The inaugural season of the revived Doctor Who had just finished a remarkable run of five episodes, four of which were superior and the fifth of which was at least very good. In another week it would launch into the big two-part season finale. Sandwiched in between those remarkable sequences, however, apparently Russell T Davies thought to himself, "what this show really needs is another hour of flatulence."

God help me, let's talk about it.

Boom Town

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

You know what we almost had for this slot in the season? A script by Paul Abbott called The Void in which it is revealed that Rose had actually been bred by the Doctor for her entire life behind the scenes in order to become the perfect companion. It could have been an amazing story, and certainly would have gone a long way to explaining why a 900-year-old alien would be so intimately wrapped up with a nineteen-year-old human girl. Which would still be ew, but at least it would be ew with some drama and pathos.

Unfortunately, Abbott had to withdraw due to other commitments, leaving Davies to pen the story we got.

Don't get me wrong, there are a great many things actually good about this story. It is essentially a morality play in which the Doctor is forced to confront the fallout from a previous adventure, and to spend an evening breaking bread with a villain he is about to send off to her death. There is also a very good B plot in which Mickey gets to fully confront Rose with the reality of what her running off with the Doctor has done to him. All good stuff.

And then it has the farting, and "comedic" bits about poisoned wine, deadly finger darts, and acid breath. So, you know, kind of a mixed bag.

The one improvement watching it this time compared to when I last watched it in 2005? Since then my wife and I have actually visited Cardiff. I can't tell you how many shots there were in this episode where I could see in the background the hotel where we stayed, and our actual balcony. (It's the St. David's Hotel and Spa located right on Cardiff Bay, and I can heartily recommend them!) Likewise there were many shots where I thought hey, I remember that plaza! I remember that restaurant! I remember that statue! My dear sainted wife was so remarkably tolerant and indulgent with me during our visit, as I pointed out all of the filming locations I recognized while we explored Cardiff. Similarly this morning, viewing this morning's episode brought back many happy memories. None of them, however, involved trouser trumpets.

The good news is, it's another three full weeks before I hit another episode I am actively dreading watching again (I'm looking at you, Daleks in Manhattan). And I know, there may be someone out there thinking, "but... Love & Monsters comes before then..."  Well you know what Mister Smartypants? I actually un-ironically enjoy that episode. So there.

Tomorrow, then, is the beginning of the end already for the Ninth Doctor. I'll be sad to see him go.

STATS:

Doctor(s): Ninth
Companion(s): Rose Tyler, Jack Harkness, Mickey Smith
Episode(s): Boom Town
Steps Walked: 7,496 today, 2,618,236 total
Distance Walked: 4.02 miles today, 1,361.07 miles total
Push-ups Completed: 0 today, 431 total
Weight: 251.58 lbs (five day moving average), net change -55.72 lbs