Well, the end of Season 2…Series 15? I don’t really know how to call these anymore. We’ll call them the Ncuti Gatwa seasons…of which there are two.
Spoilers, sweetie: That’s all there ever will be.
Let me just say that I really enjoyed Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor–he was a firecracker, full of energy. I also feel like he was dealt a kind of bad hand. Russel T. Davies (henceforth known as RTD) took up the reins as showrunner again and shook up Doctor Who lore…by making David Tennant the 14th Doctor after Jodie Whittaker. Ncuti is technically the 15th Doctor. There’s the whole bi-generation business–it’s a lot of “boldness”. It also felt kind of desperate–and what I meant by bad hand earlier is that Ncuti didn’t really get the entrance that he deserved. He had to follow up a David Tennant reunion tour, which let’s be honest, was really good. I really enjoyed those episodes with Donna! They were pretty fucking great.
But following that was always gonna be a bit of a mess.
Season 1 was solid, though. I really liked Millie Gibson / Ruby Sunday, even though I didn’t really like her “mystery” arc being just…normal. RTD has been known to be very J.J. Abrams in that vein–set up a properly good mystery, and kind of whiff the ending.
Season 2…took a long time to get cranking for me, and by the time it was done…I was just kind of baffled at what I was watching. 8 episodes aren’t enough, even if the last episode was a bit extra long. Varada Sethu was fine as the companion, although I felt like we were just getting into the groove with her near the end of the run. That’s not to say that the Season was wholly bad; I just didn’t enjoy all of the episodes as much as Season 1. Stand out episodes to me were “The Well”, “The Story and The Engine”, and “The Interstellar Song Contest.” The rest of the season was okay…Lux was a really cool technical achievement (love the animation!) but otherwise…eh?
The two-part season finale just was…okay…actually, more so infuriating. I enjoy season-long mysteries so long as the pay-off is well worth it and satisfying. For instance, Mrs. Flood being The Rani is not something I had on my bingo card. Her bi-generating is not on there, either! That was great.
But everything about the Rani afterwards…was a mess. All we saw was characters telling us just how vicious the Rani is–how cold, how cruel. I didn’t see it. She was sneering, I guess? But it felt like a poorly done version of The Master. While her big evil plan seemed cool–bringing back Omega, the first of the Time Lords out from the underverse all to remake the Time Lords–it ended like a wet fart once Omega was finally release from his prison.
He chews up the Rani nearly as soon as he’s free, and then the Doctor dispatches him in what felt like 2 minutes. Less than? Mrs. Flood Rani said “Byeeee” and that was that. That was the climax of the whole previous episode. That was it! RTD did it again!
*slow clap*
What a fucking letdown.
The big focus on the last two episodes is Poppy, who is Belinda’s daughter (And the Doctor’s.) Which implies they had sex (gasp)…but they didn’t? Poppy isn’t real, she’s a part of Conrad’s wish that the god of dreams has made into reality. She was also one of the babies from the Space Babies episode in Season 1. If this sounds confusing, it is. The universe is also off by a single degree after they cancel Conrad’s wish and the only way to make things right (and bring Poppy back, who disappeared once the wish was undone) is to let off a shit ton of regeneration energy into the universe.
I’m just gonna say that I didn’t expect Ncuti to regenerate this season. I don’t think anyone did. There were rumors, sure (and as of me writing this, a season 3 has not officially been greenlit for production…so Doctor Who might be cancelled?), but nothing set in stone. Usually, there is a lot of hubbub surrounding who gets cast in the next role, etc, etc, so it’s incredible that this stayed as tight-lipped as it did.
One big thing before I talk about the big regeneration scene–they brought the 13th Doctor in for a cameo! This made me very happy. I loved the 13th Doctor. Did she ultimately get let down by bad writing? 100%. Do I think Ncuti got let down by bad writing for this season? 100%. While I’m not saying RTD and his team are lazy by any means–I think there were truly great stories this season–the shocking regeneration sequence right at the end?
Billie Piper?
What?
She is not credited as the Doctor in the credits, like Ncuti and Jodie were. But the Doctor did regenerate into her. And it kind of pisses me off?
No offense to Billie Piper. She’s Rose, for god’s sake! But this feels just like bringing back David Tennant. A very showy, desperate move to get people to watch. Remember how much you loved Rose and David Tennant? Well, guess what, baby! Billie Piper is BACK!
It really makes me sad that Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor is now done. I get that the man is high in demand in Hollywood, but it felt like there was another season in the tank, especially after such an uneven one. Ruby didn’t even get to say goodbye to him! That just feels wrong, and this all feels very rushed.
I don’t know what the right answer is for Doctor Who going forward. What I will say is I am tired of gimmicks. It feels very Marvel Cinematic Universe. The tease of Omega, only to have him be in the episode a grand total of 45 seconds? Bringing back people for “random” regenerations? I don’t get it. It’s cool when another Doctor has a cameo in an episode. I love it! Crossing timelines is really cool.
But this? This started in uncharted territory with Tennant, and is now ending in uncharted territory with Piper. Let’s not forget the 14th Doctor is out there “retired”, and you know Season 3 (if it happens at this stage, signs are pointing to most likely but not with Disney) will have him meet up with Rose, somehow. Not to mention that Susan Foreman was teased…and very, very briefly shown….so there’s another arc there….
Please RTD, if you somehow read this, know that Doctor Who doesn’t need to be built on Gimmicks. Just tell good stories, and we’ll be there. And for gods sake, don’t off your villains in the shortest time possible. It’s not edgy. It’s just…weak and really puts a damper on the whole “stakes” thing.
Stay timey wimey, folks.
