Gallifrey review: Renaissance introduces Juliet Landau’s Romana

The penultimate episode of the spin-off’s original era, Renaissance features a dark and bleak depiction of an empty Gallifrey. But, more than that, it also introduces a brand new Romana…

Renaissance is quite a major episode from Gallifrey‘s sixth series. Not just for the Doctor Who spin-off, but for Big Finish’s audios in general. Because not only was it the penultimate episode of Gallifrey‘s original era, which was essentially one story told in twenty-four episodes. But Renaissance also introduces “Lady Trey”, aka Romana’s future self.

Juliet Landau’s Romana would later appear in a couple more audios, including a Doctor Who audio and the next series of Gallifrey as the “current” incarnation. While she most likely no longer exists in the timeline (we’ll get to why later on), Landau’s casting was a pretty big deal back in 2013. Especially for Buffy fans.

For those who haven’t seen it, Landau’s arguably most famous to geekdom for her role of Drusilla in the classic hit series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Her performance as the creepy and delightfully insane vampire was always great to watch. Her cockney accent? Maybe not so much. So I was admittedly a little wary of how her Romana would turn out. Especially in the audio medium.

However, I needn’t have worried. Landau’s incarnation of Romana is fantastic. A little more reserved and cautious than her earlier self played by Lalla Ward, she very much stands out on her own terms. And her English accent is absolutely perfect.

Juliet Landau would return as Romana, this time as the “current” incarnation, in Intervention: Earth. But how strong was her introduction in Renaissance?

(Image credit: Gallifrey/Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.

Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)

The Two Romanas

It’s a bold way to introduce a new Romana in essentially a “two Romanas” story. Especially as so much of the appeal of multi-Doctor stories is being familiar with each incarnation already. (Well, with one admittedly very obvious exception, released just a month later.)

But it strangely works. Being introduced to the new Romana this way means that we’re not used to her, and neither are the other characters. We don’t know what she’s really up to, or what her plans are. We’re not even sure how her former self fits into things.

Ward and Landau bounce off each other quite well in this. It’s clear that, even with two versions of the same character in one story, Ward is still the lead in this. But that’s only because of how the story is written and how both Romanas are used in terms of the story. It’s clear that Landau works well in her own way, and as much as I love Ward, it’s a shame that Landau’s Romana had only two more appearances after series six of Gallifrey. (Again, I will get to why at a later point.)

A desolate world

More from Winter is Coming

One more way that Renaissance is a story with a very small cast. In fact, the only guest character in the story is Juliet Landau’s Romana.

Considering this is the story where Romana and her friends reach home, this is a bold move. No politicians to deal with, no enemies to fight. This is another reason why Landau’s Romana works as an almost antagonistic presence within the story. At the very least, she’s someone that none of them can really trust.

But why is Gallifrey so empty? The future Romana claims that it’s a result of all the chaos and destruction that happened on the planet after the events of Panacea. She’s hoping that, with the help of her past self, Gallifrey can be restored to its former glory. But is something else going on?

Renaissance is a dark and bleak story. Which isn’t surprising, considering it was written by James Goss. (Seriously, check out his Torchwood and even Doctor Who audios: the man loves darkness!) It’s also a very different kind of episode for Gallifrey. Dark, but enjoyable and very character driven. And, as fitting for the penultimate episode of the original era, it ends on a huge cliffhanger…

Have you listened to Juliet Landau’s Romana? Do you think she was a good fit for the role? Who else would you like to see play the memorable Time Lady? Let us know in the comments below?