May 16: The Empty Planet Parts One & Two (SJA)

Not that was really any doubt, but the nice thing about The Empty Planet is that it ably demonstrates that Clyde and Rani can carry a story pretty much on their own.

It's an effectively eerie idea, having the entire planet essentially abandoned -- it brings to mind movies like 28 Days Later (as well as Doctor Who's own takes on the subject, including The Dalek Invasion of Earth and Invasion of the Dinosaurs), with its cities devoid of life. Even if these moments in this story don't quite reach those same heights (as, other than a shot of a quiet London skyline, we don't get shots of famous landmarks looking abandoned), it's still very well done.

The first part focuses more on this feeling of isolation and abandonment, as Rani and Clyde try desperately to find anyone else at all still around. There's an interesting sense of chemistry between the two of them in a way that we haven't really seen before -- almost a romantic quality. This might partly be because they keep bringing up the "Adam & Eve" stuff, but it's still a new side to the characters. It's not the entire thrust of the episode, however, as they also encounter one other boy, Gavin, who was left behind, even if they can't figure out why he too remained.  "Is Gavin normal, though?" Clyde wonders.  "When I was alone, I thought I was the only one left.  It was horrible.  If I'd seen anyone else, even if it was Chris Moyles, I would have run towards them, not away, like Gavin did.  Wouldn't you?"  "Yeah," Rani replies.  "But when you were that age, sixth form kids looked big and scary."  "I'm not big and scary," Clyde argues.  "And that flat, apart from one photo, was there anything that said a kid lives here?  No kids' DVDs lying around, no photos of them with him.  And his room, it was like a cell.  No computer games or anything.  Isn't that weird?"  "Then we should feel sorry for him, not start judging him," Rani responds.  "He lives a really rubbish life, and what's our first reaction?  Oh, maybe he's an alien.  What are we?"

Gavin with the two robots. (The Empty Planet Part Two) ©BBC

And then we get some genuinely impressive robots tracking them down -- they're a really great design and they're very well realized.  Their appearance also changes the nature of the story somewhat. It's no longer just about being alone, it's also about avoiding the robots. Although it seems the robots aren't actually evil -- they're just trying to find the heir to the throne of their homeworld, which is Gavin. (I guess they thought he'd be easier to find if they got rid of all the humans?) But it takes a while for our heroes to realize that, so we get some nice chases and some fun disbelief dialogue from Gavin, as he tries to keep up with what Rani and Clyde are saying, as they try to work out why they were left behind, bringing up time travel and the TARDIS and the Judoon, while Gavin just listens on in sort of amazement.  "You keep saying these really stupid words," he says at one point.  "If you're so clever, why can't you just go out and stop the robots?"  But of course that's what happens.  It's a good move, making Gavin as much an innocent as anyone else in this story -- no one has any sinister motives, and it all ends very happily.

So overall this is a nice little story focusing on Clyde and Rani, the "hangers-on" of Sarah Jane's group, who nevertheless prove to be more than capable of handling this latest problem. The Empty Planet is a fun story with a satisfying plot and a pleasing resolution.