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One of the many things I love about Russell T. Davies' reinvention of Doctor Who is the fact that it's taken the time to question some of the show's most basic (and quasi-magical) tenets. What's more, it's done so in a way that's actually boosted our suspension of disbelief, rather than undermining it, which is no easy trick. In season one, we saw Rose freaking out over the fact that the Doctor's time machine had invaded her head to translate foreign/alien languages without her permission. And in season three, Martha gets into the question of how she can visit the past without stepping on the wrong butterfly or accidentally killing her grandfather. And now, in last Saturday's episode, we get to the biggest question of them all: why can the Doctor change history only sometimes? Spoilers ahead!
One of the many things I love about Russell T. Davies' reinvention of Doctor Who is the fact that it's taken the time to question some of the show's most basic (and quasi-magical) tenets. What's more, it's done so in a way that's actually boosted our suspension of disbelief, rather than undermining it, which is no easy trick. In season one, we saw Rose freaking out over the fact that the Doctor's time machine had invaded her head to translate foreign/alien languages without her permission. And in season three, Martha gets into the question of how she can visit the past without stepping on the wrong butterfly or accidentally killing her grandfather. And now, in last Saturday's episode, we get to the biggest question of them all: why can the Doctor change history only sometimes? Spoilers ahead!
It's actually a really valid question, and one the show has waffled on quite a bit, ever since 1964's "The Aztecs," where the Doctor merely throws a hissy fit about the idea of Barbara trying to save the Aztec civilization but never explains why that would be different from stopping the Daleks or the Voord. The obvious answer is, "Because the Doctor spends so much time in one particular version of 20th./21st. century Earth, and he wants it to be the same whenever he goes there." But there's probably more to it than that, since he does occasionally meddle in Earth's past as well.
And so now we get a bit more of an explanation, and it's one which raises a bunch more questions — which is a good thing. The Doctor sees history as either fixed or in flux, and when he comes to a point that's fixed, he can't (or mustn't) disturb it.
And this episode actually gave me a reason to love Donna, who was one of the dozen or so things that annoyed me in last week's episode. She, more than any other recent companion, actually stands up to the Doctor. And she keeps doing it long after he's explained himself, and given his passionate speech, and shouted her down. She listens to all the Doctor's reasons, and then keeps telling him he's wrong. It's meant to be refreshing after the relatively worshipful attitudes of Rose and Martha, and it is.
I sort of assumed that the whole "we can't save Pompeii" plot would be dropped about two-thirds of the way through the episode, to make way for the real plot, about the rock monsters who want to do something or other. But then I was really happy to be proven wrong. The rock monster plot, as flimsy as it was, was simply there to advance the "we can't save Pompeii" plot. Which was a brave choice, and a really good one. In the end, because the rock monsters are averting the volcanic eruption that's "supposed" to happen, the Doctor actually has to take responsibility for his choice to let everyone in Pompeii die.
And the other reason it works so well is because the actors sell the story: You actually believe that Donna and the Doctor are anguished by this choice, instead of just sort of tossing it off.
And then there are all the little hints dropped in the scene featured above — like the thing on Donna's back. Is it, as some have speculated, something to do with the Racnoss, those spidery creatures we met in her first adventure? (In which case it wouldn't be the first time the Doctor's companion had a spidery thing on her back, since that happened all the way back in 1974's "Planet Of The Spiders.") Is the business about the Doctor's real name actually going to be significant? Are we going to learn his real name at last? (And no, I'm guessing it's not "Theta Sigma," the nickname he was called by in one episode years ago.) And then of course the hints that the return of Rose is significant to the overarching plot of the season.
And then there's the dangling plotline at the end, the family the Doctor finally chooses to save from the volcano. The one time he actually listens to Donna and does the nice thing instead of the smart thing. I will be horribly disappointed if that decision doesn't come back to smack him in the forehead in a future episode.
