Rose (2005) Review

That greenscreen now actively makes me cringe whilst
looking at it. It's like that CSO kitchen all over again.

Rose is a punchy, confident intro for Doctor Who in the 21st century, and watching it was honestly a good reminder of why I fell in love with this show.

WRITTEN BY

Russell T. Davies, who can stand proudly alongside the likes of Verity Lambert, Barry Letts and Philip Hinchcliffe as one of the show's greatest producers.

PLOT

Young Londoner Rose Tyler is drawn into the mysterious world of the alien "Doctor" when she stumbles onto the invasion of living plastic in her store and becomes identified as her associate. Now it's up to the two of them to save the Earth from becoming a new source of protein.

ANALYSIS

The obvious thing to do would be to compare this story to Doctor Who's 1970 reboot, Spearhead From Space. Both feature a brand new incarnation, companions, an entirely new approach and the very same villain.

And indeed, RTD basically mimicked what made that story a success - the Autons aren't burdened with much backstory, but are still effective monsters, and the regeneration of the Doctor is noted, but hardly focused on. But with the working class setting and modern direction, Rose has an entirely different flavour to that story. And honestly, I prefer it, because the one major difference between the two is that Spearhead is very much about the Doctor settling down and becoming part of a stable establishment(as exemplified in the scene in which he unsuccessfully attempts to escape in the TARDIS, only to be forced to acquiesce to the Brigadier's request for help).

Rose on the other hand glamourises the Doctor's freedom and his expanded perspective of the universe. It presents the character as a rogue force to be reckoned with and treats his alien intelligence with respect(it's implied that his eccentricities are merely the result of him being fondly amused with human concepts rather than the forced silliness that would really take root in the 2010s, but that's a rant for another time).

CHARACTERS

Christopher Eccleston is my favourite Doctor. He can easily juggle attributes of the previous Doctors - McCoy's wits, Colin's self-righteousness, Davison's youthful energy, Tom Baker's manic glee, Pertwee's sternness, Troughton's fumbling about and Hartnell's stubbornness - and also imbues him with his own sort of near-military focus and attitude. Cropped hair, leather jacket, absolute confidence. Like Eccleston himself, the Ninth Doctor is extremely principled and straightforward, and I really respect that. He's the kind of Doctor I'd like to travel with and learn from the most.

Billie Piper is (insanely hot) charming and cheeky as Rose Tyler. I love the banter between her and the Doctor, and how the Doctor subtly becomes gradually more impressed with her take-charge attitude and ability to perceive things that he might've missed(since he's constantly thinking of the bigger picture). They make a great team.

Okay, let's be honest. Nobody's a fan of Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith in the very first episode. It's not that he acts poorly or anything(apart from some overdone lol boyfriend comedy that's honestly more the director's fault for leaving in), it's just that he's very clearly... not companion material just yet. But we'll judge Mickey when the time comes for him to actually take the mantle on.

That being said, Camille Coduri's a much more rounded as Jackie - in only a few minutes, we get it all: her overbearing, but sweet relationship with Rose, some facts about their lives at the crummy yet homely apartment and her loneliness. It's a good introduction for a really underrated recurring character in the show.

NOTES

*What is it about the cameras they used at the time that made all the footage very slightly blend together? Do you guys get what I mean? All the lights and stuff, it looks kind of watery.

*Henrik's had one mighty basement. Are shop basements typically this humongous?

*So, the Doctor's reason for blowing up Henrik's was that there was a relay device on the roof. But then later on, he makes it clear that the entire world full of plastic will be awoken from the London Eye transmitter. So what was the point of the relay and waking up the mannequins at Henrik's? There's some stuff about the Nestene wanting to capture the Doctor, but apart from that, we get very little clues. I suppose that's part of the fun, knowing that we're only entering in the middle of an exciting story.

*Mysterious relays aside, it's nice to see the Nestenes no longer have to rely on those ridiculous meteorites to function. Or maybe they do and we just skipped that bit? Niiice.

