The Runaway Bride was the second Christmas Special since the show returned the previous year. Whereas the previous story was a post-regeneration story, this could actually be a proper adventure. At the end of the previous story, Catherine Tate shocked everyone by just appearing in the TARDIS in a wedding dress. I remember all those years ago waiting for this because a Christmas special was just that…special. There is still a lot of emotional linkage to Rose with the Doctor not having enough time to get over that loss before Donna appears.
The main monster in this are the Racnoss a giant spider (sound familiar?) as played by Sarah Parish. Parish does a good job and the make-up does a fantastic job to create the effect. As the Empress, Parish is almost unrecognisable from what we have seen her in the past (most recently the ITV drama Monroe). Lance is also another good character. Credit to Don Gillat because he does a good job of making us believe that he was a good guy but really he was a baddie. He would go on to be serial killer Lucas Johnson in Eastenders but in this he is another character that is cruel. He is the human minion to the Racnoss, promised the chance to see the stars but in reality we all know the truth. Watching this in 2011, there is a hint of sadness watching Geoff Noble as played by the wonderful Howard Attfield. He was due to appear in the 2008 series but was too ill and his part was re-written for Bernard Cribbins. This remains his only contribution to the series. In this his role is brief and hidden behind Jacqueline King’s performance as Sylvia Noble.
The plan of the Racnoss is to bring them back after they formed the creation of the earth millions of years ago. I quite like the idea that at the centre of the earth is the Racnoss spaceship. The idea that in Inferno they could have unleashed the Racnoss 36 years early. There is a little part of me that actually feels sorry for them but when the Empress refuses the Doctor’s offer then you sort of lose sympathy for her.
The Donna Noble we get in this story is not the same that would return for the 2008 series. In this she was loud and brash and not what a companion should be. Catherine Tate is a very good actress and when she has her 2008 run then you see why she is so good but in this she is slightly too close to irritating but in a post reflective five years down the line look I think that her performance is actually quite good. David Tennant is allowed to be more comedic in this story than he normally is and he seems to enjoy it. I think that there are moments where he is on fine form and his chemistry with Catherine Tate is one of the highlights.
There is a nice link to Torchwood which at this point if memory serves me correctly had just begun on BBC3. This is that H C Clements which Donna works for is owned by Torchwood. There are a couple of things borrowed from ‘The Christmas Invasion’ such as the robot Santa’s as well as the idea that Christmas trees kill. There is also the first link to the story arc for the 2007 series where we hear “Order from Mr Saxon”. I think at this point we already knew (or I did at least) that Mr Saxon was the Master.
The Runaway Bride is a fun adventure that is better than the previous years adventure. I wont say that it’s the best ever because there were some crackers but it’s a story that has a nice mixture of comedy and drama. A lot of people weren’t a fan of Donna because of this story but thankfully when the character returned in 2008, she had been modified. The only thing about these Christmas Specials is to get past the festive part as it’s not terribly effective when your watching them in early April.
The main monster in this are the Racnoss a giant spider (sound familiar?) as played by Sarah Parish. Parish does a good job and the make-up does a fantastic job to create the effect. As the Empress, Parish is almost unrecognisable from what we have seen her in the past (most recently the ITV drama Monroe). Lance is also another good character. Credit to Don Gillat because he does a good job of making us believe that he was a good guy but really he was a baddie. He would go on to be serial killer Lucas Johnson in Eastenders but in this he is another character that is cruel. He is the human minion to the Racnoss, promised the chance to see the stars but in reality we all know the truth. Watching this in 2011, there is a hint of sadness watching Geoff Noble as played by the wonderful Howard Attfield. He was due to appear in the 2008 series but was too ill and his part was re-written for Bernard Cribbins. This remains his only contribution to the series. In this his role is brief and hidden behind Jacqueline King’s performance as Sylvia Noble.
The plan of the Racnoss is to bring them back after they formed the creation of the earth millions of years ago. I quite like the idea that at the centre of the earth is the Racnoss spaceship. The idea that in Inferno they could have unleashed the Racnoss 36 years early. There is a little part of me that actually feels sorry for them but when the Empress refuses the Doctor’s offer then you sort of lose sympathy for her.
The Donna Noble we get in this story is not the same that would return for the 2008 series. In this she was loud and brash and not what a companion should be. Catherine Tate is a very good actress and when she has her 2008 run then you see why she is so good but in this she is slightly too close to irritating but in a post reflective five years down the line look I think that her performance is actually quite good. David Tennant is allowed to be more comedic in this story than he normally is and he seems to enjoy it. I think that there are moments where he is on fine form and his chemistry with Catherine Tate is one of the highlights.
There is a nice link to Torchwood which at this point if memory serves me correctly had just begun on BBC3. This is that H C Clements which Donna works for is owned by Torchwood. There are a couple of things borrowed from ‘The Christmas Invasion’ such as the robot Santa’s as well as the idea that Christmas trees kill. There is also the first link to the story arc for the 2007 series where we hear “Order from Mr Saxon”. I think at this point we already knew (or I did at least) that Mr Saxon was the Master.
The Runaway Bride is a fun adventure that is better than the previous years adventure. I wont say that it’s the best ever because there were some crackers but it’s a story that has a nice mixture of comedy and drama. A lot of people weren’t a fan of Donna because of this story but thankfully when the character returned in 2008, she had been modified. The only thing about these Christmas Specials is to get past the festive part as it’s not terribly effective when your watching them in early April.
No comments:
Post a Comment