So, if you're a Whovian like myself, you may have picked up the subtle changes in the new season of "Doctor Who." It's no secret that Moffat has slowly been trying to bring back the style of Old Doctor Who for a while now. And yes, that's right. I'm talking about the pre-2005 reboot Doctor Who.

1. The disappearance of the sonic screwdriver.

While not actually gone per say, just in a different form; we have lost the actual screwdriver itself. And, while many prophesied it will soon return with a new version to boost sales for the BBC, this would be the first time the sonic has disappeared from the show. In fact, in the fifth Doctor's run, the sonic was completely gone. The director at the time didn't like it's "get out of jail free card" style and felt the Doctor should be able to solve his own problems without the use of a "magic wand." So maybe the screwdriver will return and maybe it won't, but the Doctor has been fine without it before and he'll be fine without it again.

2. The appearance of Davros.

I think most people can say that the opening episode(s) for the new season have been pretty bad ass. The show has brought back one of the Doctor's oldest enemies, but this time without making it cheesy or over the top (sorry Russel T. Davies). While the Doctor enjoys meddling in the lives of others, he certainly never meant to interrupt, and even save, the life of his oldest enemy and creator of the Daleks, Davros. We also have a throwback when Davros retells of the first time they met (during the 4th Doctor's run in "The Genesis of The Daleks"). No throwback is properly done without bringing in an enemy of such high a stature.

3. Two-part episodes.

Probably the biggest surprise to me of the season is that Moffat has decided to bring back the old multiple episode gimmick. In Old Doctor Who, episodes were cut into parts to make more developed story arches with more involved scenarios; it appears, Moffat is trying the same technique. This keeps watchers coming back the next week to find out what happens to the Doctor and his companion(s). While this may be a controversial device, as almost no television show still uses the multiple segment break up, it might bode well for Doctor Who. While I don't see Moffat attempting to make any seven-part episodes anytime soon (yeah, that's right, Classic Who had an episode with seven parts to it) I can see that he will allow writers to have a more open landscape with a larger time frame. My only concern is that we'll start to see stories that should be only 45 minutes, stretched into 90. But, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

All in all, "Doctor Who" season nine is doing a pretty darn good job so far with all its mishaps and controversy of season eight. With this throwback to the old style of "Doctor Who," we are starting to see some improvements to the show. And, for everyone's sake, I hope we keep busting out hits and see more great episodes this season.