*Why does the Doctor warn Rose that telling other people about the Autons will get them killed? I mean, he couldn't have known the plastic arm would still function so what was the worst case scenario of her telling people about what happened?

*No matter what came later, this episode very clearly implies that the Doctor has just regenerated(besides the ears line, there's also his "maybe not" with the cards that suggests he's still trying out new character traits).

*I like Eccleston's touch of turning on the sonic several times before the Auton arm relaxes, as if sorting through various settings(then again, this might have been in the script, who knows).

*It's more than a little convenient that Rose finds the Ninth Doctor specifically on the internet.

*Mickey's yellow beetle gave me strong Once Upon A Time vibes for a moment there.

*"She's read a website about the Doctor and she's a she?" haha Russell throwing shade at nerds there, haha... ha... ha.

*That photo of Eccleston at Kennedy's assassination is obviously photoshopped. And why would he be there, anyway? To ensure that Kennedy gets shot? That's a bit morbid.

*What is the deal with the wheelie bin anyway? Somehow, the Nestene are able to figure out that not only is Rose related to the Doctor, but that Mickey is related to her(the only contact Mickey even had with the Autons beforehand was via that... hand)? And it somehow knows where they are? Is all the plastic meant to be low-key active even before the climax and detected them? If so, can't it just immediately spot the Doctor? And what's with the burp?

*Clive's conspiracy theories are really inconsistent - first it's a title passed down from father to son, then he's immortal? Wouldn't it be easier to just think that the Doctor is an organisation of people?

*How is it that the 1970s Autons were able to mimic General Scobie and various world leaders perfectly, but the 2005 versions do such a rubbish job with Mickey? Was that thing malfunctioning?

*I'd love to know how UNIT explained the headless rampaging Auton in the restaurant to the general public. And, you know, the ones on the street. Again. Now I wonder if anyone from the 1970 attack was actually there for seconds.

*I'm personally a huge fan of the coral TARDIS console room. It looks visually fantastic, and really does give the impression that the Doctor has gradually replaced everything in the TARDIS to the point where he's essentially rebuilt the console room. Of course we now know this isn't the case, but I love that aspect nonetheless and it fits really well with Eccleston's working class background.

*To be fair, Eccleston does have one poor line delivery and it's when Rose accuses him of forgetting Mickey. When he defends his viewpoint, he looks like he's on the verge of breaking down and it's just a bit... much for a line that equates to "hey, I got bigger problems, okay?" It's more of an indignant line than an emotional one.

*Fortunately, he bounces right back with his adorably proud grin as he explains the TARDIS's police box disguise.

*How come the Nestenes spoke to the Doctor in their own language the entire time, but then when they activate the transmitter, they shout "Time Lord!". Did the TARDIS start translating for Rose right when she decided to save the Doctor? That'd be cute.

*I'm as proud of Rose for saving him as the next guy, but couldn't she have waited with the gymnastics boasting until after she's actually saved the day?

*Why do the Autons flail around after the signal's been cut instead of just collapsing... like in Spearhead From Space?

*"Thanks for what?" "Exactly." Ouch. Ouchhhhh. Okay, that was a bit uncalled for.

BEST QUOTE

People love to point out the turn of the Earth speech and it is truly wonderful, but I have to expand it to the entire dialogue between the Doctor and Rose after they leave the apartment and until the Doctor takes off in his TARDIS. Their banter, the Doctor's explanations and lack thereof, Rose's reactions, it's all gold.

CONTINUITY ADVISOR

1) We get out first hints of the Time War. It appears to have affected the Nestene worlds, forcing it to re-attempt conquest of Earth. Also, they appear to be more intelligent than Spearhead From Space gave them credit for, as they are(or were) part of the Shadow Proclamation, hence hinting at diplomatic relations with other species having taken place between the 1970s and 2000s.

CONCLUSION

The plot's a lovely bit of nonsense, but the characters are brilliant and I'm excited to properly get into this era again. In short, Rose holds up well.