Talkin’ ‘Bout Bigeneration

Sixty years is an eternity for a scripted, live-action television show to exist, so Doctor Who pulled out all the stops for its epic diamond jubilee. David Tennant, the beloved tenth doctor, returned. Treasured showrunner Russell T. Davies came back. Disney added a hefty chunk to the production budget  and streamed it on Disney+ the same day it aired on the BBC. In spite of all that promise, these landmark Doctor Who specials never quite shined the way they should have.

The past few years have been rough for the series. It’s not really Jodie Whittaker’s fault, exactly, that public interest in Doctor Who took a decline when she became the first woman to take on the titular role. I blame her showrunner Chris Chibnall for that. Yes, he was a superfan and had written for the show in the past, but once he had the keys to the kingdom, he couldn’t stop making the characters stand around talking about their feelings. So. Many, Feelings. The Doctor, as a character, became less of an independent force in the universe, and more codependent with her fam. Nobody wanted My Little Doctor: Friendship is Magic.

In addition to the egregious reframing of the character’s entire nature, Chibnall dickered with the overarching mythology as well, rendering nearly all the sacrifices and stakes of the previous fiftysome years basically useless. You could and should write essay on the crimes of Chris Chibnall—but it’s important to understand, he drove Doctor Who off the rails and into an embankment. Thus, the 60th anniversary specials not only needed to pay homage to decades of adventure, but also to work as a soft reboot for a new (younger, American) audience.

The first special, The Star Beast, reunited the Doctor (Tennant) with Donna Noble (Catherine Tate), a companion he tragically left  behind some years back, and any interaction between the two could cause her death. It doesn’t, though, because Donna’s now married and has a non-binary daughter who steps in with mum to save the day. As exciting as it was to see Donna and the Doctor back together, the episode’s need to congratulate itself on keeping up with the times clumsily hinders its own momentum time and again.

Wild Blue Yonder, the second special, took more time to showcase the fantastic chemistry between Tennant and Tate, and allowed room for some signature Whovian creepiness, goofiness, and charm. Nothing about the episode necessarily demarcated it as anything “special,” but maybe offering an episode at its most basic was the entire point here. The worst thing about it was the budget, as more money in the Doctor’s world renders it less unique.

The Giggle, bridging between David Tennant’s brief celebratory return and the introduction of the fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa), weirdly featured Neil Patrick Harris as the Toymaker, a villain not seen since the 1960s. Overall, a fun time in the Whoniverse, and the Toymaker even implied some of the terrible retconning done by Chibnall wasn’t even real. Cool step toward course correction, until the regeneration, that is. When David Tennant’s tenth-slash-fourteenth Doctor had to go so Fifteen could debut, a new concept of “bi-generation” took place, where Fourteen split and then kind of gave birth to Fifteen before the two worked together as one to send the  Toymaker packing. Uh, wut?

via GIPHY

The Christmas special, The Church on Ruby Road, didn’t dwell much on this universe’s new concept, but instead properly sent the fifteenth Doctor on an adventure with his new companion Ruby Sunday (Milly Gibson). The Doctor went clubbing before working his way into Ruby’s house to learn her backstory and witness the kidnapping of the child she was babysitting by the Goblin King. If the plot sounds familiar, it’s because Labyrinth already did that story, and way better, because David Bowie. Confusingly, there was singing and dancing and exceedingly unneeded CGI to drag down an otherwise delightful adventure.

Nctui Gatwa was a breath of fresh air for the franchise. He owns the Doctor, and it feels like he understands this character is a treat. Though Ruby Sunday didn’t have a lot to do next to all the CGI goblins, Gibson’s chemistry with Gatwa was fantastic, and I can’t wait to see what’s next. As long as there’s no more singing, it’s possible the Doctor will fly the TARDIS through another few decades of joyful adventure. Only time will tell.