Doctor Who, the 10th Doctor with Donna Audio Book - Volume 3.2 - One Mile Down

Each and every chance I get to see/hear/read a new story with Donna Noble as the Doctor's companion, I'm going to be there! I love me some Donna Noble, and it's a shame that actress Catherine Tate only stayed with the show for the one season. I am happy, however, that she has come back twice now to do audio stories with David Tennant, and that there are even some upcoming stories of Donna on her own (I'm assuming those will be set in the time period before she found the Doctor again in that fourth season opening episode, "Partners in Crime"). While the first of these new audio stories was not exactly the best, this second one more than made up for it.

"One Mile Down" finds the Doctor taking Donna to the underwater city of Vallarasee.This is supposed to be a pleasant little vacation, but, as usual, anything with the Doctor involved is anything but. There is something strange going on in Vallarassee. The entire city has been sealed off, and the natural citizens are forced to wear helmets to allow them to breathe so that all of the above-world dwellers can see the wonderful sites of this city. At the same time, there are quite a number of Judoon patrolling the streets, which is unusual where there is no criminal activity. The Doctor is suspicious, but Donna joins right along with the other tourists to see the historic sites and enjoy the tours offered by the native Fins.

But cracks are forming in the protective shell that keeps the city safe from all of the water surrounding it. And the city officials are pretending there is nothing wrong. Anyone who says otherwise is thrown in prison as a dissenter. And when a portion of the shell breaks, allowing water to come rushing in, nearly drowning a number of tourists, the Doctor and Donna are off to save the day!

Catherine Tate really shines in this audio drama as Donna, with her typical sarcasm, her strong-willed, headstrong personality, and her no-nonsense attitude that isn't afraid to question anything or anyone that doesn't seem right. David Tennant is his jovial self as the Doctor, with his willingness to help those in need, but at the same time, his unwillingness to allow anyone to endanger the life of others simply for profit and self-gain.  This story is a perfect example of why the Doctor-Donna team was such a perfect pairing, and I'm truly thankful that Big Finish continues to provide us with more stories of these two - that one season on TV was simply not enough.

The production of this audio is much better than the last - the music is not quite so overpowering, and the dialogue is much easier to hear and understand.  The characters are clearly differentiated and easily identified when they are speaking, and the action sequences are powerfully performed. I am a bit disappointed that the Judoon spoke in regular dialogue rather than their standard "No To Fro To Po Lo" language. Of course, with the TARDIS translation thing in effect, I guess Donna would understand them...

Which brings the one continuity problem - if Donna met the Judoon in this story, which clearly takes place before her final two-part episode in the fourth season of the television show, then why did she not recognize them when she and the Doctor went to the Shadow Proclamation, and why did she hear them talk in their native language, rather than translated by the TARDIS? Ah, the whole suspension of disbelief thing comes into play here, I suppose.  Regardless, this was a great story and gives me high hopes for the third audio drama in this set.

RATING:  8 junior Judoons-in-training out of 10 for keeping with the style, form, and characterization of the Russel T. Davies' Doctor/Donna relationship and using it to tell a great story!