So — as I and many others predicted — this episode was a vast improvement on the fat-people-weird-babies episode last week. It definitely wasn't perfect. I couldn't quite tell you what the rock people's plan was, except that it involved circuit boards, and the mountain, and psychic people being turned into rock people. And the rock people were ridiculously easy to stop — with a water pistol, no less. But as I said earlier, the "main" plot of the episode was so transparently just an excuse to get into the issues the episode wanted to talk about, so it hardly mattered. Oh, and there was campiness, but it worked with the story. So yes, I'd say it was pretty decent, all told.
(And to those of you who are going to say it was better because Russell T. Davies didn't write it — his signature was all over it, including lots of little touches of humor. (The zany thing where Donna's Latin sounds like Celtic to the Roman people.) I wouldn't be surprised if RTD rewrote this script extensively — this is just an example of what RTD and his writers do well: a somewhat silly, fluffy story with an actual idea at its core, and an emotional crux that the characters actually get engaged with. It's only when he serves up pure fluff — and it's not even good fluff — that I get annoyed.
Comments
Man, this episode completely sold me on Donna. I wasn't sure about her after the first episode. The whole "You've got to save SOMEONE, anyone" scene made the character for me. That alone was right up there with the best the show has ever produced.
And the moment when she helps the Doctor press the lever -- which I interpreted as her taking half the responsibility off his shoulders -- made of win. Donna was fantastic in this episode.
>>I will be horribly disappointed if that decision doesn't come back to smack him in the forehead in a future episode.<< I sure hope so. I think, dramatically, the episode would have been much better off if he hadn't saved the family (though perhaps too early in the season for that sort of thing?) or if in the flash-forward we saw the universe right itself by killing the family in some other way. But if the decision just bites the Doctor in the ass somewhere else down the line, that works too. (I've seen speculation elsewhere that Donna is actually descended from this family - they're somewhat ginger, and named Noblus. Odds seem decent that they'll be back)
Come on, what's NOT to love about Donna? She's the only companion I can recall who's actually SLAPPED The Doctor, not ONCE but TWICE! She's a force of nature that Rose or Martha just COULDN'T be because they were so busy being all doe-eyed over him. What I REALLY want to see tho is Donna vs. Cap. Jack... (heh heh) I <3 Donna :D
I like that the writers aren't trying to make Donna into another Rose or Martha. She's forced her way into the Doctor's life (instead of waiting for an invitation), and she's there to challenge him. Rose and Martha (as much as I loved the latter) simply followed him around without asking too many tough questions, aside from ones that required the Doctor to break out into technobabble.
The "We're not married," shtick has to die. They did it in this episode and the coming attractions showed it in the next episode. RTD really loves putting sexual tension between the doctor and the companion no matter how little sense it makes.
Donna is turning out to be an interesting piece of the "stunt casting" debate. I think everyone pretty much agrees that Bonnie Langford was a disasterous stunt casting, and people (including me) have been predicting Catherine Tate in that same mode. But it doesnt seem to be turning out that way, and I think the key to that is in the way Mel and Donna function differently as devices.
Did anyone spot the gloriously awful reference to a certain range of Latin textbooks?
I nearly pissed myself laughing. Flashbacks to Latin lessons at secondary school - of textbooks with some deliciously bloodthirsty storylines in. Spoiler: Caecilius dies quite horribly when Vesuvius erupts, and only Quintus escapes...
I didn't mind the over-the-top-goodness of the first episode, I felt the Doctor needed it after losing The Master, and Martha, and Astron Pell ((along with the majority of the Titanic, really)) all in a row, he needed something where the answer wasn't chaos and death and tough choices. I know, it's stupid to ask for a show to balance itself karmically around a character, but I think even the viewers needed a break from constantly being forced to endure loss.
I agree though, as much as "Partners in Crime" changed Donna from the Runaway Bride to a match for The Doctor, this episode made her relatable. She seems there to ask the questions that we want to ask, and I'm glad for her. I'm far too new to the Doctor, having started with Eccleston, but I agree that Donna is shaping up to be a good companion.
