Partners in Crime

I have a lot of love and affection for Partners in Crime, but recognize that rests almost entirely on the charisma and chemisty of Tennant and Tate. Their scenes leading up to and including their reunion are some of 10's best, in my opinion. It is so easy to remember and focus on these scenes and this aspect of the episode that it is easy to forget this is also the episode with the Adipose.

I don't know what this episode was trying to say about weight or weight loss, but it can't be healthy. It sours the effects, score, and features a lot of rough performances along the way. It's still an essential start to one of the best runs of Doctor Who episodes, and I have a ton of happy memories around the start of the Doctor and Donna, but yeah, I can't pretend these flaws aren't there, either.

Series 4; Episode 1:
--- "Partners in Crime" by Russell T. Davies

Series Four, by far and away, is my favourite series of Doctor Who. The second half of this series (Unicorn and the Wasp - Journey's End) is what I genuinely consider to be my favourite run of TV ever, episodes only ever going down to an 8/10. That being said, the first half does tend to stumble in places and Partners in Crime, upon rewatch, is certainly that. A cartoonish episode that, whilst fun and blisteringly fast, feels like a parody of itself at times with corny set pieces and dialogue. But, of course, we also have the best pair to ever step foot inside the TARDIS: Ten and Donna, and also Wilf is there, making this episode not terrible by any stretch of the imagination.

Donna Noble, searching for the Doctor following the end of her wedding day escapade with him, winds up investigating the enigmatic diet pill company Adipose Industries, where the Doctor himself just so happens to be skulking around. However, just as they find each other, Britain must prepare for one million birthdays.

(CONTAINS SPOILERS)

For the most part, this episode is carried by its titular partners in crime, Ten and Donna, the latter of whom goes from being the grating and annoying one off companion to my favourite companion of the revival in the span of about five minutes. Watching these two dart around each other and eventually with each other is an absolute joy to watch and the performances of Tennant and Tate is as always both entertaining and massively captivating. What companions do post-Doctor has always been an idea that fascinates me so seeing how Donna began obsessing over the Doctor, always regretting turning down his offer of time travel, was a great character trait and watching her finally get that second invitation was a euphoric experience. It's really a testament to these two actors that even in a scene where you can hear neither of them, they're the loudest people in the room. Apart from these two, this episode faulters in nearly every way, which I'll get onto but first I will mention the one other positive, the big one. This episode properly introduces Wilf, who is the best character to ever exist in any piece of media.

Onto the bad, I mentioned in my opening paragraph that this episode often feels like a parody of itself and whilst, yes that is a rather harsh critique, it so often slips into slapstick that I can't take it seriously. I absolutely adored this episode when I was younger but the more I go back to it, the more I just can't enjoy myself watching. Yes Doctor Who is an all ages show and this episode clearly wasn't written to be taken seriously but it feels so much like a pantomime, even in places I'm sure it was not trying to be. People severely underreacting to getting dissolved into fat babies, the comically acted and directed climax where actors wriggle about on the floor for five minutes to an overly dramatic Murray Gold score, and Ms Foster, who is a comedy villain that seems to go through a checklist of evil boss stereotypes and then proceeds to be melodramatic. I also noticed that this episode tends to be really weirdly shot, with so many out of place close-ups during dialogue and honestly abysmal lighting at times.

Overall, whilst Ten and Donna are introduced as the greatest duo ever, this episode is a painfully unfunny cartoon that keeps tripping over itself.

5/10

Pros:
+ Ten and Donna are a joy to watch, as they will be throughout the whole series
+ Pretty fun accidental-cat-and-mouse dynamic for the first half of the episode
+ Surprisingly good VFX at times with set pieces like the adipose ship and window cleaning cradle action scene
+ Good emotional backbone with Donna's regret of not going with the Doctor
+ Donna's theme is a perfect encapsulation of her character, whilst Martha and Rose both had ethereal, melodic theme tunes, Donna's is just a lift jingle and I find that hilarious and incredibly fitting
+ Wilf

Cons:
- Episode is a cartoon and in the worst way possible
- Genuinely embarrassing villain
- Scenes that constantly feel like self-parody
- Every single character seems to be making fun of themselves
- A "dramatic" climax that comes off as a joke that doesn't land
- An ending comprised mostly of button pressing and a Looney Tunes joke

This is easily the best revived series opener so far which is down to the unmatched chemistry between David Tennant and Catherine Tate, and an excellent script that delivers a stunning one off monster.

Russell lives and breathes characters. Watching him carve the new Donna out of the raw materials of the old Donna is a character development masterclass. He moulds her into a compelling continuing character, rather than an entertaining one off. And because she hasn’t had the typical companion journey it’s a much richer characterisation then you’d usually get at this point.

The broad comedy works because everyone plays it for real. Tate is an experienced comic so has a well honed instinct on how to play these scenes, knowing exactly what makes them funny.

Even the adult Adipose in this story are not proper villains. Their scheme, if delivered with consent, would be a win-win for all involved. Low stakes comedy Doctor Who is exactly what you want at this end of the series. The baby Adipose is a truly iconic, beautiful and well realised design. I hope they return in some form or another one day. How is this the same design team that brought us The Lazarus Experiment?

I can’t wait to see more of series 4!