“It was a very complicated plot, one too complicated for the average viewer.” Let those words sink in - I’ll tell you who said them in a moment. Doctor Who’s most recent episode officially made the Morbius Doctors - a throwaway, self-insert Easter egg from the producers in the ‘70s - canon. If you’re a newer fan, haven’t seen the classic show, or aren’t completely enveloped in Doctor Who’s in-jokes, then you’ll likely have been left scratching your head, wondering what the hell it was all about. “It was a very complicated plot, one too complicated for the average viewer,” , who pointed this critique towards the series at a teenage Doctor Who fan club event b𝓡ack in 1986. Ironically enough, Chibnall’s 35-year-old criticism has since become an apt descriptor of his own time in charge, with his run having gradually chipped away at Who’s global appeal since 2018.
Whatever you think of Chibnall’s tenure, he’ll be leaving with Jodie Whittaker after the next season. This departure has made way for the hꦓighly anticipated return of Russell T Davies, fresh off his success with It’s A Sin. Given that Doctor Who is currently repeating its own history from the ‘80s - a history that saw Chibnall himself call the show too complicated - it makes sense for the BBC to repeat the history of the &lsq﷽uo;00s and bring RTD, the architect of the show’s revival, back into the hot seat. Still, you have to wonder whether this is a shrew💟d move or a last-ditch effort. There are murmurs of a pact made between RTD and Julie Gardner, an integral producer who helped revive the show, that they would return if it were ever in dire straits. With the show stagnating as sci-fi franchises like the MCU continue to grow, those dire straits are here.
“I was in the middle of running an empire,” . “And my god, I did that ten years too soon, didn’t I?” Davies’ affection toward the MCU’s model and his desire to bring Doctor Who into a similar vein is something he’s voiced before. Doctor Who has sadly become an underfunded littl🦩e British series shown too little love by the BBC, especially given its enduringly gargantuan stature around the world. RTD made it work during his time in the early 2000s, but since then the show has struggled. He created two spin-offs - Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures - and they converged in a Doctor Who finale, Stolen Earth and Journey’s End. RTD created a crossover akin to the MCU before the MCU. It was a spectacle with two Tennants, Captain Jack Harkness, Sarah Jane Smith, and even Rose Tyler. It’s a jam-packed hoorah of a finisher despite all ꧑its bumps. Imagine what RTD’s ambition could do for the show now.
But it all begins with the 60th anniversary, an enigma of an episode that will jumpstart the 14th Doctor while celebrating a doddering old Who that’s been on telly longer than my𝄹 parents have been alive. That’s a lot to put on one person’s plate for their first day on the job. Doctor Who had to look inward and find someone capable of handling that much and, as has now been proven, RTD was the only remaining option.
It’l🍨l be daunting for whoever plays the 14th Doctor, likely starting their run by sharing the limelight with others who are already beloved for their portrayals. How it can top the scope of the 50th isn’t clear, but it doesn’t need to. In fact, the 60th anniversary is a poꦗint where Who can launch itself back into the mainstream. I remember the coming together of fans in 2013, watching this sprawling epic that had the same budget as an episode - talk about underfunded. People came along in their Fourth Doctor scarves, waving around sonic screwdrivers. Doctor Who hasn’t felt nearly that cohesive or celebrated since.
The 60th anniversary doesn’t have to top The Time War. It just has to give fans a reason to give the show another shot, to bring them all together to celebrate in unison. RTD has mused about a Tenth and 11th Doctor ten-parter, a limited series as part of his MCU analogy, and the 60th could potentially kickstart something like that. It could also bring the Eighth Doctor in as a jumping-off point for his own 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:limited, live-action show. There is so much potential to make the 60th anniversary the beginning of a new start, ushering in an era of Doctor Who that is larger in scope and much more ambitious than it has been in ye🍌ars - an era that puts it back up there with Star Wars and Star Trek as a flagship sci-fi show.
As it stands, it’s a ‘meh’ relic of telly that people can’t believe is still on. We should reserve that for EastEnders, not bloody Who. RTD isn’t just here to avert another cancellation - a dauntingly realistic prospect given the show’s declining ratings and budget. RTD is here to instigate something new and fresh. A showrunner returning is unheard of in Who history, so he’s already breaking new ground by treading on old ground. Throw in his ▨desire to branch out with other streaming platforms, spin-offs, and movies, and𝓡 Who could rival the biggest sci-fi properties out there. If Doctor Who can survive a man in a clown suit and a Universal movie, then it can survive Chibnall.