10 Doctor Who Controversies That Divide Fans
From Genesis of the Daleks to The End of Time, Doctor Who has plenty of controversies to its name.
Transcript
00:00 Doctor Who has one of the most passionate and enduring fan bases in the world.
00:05 Like the Master and the Daleks, this fandom just never seems to die.
00:09 And with the excitement surrounding Russell T. Davies' return in 2023,
00:13 it only looks set to grow.
00:15 But like any other fandom, Whovians do have those issues that they just can't seem to agree on.
00:22 Now the vast majority of Doctor Who storylines are well-liked
00:26 and don't really cause much of a stir amongst fans,
00:29 but there are certain episodes or even certain scenes, characters or storylines
00:35 that aren't quite so lucky.
00:36 So with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with Who Culture,
00:40 here with 10 Doctor Who controversies that divide fans.
00:44 Number 10. Was the end of time a satisfying send-off for the Tenth Doctor?
00:50 With David Tennant dominating the news cycle as of late,
00:54 now seems like the perfect time to revisit a topic that has seen much debate
00:59 in the years since he left the show.
01:02 Was his final story, the end of time, actually any good?
01:06 Or was it a total hot mess that didn't give arguably the best Doctor of all time
01:12 the send-off he deserved?
01:14 You'll often find people saying that the end of time has a bunch of terrific moments
01:18 peppered throughout, like the Four Knocks, the Rassilon confrontation
01:22 and the Doctor's "Time Lords live too long" speech,
01:25 but that the Master plotline is far too silly,
01:28 the Doctor's farewell tour is self-indulgent and drags on way too long,
01:33 and that sub-villain Joshua Naismith is a complete waste of screen time.
01:37 Elsewhere, some find that the Tenth Doctor's final line "I don't want to go"
01:41 veers heavily into cringe territory,
01:43 while for others it instantly triggers the waterworks.
01:49 In general, it's the story's emotional beats that people praise the most,
01:53 from the Doctor's realisation that Wilf is trapped in the radiation booth,
01:56 to Geoffrey Noble lending the Doctor some money for a lottery ticket.
02:00 Thanks to Bernard Cribbins and David Tennant's incredible performances,
02:04 there's a massive beating heart, or "heart" at the centre of the end of time,
02:09 that does paper over some of the cracks.
02:11 But coming off the Waters of Mars thrilling, complex storyline,
02:15 it's hard not to wish that Tenn's conclusion was a bit more engaging in the narrative department.
02:21 Now, for me personally, I think I have to agree that the storyline element of that episode
02:27 wasn't the strongest, it's not a storyline that sticks in my mind that I can always remember.
02:33 But I do think that the emotion was definitely there,
02:37 and I don't think I have a problem with the farewell tour as it's put here,
02:41 because, particularly for the fourth series and for David Tennant's Doctor,
02:47 those companions are such an important part of the storylines that we've seen,
02:52 so I almost feel like it wouldn't have been right for him to have not said goodbye to them.
02:56 I do think that there is one character in that line-up of farewells that just wasn't quite right,
03:03 it seemed a little out of place, which was the great-granddaughter of Joan Redfern.
03:07 Number 9. Could the Fifth Doctor have saved Adric?
03:12 Although Adric is usually at the bottom of the pile when it comes to ranking the companions,
03:17 his death in 1982's Earthshock was one of the most, well, shocking moments in the show,
03:25 so much so that the end credits rolled in complete and utter silence for the first time in Doctor Who history.
03:32 But rather unexpectedly, Adric found himself back in the news when series 12 was on the air in early 2020,
03:40 with fans debating whether or not his death could have actually been prevented by the Fifth Doctor.
03:46 This debate was sparked by the episode "Praxeus", where the Thirteenth Doctor uses her TARDIS to rescue Jake Willis,
03:52 who has decided to manually pilot a small spaceship after its autopilot fails.
03:57 Right before this spaceship explodes, the TARDIS captures Jake like a net,
04:02 shielding him from the explosion and saving his life.
04:05 Many fans then pointed out the similarities between Jake's situation and Adric's,
04:10 with the eSpace stowaway also trapped on a doomed spaceship that's about to blow him sky high.
04:15 In this case though, the Fifth Doctor does nothing, instead watching on in disbelief as his companion dies.
04:22 So why couldn't the Fifth Doctor have used the same trick that the Thirteenth Doctor did?
