Doctor Who: The Eleventh Hour

So, there was a lot riding on The Eleventh Hour. A new Doctor, a new chief writer, a new companion. In fact, the biggest change since 2005, when the series came back with another new lead actor. Who had a big nose. And a slightly dismissive attitude. A bit like Matt Smith...

But did it work? Yes. Yes it did. It worked. And then some. It was confident - hyper-confident, without ever becoming too much. It was a story, a production, that knew where it was going and why. Yes, you could tell it was written by a fan. But it was written by fan with a talent for writing, and a story worth telling. It was also a story that had been properly thought through, and was more that just an introductory story for a new Doctor and a new companion. Some moments of it even had the decency to be thoroughly unsettling - not least the crack in the wall and the inability of Prisoner Zero to speak through the right mouth. It was clever, and quirky, and at times a bit scary. Just what it should be.

And Matt Smith. My word, there's someone who has taken on a daunting challenge and grasped it with both hands so he could then run with it. It is a telling realisation, but he owned the Doctor from the moment the story began - to the extent where David Tennant (remember him?) was not missed for one second. And Amy Pond is an inspired companion - someone who has known the Doctor for years, and as a result is obsessed by him but not quite in awe of him. Her older self introduces herself by smashing him in the face with a cricket bat before handcuffing him to a radiator. Very different to the likes of Rose Tyler and Martha Jones...

Of course, there were downsides - not least the CGI. Don't do CGI unless you have to, and if you have to, then make sure that it is convincing. And the new arrangement of the theme tune... well, it's a bit pants. There was no need for the old arrangement to go. If it ain't broke...

But, overall, a relief. A blessed relief. Moffat, Smith, Gillan - they all seem to know what they are doing, and have taken to the series like ducks to water. A wonderfully confident to start to what - fingers crossed - should be a great new era for Doctor Who.