I'm still iffy on Donna. Though there was much less of that horrible shrill Donna makes when yells loudly, I was kind of hoping she'd give the Doctor some back talk. I mean she dose, but its no more that what Martha or Rose did once in a while, just a snide remark here and there.
@t3knomanser: I agree with you, it never came up before when he had a couple of Doe-eyed admirers by his side, there's no reason for it to suddenly happen when there aren't any tangible feelings.
"I will be horribly disappointed if that decision doesn't come back to smack him in the forehead in a future episode."
I have to disagree. The Doctor said that the residents of Pompeii didnt have a word for Volcano until after the eruption. As the rescued family watched the destruction of Pompeii, the stone mason described the sight as 'Volcanic'. This makes me belive that he was ment to rescue the family all along.
Hope that made sense, its late here.
I have to say that I was uncertain about Donna being the companion after the Christmas show. But, like many of you, I'm was really sold by this show. The whole thing with Donna is she's there to hold back some of the Doctor's darker impulses, which is something we haven't really seen before. While the Doctor wasn't really dark with Rose or Martha (I think having someone there brings simply reminds him of why he does what he does) they weren't really a controlling force in his life either. They were much more in his wake than anything else. With Donna we finally have something close to an equal, at least in terms of force of will. I really like it and I hope that it's one of the main themes through this season.
"Tossing it off" is a British idiom for wanking, Charlie.
@RRich: I knew that! But I did mean the other meaning...
@TheRealVeon:
The idea of the companion holding back the Doctor's dark side really appeals to me.
I think it all goes back to Tennant's introduction with the Children in Need special and the Christmas Invasion. He says it a couple times himself. This regeneration went wrong. He doesn't know when to stop himself.
The last two seasons all come back to that. Every time he makes a snap judgment or doesn't listen to the people around him everything goes wrong.
So with the narrative of a fundamentally broken Doctor (if it exists in more than my mind) a companion that exists to challenge him is an interesting setup. And now that I think Donna can pull it off I am more than excited.
@TheRealVeon:
@Ryan H: "No second chances; that's the kind of man I am."
Which was pretty much the scariest thing any Doctor has ever said.
But Martha's presence doesn't hold him back in "Human Nature/Family of Blood" -- though there is some implication he did this without her knowing, but still.
Can you imagine Donna letting him stalk off in that state alone? She'd be running after, asking questions, and probably tempering his fury with at least limited-time punishments. Donna is a good balance for him because she doesn't feed his ego.
@Charlie Jane Anders:
@RRich:
*keeeeheeeheeee!*
(I'm 8 years old, apparently)
@JennaW:
Yeah, but in a lot of ways Martha wasn't a very good companion. An entertaining companion, yes, but not very good at keeping the wheels spinning and the lights on.
@Ryan H: I thought Martha was a great companion... she was smart and resourceful, and could keep up with the Doctor most of the time. That's my biggest complaint about Donna -- especially back in the Christmas Special, she's portrayed as really not being that smart. The implication is the Doctor just wants someone around to look after, or to be his emotional compass.
@Charlie Jane Anders: But in all honesty, Martha just did what she was told. Family of Blood, all she did was what was instructed in the video, she was at a complete loss with the "love" thing. The final episode of last season, the Doctor told her what to do and she did it. And a lot of times her cleverness, such as in the first episode with the oxygen, she was merely stating things that the Doctor already knew.
Rose had spent enough time with the Doctor to be able to figure things out on her own, push the Doctor in the right direction and even doing some of the things the Doctor would've done without prompting. Martha never really had that, the only time I can recall she ever bent the Doctor to her was when she forced him to tell the truth behind Gallifrey. I can see why Ryan would find fault with her as a companion.
