The first major influence is its size. The Runaway Bride feels big, such as the fact that Tennant's co-star is a well known comedian in the form of Catherine Tate, showing the draw that the series has in terms of the actors it can get. There's also the climax, featuring a Christmas Star descending on London and wreaking havoc, whilst the Doctor empties the Thames into a hole reaching to the centre of the Earth, or the scene where the TARDIS chases a taxi-cab on a motorway, which makes the story feel just that bit more epic than a normal episode. And whilst precedence for the epicness was arguably set for the specials with a spaceship over London in The Christmas Invasion, it doesn't quite match the scale of what's seen in The Runaway Bride.
And beyond this, The Runaway Bride is fun. I found myself laughing uproariously at this story, even though I've heard these jokes a dozen times. Tate is a well known comedian for a reason, she has an innate sense of how to make things funny. Her delivery is impeccable, such as on the taxi cab scene, or the "pencil in a mug" moment. What's more, she has a natural chemistry with Tennant, and it's little wonder why the two were brought back together for Tennant's third series. But that's in the future. Focussing on the present, there's also the direction of Euros Lyn to consider. He acknowledges the tone of the story as comedic and heightens it, giving the story a certain broadness with exaggerated camera movements and most likely encouraging the actors to heighten their performances as well.
It all adds up to a story that feels fun to watch, and imbues it with a certain 'special'-ness that makes it sl influential for every story that follows it. Even the upcoming special, The Husbands of River Song, on the basis of the trailer, looks to be more rompy than what surrounds it. And that aspect makes me look forward both to that episode, and indeed all upcoming Christmas Specials for this wonderful series that is Doctor Who.
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