“If you could decide who lives and who dies... that would make you a monster”
The Doctor takes Donna into history for the first time, where she learns that some things are meant to be even when you travel in time, and sometimes because you travel in time.
The Fires of Pompeii very much feels like an old fashioned Who story. You can almost see Hartnell wandering through those markets and Ian arguing with Lucius. There is even a subtle reference to The Romans as the Doctor alludes to his previous visit to Rome, and the fire that followed it
With a script by James Moran, famous word jockey and Scribonaut of this parish and owner of the fingertips behind Severance, you know it’s going to have a lot of humour and so it does. When the full horror of the Doctor’s responsibility and the fate of Pompeii is brought home to us however, events take a turn for the tear jerking.
Donna builds (rebuilds?) upon the good foundations of her returning story as she develops into a sparky companion that really won’t accept any lofty Time Lord pretensions to responsibility on a cosmic scale. People are dying and she wants it stopped, she’s only interested in the human cost and offers our Doctor a more insistent moral compass than he’s had in some time. Perhaps even since the days of his travels with Ian and Barbara.
The prophecies of Pompeii merit a mention. Lucius tells the Doctor that ‘She is returning,’ which must mean Rose mustn’t it? Or is that too obvious? Is there really something to all this talk of the Rani? The granite-armed prophet goes on to tell Donna that she ‘has something on (her) back.’ This is mystifying and somehow terrifying, what could it mean? Actually it did remind me of another old enemy, the Eight Legs – surely The Great One couldn’t be the ‘she’ who is returning?
More references to the past as the Doctor refers to an early adventure and the Shadow Proclamation and The Medusa Cascade are mentioned again. Most chillingly events echo the words of Mr Copper in The Voyage of the Damned (repeated above) when the Doctor does indeed decide that Caecilius and his family will live, while all Pompeii burns. Does that make the Doctor a monster?
The Fires of Pompeii looks spectacular, partly due to the much mentioned filming that took place at the Cinecittà in Italy but also due to the fantastic sets that were erected at Upper Boat. The final moments as Pompeii is washed away by a tide of flame are beautifully cinematic, and gloriously inappropriate. Trust the Doctor to save a family from that terrible fate then make them watch their friends burn. This story is that rarest of things; an instant classic. Every bit as satisfying as I hoped it would be and a sure sign of great times ahead.
It hardly seems like a year has passed but the fourth series of Doctor Who is upon us. There have been concerns, even in these very pages, about the return of Donna Noble to the show after her appearance in The Runaway Bride. Shouting at everyone and repeating 'The wha-?' might pass for comedy on BBC2 on a Thursday night but it doesn't make for a decent Doctor Who companion, especially following the divine Martha Jones (straight into my top 3 with Ian Chesterton and Jamie!). You might have said Catherine Tate had a lot to prove in the series opener. The episode begins with the Doctor and Donna both independently investigating a miracle diet pill. Amusingly they keep just missing each other for the first half of the episode, before coming face to face whilst both not-so-secretly observing the villain deal with a nosey journalist. Their mimed conversation was hilarious, even if it did get them busted. Once reunited Tate and Tennant get to show off the chemistry that they have cultivated together, seemingly on and off set, as the bored temp and the lonely God investigate Adipose industries.
Partners in Crime seems quite an unusual episode in some ways, there is no real global peril, quite a low bodycount (on screen at least), and a markedly different alien creature in the Adipose; cute little fellas with cheeky grins and a snaggle tooth. Even the villain, Miss Foster (played like a malevolent Mary Poppins by Sarah Lancashire) is really only breaking the law alittle bit. She does little worse than tie up a reporter and try to hijack the Doctor's trolley.
Russell T Davies' script teases us with references to the past and glimpses of the future. The Doctor refers to the shadow proclamation, whilst the ghostly figure of Rose Tyler sows a mystery no doubt to be explored through this fourth series. Worse yet the red fingernails of Miss Foster and her sonic device ('identical' to the sonic screwdriver? Really?) remind us of the the end of Last of the Time Lords and the persistent disturbing rumours of the return of the Rani respectively. Surely not even RTD could make that work?
The direction was excellent, James Strong is among the very best of the cadre of directors that Doctor Who repeatedly returns to (and possibly imprisons at Upper Boat), and Murray Gold's score was fresh while referencing his music from The Runaway Bride and, to tremendous effect, Doomsday. The Adipose themselves were well realised whilst their parent spaceship was breathtaking. The return of Bernard Cribbins to Doctor Who should not pass without mention, what a pleasure to have him back even under such sad circumstances.
To add insult to injury indications are that the ratings were stronger than for the last two series openers despite the early time slot. Shut my mouth!
For many fans the greatest fear for this series was whether Donna could work on more than just a comedic level. On the basis of this energetic and entertaining episode those fears were unfounded. In fact the comedic moments that so concerned me turned out to be some of the highlights (the image of the Tenth doctor, laiden down with Donna's luggage is likely to remain a favourite in my memory). Welcome back Donna Noble!