04:27 Seems like a fair question at face value, but many of those riled up Adric supporters missed
04:33 that the Fifth Doctor's TARDIS console was badly damaged by a Cyberman,
04:37 which prevented him from flying to his friend's rescue.
04:41 And still some fans think that this is a rather flimsy excuse,
04:45 because the TARDIS has a mind of its own and therefore should have been able to function still.
04:49 While others hilariously just think that the Doctor didn't like Adric and so couldn't be bothered to save him.
04:56 I mean it's rather cold, but maybe understandable.
04:59 Now to be honest I don't really have much knowledge of the classic era of Who,
05:03 so I don't really feel comfortable making a personal opinion on that situation.
05:07 But our very own Sean Ferrick does indeed have some very strong opinions about Adric,
05:14 so I would suggest checking out the video where the classic companions are ranked from best to worst,
05:19 which will be linked in the description below if you want to hear his side of the story.
05:24 Number 8. "In the Forest of the Night"
05:27 Series 8's "In the Forest of the Night" has always been a controversial episode,
05:32 but I don't think you realise just how much it split the fandom in two.
05:38 In 2016 this Twelfth Doctor story was voted the most divisive Doctor Who episode ever in a Radio Times poll,
05:46 beating out fellow Twelfth Doctor stories "Sleep No More" and "Kill the Moon",
05:50 as well as the Sixth Doctor serial "Vengeance on Varos".
05:54 Now that's quite a feat! So what earned "In the Forest of the Night" this not-so-coveted title?
06:00 On the positive side, this Series 8 adventure was praised for its creative premise.
06:04 The people of Earth wake up to discover that the planet has been completely covered by large forests,
06:10 and its lighter, more fairy-tale tone, a refreshing contrast from the darker episodes of the series.
06:17 Detractors labelled it aimless, threatless and felt that there were a few too many silly moments,
06:22 forcing then showrunner Stephen Moffat to jump to its defence, calling it "beautifully and elegantly written".
06:29 Now it's pretty rare for the showrunners to jump in on the debate,
06:33 which just goes to show how divisive this episode actually was.
06:38 Maybe if there was a less plodding script and a few more standout moments,
06:43 such as the deleted Doctor's speech about the untempered schism,
06:48 it might have been one that was slightly more positive than polarising.
06:52 Now this episode isn't particularly memorable for me personally,
06:56 but I do remember Series 8 feeling quite dark in tone,
07:00 and so it was quite refreshing to just have this episode of lighter tones to it.
07:05 But I do think that you're always going to have that divide,
07:08 where there are some fans who really like the darker, more intricate episodes,
07:13 and some fans who just want to watch them stand alone and forget about it after it's finished.
07:18 And so you're always going to have that divide,
07:21 so it's very important to find that balance in the middle,
07:24 which I think this episode was aiming to try and do.
07:27 Number 7 - The Sacha Duwan Master ignores Missy's redemption arc
07:32 Though few people actually expected Missy/The Master to be gone for good
07:37 after soaking up a laser screwdriver blast in the Series 10 finale,
07:41 it was nonetheless a surprise when the character returned in Series 12's "Spyfall".
07:46 And not because fans expected the character to be dead,
07:50 but more the fact that this new incarnation of The Master seemed to be a step backwards
07:55 after the arc that Missy had been on through her run in the series.
07:59 While Duwan's portrayal of the character received a lot of praise from fans and critics alike,
08:04 there was a subset of Whovians who were displeased and confused
08:09 as to why this new Master had regressed back into a moustache-twirling villain
08:13 after the Missy arc had shifted the Doctor's oldest foe more towards the light.
08:18 Missy's decision to become a do-gooder cost her her life,
08:21 so why undo such a powerful character moment
08:24 for the more bog-standard villain antics we've had for the last 50 odd years?
08:29 Now credit where credit's due,
08:30 Sacha Duwan has been one of the highlights of the Chibnall era
08:34 and it looks like that streak is going to continue in the Centenary Special.
08:37 But I can understand the confusion.
08:40 Big Finish's "The Lumiade" has explored this gap
08:43 between Missy in series 10 and The Master in series 12,
08:48 but there are a lot of fans who don't have access to the Big Finish audio dramas
08:54 and so it probably would have been better if they'd explored this in the actual TV series,
09:00 so that that confusion could have been cleared up.
09:02 Now I have just done a little bit of research into "The Lumiade"
09:06 and the premise does sound very very interesting,
09:09 where Missy has her own version of the Valiard.
09:12 So whereas the Doctor has this version of themselves that's pure evil,
09:16 Missy has "The Lumiade" which is pure good,
09:19 which I think is extremely interesting,
09:21 but like I said if you don't have access to Big Finish
09:25 then that is going to be very confusing to the audience.
09:28 Number 6. Are the Daleks overused?
09:33 Now there's a Doctor Who urban legend that the Daleks are contractually
09:38 obligated to appear at least once every season.
09:41 Now supposedly this is due to an agreement between the Daleks creator
09:45 Terry Nation's estate and the BBC.
09:48 Whether or not there is any shred of truth to that remains to be seen,
09:51 but the Daleks do indeed rear their heads on a consistent yearly basis.
09:56 Even when they don't have an episode to themselves,
09:59 they can't resist a cameo, which has got fans asking the question
10:03 of whether or not they're overused,
10:05 and whether it would be best if they were rested for a while.
10:08 On one side of the argument, the Pepper Potts have been used in some new
10:12 and interesting ways over the course of their 59-year-long shift,
10:16 from introducing their creator Davros in 1975's "Genesis of the Daleks",
10:21 to Series 11's body-controlling reconnaissance scout.
10:24 Plus they're the bloody Daleks,
10:26 they're one of the most iconic parts of Doctor Who and have been since the very beginning.
10:31 But on the other hand it's no longer exciting or surprising
10:34 when Scarrow's finest wheel onto our screens.
10:37 And they've also been outstripped by other villains in terms of power and scare factor,
10:42 bringing their status as the Doctor's greatest enemy into question.
10:46 Personally I don't think they're overused,
10:48 maybe a little bit at the beginning during kind of Series 1 to 4,
10:53 slightly, maybe a little bit, they seem to be the big bad at the series finale pretty much every season.
10:59 But I also agree that they are so iconic and such a big part of Doctor Who
11:04 that without them it just wouldn't be the same.
11:06 Number 5, the Sixth Doctor.
11:08 As many polls and rankings will demonstrate,
11:12 Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor is one of the least popular incarnations in the show.
11:17 Digital Spy and Radio Times have both got him at the bottom of their fan-voted lists,
11:23 and even some of our own rankings do the same.
11:26 And it's a similar story with episode polls too,
11:28 with Baker's debut serial "The Twin Dilemma" being voted televised Who's worst outing
11:34 not once, not twice, but three separate times by Doctor Who magazine readers.
11:40 With hardcore Whovians though, it's a slightly different story.
11:43 Sure, it's not like he suddenly shoots to the top of people's lists,
11:46 but there's no question that love for Baker's Doctor has increased in recent times,
11:52 thanks to his successful run of Big Finish audio dramas.
11:55 Indeed, many will agree that the Sixth Doctor works far better on audio,
12:00 which is something that our very own Tom Housen noted in 2020,
12:03 stating "Big Finish enhances The Sixth Doctor.
12:07 Colin's incarnation is simply a joy, and it's understandable why you'd wish to travel with him."
12:12 Colin Baker even got to do an audio story that was written by the king of modern Who,
12:18 Russell T Davies, which instantly upped his Doctor's cool factor.
12:22 But all this is to say is that your opinion of The Sixth Doctor is
12:25 widely dependent on whether or not you are an audio listener.
12:30 His TV era was categorised by its brash tone,
12:34 violent content and frequent behind-the-scenes drama.
12:37 And it was this ill-fated mid-80s run that doomed him to the bottom of those fan polls,
12:42 likely for a good long while.
12:44 However, he is much more likeable over at Big Finish,
12:48 making his entire era a tale of two halves,
12:51 and one of the most divisive runs a Doctor has ever had.
12:55 Now again, I'm not particularly knowledgeable of the classic era of Who,
13:00 so I don't have a strong opinion either way of The Sixth Doctor,
13:04 but I have listened to some of the audio adventures that do include him,
13:09 particularly the Diary of River Song,
13:11 and I do think that he sounds very fun and exciting,
13:14 so I do agree that the audio dramas have worked in his favour.
13:18 Number 4. Should the Doctor become romantically entangled with their companions?
13:23 No hanky-panky in the TARDIS was basically an unwritten rule of the classic era of Doctor Who.
13:30 And according to some accounts, it was actually a burn rule.
13:34 But regardless as to which version of events is true,
13:37 the point is clear efforts were made to not have the Doctor be romantically involved with,
13:43 well, anyone.
