I'm wondering if this is some kind of homage to the late Douglas Adams, (aka Dr. Who episode writer David Agnew) and the author of "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" (HHGG).
The title "42" is an important and iconic number in HHGG and part of the plot has the hero's trapped on a spaceship autopiloted to fly into the sun, as part of a rock concert no less!
Coincedence?

Douglas Adams is, as most SciFi fans would know, was and is a revered but sadly deceased and missed famous author of many now classic novels. He worked for the BBC and specifically Doctor Who so it's not so far fetched eh?

This episode is a cross between 'The Impossible Planet', 'The Satan Pit' and 'The Doctor Dances'.

It was a little bit boring and the acting was quite bad.

The storyline was thin and was a big let down.

It didn't contribute well to the rest of the season and I found it too timed.

It made me feel hot and confined and I didn't like it. It was a bit repeated and they recycled ideas which I didn't think was good.

Very disappointing and I hope they never ever ever make another one like it. It was definately not good.

Review by ben-the-hen. Thank you. Ben

The concept of 42 is a good one - not original, but good nonetheless, promising much in the way of an adventure rarely pausing for breath. Which we pretty much get, give or take a few slower scenes. So far, so good. The pre-titles sequence sets things up nicely, presenting the situation and saying 'there you are - you have 42 minutes to right all the wrongs'. However, the tension and emotion is lost somewhat along the way due to rather lacklustre performances from the cast (other than Freema Ageyman, who isn't bad, and David Tennant, who throws himself into the role, exploding with even more manic energy than usual). Also, there's a niggling feeling throughout the episode that never goes away, that this is merely filler. An inconsequential, slight story before the far more affecting Human Nature and Family of Blood. The mention of the Doctor being close to regeneration does raise the stakes, as does him crawling around on the floor screaming, but even so, we never really believe it's gonna happen. On the plus side, the sets are very good, the Doctor explaining happy prime numbers is a great moment, and the pace is quick enough to keep the viewer watching until the end, even in the weaker moments. Passable as entertainment, with a few really good bits, but nothing more to warrant much in the way of rewatching.

I mean; let's look at the similarities! You've got the TARDIS materializing aboard a stalled spaceship in answer to a distress signal. That's more or less what happened aboard the S.S. Madame Pompadour, in TLITF. You've got a sun literally burning up the air in certain parts of the stalled spaceship. That's more or less what happened aboard that space station in TEOTW. And, you've got a disembodied sentience taking over the corporeal body of one or two of the crewmen (plus the Doctor). That's more or less what happened in TIP. The only difference between those three episodes and last night's hour-long one-shot? Martha Jones was the sidekick, instead of Rose Tyler! I hope next week's episode is a little more suspenseful than this one. Because, this one didn't exactly keep me glued to my seat between commercials.