More references to the past next week when it's volcano day, but what does it all mean?
Charlton Heston played so many great and significant parts, in so many important films, yet it is as the last man on Earth, Robert Neville, in The Omega Man that he made the greatest impression on me, waking me to a world of science fiction possibilities as I discovered the Post-Apocalyptic sub genre.
The expression 'Larger than life' is bandied about a fair bit but was probably first coined by someone just after meeting Heston. It's partly about the roles he played in such excellent films as Ben Hur, El Cid, Planet of the Apes, Soylent Green, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Ten Commandments, Earthquake, The Three Musketeers, Touch of Evil, The Awakening and his splendid, if unlikely, turn as Sherlock Holmes in Crucible of Blood. He was a fearless actor and to a young boy discovering cinema in the 1980's he seemed to loiter in every section of the video shop whispering 'psst, check out these Biblical Epics, hey - try these disaster movies.'
In recent years he's been a figure of some fun for his time as President and spokesman of the NRA (particular after 'film-maker' Michael Moore's 'documentary' Bowling for Columbine) but some mockers tend to forget that Heston has never been afraid to stand up for what he believes in, whether it was marching with Martin Luther King, supporting 1968's Gun control Act, or opposing McCarthyism.
We moved out of our house in Worcester last Thursday and are now staying with my endlessly obliging in-laws until we are able to move into our new home in Sedgley. Assuming, that is, that we are able to move in there. The last few days have seen a flurry of calls from my solicitor as we go into 'mad panic' mode and attempt to exchange.
Should there be no further contretemps we should exchange on Monday and complete in just two weeks.
If anyone was in any doubt I can confirm that buying a house is not the sort of thing I was put upon the earth to do. When I was created I'm sure the Flying Spaghetti Monster was thinking more about who was going to listen to beautiful music, read books, smell flowers and think pretty thoughts, than who would take care of buying houses, using urinals, queueing at Tesco's and breaking down on the M5. It's one of those things that reduces you back to how you felt in school when you realised that you just weren't like everyone else. If you're me, which you are probably not.
Sedgley promises to be a lovely home. Set on high ground, for the Midlands at least, it's prone to fog and to snow. Being situated next to some woods and fields should ensure a plentiful supply of both in addition to great opportunities for walks and photos.There are also a number of small villages nearby ready to be explored and pub lunched, and Wolverhampton just down the road for all city needs (special mention for the splendid Forbidden Planet).
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There is no writing going on. I'm sure that some writers can thrive in writing during stressful periods but not me, as soon as I try and focus on any scripts or short story ideas my mind turns back to the labyrinthine business of completing this house purchase.
I have not been idle however, as I have been reading a great deal of Neil Gaiman. Currently I'm roaring through Under the Eagle by Simon Scarrow, very exciting stuff that makes you wish you were serving in the Roman army two thousand years ago. Perhaps even more so when you're living in a relatives spare room.
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Television wise I'm enjoying The Fixer (a sort of 21st century take on The Professionals), Torchwood (let's hear it for Upper Boat. Still not to be taken too seriously, still sometimes more concerned with style than content but bloody great fun and a massive improvement on the patchy first series), He Kills Coppers (lush 1960's cops & gangsters with the excellent Rafe Spall), and the second series of Gavin & Stacey.
I also finally saw Beowulf which I loved, now why don't they use the same techniques to make a Sláine film?
I regret that I didn't enjoying Ashes to Ashes which I stopped watching two episodes before the end. After weeks of saying 'Am I mad, in a coma, or watching Ashes to Ashes' over the tedious intro. It's a heart breaker because I expected, and wanted to love the show having been a huge fan of Life on Mars. The fact is that if there was a vehicle for the continuing adventures of Gene Hunt Ashes to Ashes was not it. The moment may now have passed.
The Fires of Pompeii very much feels like an old fashioned Who story. You can almost see Hartnell wandering through those markets and Ian arguing with Lucius. There is even a subtle reference to The Romans as the Doctor alludes to his previous visit to Rome, and the fire that followed it
The prophecies of Pompeii merit a mention. Lucius tells the Doctor that ‘She is returning,’ which must mean Rose mustn’t it? Or is that too obvious? Is there really something to all this talk of the Rani? The granite-armed prophet goes on to tell Donna that she ‘has something on (her) back.’ This is mystifying and somehow terrifying, what could it mean? Actually it did remind me of another old enemy, the Eight Legs – surely The Great One couldn’t be the ‘she’ who is returning?
The Fires of Pompeii looks spectacular, partly due to the much mentioned filming that took place at the Cinecittà in Italy but also due to the fantastic sets that were erected at Upper Boat. The final moments as Pompeii is washed away by a tide of flame are beautifully cinematic, and gloriously inappropriate. Trust the Doctor to save a family from that terrible fate then make them watch their friends burn. This story is that rarest of things; an instant classic. Every bit as satisfying as I hoped it would be and a sure sign of great times ahead.
