I've made no secret of the fact that I don't think very highly of the current season of Doctor Who right now. The writing is very weak and full of plot holes. More than that, it's trying very hard to bring the Big Bad concept to Doctor Who and not really making it.

First a definition. The Big Bad comes from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, though of course the concept predates the show. Still, just as Eli Whitney perfected the cotton gin so did Buffy nail Big Badding for future shows.

Essentially what the Big Bad means is a season long antagonist that drives an overall story arc. It's been a staple of comics for ages, but in TV it can be much harder to pull off. Which brings us to the revived Doctor Who.

"But they've had Big Bads since day one!" you might be saying, and I can see why you'd think that but it's not really correct. Take for instance Season 1 and the whole "Bad Wolf" thing. Yes, there were constant hints dropped about the ending of the season, but the Big Bad wasn't the Bad Wolf (Ironically). The Big Bad was the Daleks, and the Bad Wolf was what defeated them.

Here's the basic formula for a Big Bad-style season. First, you have to create a new antagonist that challenges something essential about your hero. You can also have a Big Bad who is a traitorous friend, but to do that you still need to lay the seeds of the betrayal earlier on through foreshadowing.

You have to do that, and then you have to introduce them in a big way in the first or second episode. We don't need to know all their plans, but the audience should be able to get a sense of what the adversary is and what they stand for.

Though you should keep peppering the season with hints or nods to the Big Bad, what you're really looking for is a battle somewhere in the middle where your hero suffers a loss. It's necessary to give the hero an extra bit of push to initiate the final act.

In general, it's also good to work in a deuteragonist. It's another foil to work off of and a chance to explore more than one side of a conflict. They can be reluctantly conscripted, playing both sides against each other for their own ends, or simply a loyal sidekick with their own well-establish character.

And finally, the big fight at the end. This is usually the only part that Doctor Who gets right.

This story continues on the next page.