Martha…I just don’t think of you like that!
The Doctor (David Tennant) is at a loss. He doesn’t know what to do with his life after the loss of Rose (Billie Piper) and after an adventure with a bride named Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) mysteriously drawn to the TARDIS, the Doctor decides he needs a new companion. He finds an up-and-coming doctor named Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman). Now, Martha and the Doctor are traveling time and space and through their adventures, Martha finds herself falling for the Doctor. When the Doctor learns that he might not be the last of the Time Lords, a trip to the end of time might return the Doctor’s ultimate enemy to life.
Don’t worry Doctor…I’ll be back!
Doctor Who—Season 3 aired from March 31, 2007 to June 30, 2007 on BBC One. The series continued to gain popularity and features the first appearance of Donna Noble (The Doctor’s companion for Season 4), Billie Piper’s replacement Martha Jones, and the return of the Master to the relaunched series. With the original numbering (depending on how you count episodes like Shada and others), Doctor Who—Season 3 would be Story #178-187.
There are some great episodes and moments in this season. From Shakespeare’s lost play to the Doctor falling in love as a human, the episodes are fun and continue the spirit of the relaunch. The show has some great creatures and actors in the season including the introduction of the Weeping Angels, the Empress of Racnoss, and Lazarus and appearances by Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield. Overall, Doctor Who—Season 3 is a winner.
Happy Holidays!
I had grown a bit tired of Billie Piper in season 2 and was excited to have a new direction with Martha. Agyeman had previously appeared in Doctor Who—Season 3 during the Canary Wharf invasion but this is written off as her “cousin” (Patty Duke style). While some companion transfers are a bit rocky, I feel that the one season Martha did a decent job though I did grow a bit tired of the weepy “I wish he loved me like I love him” storyline (though I did find her family pretty annoying, though some it is intentional).
If I only had a brain!
I didn’t like Donna Noble’s first appearance in the holiday episode “The Runaway Bride”. This season, she is too forceful, too in the Doctor’s face, and just too much. The fourth season really developed Donna and made her into a likable and great companion.
The return of the Master is also another plus. I rather wish we had gotten to see some transition between Eric Roberts (from Doctor Who: The Movie) and Derek Jacobi. I also would have liked to see Jacobi stay the Master longer. They couldn’t have had a stodgy Master for the last sequence, and John Simm played the unbalanced Master with zeal. I just wish they had introduced him earlier in the season.
The tragic end of the Face of Boe
The episode also provides a crossover with Torchwood. Doctor Who “Utopia” picks up where Torchwood—Season 1 ends. It reunites the Doctor with Captain Jack Harkness and mends the issues between them. The season finale also provides some interesting information about the future of Jack and his inability to die (though it has been debated by fans and writers).
*****Spoiler Alert***** The last episode of the season also provided a rather strange ending. A lot of Doctor Who pushes science and atheism in general (Torchwood goes into deeper with Jack Harkness). In the final episode, the Doctor is able to defeat the Master by essentially becoming God…something the world believes in enough to restore his youth and it is due to his “prophet” Martha who spread the word of the Doctor. I don’t necessarily like the ending which almost seemed a bit too convenient though it was explained.
Don’t blink or you’ll miss the Weeping Angels
Doctor Who—Season 3 is a pretty good series. I do like it more than any of the Matt Smith seasons, but I think that I might like Season 1 better (I do love Tennant however). Season 3 is followed by my favorite season of the relaunch when the Doctor gets my favorite companion of the relaunch…Donna Noble is back and this time she’s entertaining.
Doctor Who—Season 3 Complete Episode Guide:
“The Runaway Bride”
3.0 The Runaway Bride Airdate: 12/05/06
It is Christmas Eve, and Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) finds herself spirited to the TARDIS during the middle of her wedding. As the Doctor (David Tennant) tries to find out why the TARDIS pulled Donna to it, the Doctor finds assassin robot Santas drawn to Donna for unknown reason. When a giant space ship star descends of London, the Doctor learns that it could be tied to Huon Particles, the Empress of Racnoss, and Donna’s fiancé Lance Bennett (Don Gilet).
“Smith and Jones”
3.1 Smith and Jones Airdate: 03/31/07
Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) finds herself and the hospital where she works transported to the moon. The only hope for Martha and her coworkers could be a strange man calling himself the Doctor. As the oxygen begins to run thin, the Doctor finds the Judoon have come to look for an escaped prisoner who is hiding among the humans.
“The Shakespeare Code”
3.2 The Shakespeare Code Airdate: 04/07/07
When Martha and the Doctor travel to 1599 London and meet Shakespeare (Dean Lennox Kelly), they learn that Shakespeare plans to perform his long-lost play “Love’s Labour Won”. The Doctor and Martha learn a coven of witches intend to make “Love’s Labour Won” happen…regardless who gets in the way. As the Doctor seeks to find the source of the witches, he and Martha must prevent the end of the world.
