There aren’t many TV series that inspire such an army of fanatics . Doctor Who is one of those series. It has an army of loyal followers that will go over it in minute detail, debating who is their favourite of the Doctors and lamenting the loss of earlier episodes when BBC decided to wipe the tapes way back when. Then there are the people that see Doctor Who as the height of nerd-dom, more geeky than a Joss Whedon obsessed Starcraft fanatic. People who will refuse to give it a chance, based solely on the reputation upon which its fans pride themselves. I came into the cult of Doctor Who as an outsider, and while not foaming at the mouth at the sight of the good Doctor, I still found a lot to enjoy.

Series Five, volume three picks up in the tail end of the latest season. That means Matt Smith (replacing much loved David Tennant) has had time to settle into the role and make it his own. He definitely gets the job done, his youthful looks play well off the Doctors actual age, which makes his bow tie wearing (he constantly asserts that they are “cool”) and parental style lectures very amusing. He is an eccentric, always enjoyable, and has just the right hint of danger and courage about him. He is backed very well by Karen Gillan, who portrays his companion Amy Pond. Pond is sexy, rather flirty, but understands the weight of her role and isn’t afraid to get in amongst the action.

The episodes in volume three begin with Amy’s Choice, which focuses on Amy deciding whether to spend a quiet life in a small town with her now husband Rory, or to spend it travelling with the Doctor. It takes place in two alternate dimensions, each highlighting the pros and cons of her eventual decision. It gives Amy a lot to do, and gives Gillan a lot to work with, as it is up to her to decide the fate of the Earth.

The other two episodes are a two parter, dealing with old Doctor Who favourites the Sirulians. While drilling in a small Welsh Village, a team of scientists studying minerals come across the Sirulians, who have established an underground civilization. Once the doctor arrives things are quickly made worse when Amy is sucked under the ground. The Doctor then has to stop all out warfare between the fearful humans and the disdainful Silurians. Whereas the first episode was a calmer, character based episode, this one is filled with events and tension. It is an enjoyable episode, but at times feels a little silly, which sometimes is part of its charm.

The video quality of the release is on the higher end.  Everything is clear and sharp, and the audio quality matches the video. The extra features are fairly light, only containing a short featurette about the Silurians. It contains a look at the evolution of the Silurians from their first appearances up until their role in this series. It’s not very substantial, and there is no reason to watch it more than once.

As a non Doctor Who fan coming in, I found myself rather enjoying this incarnation of the Doctor. Matt Smith is very entertaining and the episodes themselves are lots of fun, they’re amusing, and even emotionally affecting at times. It might be hard to recommend to people who have never watched it, and the people that do watch it will probably already have it, but for those on the fence, give it a chance and you might find yourself reconsidering Doctor Who.