The Sontaran Stratagem

Donna is appalling, Martha is ok, and of course David Tennant shines, but it is wonderful to see a veteran proper actor, Bernard Cribbins, being so effortlessly natural. I do like Sontarans, however, so they and Martha push up the rating.

There's something missing from "The Sontaran Stratagem". While the use of sat-nav devices to evil effect is inspired and reminiscent of something like "Terror of the Autons", the episode somehow fails to inspire.

There's something very un-Sontaran about the whole affair. The menace here is Sontaran-lite, just as I was bitterly disappointed with the return of The Doctor's silver nemesis in Season 2. Perhaps it's me but while the make-up is wonderful (the early close-up of the Sontaran is excellent), the costume looks like something from a '90s Action Man.

Donna remains the strongest companion to-date, making Martha look rather lightweight in comparison.

7 out of 10. Only the first part of this double-header so things may improve but this is a very average tale so far. At the end of the day, Helen Raynor just doesn't deliver the quality of scripts that you expect from this series. It's missing fizz and pop and, overall, disappoints.

The Sontaran Strategem / The Poison Sky

This is maybe not quite an all time classic amazing story but it is a strong and entertaining two parter of very good standard.

The first part features the Doctor and Donna meeting up with former companion Martha and UNIT, who she now works for, to look into ATMOS, a company whose widespread satellite navigation systems have been causing deaths. They are correct to suspect alien interference as the Doctor's old adversaries the Sontarans are using ATMOS as a way to effect the atmosphere and invade the Earth.

There is excellent comedy, plenty of action and smart dialogue. Tennant, Tate and Agyeman as the returning Martha are all as great as ever and the wonderful Bernard Cribbins gets involved as the fantastic Wilf. The character development for Martha is superb as she moves on from her crush and her inexperience when she was first with the Doctor. She is now a strong, independent leader as well as an intelligent, brave and capable young woman.

UNIT are less impressively portrayed I feel with officers who are just a little bit cliche daft army people but there are a few convincing and well written young soldier characters.

The young genius and his team behind ATMOS are not fully convincing to me at times but they are perfectly adequate, especially in the 2nd episode.

The Sontarans manage to bring amusement and enjoyable alien threat and their new incarnation is very good I think.

Martha's clone works well and gives an extra side for Freema Agyeman to show us. Meanwhile Donna is funny and has great humanity.

The cliffhanger between episodes is great.

Not perfect perhaps but a very fun adventure.

My Ratings: The Sontaran Strategem - 8.5/10 The Poison Sky - 9/10 Overall rating for both parts - 8.75/10.

General Staal is a Sontaran clone, quite short, although he is fully grown, bash his probic vent, to annoy and torment, making combative turtlehead groan.

Summoned back to Earth by Martha Jones after a spate of simultaneous deaths around the world in cars fitted with Atmos, the Doctor and Donna investigate a juvenile entrepreneur and the supposed genius behind the technology, while locking horns with a familiar enemy with plans to wipe out the human race.

Sontarens are back, and boy do they pose a real threat. They seem to be strong and forcefull and even disarm any sort of Weapon with ease, even if it's a Sniper Gun or just a regular Gun. They bring back a sort of scare factor to the Show, Which Siries 4 at the Start doesn't have scare Factor type episodes as of Such. Luke Rattigan is annoying as the genius scientist but he's an okay protagonist. It's really the return of Martha that deserves high praise, as that was brilliant. She is a much different and much stronger character. This works to her advantage as she's not having to rely on the Doctor so much, and this concept works. Seeing Sylvia and Wilf for a bit is always a delight. As the Episode ends on a high with Donna being stuck in her Car, and the Gas all poors out all over the street, which is what the Sontarens did. The Episode leades excitingly to the next one.