Doctor Who: In the Forest of the Night

Missy: 'Now that was surprising.'

You're not kidding, Missy. This felt like an episode with some really good ideas at its core, but some really weak pay-offs. The idea of the world waking up to find itself covered with trees was solid, the dialogue was consistently top drawer, and the ecological digs were both amusing and apt. So why did the rest of the episode fail to set my thrill circuits alight?

Doctor Who: Flatline

Al: 'Are we really hiding from killer graffiti?'

When I first saw that bald, bearded bloke vanish into the border, I sighed loudly and braced myself for the worst. Was 'Flatline' destined to become this season's 'Fear Her'? Then the quality of the CGI picked up dramatically, and the whole episode was transformed into a classic Russell T. Davies-style romp to the end. Thank goodness for the inaccuracy of first impressions.

Doctor Who: Mummy on the Orient Express

Clara: 'To hell with the last hurrah, let's keep going.' 

Despite the naff title, this was an excellent episode. It contained just enough Agatha Christie hat-tips without resorting to overkill (the fatal mistake of 'The Unicorn and the Wasp'), the atmosphere and setting were effective without being corny, the central mystery was mostly consistent, and the last six minutes were thoroughly absorbing. To think, I thought last week's denouement was a surprise.

Doctor Who: Kill the Moon

Clara: 'You go away, okay? You go a long way away.'

The early buzz seemed to suggest we were in for a treat this week. Reviewers were praising tonight's episode as better than 'Listen', others were saying it was terrifying, and some were touting it as one of the best episodes of all time. I don't think it was any of those things, but it had much to recommend it. The story was good, it had a decent moral conundrum at its centre, and the acting was terrific. So why am I being such a Davros Downer?