So is Donna’s survival a copout? Yes, but it’s a forgivable copout. The show knows that we want Donna and the Doctor back in the Tardis together, and it also knows we’re not gonna nitpick too much if the method of pulling this off is a little iffy.
If this sort of development had happened back in Davies’ first run as showrunner, it might’ve gotten a little more backlash. Seasons 1 through 4 of “Doctor Who” dealt with plenty of controversies thanks to Davies’ apparent disinterest in making his happy endings feel earned on a basic plot level. The season 3 finale was particularly infamous in this regard, as the Doctor was basically saved through the power of the other characters believing in him extra hard. Davies’ strength has always been his characters, not his plot resolutions, and this got him into a lot of trouble at the time.
But after a thirteen year absence, the specific brand of sloppiness in Davies’ era feels quaint and charming now. Part of this is because of the nostalgia of it all, and part of it is from the next two showrunners proving themselves to be not much better at coming up with satisfying plot resolutions. It also helps that when it comes to the actual heart of the episode, Davies nails it. Donna and the new Doctor’s banter is just as sharp as we’d always hoped, and their reunion is just as touching as we could’ve asked it to be. When she “dies,” we’re heartbroken, and when she turns out to be fine we’re elated. The details honestly don’t matter much. “The Star Beast” was a silly, sloppy, heartwarming episode, and it was exactly what we’d expect from Davies’ much-anticipated return.