With strong themes, excellent performances, and great villains, Human Nature is still one of the very best Doctor Who stories of the New Series.
We’ve read the novel. We’ve listened to the sequel. Now, after watching it once more, does the TV adaptation of Human Nature still hold up as a strong Doctor Who story?
Absolutely. There’s still a great deal to enjoy with this fantastic Tenth Doctor two-parter. Not just for what it retains from the original novel – including a deep exploration of war, particularly the boys who died far too young in the First World War – but also what it adds, too. It’s one of the best examples of how to adapt a great novel into visual form.
The first thing that leaps out upon re-watch? Martha. This is easily – easily – one of Martha’s best stories, because it’s Martha at her very best. She’s thrown into the deep end in this one. Not only is the Doctor essentially gone, but she has to look after his human counterpart, John Smith. Worse, she has to do it in an age that is constantly and openly patronizing towards her, not just because of her gender, but even more so because of her race. She has about one friend during this time period, so of course, it’s not long before said friend is essentially murdered.
And yet Martha does her best. Which, in the situation she’s in, is extraordinary. While she’s not as good at fighting monsters as the Doctor is, she is great at handling a tricky situation and making all the best decisions. Bernice was brilliant in the novel (of course she was – she’s Bernice), but Martha really shines in the TV adaptation.
Human Nature features Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) at her very best.
Image Courtesy Adrian Rogers/BBC AMERICA
Stand out villains
It’s not just Martha’s who’s brilliant though. The Family of Blood also stands out as one of the vilest groups of villains of the New Series. Sadistic and utterly ruthless, they’re true monsters that you just love to hate, which makes their ending so satisfying to watch.
A key reason why they worked so well is, along with being well-written and having a simple yet clear identity, we’ve also got some strong performances from the cast. Harry Lloyd is great as Son of Mine, and it’s easy to see why he was cast as the blond one in Game of Thrones just a couple of years later. Rebekah Staton is also fantastic in the dual role of the rather lovely maid Jenny before playing the ruthless Mother of Mine.
In fact, much of the supporting cast is great. Thomas Brodie-Sangster (who viewers may recognize as Sam from Love Actually, or that character in Game of Thrones) is perfectly cast as Tim, a bullied student who finds himself somehow at the center of events. Pip Torrens is also great to watch as Rocastle, giving the schoolmaster exactly the right mix of authority and honor that the character requires.
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David Tennant is NOT the Doctor
But of course, the best performance of the story goes to David Tennant. Not as the Doctor, not this time, but as “John Smith”. He helps to create this brilliantly three-dimensional character, one who’s entirely separate from the Doctor and very much of the period. He’s flawed and certainly not a savior of worlds, but he’s also extremely caring, too.
His performance is at his very best in the second part of the story, The Family of Blood. Because that’s when John Smith is forced to face who he truly is, and how much he must sacrifice to save everyone. We see him wrestling with this huge decision: sacrifice everything that he is, everything that has made him human, or let countless people die. Tennant really gets to show off just why he’s one of the UK’s best actors in this one, giving us a phenomenal performance as a result.
Overall, Human Nature doesn’t just stand out as one of the best stories of the Tenth Doctor’s era. It stands out as one of the very best stories of the whole of the New Series. A wonderful two-part story that’s still fantastic to watch.
Are you a fan of Human Nature? Is it one of your favorite stories starring David Tennant? Could you tell that I hadn’t watched much of Game of Thrones? Let us know in the comments below.
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