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer – shows up and The Doctor does battle with Satan himself at the bottom of a black hole. The creative team outdoes themselves with more fantastic visuals, more detailed sets and costumes, larger casts and stories of increased daring and scope.

Unfortunately, there are a couple of filler adventures that don’t seem up to snuff. One involves a little girl whose frightening drawings come to life and the other attempts to turn the format on its head by telling the story from the viewpoint of a UK slacker named Elton who leads a kind of Lone Gunmen team of investigators searching for The Doctor’s true identity. Believe me; both sound better in my description than they actually are. The problem with these episodes may be that they seem aimed at satisfying the youngest of Doctor Who watchers. Davies’ Doctor Who is generally darker and more adult than its predecessor while trying to maintain its status as a children’s show. It seems to excel in episodes that deal with more sophisticated and complex subjects.

The first season included an overarching plot that involved clues about something or someone called the Bad Wolf. That same format is in play in season two, this time introducing the concept of the Torchwood Institute. We get little hints and clues about the nature and meaning of Torchwood throughout the season. Pay attention to these clues as you work your way through the episodes—they culminate in the final two shows and lead to a Doctor Who spin-off called, naturally enough, Torchwood (an anagram of Doctor Who), which premiered this year.

The second season of Doctor Who saw the program mature and grow while maintaining high ratings and continued critical approval. At this point it’s safe to say that Doctor Who is here to stay. Season three begins in the spring of 2007 and it looks as if David Tennant will be back for at least one more year after that. It’s a good time for Doctor Who fans of all ages, especially those of us who struggled through the “dark times ” between the end of the original series and Russell T. Davies’ new show. Season two makes good on the promise of season one in almost every way.

Packaging and Presentation

Audio/Visual
Each episode is presented in wide screen 1.78:1 anamorphic video. The image is detailed and crisp looking. The colors are deeply saturated and the contrast is very good. I can spot a little edge sharpening here and there but I had to look hard to catch it. I didn’t see any compression artifacts and the source for the transfer is absolutely pristine. The audio is mixed in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround. The tracks are nicely balanced with clear dialogue and music that never intrudes. The surrounds are used mainly for ambient sounds, explosions and so forth. It’s a reasonably enveloping experience for a television show and adds a lot to the programs.

Extras
As with series one, this release is packed with extra content. If you were following the program as it aired you may be aware that the BBC offered a slew of ancelary items on their Web site, including downloadable audio commentaries for each show. The content on this set is not recycled from the Web site, but is unique (in most cases) to the DVD release. For example, there are brand new commentaries for each and every one of the episodes. These are not the same ones that BBC offered for download last year, though those are still available through the link earlier in this paragraph.

Cast and Crew Commentaries: Every episode has an audio commentary, each with three participants. Those delivering commentary range from the actors (Tennant and Piper included) to Russell T. Davies, the head writers and directors, the designers, SFX staff and more. The quality of the commentaries is a little variable depending on who’s taking part but all of them do end up shedding interesting light on the episodes. The ones with David Tennant and Russell T. Davies are particularly enjoyable as both these men are engaging speakers and have a lot of interesting things to say about the show. On each disc, one of the tracks is an “in-vision” commentary, which just means that they pop a little window up showing the commentary recording session. This has been done before on any number of DVDs. I’m not sure it actually adds much value to the disc but I suppose if you really want to know what Davies, Piper and the rest look like with headphones on, it’s something you’ll enjoy.

Outtakes: Outtakes can be pretty dull. Because something seemed funny on the set doesn’t always mean that it translates well to an extra feature on a DVD. In the case of this release, though, the outtakes are all pretty funny and the footage has been edited together with music and some wacky footage of people dressed as Cybermen doing strange things like playing on a teeter-totter. Sounds hokey but it’s actually fun to watch. You can tell that the cast and crew had a blast making these shows.

Deleted Scenes: This is a nice collection of about twenty minutes of footage that didn’t make it into the various episodes. Some of it is completely cut and finished with special effects and music, some is only half-finished showing green screens and other elements and some is completely raw with the original practical sound recording intact, no music and very little editing. You’re not going to find anything particularly enlightening in these scenes, but unlike some collections of this sort, these are more than just little extensions to scenes you’ve seen before. Most of them include whole passages of dialogue that were cut from the final versions of the adventures. One word of advice: these are on the first disc in the set and they spoil many of the plot points from the entire season. If you haven’t already seen all the episodes, don’t watch these or you'll get spoiled.

David and Billie’s Video Diaries: There are two collections of video diaries, one on the first disc by Billie Piper and one on the sixth disc by David Tennant. Both are short (under ten minutes) but reasonably fun to watch. The idea is that Billie and David each took a video camera and shot some behind-the-scenes footage especially for the DVD. They’re essentially home movies from the set.

Confidential Cut Downs: This is by far the meatiest extra on the set. Doctor Who Confidential is a half-hour behind-the-scenes program that the BBC airs after each Doctor Who episode. They include interviews with the cast and crew, footage of the production underway, information on design, special effects, music and a lot more. They’re mini-documentaries about each episode and they’re very entertaining. But why, you ask, are they called “Cut Downs”? The reason is that the original half-hour shows have been edited down to fifteen minutes each. This was done because the shows included information about and footage from the original series as well as the new Doctor Who and there were rights issues over the monsters and the music. The Cut Downs remove references to the original series but still contain all the most interesting content relating to the new series.

Conclusion
If you’re a fan of the new Doctor Who, you’re probably going to go buy these no matter what I say about them. All you need to know is that the second season is as good or better than the first. If you’re new to the show, don’t hesitate to dive in. You should probably start with the first season but there’s nothing stopping you from beginning with the second. Though there are season-long story arcs in play, each episode stands alone, with the exception of a couple of two-part episodes in each season. The BBC continues to do a fantastic job with these releases, giving them attractive graphic designs, easy-to-use menus and lots of good extras. The price is a little high but the quality of the shows and the discs warrants it in the eyes of most fans. I’m giving the season two box set 4.5 pants only because of those two filler episodes and the somewhat questionable chemistry between Piper and Tennant.