Doctor Who’s first 60th Anniversary special has just aired, and it’s as groundbreaking as ever (Picture: BBC)
Doctor Who is celebrating its 60th Anniversary with a series of special episodes, the first of which – The Star Beast – has just aired.
The story reunited David Tennant and Catherine Tate as the Doctor and Donna Noble, well over a decade since they – as well as Russell T Davies – had departed the show.
And the episode kicked off quickly, the Fourteenth Doctor and Donna instantly slipping back into their hilarious double act; there were plenty of laugh-out-loud moments packed into the hour-long episode.
But there were also some clunky moments. Trying to explain what happened with the Doctor and Donna, and why it matters, in a natural way without it sounding like a recap was always going to be difficult, and it does feel slightly out of place with the pace of the story.
And Rose taking on part of the metacrisis, and her and Donna then being able to simply ‘let it go’, while fun, felt a bit rushed and even anticlimactic.
But there were far, far more positive moments: the villain’s reveal, Miriam Margolyes’ hysterical voice acting, the dynamic between the Doctor, Donna and Sylvia Noble, the genuine sense of fun, energy and adventure throughout.
Yasmin Finney stars s Donna’s daughter, Rose, and her being trans is more than just an inclusion for the sake of it – it’s a major plot point in a hugely positive light (Picture: BBC)
David Tennant is as brilliant to watch as ever as the Time Lord, after you get past the clunkiness of explaining the backstory for new viewers (Picture: BBC)
Watching Yasmin Finney come into her own as Rose Temple Noble, the cryptic tease at the end that RTD does so well, all those little throwbacks and more.
Unfortunately, some people won’t see any of that as they won’t be able to look past the fact that Doctor Who not only has a trans character, but an entire trans storyline – and not even that, but trans joy.
Rose as a character isn’t simply put there to make up a quota, Doctor Who thought her identity is worth celebrating – her being who she is literally saves the world.
You see her father celebrating having the two best girls in the world by his side, her mother fiercely protecting her, her grandmother accidentally getting her pronouns wrong – but she’s trying, and the world doesn’t end and her head isn’t bitten off.
The villain’s reveal was worth waiting for, with Miriam Margolyes smashing her role as a guest star (Picture: BBC)
The first episode is a great indicator of what’s to come (Picture: BBC Studios)
Doctor Who has always had a massive queer fanbase; it has always been progressive, and showrunner Russell already had a quote ready for the people who predictably will have an issue over this.
Speaking at a press event ahead of the episode airing, he said he knew there were some people ‘full of absolute hate, and venom, and destruction and violence who would like to see that sort of thing wiped off the screen entirely.’
And to anyone who held those ideals, he declared: ‘Shame on you and good luck to you in your lonely lives.’
The Star Beast is a good indication of what’s to come from RTD’s return to the helm, and now the backstory is well and truly established, with Donna and The Doctor back in the Tardis, we can be confident it’s only up from here.
Doctor Who returns on Saturday December 2 on BBC and BBC iPlayer
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Russell T Davies didn’t just include a trans character, he celebrated her.