Doctor Who review: Donna Noble: Kidnapped! – Spinvasion
By James Aggas
In the second episode of her own Doctor Who audio spin-off, Donna Noble and her friend Nat have to stop an alien invasion! One small problem: they have to deal with the PR team first.
The second episode of Doctor Who audio spin-off Donna Noble: Kidnapped! sees Donna and her companion/best friend Natalie arrive on the planet Valdacki. A planet that has just been invaded! Not that anyone cares, especially when the PR is so good.
As you can probably guess from the title, Spinvasion is an alien invasion story with an interesting twist, and a highly satirical one at that. The invading force makes horrific decisions, committing mass slaughter and forcing the entire population into slave labor. But thanks to a successful PR company – one that isn’t too focused on morality – the entire population believes that the invasion is a good thing for their world.
Like many such stories in the Doctor Who universe, the satire in John Dorney’s story isn’t exactly subtle. To be honest, there are moments when it feels a little too blunt and on-the-nose. But it is an enemy that suits the era it was written for, and it’s definitely an enemy that suits Donna.
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Donna vs PR
Perhaps the best aspect of this episode is how we get to see what happens when Donna really is in charge. She’s stood up to the Doctor in the past, and she’s made it clear when she doesn’t agree with him. But she also knows that he’s used to stopping alien invasions, and she deeply respects that. She knows that, when he isn’t around, the chances of her doing the same aren’t exactly great.
But that doesn’t stop her.
If there’s one thing that Series 4 highlighted, it’s Donna’s strong sense of morality. Whether it was forcing the Doctor to save even just one family in The Fires of Pompeii, or helping to free an entire slave race in Planet of the Ood, Donna has always fought for what’s right.
This is why the enemy she faces in this story is one that suits her. There are no shades of grey in this situation, no sense of moral complexity here. While the people of the planet believe that they’re living in an idyllic existence, it’s very clear that those in charge of PR are a nasty piece of work. As a result, we get a story with Donna at her heroic best.
What Spinvasion lacks in subtlety, it makes up for with its handling of Donna. A light but enjoyable little episode for the series.
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What satirical stories do you enjoy in Doctor Who? Which stories do you think went too far in terms of satire? Let us know in the comments below.