@Charlie Jane Anders: I think it was shown fairly definitively last week, what with the Doctor explaining to thin air in the TARDIS, that he does just want someone to knock around with, and occasionally show off to.
The Doctor needs an audience, and obviously just cannot function without one.
I would assume that being the last of the Time Lords is probably very, very lonely so I can totally forgive him this quirk. ;)
@Dunny0: Agreed. If he were looking for an effective assistant there would be, you know, some sort of qualifications required. He does sort of audition them on the job, but really, he just needs a straight man. Satellite 5 should get a "Who Wants To Be My New Companion?" program running, stat.
I really appreciated this episode. Not only did it present a really cool cast of characters, but it threw tough questions at the doctor. And Donna was just made of win throughout the whole thing. its nice to see the more compassionate side of her when she seems to be so fiesty all the time.
I think Martha's lesson was to discover her strength, while Rose's lesson was to discover her purpose. Donna seems to be there to teach The Doctor lesson in temperance...which I love. The Doctor may be the student and the companion, the teacher, for once.
And I loved Donna in this episode.
@Lizzie24601: Wouldn't that be rather counter productive, what with all the "rejects" being recycled into Daleks? ;)
Still, I'd watch that show.
But only if it had a zany obstacle course.
Some things are fixed and something are in flux because thats how I see the universe. Every waking second i see what is, what was, what could be, what must not. thats the burden of the time lord donna and im the only one left.
some things are fixed and something are in flux because thats how i see the universe. every waking second i see what is what was what could be what must not. thats the burden of the time lord donna and im the only one left.
I'd swear Theta Sigma was a nickname from high school, or college. Let's look it up. Wikipedia says it's a nickname from his 'university days'.
And then there's this: [upload.wikimedia.org]
Which is going to end up meaning absolutely nothing.
Let me also state that I do not want them to tell us his name, I feel that it would take so much mystery away from the character.
Surprisingly, I'm finding lots to like about Donna (in much the same way I was surprised to find myself liking Billie's acting!). Standing up to the Doctor is something he's needed for a long, long time, and in this episode Donna simply refuses to let him away with his high and mighty "I'm a Time Lord, so shut your mouth" attitude - excellent stuff.
And I absolutely adored the scene linked to in the article! The way the two Seers started peeling back the layers of mystery to reveal the Doctor and Donna beneath was beautifully done. And did anyone else fine the young actresses' 'drunk and rude' performance totally intoxicating?
No? Ah. Just me then.
I haven't seent his ep yet so I just kinda skimmed this post. Anywho, just wanted to say that I'm really intrigued by whatever they're building up to, with the apparent return of every companion that's been on the current series to date. Makes me wonder if perhaps they'll be starting fresh with a new companion when they finally get around to season 5.
@CargoCult
yeah, i noticed that too - made me giggle and i was mildly disappointed that the whole bunch weren't there!
I understand that the Tardis translates languages fine - I don't have a problem at all with the concept.
What I do have a problem with is why it would change Latin into Cockney - as shown by the dodgy salesman who sells the Tardis.
I mean, really, does it translate stereotypes as well?
@FunkyJ: If the TARDIS is, as Paul Magrs noted, "a machine for traveling between genres," then yes, the TARDIS supplies the appropriate comedy accents as well!
I think that's why the Brits are so good at portraying Romans - their accents denote social status, which fits nicely with the extremely class-conscious Roman society.
Well, since the TARDIS got stuck in the shape of a British police call box, the translation circuit probably got stuck with the British stereotype.
Huh. Actually, I kind of like this theory.
Presumably you're aware that Theta Sigma is the abbreviation used in many manuscripts of the New Testament for the Greek word for God.
[exploringourmatrix.blogspot.com]
According to Doctor Who Confidential the episode was supposed to be based more on Asterix than Rome so the cockney accent would fit in.
Catherine Tate is brilliant in the role now really going places with it and making more than just the new Tegan or the new Nan that we all feared it would be.
