Dooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooomsday
Doctor Who spoilers ahoy!

Well, that was rather fun.

What I find most intriguing is how last year's final episode didn't have the planet is as much danger as this year's, but the ending this year made a lot more sense. There was no deus ex machinas (quite literally), but a cure-all that actually worked and had been set up under our noses whilst we debated about whether parallel universes were good things or not. That was clever.

Daleks Vs Cybermen...it really was no contest. The Dalek Supreme was right when it declared it was not a war, but rather pest control. The Cybers did put up a pretty good fight, however, and they were causing enough trouble with the army on the bridge. I suppose I would have liked to see at least one dalek fall at cyberhands, just to make the battle a little more interesting, but...is the battle still going on, in the void? I wonder...and don't forget that the Dalek Supreme did a Darth Vader and escaped just in time. That's what's known as leaving your options open, although I don't know where the cybermen will go from here.

Speaking of cyberpeople, CyberYvonne was intriguing. She was converted, but was still fighting the silver nemeses. I thought it was a plot hole, but I suppose we can read things into it...she went into the convertion with duty firmly on her mind, and it must have remained in the cybermind, thus overriding conventional cyberprotocal. Oh, and for those wondering why she went into the void as well...although she never switched universes, the suit she was in did. The Cyberman hardly had the chance to make their own cyberfactories, so they must have brought them over with them, hence them retaining void energy. This is what I meant when I say the ending works in an intriguing sense.

The Genesis Ark...was it Davros? I hoped not, and it wasn't. I grew excited upon mention of the Time Lords, but, alas, there was no Master, Gallifreyan power artifact or indeed anything Time Lord inside it. Just a lot more Daleks...although the TARDIS dimensional logic did make sense. I shall have to retain hope for Gallifrey to another series, although I did appreciate the Skaro reference. Old school continuity makes me happy.

What as to the characters? Well, this episode demonstrated to me just how good Tennant is at being the Doctor. Chris was good, but less diverse than David, whom my father reckons is the best Doctor after Tom Baker. His reaction to the Cyberman-Dalek meeting were so wild as to be spot-on. Rose was interesting too. She's been all over the place this series, and there were elements of it all tonight. Her manic obsessiveness with the Doctor over even her own family, her understanding and defiance gained from being in proximity to a Time Lord, and even curious Rose of the first series. 'Twas a nice wrap-up for her. As for the others, Jackie was Jackie, Micky was as kick-ass as he had been in AoS, and Pete rivalled Jake as the most kick-ass of them all. I liked how they all fell into place as well...the Jacky/Pete scene was interesting as it totally broke up the action at that point, but replaced it with a poignant meeting which rewarded those who had been with them beforehand.

I did enjoy Jake taking the Doctor to alt!Torchwood, as it made the structure make sense. It was similar last series when Boom Town and Bad Wolf developed WW3 and The Long Game respectively. The series has felt very disjointed at times, so it's always a relief to see things link together. I would have liked to have known the fate of alt!Yvonne and the alt!void ship, however...clearly these cannot be addressed anytime soon, if at all, because it would require a reunion with the Tylers and an explanation of undoing the seal on the breach. Food for thought, therefore. Oh, and whilst I'm talking about continuity, I couldn't help but think of The Christmas Invasion when I saw the roof open at Torchwood. That must be how they fired the Sunglider's energy weapon, because otherwise they'd have had that big roof in the way.

The ending...I knew Rose wasn't going to die, but I wasn't sure as to whether she'd be voided or not. I was honestly surprised at Pete's intervention, although I ought not to have been, looking back. From then on, it was a big goodbye scene. The scene with both crying at the wall really worked for me, and was poignant without being too tired. I also noted how the Doctor walked away before Rose did. As for Norway, however...well, I suppose they deserved a proper goodbye. Rose just didn't get it, but it was an interesting setting for their last goodbye...and I did like how the Doctor was cut-off before his reply. We leave the Tylers and Mickey to run alt!Torchwood whilst we have a lonely Doctor once again. I loved Tennant so much at this part...

...and then Catherine Tate. 'What?' was exactly the right reaction. It really spoilt the mood...but it had to. The Doctor's life goes on. It has to. Through the spanner in the works, RTD has reminded us that this is no end for the Doctor, and that he will continue travelling on new adventures. It's like with the 'new teeth' line last year...it's the hole in the painting that will lead us to the next gallery. I didn't like it, but I'm not meant to, am I?

So, all in all, I was pleasantly surprised, and felt a lot less cheated than last year...although I cried a lot more to see Nine say goodbye than to see Rose go (although the thought of no more Mickey...). Having said that, neither reached the level of tears I had after Girl in the Fireplace, so *shrugs*

Next year, can we please have: historical stories set in ancient/medieval times, alien worlds, returning characters/themes other than Cybermen/Daleks and a very different companion to Rose. kthnxbye.