Doctor Who: Series 02  (2006)

Theatrical Release Information:
Doctor Who: Series 02

When the BBC revived Doctor Who, its long running cult sci-fi series, in 2005, it snared an outstanding lead in Christopher Eccleston, but failed to anticipate Eccleston's withdrawal from the program, one year in. The network's apparent fear of a decline in viewership given the arrival of a new doctor (David Tennant) caused it to segue away from storylines centered around that character. Thus, the Series 2 episodes place far greater emphasis on the doctor's sidekick, Rose Tyler (Bille Piper) (and the members of her clan, including her mom, ex-boyfriend, and deceased dad) than on Who himself. In Series Two, the network also attempts to revive long-dormant Dr. Who characters from the 1970s, including Sarah Jane (Elizabeth Sladen), in an episode about the fate of one of the Doctor's former assistants. As the Series opens, Dr. Who assumes control of the TARDIS and embarks, episode by episode, on a number of disparate adventures. These include episodes in which: Queen Victoria battles vampires, Charles Dickens battles evil spirits, Dr. Who fights Satan in the pit of a black hole, a little girl discovers that her illustrations automatically come to life, cybermen wrest control of London, and television sets transform thousands of viewers into flesh-devouring zombies. The one connecting story that links all of the episodes in Series Two involves the shady and mysterious doings of a nefarious group called The Torchwood Institute, which later received its own spinoff program. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide