After five months of waiting, and almost three years since the last full series, fans can rejoice in the prospect that Doctor Who is returning to our television screens this Saturday – at midnight, for UK viewers.
And the wait looks like it should be worth it, with the cast and crew all hinting towards one of the best seasons in years. The epic trailers do nothing to disprove those claims.
Fact is, Doctor Who is bigger and better than ever, and with a brand new team at the TARDIS deck, anybody can start watching here, with the premiere, this weekend, of Space Babies and The Devil’s Chord. Not since 2010 has it been so easy to hop on and enjoy the ride.
So, whether you know your Drashigs from your Draconians, or whether you have never heard of a Dalek before, these are some of the reasons why series fourteen is the perfect place to begin.
(I say, having not watched the episodes yet, but I am pretty certain it will hold up to the hype).
Ncuti Gatwa
Following three doctors who were consistently in conflict with themselves (Capaldi, Whittaker, Tennant), having a doctor be so unashamedly themself is exhilarating. Very few Doctors were as well-rounded so instantly as Gatwa was in his debut last Christmas. Immediately, Gatwa had an abundance of stage presence, charisma, dominance, but also kindness and emotion. We saw him cry, laugh, sing and dance, and immediately light up the screen with his infectious smile. The promise of an eight episode stretch with him is exciting, as his incarnation grows further, and hopefully continues the strong streak of his character that he has carried thus far.
Ruby Sunday
Gatwa would have stolen the show on Christmas Day had Millie Gibson not matched him with her performance as Ruby. Likeable, sparky and energetic, but also clearly one of those companions that can sympathise with people suffering, she seems like the best friend that the Fifteenth Doctor needs, and already has a perfectly pitched chemistry with him. On top of all that, she also has one of the most interesting entry points into the programme, as we learned she was abandoned by her birth parents and founded by foster carers, launching her on a mission to find out more about her origins, as the audience and, indeed, the Doctor, do the same.
A whole lot of fun
A universe worth of adventure in a show that can do literally anything it wants, and change its premise every week, seemed to forget these past few eras that it can be ambitious and wild. Both Wild Blue Yonder – the one with the long arms – and The Giggle – with the Toymaker manipulating reality into one huge game – broke with tradition by trying out some truly wild ideas, and the next season looks set to follow suit. A semi-musical episode, with the Beatles! Ruby becoming a butterfly person in the age of the dinosaurs. Flipping space babies. Only the extended media has ever dared to be so thrilling and downright bizarre. Now it’s the main show’s chance.
Return of RTD
Russell T Davies is not only one of the best Doctor Who writers, but also one of the best writers in British television, full stop, so to have him back on board is a treat. Last year’s episodes were perfect proof of that, trying something new but retaining the essence of what made his first era work. The Christmas specials are back, mass promotion is too, and the confidential programme. A tonal balance is afoot, too: truly emotional stories like 73 Yards and the finale, balanced with the Doctor and Ruby pretending they are in Bridgerton. Plus, Moffat is back, hopefully getting the balance between light and dark that he always managed to curate so perfectly whenever he wrote anything under RTD’s watch.
The new “Children of Time”
RTD had a tact for gathering characters, as much as he did storylines, in his first series. That culminated in the ultimate meet-up with Journeys End, but this season we know there are plenty of characters, old and new, who will be joining the fold for the seasons ahead. The UNIT team (Shirley, Mel, Kate), Ruby’s family and friends (Cherry, Carla, Mrs Flood), Rose Noble and probably plenty of others. Like the Pertwee or Tennant eras, we have a recurring band of characters the show can keep going back to, and already we have a group who feel well-established enough that the Doctor and his companion are far from the only people we care about.
Quintessential Doctor Who
Fun, action, monsters, tears, laughs, drama, tragedy, wit, horror, time. These are the ingredients that made us long time whovians fall in love with the programme, but now anybody who calls the show “lame” is wrong – how could you get cooler than Ncuti Gatwa? – and anybody who says the show is made on a shoestring budget should look to the incredible achievements this season is looking set to accomplish thanks to Disney Plus. Above all, it’s a safe space, with more representation and more variety, that can be for anybody, no matter your creed or ideals, because the Doctor will always be there: friend and hero to the nation.
-An S.M ranking
Writers' Room Reviews 