The Doctor Who (DW) 60th Anniversary special is coming in 2023 and we’ve got some questions! We won’t get the answers until next November; but while we wait, here are a few questions we fans of DW are all eager to find out:
Ten returns as the Fourteenth Doctor! Picture credit to pocket-lint.com
1. Why is “Ten” The Fourteenth Doctor?
For real, besides the supposition that it’s to bring back viewers after a contentious run under ex DW boss Chris Chibnall… Besides the fact that David Tennant and returning ex DW boss Russell T. Davies made some awesome Doctor Who… Why is Ten back? How is it possible?
Well, one can presume the guest villain of the 60th Anniversary perhaps managed some sort of manipulation to mess with The Doctor’s regeneration.
Personally, I feel the return of a past regeneration as the new one truly cheapens the former’s original departure… Why feel any sadness at all if they can always return later? Why shouldn’t this plus Chibnall’s artistically vain concept of “The Timeless Child” turn The Doctor into an immortal who has no reason to understand the precious limitations of life itself? Yes, even a Time Lord in all their lives can understand that IF there is a limit somewhere… At least, that’s how it used to work. But apparently now there are none; which is terribly boring.
Donna Noble (left) returns; but will she remember her former friend in the familiar Fourteenth Doctor (right)? Picture credit to nerdist.com
2. What Will Happen to Donna Noble?
She’s back, and let’s hope she’s just as mouthy as ever! But last we checked, it is dangerous to reunite Donna with The Doctor; especially Ten (yes, I know, “Fourteen”)… If she remembers The Doctor, her brain will relive the human/Time Lord meta-crisis and burn!
And yet it seems pretty clear that these two will be reunited for a new adventure! Okay… I thought it was cool leaving this alone and packed more story punch as is; but I’m not writing for Doctor Who.
Will Donna die? We can bet fellow ex DW boss Stephen Moffatt would do it; but Davies’ punches to the feels usually left characters alive. I think though that he may take a page from Moffatt’s playbook and make Donna depart; but meaningfully.
Clothes can now regenerate too…? Picture credit to us.knews.media
3. Why Did The Doctor’s Clothes Regenerate?
Granted Russell T. Davies already explained this as an attempt to avoid any comparisons to “drag” connotations made. But even so, while I certainly appreciate this, consider that The Master in his forced regeneration emerged dressed in Thirteen’s wardrobe. I doubt much — if any — comparisons to drag came of that. I think fans could have handled the next Doctor regenerating in Thirteen’s clothes like the rest have done… Then again, some fans couldn’t stand a woman as The Doctor and made quite a show of their feelings on that.
But as far as the regeneration of not only body but of clothing, I want an answer; otherwise we’re just doing ANY old thing and calling it brilliant. I chalk it up to the machinations of the guest villain for the 60th Anniversary special.
Neil Patrick Harris (left) as the guest villain (right) in the 60th Anniversary! Picture credit to radiotimes.com
4. Who Is Neil Patrick Harris’ Villain?
It is presumed by many fans that Harris plays an old foe from the classic series’ run: The Celestial Toymaker. The clues are few; for instance, there is a toy store seen in a production still and in the recently released trailer. Yet in this trailer, Harris’ character speaks with what seems a German accent; which isn’t associated with Toymaker.
What we do know is that The Celestial Toymaker is immortal, plays by his own set of rules regarding laws of reality, and has good reason to want revenge on The Doctor. After all, the first and only canon time they met, The First Doctor escaped Toymaker’s grasp and caused the destruction of the latter’s world — not by his “Doctor” rules; but by Toymaker’s own game. The question then becomes why the villain would manipulate Thirteen’s regeneration (if he did at all); specifically bring back Ten when First Doctor was the version Toymaker faced so long ago!
Wilfred Mott says farewell; dare we say the same? Picture credit to hitc.com
5. Will Wilfred Mott Get a Proper Send-Off?
Bernard Cribbins unfortunately passed away in 2022… Let’s be real, we all adore Wilfred Mott! We better get to see him get a solid final run with The Doctor; that and an acknowledgement in the end credits.
Prepare for a new round of adventure with Fourteen! Picture credit to comicbook.com
These are five questions we’re all asking while we wait for November! Suffice to say, the answers better be good! Russell T. Davies did a fantastic job with his run overseeing the first handful of Doctor Who seasons since its 2005 relaunch… It’s fair to presume that he’ll do a fine job with the 60th Anniversary and the following run with Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor! 2023, allons-y!
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