The Best (and Worst) Doctor Who of 2012

The io9 science blog published it's annual TV review of the year last week. The Best and Worst Television Moments of 2011, again from Meredith Woerner, features two recent Doctor Who stories. 

The season opener, Asylum of the Daleks is actually named as both one of the 'Best' and 'Worst' shows. The story is praised for the shock introduction of Jenna Louise Coleman as "the dazzling Oswin Oswald" then criticised for the Ponds' divorce storyline: "Amy and Rory pretend to fight for almost 25 seconds. This whole divorce.. was a sham.. [it] came from nowhere and went right back there.. [they] deserved better than this.. Amy sure as hell wouldn't "give up" Rory. If Amy has proven one thing, it's that she will fight to the bitter end for her centurion. Same goes for Rory. Boo to this facade of emotion."

Thankfully, the list of top sci-fi and fantasy programmes redeems the show, and includes Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, described as a "bit of fun before we had to say goodbye to the Ponds forever. This episode.. was a nice return to the "fun" Doctor, if only for a while."

The Origins of Sarah Jane Smith

The latest DWM (issue 443) reviews the new Invasion of the Dinosaurs DVD release. The production notes for part five contains the "biggest bombshell in the history of Doctor Who facts, providing us with the ultimate Holy Grail.. the name of the actress originally cast as Sarah Jane Smith!" However, reviewer Neil Harris doesn't identify the actress ultimately replaced by Elizabeth Sladen.

The Radio Times has the honour of naming this enigmatic woman after almost forty years. Their website last week revealed that April Walker, a veteran of 1970's comedy shows, was cast by Barry Letts, and she actually worked on The Time Warrior rehearsals. William Gallagher writes: "allegedly the pairing of [Jon] Pertwee's Doctor and Walker's Sarah Jane didn't work: she was tall and obviously strong character, along the lines of  Liz Shaw. It's believed that Pertwee was unhappy with the decision but Letts recast the role. Walker was reportedly paid for.. the rest of that series.. [and] Sladen always refused" to name her predecessor.

The brilliant mocked-up Frank Bellamy-style Radio Times cover above was produced by artists Jason Fletcher and Westley Smith for the third issue of Richard Bignell's respected fanzine, Nothing at the End of the Lane. You can find more Doctor Who inspired artwork at deviantart.com, and read Walker's IMDB profile.