@Lizzie24601: I actually kept expecting the episode to end with the fade out of the TARDIS followed by a large piece of pyroclastic debris landing on the family.
@Quadratus: Indeed, I don't want a name just like I didn't want midichlorians in the SW universe
Much better than last week, though it would be hard not to be. I really like the developing dynamic between the Doctor and Donna. The rock monsters were a bit dull, and the show seemed like a chance for the Mill to show off it's capabilities, but the episode worked really well at times. Not sure about the corny epilogue. I also hope the family comes back to haunt the Doctor. I'd be surprised if it didn't. Next week looks interesting as well. Very relieved to have Who back on track.
@GodofMonkeys: I like it too! I'm going with that. Explains everything.
And yeah, no name! That would be dreadful. Perhaps this is the wrong forum for bringing up a Sex & The City parallel (though it IS fantasy), but the reveal of Big's name was effective only because it was in the last moments of the last episode.
I'm fairly sure RTD didn't rewrite this episode - the writer (James Moran, who also wrote the excellent horror movie SEVERANCE)'s a friend of mine, and I think the only instructions he got were that the ep had to be set in Pompei (to re-use some sets left over from the ROME series) and there had to be an escape pod.
You can ask him though - James has a blog over here
@Ryan H: I don't agree there. Martha was wonderful, but she was very different from Rose and now Donna.
One of the things that makes the show interesting and fresh is that it explores the companion's journey as much as it does the Doctor's, so each different companion brings a new tone to the series as each incarnation of the Doctor does.
@robertmonsters: It doesn't matter. RTD is the showrunner, and sets the tone that he wants. His input was there from the beginning.
What are the chances the Anipose ("weird fat baby things") are going to end up being the new Sontarans?
I could be wrong... just seems like the sort of thing the new team would do to tie it all together.
Eurgh, sorry about the Severance picture there, that was my first comment. Clearly much to learn about Gawker commenting I have.
It does matter whether specific lines, or a whole story strand, was written by James or by RTD. Otherwise all the good stuff gets attributed to the showrunner, with the episode writer getting none of the credit.
But then I'm a scriptwriter too (though not up to James's standard quite yet) and we can get a bit precious about these things...
wow. what a fantastic episode. i haven't been so emotionally moved by an episode since "doomsday." amazing acting by all involved especially tennant and tate of course. some of the dialogue was a bit cheesy and heavy handed (that's the burden of the time lord. how many times have we heard that line by now) but i'm loving how each episode this season seems to be adding to the overall arc of what good is it being a time lord if you can't go back and fix things. the subtext during the tardis scene suggesting the doctor might go back to save the time lords from destruction was fantastic.
@robertmonsters: Not doubting you or anything, but RTD has repeatedly said that he rewrites a lot - only not Steven Moffat's scripts.
" "I'll rewrite 100% if I have to," he said. "With Steven Moffat's scripts, I don't touch a word, but anyone else's I do." "([www.broadcastnow.co.uk])
But yeah, anyways, fabulous episode, congrats to your mate on a job well done, rewrites or no :-)
@robertmonsters: Reuse the sets? I thought they filmed a bunch of this in Rome.
Hmm, according to wikipedia, "Davies encouraged Moran to insert linguistic jokes similar to those in the comic book series Asterix, such as Lucius Petrus Dextrus ("Lucius Stone Right Arm"), TK Maxximus, and Spartacus; the use of the phrase "I'm Spartacus!" refers to the 1960 film.[15][12] Moran based the ancillary characters of Metalla (Tracey Childs) and Quintus from Caecilius' family in the Cambridge Latin Course"
So I think I'm correct (but only just). Justin K. had a good point about tone though, I will conceded, and clearly RTD does do a tonne of rewrites. I just wanted to make sure James got a bit of credit for that specific set of references.
(I haven't asked him about it as he's a bit overwhelmed by all the positive comments - awwwwww).