Modern Recap-itulation comes roaring back to your imagination with a new set of caps for New Earth. Along with Boom Town, this was the most direct example of the nu-Who building upon it’s own mythology with a return to the time period from The End of the World and bringing back The Face of Boe for the second of three appearances (he, as well as Novice Hame would be back in the marvelous Gridlock the following year, building yet again off of New Earth).
How fans feel about New Earth depends in large measure on whether you are anxious to see Cassandra again. Certainly Tennant and Piper are in full stride already in their first full episode together, although Rose spends much of the episode possessed. The charms of this story however faded significantly when her essence began bouncing around from ‘castle to castle’ as it were.
It’s a confident, if sloppy story. Confident in the sense that Doctor Who already had achieved a significant foothold on the viewing public and thus didn’t necessarily seem to need to be so eager to please.
Speaking of being eager to please, it looks like series 8 is bringing back echoes of the Davison era.
That’s all the encouragement that Classic Capitology needs… Next week.