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Doctor Who (2005)

Partners in Crime

Season 4, Episode 1, Aired 4/5/08

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Episode Summary

Location: London
Date: 2009
Enemies: Adipose, Miss Foster

A woman named Donna Noble searches for an old friend - the Doctor. Can Donna and the Doctor halt the mysterious Ms. Foster and her mysterious plan?

In Memory of Howard Attfield, 1947-2007

8.5

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Cast & Crew

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Catherine Tate

Donna Noble
David Tennant

The Tenth Doctor
Bernard Cribbins

Wilfred Mott

Fan Episode Reviews (40)

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If you would have told me I would like Donna Noble a year ago I would have laughed my heart out!

10

"Perfect"

By Nightrider09, Sep 23, 2011 Report Abuse

Cathrine Tate returns as Donna Noble The Doctors newest companion, well technically not new but you get the idea.
I'm sure many of you rember Donna's debut in "Runaway Bride", she was the bride that complained about everything and was yapping (much like the doctor). The episode itself is a chrismas special and is comic relif for doctor who fans after the season 2 finale in which Rose and the Doctor were seperated.That mad me sad but this made up for it as one of the funniest Doc who episodes ever!(I'm speacking about Runaway bride)
Back to this episode, after a year since Donna last meet the Doctor and turned him down on the offer to travel with him, Donna now regrets it and is searching for the Doctor hopeing for a second invintation. The best way to find to Doctor is to find wired trouble, after many try's she finally finds a big one that leads her to the doctor.A crazy alien woman named Miss. Foster uses slim pills for a weired baby alien project. As she is bousting her evil plan to a captive reporter the Doctor and Donna meet face to face agin throw windows of the room Miss Foster is in (the Doctor on the outside and Donna on the inside). The two have a funny conversation as they read eachothers lips throw the windows, and then they are discovered. Long story short the two save the day and Miss Foster gets killed of her own undoing and Donna joins the Doctor on his travels.
I got to say the 'Doctor who' show really makes you start likeing character you normally wouldn't.
Great episode and great way to start a season, it will be interesting to see how things will develop as this is the first time the Doctor has had an partner who talks back to him and enjoys slapping him!moreless

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0 0
Cartoonish

8.0

"Great"

By eva1307, Sep 09, 2011 Report Abuse

It is good to see the Doctor team up with another mate, but the whole thing seemed a little bit mild and soft. First of all, there was never a real sense of danger. It was hinted that a million people might die, but it did not feel possible. And of course, who could ever believe that those adorable little Adipose creature were really harmful? They were probably the cutest villains in Doctor Who.

Another episode, which made this episode feel out of place, was the nanny defying the laws of gravity. It can only be seen in cartoons and they should never do it again.

However, it is good to see that Donna is not as irritating as in 'The Runaway Bride' and that she can also deliver a few hilarious lines. Also, seeing Rose at the end of the episode was ominous and I will certainly be more interested to find out what has happened to her.moreless

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4 1
Another weak Russell T Davies Script

5.7

"Mediocre"

By inakaguy, Sep 09, 2011 Report Abuse

Davies has consistently showed himself to be one of the weakest writers for the new show, his scripts alternating between plain slapstick and mawkish sentimentality.

This one is no exception. Once again we are treated to an entirely unconvincing CGI alien, except rather than comedy he seems to have gone for the cute factor here. One of the things that he needs to realise is that he is nowhere near as clever as he thinks he is. Calling the fat aliens adipose (for those of you who are unaware, adipose tissue is where the fat cells are stored in the body) probably seemed very clever at the time, but it's not. It's trite and makes about as much sense as Star Trek having 2 races called Romulons and Remans.

I know this makes me sound pedantic, but the best humour from Dr Who should come from character interaction, not goofiness or word play. Davies should watch City of Death if he wants to see how real Dr Who comedy works.

Otherwise, Donna was not quite as horrible as I feared she would be. Hopefully she will be a bit more subdued in future episodes, and less like her character in The Bride. One caveat though, I think we've seen enough drama with the families of the Doctor's companions. When this was first introduced with Billy Piper, I welcomed it as a new direction. However, basically the same drama was played out with Martha and we see the beginnings of it here with Donna as well.

The rest of the episode was pretty uninteresting. There was no sense that the Doctor or Donna were ever in danger. The slapstick scenes of the Doctor and Donna missing each other over and over have been played a million times in a million different comedies.

Overall, pretty porr writing and a poor start to the season, but that's nothing new. Hopefully this season will see more of Steven Moffat less of Russel T Davies.moreless

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1 6
What is this? Doctor Who is way better than this episode!

