Doctor Who: The Star Beast Review - 9 Ups And 3 Downs

The high point of The Star Beast is the scene in which Donna finally gets her memories back. After a mostly comedic front half, the episode gives Tennant and Tate some meaty emotional drama to sink their teeth into, and it’s an emotional rollercoaster.

First we get Fourteen’s heartbroken realisation that he’s going to have to sacrifice Donna to save London, and a return of shouty, chest pounding Tennant (one of the best Tennants), and Donna’s steadfast and unwavering bravery in the face of this.

Then there’s the gut punch of "Binary. Binary. Binary" (side note, love the sleeper agent-style activation words). We get to see Metacrisis Donna back in action for a little bit, and her very in-character rage at having sacrificed her lottery winnings, followed by an admittedly unconvincing death fakeout which is sold by Tennant’s reaction.

This entire sequence is dynamite, and we couldn’t have seen it playing out better.