To mark the sixth anniversary of Jodie Whittaker’s first full season as the Doctor, Rigel Ailur continues her look back at Whittaker’s three series, examining 2020’s spring season.

 

A vast improvement over the previous season.

Now living up to the fantastic cast, the characters and the writers have come into their own (a few stumbles notwithstanding). Previous incarnations of the Doctor rarely if ever came across as ‘the damsel’ and now the same can be said for number thirteen – for the most part. While room for improvement remains, this Doctor is now very much back to taking the lead in her own show.

“Spyfall”, a two-parter, sees the Doctor again sparring with her arch nemesis the Master, one of two blasts from the past that appear this season, the other being the Cybermen. I’m not the biggest fan of the classic villains, but nor do I automatically dislike seeing them. It’s all a matter of the specific story being told. In this case, “Spyfall” and “The Timeless Children” (basically “Cybermen part 3”) bookend this season. Not awful by any means, they are among the weakest of the season. The show suffers from the current trend regarding conflict and stakes in fiction of wanting to save the whole universe.

Frankly, that’s boring. We know the Doctor will somehow triumph in the end. In the whole ‘save the universe’ scenario, ironically, it is more not less difficult to develop and maintain tension and suspense. Poor Gallifrey has already been destroyed so many times it lacks any impact. On the other hand, it is an enjoyable surprise to see Jack Harkness return, with him trying to figure out who the Doctor is, an amusing aside. Otherwise, his appearance is wasted, as the Doctor doesn’t really need anyone to warn her not to give the Cybermen what they want. Along the same line but in a different episode, the Doctor’s line about “…an upgrade…” – although, yes, sexist – is ‘punching’ up not down, so it’s still funny.

The episodes with Shelley, Byron, and Tesla are all nicely done, even if “The Haunting of Villa Diodati” is “Cyberman part 1”. The rest of the season is solid as well, although none stand out over the others. “Praxeus” leans rather heavily into horror and with the married couple is a prime example of intimate conflict and suspense being much more engaging than sweeping galaxy-wide issues.

Which brings us to the mysterious subplot running through the second half of the season, starting in “Fugitive of the Judoon”. No, it’s not the first time in the five-plus decades of Doctor Who history, but the entire backstory of the character is overhauled yet again. It is at once huge and also a non-event, as it doesn’t seem to have created a paradigm shift moving forward. That said, Jo Martin is spectacular and it will be nice to see more of her.

Verdict: After stumbling around for the while, the Doctor seems to have regained her footing. 8/10

Rigel Aiur

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