Previously on 'Doctor Who' ... "Don't blink, don't even blink. Blink and you're dead."

Camera swirls around a victim of hallucinogenic lipstick. Ruby stilettos click across the screen. But this isn't Over The Rainbow gone horribly wrong; this is Doctor Who, and River Song blasting back onto screen with a wink, an evening gown, and trouble for our time-hopping duo. As River summons the Doc and Amy with an ingenious use of an uber-black box, things are looking good. As she blasts out an airlock and over to the Tardis with a kiss, and takes the Doctor, literally, off his feet, I suspect and hope we might have a classic on our hands.

My suspicions were well founded, and my hopes fulfilled in a great 45 minutes of cult TV. With top-notch guest casting in Iain Glen and Alex Kingston, the potential was there, and Moffat seized it and brought us a creep-tastic return for the Weeping Angels. There's a lot to live up to in "Blink", but unfazed, Moffat turns his stone scavengers into an army. From the moment an Angel hi-jacks a video feed, the scares came as fast as the Doc and River's bickering. With Glen and his troop of warrior priests giving the creep-out strong backup, things built to a thrilling climax.

As ever, Karen Gillan impresses. Amy again gets herself out of trouble, but this time the danger's postponed, not defeated. The Angel infection is another nasty weapon in the arsenal of Who's scariest monsters. It's a good thing River, Amy and the Doc have an army of holy men on hand: prayer seems to be the only thing that's going to save them.



Of course, this is Doctor Who, and in a swell of music (much restrained from previous weeks, and better for it), the Doctor forms a plan, and in a move that's bound to draw complaints, wields a pistol, and the cliffhanger snaps down to the sound of a gunshot. Other shows have their gods: Doctor Who has its Time Lord.

Perhaps the gun-totin' from everyone's favourite technical pacifist will be overlooked, with complaints flowing to the gash animation of Graham Norton that burst on-screen during the climatic moments to advertise the parade of would-be Dorothies coming up next. In the end, Over the Rainbow did shoehorn its way into Doctor Who, and was the only thing that broke the mood of a Who gem. Hopefully it'll stay in its own slot next week. The Weeping Angels show no mercy, as Amy is set to discover ...

(Edited by Byron 25/04/2010 01:31)