World Famous Comics: Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead
Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead
Starring: David Tennant, Michelle Ryan Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD Feature: DOCTOR WHO: PLANET OF THE DEAD 2009 (DVD MOVIE) Format: Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC Number of Items: 1 Region Code: 1 Release Date: July 28, 2009 Running Time: 60 minutes Studio: BBC Warner Theatrical Release Date: 2009
Product Description: Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 07/28/2009 Run time: 60 minutes
Amazon.com: David Tennant began his victory lap as the Tenth Doctor with this engaging special episode of Doctor Who, one of four from 2009 that brought his tenure as the Time Lord to a close, and the first to be shot in HD. Tennant's palpable energy and quirky charm are the engines that drive Planet of the Dead, and he's well-matched by Michelle (Bionic Woman) Ryan as his one-off companion, Lady Christina de Souza. The lady's chosen profession--jewel thief--launches the story when she attempts to evade the police on a tour bus occupied by the Doctor. As things of this nature often go in Doctor Who, the bus slips through a wormhole in time and space and winds up on the desert planet San Helios, which harbors both the industrious, fly-headed Tritovores and a species of stingray-like creatures with voracious appetites. The script by Russell T. Davies and Gareth Roberts (the first shared writing credit since Davies revived the series in 2005) makes fun references to all manner of desert-bound cinematic adventures, from Flight of the Phoenix to Pitch Black, and if there are a few too many well-worn moments to rank it among the best Tennant episodes (the psychic bus passenger is a bit convenient), the chemistry between Tennant and Ryan, as well as fine support by comic Lee Evans and Noma Dumezweni (returning as UNIT Captain Erisa Magambo from the Rose Tyler era) and the striking Dubai locations, should keep most Who fans entertained. The sole extra is an hour-long episode of Doctor Who Confidential that covers the special episode’s production and location filming. --Paul Gaita
planet of the dreadful ^ This "special" has not one bit of the elements that make the best of recent DOCTOR WHO fresh and exciting. Forced attempts at drama and humor. A forced excuse for another kiss. Embarassingly derivative cgi aliens. Writing which once again seeks to tell the viewer to like a new character or to think that said character makes a great partner for the Doctor. Even David Tennant seems to just walk through his part this one. Eye-rollingly convenient plot devices and distasteful glossing-over of gruesome deaths. Yuck. This is "new Who" at it's worst; it's smug. And then you've got the portents of things to come delivered by the working class psychic woman. The Doctor uncharacteristically takes this to heart only because it serves to set up the remaining three specials of his tenure. I enjoy David Tennant but I feel he is sorely over-estimated as a dramatic actor. A froggy grimace and some moist eyes does not a heart-rending scene make. If you want to remember David's Doctor at his exhilirating best, displaying his range of strengths, pick up THE WEDDING OF SARAH JANE SMITH instead.
doctor who ^ Sad coming to the end of a series. Product arrived early with no problems.
Fun Adventure near the end of Tennant's Run ^ This is the fourth from the last episode with David Tennant as Dr. Who, and it is more lighthearted and fun than the three which follow. There's great chemistry between Michelle Ryan and David Tennant, she'd make a great ongoing companion for him. Hope to see more adventures with her in them in the future.
ticket to ride? not on this bus thank you. ^ When the Doctor hijacks other peoples transport trips they never seem to go well for the other tourists. Like he did in the episode Midnight. Countless other episodes show how he just manages to get other people killed without giving it much thought that maybe this would not have happened had he not been there. Nurse Redfern goes so far as to ask him if he had chosen another place to take his stand against the family of blood then would any of those people had to have died. That made the Doctor stop and think. Well, he never seems to remember the error of his ways for very long and this episode is another example of the Doctor getting other people in hot water. Whether the bus would have gone into the hole by itself might be debatable, but I suppose it was going to. Even so, he is at it again. This time, it is another casual partnership he has instead of having to invest in a permanent companion. The Duchess stands her own with him and goes caving before he can remove his coat. She proves to be as careless and nonchalant as he is. At least this episode did not have a dumb giant metal monster at the end. Not too shabby all in all. And a foreboding premonition from the pork chop lady stops his smirk for a minute or two. A well rounded adventure.
Good fun ^ It's not as well written as some of the other Tenth Doctor episodes, but it's still entertaining.
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