Tonight Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead, the first of four Doctor Who specials, David Tennant’s last appearances as the most iconic Doctor of all time, debuted on BBC America. It’s more than an episode but not quite a movie. Call it a mini-movie. In it, Tennant was as usual, brilliant. The writing? Maybe not so much.

The problem is they’ve done this story before, and done it better. The companionless Doctor trapped on a bus with nervous passengers as they face mortal peril was done fantastically in the not so long ago episode “Midnight”. This time the twist is that the peril is less mysterious and the humans less suspicious and as result the amazing tension which made “Midnight” so incredibly effective is utterly absent, replaced instead by those red-bereted dickheads with guns who call themselves “Unit”. more...

This is going to take some getting used to. The new season of Doctor Who started production today and that means goodbye to David Tennant, who’s been replaced in the new season by a new actor. Matt Smith is the eleventh actor to play The Doctor and he’s accompanied by a new companion too. She’s Amy Pond, a redhead played by Scottish actress Karen Gillan.

Below we’ve got your first look at both actors in costume and on set together, as they prep for filming of their first scenes together as Doctor and companion. I’m going to miss David Tennant’s Chuck Taylors. I just hope this new Doctor keeps the trenchcoat. Check it out:

One of the strengths of the BBC’s Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood has always been its ability to get right to the point, without sacrificing character development. By delivering the next installment of the show as a 5-part miniseries, they’ve attempted to go in the other direction. Rather than squeezing a two hour story into a forty-five minute episode, Torchwood: Children of the Earth feels like they squeezed a two hour story into forty-five minutes, and then stretched it out into a five hours.

As a result, Torchwood: Children of the Earth ends up being about a lot more than your usual Torchwood episode. The focus here isn’t really on the Torchwood team as much as it is on a series of new characters brought in to flesh out their extra running time. At times you’ll be left wondering when they’ll get to the point, but for the most part it works, if only because those new supporting characters are so good.

In particular there’s John Frobisher, a civil servant, the equivalent of government middle management. Late in the story we’re told by one of his loyal underlings: “John Frobisher was a good man. Always remember that.” And that’s the real tragedy of his story. He is a good man, a hard working man, a uniquely British man who puts his head down and simply tries to get done what needs to get done. But when the unthinkable happens he’s forced into a series of horrible, hopeless choices. more...

We have a new clip from BBC America's upcoming 5-night miniseries Torchwood: Children of the Earth. Watch it and get creeped out by kids below:

Before he's replaced by the new Doctor Who, David Tennant's penultimate Doctor has a little more life left in him yet. The BBC is bringing him back for a series of Doctor Who movies. The first is Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead and we've got a clip from it for you below. It's already aired in the UK, but it arrives here in the USA on BBC America on July 26th. Watch:

BBC America has launched its phase one. What the hell does that mean? A brand new, 2 minute trailer for their upcoming Torchwood miniseries, Torchwood: Children of the Earth.

You’ve probably seen the very, very brief teasers playing on BBC America, but this trailer is our first in depth look at what it’s going to be about, beyond creepy children staring into the camera. The threat? The world’s children seemed to have been possessed by hostile aliens… or maybe M. Night Shyamalan. Also included in the trailer are all the usual, fantastic Torchwood staples including at least one shot of our man Jack making out with a dude. It just wouldn’t be Torchwood without that. Watch the trailer: more...