Doctor Who - Rise of the Cyberman/The Age of Steel

So here's my considered review of the 2-parter which ended on Saturday. It's still very definitely a 9 out of 10 for both - Tom MacRae is obviously more than a pretty face. Graeme Harper's direction was solid too, if not quite as outstanding as his 2 stints in the 80s. And the newly revamped Cybermen themselves were a very effective force, limited to close quarters electrocution but no longer allergic to gold it appears. Having the actors in the suits attend choreography lessons also paid off handsomely. Not sure about "delete" as a catch-phrase though - 'erase' would have been better. And I have to agree with many who have said Roger Lloyd-Pack was a little too arch as mad John Lumic - all he needed was a white cat to stroke. The rest of the guest cast was fine - Shaun Dingwall put in another heroic turn as Pete Tyler and managed to survive this time (unlike Jackie, who ended up a Cyberman), Don Warrington was a believable GB President before meeting an early electrocution and the delightful Andrew Hayden-Smith distanced himself from his chirpy CBBC image with real rage when 'boyfriend' Ricky is killed. Noel Clarke (as both Ricky and Mickey) had his finest hour as he bowed out of the series to stay on in the alternate earth. More TARDIS gooseberry or liberating Paris with Jake? - yup I know I'd have decided the same! David Tennant and Billie Piper had a slightly lower profile than usual as a result but looked fab in their waiting outfits. Camille Coduri as doomed alternate Jackie played it straight out of "Footballers Wives" with a rather more glam wardrobe than her usual tracksuit chic. This childless Jackie was also a less sympathetic character. One of the in-jokes was the Cyberman crashing Jackie's 40th birthday party, when of course it is in fact the metal dudes themselves who were born in 1966. The story most nodded toward though was 1968's "The Invasion" - Lumic being very like Tobias Vaughn in his keeness to augment himself, but also this world's owner of International Electromatics. Even St Paul's was superimposed into shot - the backdrop for an iconic cyber moment in that story. While "Rise of the Cybermen" spent much of the time introducing us to characters and motives, only unleashing the Cybermen properly at the climax, "The Age of Steel" really showed them off as spooky and powerful drones. The despatching of The President, Ricky, Jackie, Mrs Moore, Mr Crane as well as a host of party guests gave this one a heavy and unrelenting death toll which gave you the feeling that almost nobody might survive. Lumic's forced transformation into the Cyber-controller, the escape in the Zeppelin and the Doctor's final cruel solution to the crisis (giving the cybermen back their human emotions and sending them mad) really put this story among the classics. The scene where a wounded cyberman is eventually revealed to be a girl anxious about her forthcoming wedding and the Doctor basically mercy kills her was a real gut wrencher, as was Pete and Rose meeting Cyber-Jackie. The cybermen are due back for a rematch in 'our world' come July - do we have a John Lumic lurking? I can't wait!