13:44 But all that changed with the 1996 TV movie,
13:48 where all of a sudden Paul McGann's eighth Doctor was snogging companion Grace Holloway.
13:53 Now granted, this was more of an American take on the character,
13:56 portraying him as a dashing Hollywood hero,
13:59 rather than the awkward weird uncle of the main series.
14:02 But even when the show returned to British waters with the 2005 revival,
14:07 that romantic angle didn't go away.
14:09 In fact, it actually became more prevalent,
14:12 with the ninth Doctor and Rose growing closer and closer throughout their time together,
14:16 before capping off series one with a kiss.
14:18 Things kicked up a gear when the snogaholic tenth Doctor entered the scene,
14:22 with he and Rose pretty much becoming an item by the end of series two,
14:26 and even declaring their love for each other,
14:29 or well, almost in the Doctor's case, on the beach at Bad Wolf Bay.
14:33 The modern show's decision to make the Doctor a romantic character
14:36 has been criticised and appreciated in equal measure.
14:40 To some, the Doctor is an asexual being,
14:42 which is more or less what we got throughout the entire classic series.
14:45 To others, giving the Doctor a love interest makes them more relatable,
14:49 and adds an interesting dynamic to their relationship with their companions.
14:53 Either approach can work,
14:54 which has been demonstrated throughout the decades of the show.
14:58 It just entirely depends on what the showrunner at the time
15:01 wants to do with their version of the character.
15:04 We all know that I love "River Song",
15:06 and I do really love that story arc of River and the Doctor,
15:10 but I do think that in terms of a romantic relationship for the Doctor,
15:15 it needs to be very specific.
15:17 In the case of River Song, this character is kind of 50%
15:20 the point of her, is to be this mysterious, ambiguous love interest of the Doctor,
15:26 but she isn't a companion that is there all the time.
15:29 In the case of it being, say, Rose and the Doctor,
15:32 it was good because it was new.
15:33 As we've said, it hadn't been done before,
15:35 and so it was a new approach to the Doctor Who story.
15:39 But it then became a little bit repetitive as the series went on,
15:44 when you still got Martha then pining after the Doctor,
15:47 and even now you've still got... you know, you have Yaz and things like that.
15:50 So I think that if it's a specific character whose purpose
15:54 is to be this ambiguous love interest, it works.
15:58 Because I'm always going to defend River Song.
16:00 But if it becomes too much of the main drive of the story,
16:05 it takes away from what Doctor Who is actually about,
16:07 which is about adventure and friendship more than anything else.
16:11 Number three, Clara Who and Hellbent.
16:14 From her shock debut in series seven's "Asylum of the Daleks",
16:18 it was clear that Clara Oswald was going to be a companion
16:22 the likes of which we had never seen before.
16:24 Over the coming months, that certainly proved to be true,
16:27 with the name of the Doctor revealing that she was born to save the Doctor,
16:31 having splintered herself along his timeline
16:34 to save him from various threats throughout his life.
16:36 Continuing this theme of being a Doctor-like character,
16:39 series eight even saw Clara on occasion fill in for the Time Lord,
16:43 most notably in "Flatline" when he was unable to leave his TARDIS.
16:47 And this continued emphasis on the character led to accusations
16:50 that she was being overused,
16:52 with detractors even coining the phrase "Clara Who".
16:56 Now, it is somewhat understandable that these fans felt
16:59 that Clara was overshadowing the Doctor,
17:01 but also overshadowing the show's previous companions.
17:05 At the same time, though,
17:06 plenty of viewers found Jenna Coleman's bubbly performance hard to dislike,
17:10 and Stephen Moffat did garner some props for trying something new,
17:14 actively avoiding the same old companion role
17:17 we'd seen a million times before.
17:19 The Clara controversy reached its peak in the series nine finale "Hellbent",
17:23 which was criticised for undoing her death in "Face the Raven",
17:27 as well as doubling down on her desire to be like the Doctor,
17:30 with the episode actually giving her a TARDIS of her own.
17:33 Now, I'm not personally a massive fan of Clara.
17:37 I found her to be a little bit dull in comparison to previous companions.
17:42 I did like her original story arc being splintered
17:46 throughout the Doctor's timeline,
17:48 but I think it started to take a very different turn following that.
17:52 But I'm not one who likes change very much,
17:54 and so I think once the notion of the companion changing slightly
17:59 kind of put my nose out of joint slightly,
18:01 and maybe that's something that I need to get over more than the show itself.
18:05 Number two, should the fourth Doctor have destroyed the Daleks?
