The second Christmas special of the "Nu Who" era again works as a transitional episode, this time with companions though, rather than the Doctor himself.
Bereft from the loss of Rose, the Doctor (David Tennant) is baffled to find a woman in a wedding dress stood in the Tardis. Pulled away whilst walking down the aisle, Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) is equally lost and terrified to arrive in the Tardis. Whilst returning Donna to her wedding, the pair are attacked by robotic Santa's, but as last year, they are an exploratory force for a conniving evil, one whose plan has been billions of years in the making.
There's lots I don't like about this episode. Principally, I don't like Donna. I wasn't much of a fan of Catherine Tate's comedy at the time (though I did like some of her later acting roles) and her shouting here wore me down pretty quickly. I think I did warm to Donna during her season as the companion though. I didn't like the villain, or more specifically her plan, which makes no sense when you consider the plan B that she uses. I particularly don't like the idea of the Tardis actively travelling, rather than just materialising somewhere instantly. I understand it's needed for the plot of the episode, but it rather undermines the way the show works.
Overall though, despite those aspects I didn't like, it's not that bad. It's a knockabout episode with a bit of action, a few laughs, a decent character twist and an early reference to "Saxon" that would be a season three runner. The Doctor starts to work through the loss of Rose, which again would be a runner in the season to come.
Bereft from the loss of Rose, the Doctor (David Tennant) is baffled to find a woman in a wedding dress stood in the Tardis. Pulled away whilst walking down the aisle, Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) is equally lost and terrified to arrive in the Tardis. Whilst returning Donna to her wedding, the pair are attacked by robotic Santa's, but as last year, they are an exploratory force for a conniving evil, one whose plan has been billions of years in the making.
There's lots I don't like about this episode. Principally, I don't like Donna. I wasn't much of a fan of Catherine Tate's comedy at the time (though I did like some of her later acting roles) and her shouting here wore me down pretty quickly. I think I did warm to Donna during her season as the companion though. I didn't like the villain, or more specifically her plan, which makes no sense when you consider the plan B that she uses. I particularly don't like the idea of the Tardis actively travelling, rather than just materialising somewhere instantly. I understand it's needed for the plot of the episode, but it rather undermines the way the show works.
Overall though, despite those aspects I didn't like, it's not that bad. It's a knockabout episode with a bit of action, a few laughs, a decent character twist and an early reference to "Saxon" that would be a season three runner. The Doctor starts to work through the loss of Rose, which again would be a runner in the season to come.