Doctor Who Series 4 Episode 2 - The Fires of Pompeii

Well, what can you say about this episode? Visually it was stunning, the story was well written, the acting was top notch and the story shifted from comedy to a scary moment, like only a Doctor Who episode can.

Filmed on location in Italy, The Doctor and Donna think there’re in Rome but in fact they are in Pompeii – on the day it’s buried in ash. Add to that the molten lava monsters and a sisterhood that suspiciously reminds you of the Tom Baker serial ‘The Brain of Morbius’, means we are set for a good ride.

Phil Davies guest stars as a soothsayer, a creepy one at that! He tells The Doctor ‘she is returning’ and Donna has ‘something on her back’. Oh and the bees keep disappearing too! Hmmm I think we may be on to something, in terms of a story arc!

One great concept with Doctor Who, is that they can play around with historical events without spoiling them. Apart from The Doctor being responsible for many disasters, such as the great fires of Rome and London and now Pompeii!

So as Phil Davies is working with our rock monsters, no not McFly – they’re rubbish, to take over the world, The Doctor and Donna are stuck in the middle, as they try to investigate and quickly, as the mountain is about to blow up!

The plot becomes quite simple in the end, with everything fitting nicely into place. But one criticism I do have is the continuation of ‘The Doctor is God’ theme. What with Christianity becoming more maligned and ignored in this day and age, we really don’t want Doctor Who to become a rallying point for Atheists.

Apart from that, it’s an excellent episode. The next episode – Planet of The Ood, looks good. Lets hope it can fill out that promise!

9/10

'Planet of The Ood' Trailer