 The opening sequence, as well as David Tennant and Catherine Tate, includes Billie Piper - acknowledging her return to the show as companion Rose Tyler
The pre-opening credit sequence is over 5 minutes long - the longest that there has been to date.
This story marks the full return of former companion Rose Tyler, played by Billie Piper, following brief non-speaking appearances in "Partners in Crime", "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky" and "Midnight". It also features the return of UNIT, last seen in "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky".
Clive Standen reprises the role of Private Harris (credited in this story as "UNIT Soldier") from "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky". Here he is shown to have been in attendance during the Webstar crisis.
Ben Righton reprises the role of Oliver Morgenstern from "Smith and Jones", in this story the only survivor when the hospital is returned to Earth, Martha Jones having given him the last oxygen pack.
Lachele Carl returns as American newsreader Trinity Wells, who previously appeared in the Doctor Who stories "Aliens of London/World War Three", "The Christmas Invasion", "The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords" and "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky", in addition to The Sarah Jane Adventures story "Revenge of the Slitheen".
Chipo Chung, who plays the fortune-teller, previously appeared as Professor Yana's faithful assistant, Chantho in the story "Utopia".
Joseph Long, who plays Mr Colasanto, also appears as Luigi in BBC drama series Ashes to Ashes.
Within this story we get to see, from Donna Noble's perspective in the alternative world, events of most of the present-day stories since Donna first met The Doctor, including "The Runaway Bride", "Smith and Jones", "Voyage of the Damned", "Partners in Crime" and "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky". All these alternative events end in tragedy because The Doctor wasn't there to stop them, which includes the deaths of Martha Jones, Sarah Jane Smith and, from the spin-off series Torchwood, Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones, as well as the transportation of Captain Jack Harkness to the Sontaran's home world, Sontar. Clips from "The Runaway Bride" are also reused during this story.
Torchwood characters Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones are mentioned by name for the first time in Doctor Who, while a short segment of music from the soundtrack of Torchwood plays in the background. Sarah Jane Smith is mentioned for the first time since "The Girl in the Fireplace", along with the first mentions of The Sarah Jane Adventures characters Luke Smith, Clyde Langer, and Maria Jackson who are members of The Bannerman Road Gang.
Sarah Jane Smith is said to write for Metropolitan magazine as previously mentioned in "The Time Warrior". Rose mentions a ‘causal nexus’, a phrase previously heard in "Logopolis". The events of "The Runaway Bride", "Voyage of the Damned", "Partners in Crime" and "Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead" are referred to when The Doctor is pondering the coincidences linking him and Donna.
Sylvia Noble mentions that the bees are disappearing, which has been mentioned by Donna in "Partners in Crime", "Planet of the Ood" and "The Unicorn and the Wasp".
Donna's father, who appeared in "The Runaway Bride", is mentioned for the first time since "Partners in Crime". It is implied that he was ill during the timescale of "Smith and Jones", and that he died by the time of "Voyage of the Damned". His character was intended to be used in place of Wilfred Mott, but had to be retired after actor Howard Attfield died before all his scenes for this season were finished.
The 'Time Beetle' on Donna's back is mentioned by The Doctor to be part of "the Trickster's brigade". The Trickster was a time-altering villain in The Sarah Jane Adventures story "Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?". The beetle on her back was also referenced by Lucius Dextrous in "The Fires of Pompeii", with the line 'Daughter of London, there is something on your back! '. The appearance of the Giant Spider of Metebelis 3 that clung to Sarah Jane Smith's back in "Planet of the Spiders" influenced the design and concept of the 'Time Beetle' that clings to Donna's back in this story.
As this story was filmed at the same time as "Midnight", we do not see much of The Doctor, while in "Midnight" Donna had very little screen-time.
The Doctor has 'died' once before - in the 1996 television movie "Doctor Who: The Movie". Normally, regeneration is instantaneous, but there was a gap of several hours between the Seventh Doctor's demise on the operating table and his rebirth in the morgue.
A circle of mirrors was used to expose another parasitic menace in 1982's "Kinda" - in that story, the manifestation of the Mara as a giant snake.
The recurring 'Bad Wolf' motif, primarily from Season Twenty Seven (New Series 1), returns at the conclusion of this story to warn The Doctor of the events that are causing Rose to return. The TARDIS's Cloister Bell, last used in "Time Crash", can also be heard.
The end of this story contains a trailer or the first episode of the next story "The Stolen Earth/Journey's End".
Following on immediately after this story, on BBC3, was the eleventh chapter of the fourth series of Doctor Who Confidential, "Here Come The Girls" presented by Anthony Head.
| |
|
The Firsts:
The first time, in the revived television series, that a companion has an adventure without The Doctor.
Billie Piper's first full story in the show, as companion Rose Tyler, since she left at the end of Army of Ghosts/Doomsday.
The first mention in Doctor Who of Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones (from the spin-off series Torchwood).
The first mention of former companion Sarah Jane Smith, since "The Girl in the Fireplace", along with the first mentions of The Sarah Jane Adventures characters Luke Smith, Clyde Langer, and Maria Jackson.
The first time that the pre-opening credit sequence is over 5 minutes long.
The first time, since "Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways", that the recurring 'Bad Wolf' motif, from Season Twenty Seven (New Series 1), makes a return.
The first time, in the revived television series, that the TARDIS's Cloister Bell can be heard.
|
|
(Position = 2 out of 11)
(Position = 12 out of 200)
