From Newsgroup: rec.arts.drwho.moderated
From Address: jphalt{at}aol.com
Subject: Re: The Christmas Invasion: my review

THE CHRISTMAS INVASION

1 episodes. Approx. 60 minutes. Written by: Russell T. Davies.
Directed by: James Hawes. Produced by: Phil Collinson.


THE PLOT

The TARDIS comes literally crashing down to Earth in the middle of
Rose's Council Estate, where her mother and boyfriend are startled to
see the doors fling open and a stranger emerge, babble excitedly at
them, and then collapse. They are even more surprised when Rose tells
them that this stranger is the Doctor, having undergone a
transformation.

The Doctor is unconscious, recovering in Jackie's flat. This would be
no particular problem... but as ever, the timing is as bad as could
be. An alien ship is coming to Earth: The Sycorax. And they are using
a blood sample from an unmanned Mars probe to control 1/3 of the
Earth's population. Prime Minister Harriet Jones (Penelope Wilton) is
given an unthinkable ultimatum: Surrender 1/2 of the Earth's
population to slavery, or the blood-controlled third of the populace
will die!


CHARACTERS

The Doctor: David Tennant's debut... sort of. Not counting his one
word intro. at the end of The Parting of the Ways, there was also a
five-minute, one-scene Children in Need special. Given that this one
scene basically acts as a supplement to the ending of Parting of the
Ways, I will save reviewing it until then.

In any event, this is Tennant's first full story... and he spends most
of it unconscious. Which actually works rather well, because it makes
his big entrance at the end hugely dynamic. Up to that point, the
characters are wondering who this new Doctor is... and when he emerges
from the TARDIS, a hyper ball of energy ready for action, it turns out
that he doesn't know who he is yet, either. Tennant is terrific in
these scenes, particularly when he turns from the glib, hyperkenetic
Doctor into somebody suddenly grim and a little ruthless, as in his
elimination of the Sycorax or in his final dealings with Harriet
Jones. A very promising start, that takes limited screentime and turns
it inot a virtue.


Rose: Berates herself as "useless" without the Doctor, but she
actually doesn't do half-badly. Given the resources at her disposal,
her prioritizing getting her people (Mickey and Jackie) to the safety
of the TARDIS is really the only option, and a perfectly sensible one.
Once confronted with the Sycorax directly, she does not dissolve into
panic or hysterics. As she and Mickey are being grabbed, she has the
presence of mind to yell for Mickey to close the TARDIS door, knowing
that it is vital that the Doctor and his time machine don't fall into
their hands. She makes an attempt to deal with the Sycorax, bluffing
by using the names of races she has encountered in her travels with
the Doctor. The attempt fails, and only the Doctor's sudden recovery
saves her, but she does make a valid effort and keeps her head while
doing so. Not a bad showing at all.


Mickey/Jackie: Very much in the background, basically presented as the
"normal people" that Rose feels she has to protect. Jackie gets a nice
character beat, as her shrill comedy overtones drop away briefly for a
well-done scene in which she cares for the unconscious Doctor. Mickey
gets to further realize that Rose has already drifted away from him, a
realization he voices at the end when he says, "You're never going to
stay, are you?" Both actors have long since found their footing in the
roles by this point, and their cartoonish portrayals in Rose are
happily a distant memory now.


THOUGHTS

If Spearhead from Space was the classic series' "second pilot," then
The Christmas Invasion fills the same role for the new series. Many of
the same trapping as Rose are here: the recognizably modern-day
setting, the alien intruding on the mundane world and turning it
upside down, the story seen entirely through the eyes of 21st century
characters (mostly Rose and Harriet).

With Eccleston's rapid departure, care is taken with the introduction
of the new Doctor, and the entire concept of regeneration. Eccleston's
huge popularity in the role (and yes, in 2005 Eccleston was hugely
popular) leaves the production team taking care to overcome audience
resistance to the recasting. Rose dismisses him as not being "the
proper Doctor" just as some members of the audience might. And then,
after a brief action scene near the beginning, the story withholds the
Doctor, allowing the situation to become increasingly dire in his
absence.

