Doctor Who at 10 - Boom Town (S1E11)

With the end of the first season in sight, showrunner Russell T Davies returns to the forefront to pen the final three episodes of the Eccleston era, with the first of them being a rushed attempt to make up for a previously outlined episode which was scrapped, and using the limited time and resources at hand to make a semi-sequel to the earlier two-parter Aliens of London/World War Three, with the return of Annette Badland as the only survivor of her family's earlier incursion. But will the rushed job do well in being the calm ahead to the storm or be a simple cheap attempt at comedy?

With the TARDIS having something of a pit stop in Cardiff using the rift in time discovered in The Unquiet Dead, the Doctor (Eccleston), Rose (Billie Piper), new crewmember Captain Jack (John Barrowman) and Mickey (Noel Clarke) - who's shown up to give Rose her passport - decide to have a bit of fun whilst they have time to spare. That is, until they discover that Margaret Blaine (Badland) - a member of the Slitheen family - is now Mayor of Cardiff, and plans on using her political prowess to destroy the planet with an unsafe nuclear power plant. But when captured, they can't take back home for her trial and probable execution whilst the TARDIS is charging; with that Margaret and the Doctor go out for dinner whilst Rose and Mickey explore the city.

There's two plots to this story: the main one revolving around Blaine and the ongoing debate about taking her to her death, and the minor one in which Rose and Mickey finally discuss the issues going on with them. I say finally because, for the past handful of episodes, Rose has been free to do as she pleases by flirting with a number of men. The only snag is that it's Mickey that's made to be the bad guy, with the whole conversation sparking from a comment that he's apparently seeing someone else. It turns out to be false, and that he can't even do that because of how much he cares for Rose, and she runs off before any decision can be made. She does try and go back to him but gives up rather quickly...and it doesn't seem right. I'm almost thankful that it doesn't take up such a large amount of screen time, and the main story is a larger improvement...but still somewhat flawed.

When it isn't aiming to humour its audience with a slightly comedic assassination attempt at dinner, the Doctor/Margaret plotline is enjoyable to an extent. It takes a while to get going, and of course going through the song and dance certainly does drag for anyone over the age of 8, but when the psychological side of things start playing out, it does bring out the sense of good viewing. Unfortunately that does go out the window once the plan is hatched and the TARDIS is used as a deus ex machina, but for one glimmering moment came an episode which could be great. 

In terms of acting, it does appear that everyone bar Badland is taking this episode as nothing more than a simple job. Certainly, they act well together and show a strong dynamic - with Barrowman managing to fit in with the cast very quickly - but none of them are really pushing themselves. Eccleston seems to be the biggest criminal of this, as he has issues with the comedy of it all; striving when during the serious moments at the restaurant but being rather off during the chase around City Hall. Piper and Clarke do fine but are limited with a poor storyline, and Barrowman is pushed aside during the big moments of the episode and doesn't really add anything to the overall story aside from the odd pun and expostition. Surprisingly, it's Badland who does best, pushing herself constantly when not being made to act like a character from a Christmas pantomime.

Boom Town is an episode which has rarely been named a favourite by fans, and watching it now does show clear signs of it. It's certainly a pit stop between the tense and atmospheric Empty Child two parter and the big conclusion up next, and is filled with references to both the past and future of this series, but is lacking in much of the enjoyment that so many episodes before it had. Considering the situation that this episode had, it's understandable why it's at this level of quality, but it doesn't mean it can be let off for what it is - a weak instalment in the life of the 9th Doctor. 3/10.