Doctor Who- The Fires of Pompeii
Obviously, as only the second episode of the new series 4, I’ve been excited about this episode since seeing the trailer at the end of Partners in Crime.
Well, quite simply, all those naysayers that complained about Catherine Tate and the return of Donna Noble can shut up. They can just shut up.
Follow after the break for more generalisations…
Pompeii features in this episode as you would expect, and its the day before volcano day. The Doctor and Donna are investigating some particularly on-target soothsayers who in a very cool scene manage to reveal to the Doctor that they know everything about him. Turns out, the soothsayers are sucking in some steam from the volcano which is turning them all slowly to stone. Cue some very cool CG for the villain of the piece, the Pyrovile. It was kind of like a Transformer. On fire.
Basically, the Pyrovile are using the power of Vesuvius to power their effort to turn planet Earth into Pyrovile(s?) too. The Doctor has a choice to make; allow them to destroy the Earth or cause Vesuvius to blow, killing everyone in Pompeii. There are some truly choking scenes where Donna argues with the Doctor about his choice to leave everyone to die, and when she convinces him to save one family, I made a strange squeaking sound I’ve never made before.
So, Catherine Tate? Wonderful. She’s funny, she’s sensitive, her morals are strong and she’s not in love with the Doctor. But I’m in love with her. God bless Donna Noble.
