I'm still on board, but.....

The Beast Below, by Steven Moffat

This was an odd one for me. All the signs said I should have LOVED this. The Orwellian undertones of the society that choses to forget, the Smilers, the ruddy Demon Headmaster!

But somehow it just didn't quite "click". Liz 10 was cringeworthy, the Smilers didn't really do anything, and Terrence Hardiman was sadly wasted in a largely irrelevant role.

This was one tale that could have done with being a bit longer for me. Maybe use Hardiman as more of a red herring "baddy", get more frights out of the fantastic looking Smilers and just generally add lashings of mystery.

There were other high points though - Matt Smith continues to impress, Karen Gillan was excellent and the "cracks in the universe" thing is suitably intriguing.

So don't worry Steve (although I'm sure you won't!!) - I wasn't quite with you on this one but next week's looks mouth-wateringly good and the signs are still there for a brilliant series. I guess with this one I just felt that, with such strong ideas and cast, it could have been so so much better...

6/10

Welcome!

Welcome to the Phantom Piper - a blog set up by two fans who promise to offer an honest appraisal of each of Matt Smith's new adventures in the Tardis. Although largely growing up in the dusty wasteland of the non-Who TV world we've both immersed ourselves in the good Doctor over the years, through countless hours of VHS, UK Gold, CD and now DVD. But how will Matt measure up to messers Hartnell, Troughton et al? Can Steven Moffat sustain his magic as show runner? We'll give you our brief, digestable take on each of this series' screen outings - and feel free to argue furiously, agree entirely or anywhere in between with a comment!