Three Rules Of Music Video Robotics
1. Make it confusing. You're never quite sure what Kanye, Beck or Bjork is really up to in these videos.
2. Give a hint of androgyny.
3. And above all, make it sexy.

And here are our favorites:

Dresden Dolls, "Coin-Operated Boy"
An adorable but slightly sad little song about a boy brought to life for love at the low, low price of a single coin. The Dresden Dolls' Amanda Palmer sings, "Sitting on the shelf. He is just a toy. But I turn him on and he comes to life, automatic joy...Made of plastic and elastic.... More love without complications galore." The bittersweet ditty definitely sings of love, but it's not as tawdry as Gigolo Joe from AI. If only everything were this simple.

Bjork, "All Is Full Of Love"
Absolutely beautiful mechanical Bjork. Looks like the Svedka she-bot stole her look.

Beck, "Hell Yes"
Adorable QRIO 'bots bop along to "Hell Yes." Oh Beck you'll never be a "Loser" when you incorporate dancing robots.

Kylie Minogue, "Come Into My World"/Fever Tour Introduction
She may have battled gold angel hosts on Dr. Who but Kylie embraces her inner android at the opening of her tour gracing the stage in full robot armor. Which songstress Beyonce Knowles later mimicked at the 2007 BET awards. Who knew you could steal a robot look?

That replica of the Titanic that the TARDIS crashed into turns out to be a spaceship orbiting Earth. On board, a group of tuxedo-wearing aliens are celebrating a fake Christmas in a perfect recreation of the doomed oceanliner. But then it all goes wrong when the ship (intentionally) crashes into a meteorite storm and the robot angels launch a killing spree. Cue 30 minutes of running up and down stairs and across teetering walkways.

Someone needs to take show-runner Russell T. Davies' slo-mo button away. There's a long section near the show's climax where the action slows down to a two-minute crawl so we can linger on the terrified faces of the B-list stars who remain alive, and then watch the Doctor set his jaw heroically.

"Voyage of the Damned" felt like Dickens on E. You have the sweet old man who comes out with colorful-but-wrong "facts" about Christmas, like the idea that the British eat actual Turkish people. You have the good-hearted but vulgar fat couple who don't 'alf love each other with almost superhuman mawkishness. And then you have Kylie Minogue's perky waif who just wants to see the stars.

A lot of the time, the episode feels like just a series of heart-warming or tear-jerking moments strung together along a ribbon of plot. This was the first time I really felt like I was watching a children's program.

That said, it's pretty entertaining stuff. Russell T. said his ambition was to make a "disaster movie," and most of the episode does keep up the feeling of imminent destruction. A lot of the best bits are cribbed from "The Satan Pit," except with the angels instead of the Ood. But Davies uses the formula well. And he bucks convention by having the single most odious character survive all the way through.

Bottom line: "Voyage Of The Damned" was better than Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, in that it actually made sense and felt suspensful and thrillery. But it was also the most sentimental episode of the new Doctor Who series, and that's saying something. It was also the highest-rated Doctor Who episode since 1979, with 12.2 million viewers.

1963-1978 It's like Masterpiece Theatre. You see lots of British character actors popping up (sometimes in multiple roles) but you're never distracted by the appearance of a famous personality. Grade: B+

1979: John Cleese and his then-wife Eleanor Bron appear for a few moments in "The City Of Death," commenting on the TARDIS (the Doctor's ship) as abstract art. Cleese and Tom Baker also filmed a short skit together. Grade: A

1985: Kate O'Mara (Joan Collins' sister from Dynasty) plays the Rani, an amoral member of the Doctor's own race. She's hardly a big star, but her acting doesn't really justify the role. Grade: B-

Late 1980s: Famous (in England) comedian Ken Dodd and comedy duo Hale and Pace have totally gratuitous cameos. They pretty much play themselves, and Dodd wears a totally hideous glittery outfit. Grade: D.

1989: Game show host Nicholas Parsons (basically England's answer to Bob Barker) plays a conflicted reverend in "The Curse of Fenric." It's a meaty role, and Parsons puts everything he's got into it. Grade: B+

1996: Formerly famous Eric Roberts plays arch-villain The Master in the TV movie. Grade: C-.

2005: Washed up pop star Billie Piper becomes the Doctor's new companion, and proves she can act. Grade: A.

2005: Reality TV stars Anne Robinson (The Weakest Link) and Trinny & Susannah (What To Wear) play themselves — only they're robots. Somehow it's an evil Dalek plan. Huh? Grade: D.

2005-2007: Famous (in England) actors Zoe Wanamaker, Peter Kay, Derek Jacobi and John Simm play major roles. Luckily, they're all real actors. Well, except for Kay. Grade: A-.

Geoffrey Palmer from mega-sitcom As Time Goes By and Clive Swift from Keeping Up Appearances also have starring roles in "Voyage of the Damned." (Both shows are PBS fixtures in the U.S., but they're huge in England.) Other stars in the episode: Gray O'Brien (The Queen), Debbie Chazen (The Smoking Room) and George Costigan (star of Rita, Sue and Bob Too). For fans of British TV and movies, the mob of familiar faces could be distracting.

Stunt casting has a long and proud tradition in Doctor Who, with mixed results. Here's a chronology, with grades:

1963-1978 You see lots of British character actors popping up (sometimes in multiple roles) but you're never distracted by the appearance of a famous personality. Grade: B+

1979: John Cleese and his then-wife Eleanor Bron appear for a few moments in "The City Of Death," commenting on the TARDIS (the Doctor's ship) as abstract art. Cleese and Tom Baker also filmed a short skit together. Grade: A

1985: Kate O'Mara (Joan Collins' sister from Dynasty) plays the Rani, an amoral member of the Doctor's own race. She's hardly a big star, but her acting doesn't really justify the role. Grade: B-

Late 1980s: Famous (in England) comedian Ken Dodd and comedy duo Hale and Pace have totally gratuitous cameos. They pretty much play themselves, and Dodd wears a totally hideous glittery outfit. Grade: D.

1989: Game show host Nicholas Parsons (basically England's answer to Bob Barker) plays a conflicted reverend in "The Curse of Fenric." It's a meaty role, and Parsons puts everything he's got into it. Grade: B+

1996: Formerly famous Eric Roberts plays arch-villain The Master in the TV movie. Grade: C-.

2005: Washed up pop star Billie Piper becomes the Doctor's new companion, and proves she can act. Grade: A.

2005: Reality TV stars Anne Robinson (The Weakest Link) and Trinny & Susannah (What To Wear) play themselves — only they're robots. Somehow it's an evil Dalek plan. Huh? Grade: D.

2005-2007: Famous (in England) actors Zoe Wanamaker, Peter Kay, Derek Jacobi and John Simm play major roles. Luckily, they're all real actors. Well, except for Kay. Grade: A-. [Image courtesy of BBC]

Voyage of the Damned [Outpost Gallifrey]