6.9

"Fair"

By woodpigeon66, Nov 11, 2010 Report Abuse

Terrible episode - no real storyline and the only good bit was the appearance of Rose near the end. It added some REAL drama to the episode we had been waiting for for a year. And that was it on the interesting front. Noramlly Doctor Who owns, but this was wierdly and uncharacteristically bad. I mean, just look at the "storyline": Doctor meets up with Donna (fine), deranged nanny helps to transform Earth into a clone planet (at this point we start thinking "huh?") and then it gets much worse because random little baby globs of fat forming out of obese humans swarm all over the planet. At this point we realise exactly how drunk or otherwise insane the writer must have been while arranging this episode.moreless

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1 4
Lacklustre for a first episode

7.4

"Good"

By AvatarBlue, May 23, 2010 Report Abuse

*SPOILER*
A fairly typical storyline makes this a bad start - but its what I was expecting. There was absolutely no threat hanging over anyone or anything in this episode - people taking the pill aside.

There should have been and this is what happens when you dumb it down for children - it become comedesque!

Tate is just not a Dr companion. Her role stinks of some executive trying to band up viewing figures but adding an established favourite into the cast! For me it doesnt work, and we shall see if Im right!

The only real exciting point of this entire episode is the very brief glimpse we get of Rose Tyler (aka Billie Piper). Hope she makes a return later on.

Overall not impressed. I ciould put all my dislikes aside of how this show has gone if they could only return to more adult themed storylines and plotlines - esp. w/o the campness and crassness in early Torchwood!

Oh well, its going down the toilet!moreless

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0 4

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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Trivia
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- In the past, Donna displayed utter obliviousness to signs of alien life, missing the previous Christmas events and a number of other things she might have encountered. Donna mentions that The Doctor opened her eyes, and, while looking for him, she kept seeing possible signs of alien life, reeling off a host of arbitrary events like the disappearance of bees. Then she mentions the last big, public display of alien life, the Starliner Titanic nearly crashing into Buckingham Palace (referring to events in Voyage Of The Damned). This she chalks up as an obvious hoax. Edit
- When the taxi turns up to pick up Stacy Campbell, you can see a sticker in the front window featuring the ATMOS logo. ATMOS is the name of the emissions control system used by the Sontarans in the upcoming episodes The Sontaran Stratagem and The Poison Sky. Edit
- Miss Foster mentions the 'Shadow Proclamation'. This has been previously referred to in Rose (when the Doctor asks to speak to the Nestene Consciousness), The Christmas Invasion (when Rose tries to get rid of the Sycorax) and in Fear Her (the Doctor invokes it whilst speaking to the Isolus). Edit
Notes
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- In The Mighty 200 poll conducted by Doctor Who Magazine, this is the readers 98th favourite story. Edit
- Overnight UK viewing figures for this episode were 8.4 million, with the final viewing figure at 9.14 million. Edit
- International Airdates: United States: 25 April 2008 Australia: 6 July 2008 Canada: 19 September 2008 Turkey: 9 February 2011 Edit
Quotes
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- Penny Carter: (still tied to a chair, to The Doctor and Donna) Oi! You two, you're just mad! Do you hear me? Mad! And I'm going to report you, for... madness!! (storms off, still tied to the chair) Donna: Some people just can't take it... and some people can! Edit
- Doctor: Now, wait, wait, wait, let me ask. Do you know what happens when you put two sonic devices up against each other? Miss Foster: No. Doctor: Nor me! Let's find out! Edit
- The Doctor: I saw the message! The Adiposians know that breeding on Earth is illegal! Which means they have to get rid of their accomplices! Miss Foster: I'm much more than that, Doctor - I'm their nanny! The Doctor: Exactly! Mum and Dad have got the kids, they don't need the nanny anymore! (Miss Foster stares just before her tractor beam shuts off and she falls to the ground) Edit
Allusions
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- The Doctor: Seeding a Level Five planet is against galactic law. The designation of Earth as level five was first made by Romana, although she called it a Level Five Civilization, in the Fourth Doctor (17th series) episode 'City of Death'. The term was subsequently used in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode 'Revenge of the Slitheen' and then again by Captain Hardaker in the 2007 Christmas Special, 'Voyage of the Damned'. Edit
- Roger Davey: (about the burglar alarm) I've had experts in, I've had it replaced, I've even phoned Watchdog. Watchdog is a consumer rights show broadcast on the BBC which investigates viewers' reports of problematic experiences with traders, retailers, and other companies around the UK. It has previously been hosted by Nick Ross, Anne Robinson and Nicky Campbell. Edit
- The Doctor: No, I've met cat people; you're nothing like them. The Doctor is referring to his interactions with both the Sisters of Plenitude and Thomas Kincade Brannigan on New Earth, and possibly the Cheetah People from the Seventh Doctor story (26th series) 'Survival'. Edit