By the time he is awake and in charge of his own wits again, beaming
energetically and asking us as much as the characters, "Did you miss
me?" Well, the answer is already a firm "Yes," and that last ten
minutes absolutely belongs to Tennant, with every aspect of the script
and direction designed to make sure he is utterly dominant.

Almost everything about the Sycorax plot works. The gradual build of
the threat, leading up to the moment with people around the world
standing at the edge of rooftops thanks to the Sycorax blood control,
is beautifully executed. The Sycorax craft is itself a superb piece of
design. It's organic, but far from benign. When it enters the
atmosphere, it looms above the London skyline like a malignant tumor.
All of this is wonderfully paced. In contrast to the frenetic rush of
Rose, this is a confidently-directed hour that knows when to let a
moment linger in order to milk some atmosphere. Director James Hawes
deserves particular praise for his tight, controlled helming.

Not everything works, though. Early in the episode, there's a bit
involving evil Santas and a killer Christmas tree. The "pilot fish"
bit. This sequence serves no purpose whatever, is never really linked
to the main plot, and seems to be there just because Russell T. Davies
thought it would be cool, regardless of lack of context. This five
minutes could have been cut from the episode without affecting any of
the rest of the show... and in my opinion, that's exactly what should
have happened.

Finally, no discussion of The Christmas Invasion could be complete
without addressing...


THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

Harriet's decision at the end, and the Doctor's reaction to it. If you
somehow haven't seen the episode yet, and have somehow missed all the
reams of discussion about this ending, then this would be a good place
to stop reading.

I can't help but wonder what alternate reality this show is set in,
wherein Harriet's action against the Sycorax would have destroyed her
political future. Remember the context of the episode. The Sycorax
planted a full third of humanity on rooftops, threatening to make them
jump. This means very, very, very few people in the world would not
have known somebody on one of those rooftops, and many of them would
have directly witnessed the chilling sight of a friend or loved one
suddenly under complete alien control, thrust directly into harm's
way. That's not even addressing the third of the population actually
under that control, or the question of how aware they were of losing
control of their own bodies.

Whether it was right or wrong, Harriet's decision to destroy the
Sycorax ship and all aboard would almost certainly have been a popular
one, rather than one greeted with a response of "Cold-Blooded Murder,"
as one of the news crawls at the bottom of a television screen
declares it to have been. As to the oft-mooted, and honestly
plausible, "get-out" that Harriet was forced out not because of
destroying the Sycorax, but because she went on television talking
about needing the Doctor...

Well, I'd go along with that, if not for the screen crawl on the
television broadcast at the end that clearly describes her action as
leaving "blood on her hands." Again, I'm not saying it wasn't. I am
saying that given that virtually everyone would have directly known
someone under threat by the Sycorax, what she did would almost
certainly have met with widespread popular support, and would only
have been second-guessed much, much later.

(And yes, I'm aware this was meant as a close parallel to the sinking
of the General Belgrano at the start of the Falklands War. To which I
would point out: (a) That incident did not destroy Thatcher's career,
and the subsequent war did quite the opposite; and (b) That incident
did not involve a foe that had directly placed 1/3 of the population
in jeopardy.)

The way the ending plays out also means that the Doctor's furious
response to a possibly misguided, but highly understandable, human
action directly paves the way for the next couple of Prime Ministers
(see The Sound of Drums, Last of the Timelords, and Torchwood:
Children of Earth). But let's not dwell on that point, either...


Rant aside, this is a very strong hour of television. The pacing of
the Sycorax story is tightly controlled and very well-executed, the
acting of the regulars is terrific across the board, and Tennant's
entrance simply could not have been handled better. A minor niggle
about the "pilot fish" moment and some difficulties with the ending
don't really get in the way of this being a very good episode. Easily
the best first story for a new Doctor since Castrovalva, a full
quarter-century earlier.


Rating: 8/10.

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