18:10 There are few moments in "Doctor Who" history
18:13 as pivotal as 1975's "Genesis of the Daleks".
18:18 As the name suggests, this fourth Doctor serial
18:21 tells the story of the Daleks' origins.
18:23 But if Tom Baker's mad-eyed Time Lord had acted differently,
18:27 it could also have told the story of their end.
18:29 "Just touch these two strands together and the Daleks are finished."
18:33 "Have I the right?" muses the Doctor,
18:35 his hands clutching the device that could end the tin cans forever.
18:39 His hesitation is understandable.
18:41 After all, genocide is a pretty big thing to have on your conscience,
18:44 no matter how deserving the target species may be.
18:47 But at the same time, Sarah Jane also makes a valid point,
18:51 reminding the Doctor that he will cause untold amounts of suffering
18:54 if he lets the Daleks live.
18:56 And for many years fans have been having this same debate.
18:59 Was the Doctor's decision not to destroy the Daleks his greatest mistake,
19:04 or was he right to not alter the future?
19:06 From the atrocities of the Time War to their regular attempts to invade Earth,
19:10 there's no doubt that the Daleks have done some pretty heinous stuff.
19:14 But, as the Doctor notes,
19:16 "Fear of the Daleks will prompt many worlds to become allies,
19:19 united against a common enemy."
19:21 And maybe that's worth all the pain they cause.
19:24 I think that the dilemma the Doctor faces in this episode
19:27 was a really important message for audiences about morality.
19:31 And also, if the series 4 finale is anything to go by,
19:35 even if you do attempt genocide in regards to the Daleks,
19:38 they're going to manage to survive somehow anyway.
19:41 Number 1, "The Timeless Child".
19:43 It's tough to think of a more controversial moment in Doctor Who history
19:48 than the lore-shattering revelations in the series 12 finale "The Timeless Children".
19:53 This episode told us that the Doctor isn't actually a Time Lord,
19:57 but a mysterious being from another universe,
20:00 one with the power to regenerate infinitely.
20:02 The DNA from this Timeless Child gave the Time Lords their ability to regenerate,
20:07 meaning that the Doctor is the Chosen One, a God,
20:10 the foundation of Time Lord society.
20:13 This reveal sent shockwaves through Who fandom,
20:16 with many feeling that it was unnecessary, convoluted
20:19 and even disrespectful to the show's pre-established history.
20:22 What was the point in Eleven's new regeneration cycle in the time of the Doctor?
20:26 Do River's own regeneration powers even make sense now?
20:30 To some, it was even boring and inconsequential.
20:33 What, the Doctor can regenerate infinitely?
20:35 So?
20:37 This was always going to be the way in some way or another
20:40 for as long as the BBC wanted Doctor Who on the air.
20:43 So the Time Lords lied to the Doctor about their past.
20:46 And?
20:47 The Doctor has never got on with the Time Lords,
20:50 that's part of the reason why they ran away in the first place.
20:54 While discourse on the Timeless Child skews largely negative,
20:57 there are those who appreciate how it opens up opportunities to explore the Doctor's past.
21:02 There's also Joe Martin's fugitive Doctor,
21:05 an important piece of the Timeless Child puzzle throughout Series 12,
21:09 who received a lot of praise for her commanding presence.
21:12 All in all, the Timeless Child is still one of the most debated topics
21:15 in Doctor Who's various online communities to this day.
21:18 Chris Chibnall certainly took a bold swing here,
21:21 but considering all the controversy,
21:23 perhaps Doctor Who was a question best left unanswered.
21:27 Now at first, I'll be honest, I was very, very, very confused by the Timeless Child story arc.
21:33 I didn't understand it and I was one of those people that felt that it was
21:37 disrespecting the previous 50 years... 60 years.
21:41 But I do think that there is potential for it,
21:46 so long as we are given some more explanations.
21:50 As long as those unanswered questions and those loose ends are tied,
21:55 I think it has the potential to be a really, really interesting storyline
21:59 and a really good avenue for the show to go down.
22:03 So long as it's explored fully and not left ambiguous.
22:07 And that concludes our list.
22:09 If your opinions are different, then do let us know in the comments below,
22:12 but remember to be respectful of other people's opinions.
22:15 And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell.
22:20 Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there @whoculture
22:24 and I can be found across various social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
22:28 I've been Ellie with WhoCulture and in the words of River Song herself,
22:32 Goodbye, sweeties