“Gridlock”
3.3 Gridlock Airdate: 04/14/07
The Doctor returns to New New York with Martha and finds Martha kidnapped by carjackers named Milo (Travis Oliver) and Cheen (Lenora Crichlow) who want access to the Motorway’s fast lane. The Doctor learns that the Motorway might provide travel, but at the cost of life due to the gridlock which takes years to maneuver…but the Doctor is about to uncover what lies beneath the gridlock. When the Doctor encounters an old ally in Novice Hame (Anna Hope), he learns the truth about New New York and the fate of an old friend…the Face of Boe.
“Daleks in Manhattan”
3.4 Daleks in Manhattan Airdate: 04/21/07
Martha and the Doctor travel to New York City in 1930 and investigate disappearances in the squatter’s town of Hooverville in Central Park. When the Doctor and the leader of Hooverville named Solomon (Hugh Quarshie) discovers pigmen in the sewers and strange goings-on in the construction of the Empire State Building, the Doctor finds that his ultimate enemy the Daleks have returned!
“Evolution of the Daleks”
3.5 Evolution of the Daleks Airdate: 04/28/07
The Doctor and Martha discover that the Cult of Skaro escaped death and plan to merge with humans to evolve. When the Daleks decide to change the plan, the Doctor, Martha, a dancer named Tallulah (Miranda Raison), Tallulah’s partially transformed boyfriend Laszlo (Ryan Carnes), and a young man from Hooverville named Frank (Andrew Garfield) must stop the Daleks’ invasion of New York City.
“The Lazarus Experiment”
3.6 The Lazarus Experiment Airdate: 05/05/07
The Doctor takes Martha home only to learn that Martha’s sister Tish (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is working with a man with Professor Richard Lazarus (Mark Gatiss) who intends to change how humans live. Martha’s family meets the Doctor and her mother Francine (Adjoa Andoh) suspects the Doctor is hiding something when she receives information from someone named Harold Saxon. When Lazarus deages himself through an experiment, he unwittingly damages his DNA…causing a monstrous transformation and a hunger for human life energy.
“42”
3.7 42 Airdate: 05/19/07
Martha and the Doctor find themselves on a ship sending out a distress call and learn that the ship has forty-two minutes until it crashes into a sun. Separated from the TARDIS, the Doctor and Martha must find a way to reach the TARDIS as an infected crew member hunts the people of the ship. Unfortunately, the Doctor could be the next victim…“Burn with me!”
“Human Nature”
3.8 Human Nature Airdate: 05/26/07
The Family of the Blood is coming for the Doctor and the Doctor and Martha must go into hiding. Travelling to 1913, the Doctor transforms himself into a human form to escape them. With Martha watching over him as a housemaid, the Doctor as John Smith works at a local school. When Smith falls in love with Joan Redfern (Jessica Hynes), Martha questions what to do and when the watch that houses his memories is accidentally taken by Tim Latimer (Thomas Sangster), the Doctor might not have any defense if the Family comes for him.
“The Family of Blood”
3.9 The Family of Blood Airdate: 06/02/07
The Family of Blood is seeking the Doctor, but John Smith still doesn’t know who he really is. With Smith and his school barricading themselves inside from the Family and their army of scarecrows, Martha must convince Smith to return to being the Doctor if she can find his watch…and if Smith can be convinced to abandon his love Joan.
“Blink”
3.10 Blink Airdate: 06/09/07
Sally Sparrow (Carey Mulligan) finds herself receiving messages from a mysterious person called the Doctor who seems to know her every move. When she finds a key, she discovers she’s being pursued by strange stone angels that are sending her friends back in time when they come in contact with them. Now, Sally and Larry Nightingale (Finlay Robertson), the brother of her time-stranded friend Kathy (Lucy Gaskell), must find a way to stop the Weeping Angel from capturing the TARDIS.
“Utopia”
3.11 Utopia Airdate: 06/16/07
A quick trip to Cardiff to refuel the TARDIS on the Riff leads to a reunion with Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) and an accidental trip to the end of time. The Doctor seeks to help the surviving humans to escape to a possible Utopia on a decrepit ship as Harkness questions the reasons he cannot die. With the help of an insectoid named Chantho (Chipo Chung) and a man named Professor Yana (Derek Jacobi), the Doctor hopes to save humanity from the cannibalistic Futurekind. Professor Yana holds a secret that he doesn’t even know, and it could mean the end of the Doctor, Martha, and Harkness.
“The Sound of Drums”
3.12 The Sound of Drums Airdate: 06/23/07
The Doctor, Jack, and Martha have returned home to find Harold Saxon has become the new Prime Minster. When Martha realizes Saxon is the Master (John Simm), the Doctor questions what the Master’s ultimate goal is. Saxon declares that he’s arranged first contact with an alien race called the Toclafane, the Doctor finds himself on the run with Martha and Jack, and they are all declared public enemies. With Martha’s family as his hostage, the Master is ready unleash his ultimate revenge on the Doctor by capturing Earth in his grasp.
“The Last of the Time Lords”
3.13 Last of the Time Lords Airdate: 06/30/07
A year has passed. The Doctor’s old and Martha Jones is roaming the Earth looking for a way to stop the Master and the Toclafane. With a plan to overthrow the Master and restore the natural order, the Doctor, Martha, her family, and Captain Jack Harkness cannot fail as the fate of the Earth hangs in the balance.
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