BOOK OF LISTS: RANKING THE DOCTOR'S COSTUMES

For years, I've resisted doing this. It seemed like such a cliche. It's something that every fan that broadcasts themselves in some way always does. They have to let us know that they think Colin Baker's costume is the absolute worst of the bunch and then list all the outfits that other incarnations have worn in some kind of random order of preference. 

I've been tempted, of course, to weigh in on the matter, myself. To, perhaps, even, defend the aesthetics of 'Ole Sixie. But, thus far, I've steered clear of it all. 

Finally, however, I'm caving in...

Before we begin, it should be noted that I had initially intended this to be a REVIEW OVERVIEW entry. I wanted to create a list that was based on a complex scoring system so that I could scientifically prove which Doctor wore the best outfit. It seemed the soundest method to do this. This way, if I didn't rank "the most obvious choice" at the very bottom I could use my complex scoring system to back myself up. This had nothing to do with my own personal tastes. This was "science" proving me to be right. 

But then I threw all that out. A BOOK OF LISTS essay is based purely on my own tastes and preferences. And, sometimes, I shouldn't need to create analytics to validate how I feel on a matter. I should just step out into the world and say what I think and not care about the recriminations (as I did for the first few years that I wrote in here. When REVIEW OVERVIEW entries didn't exist yet). 

I will, nonetheless, still make this just a little bit ""REVIEW OVERVIEWish" by revealing a few determining factors in how I ranked things. Most of what I will be stating, here, is just my own personal opinion. But there will still be a few core elements that a good costume requires in order to get my approval. 

Let's get into them: 

1) Distinctiveness: Many fans have brought up the fact that the Doctor's outfits are, oftentimes, the dumbest thing a time traveler should wear. Someone journeying out of their own proper place in time and space  should be sporting apparel that helps them to blend in with the environment they're visiting. It shouldn't be some poly-chromatic nightmare that can be spotted from half a mile away. Or a garish-looking fifteen-foot long scarf that gets him to stick out like a sore thumb. Or even an outfit that looks like he's from the 1800s when he's about to ring in the 2000s. 

But that's still the sort of stuff the Doctor wears. And I adore him for it. The more an outfit makes him stand out, the more I tend to love it (hence the reason why Six will not be at the bottom of this list). I still remember the first few episodes that I randomly caught of the show back in my early teens. They were from Seasons Sixteen and Seventeen. While Tom Baker was wearing one of his simpler outfits, it still made him look ridiculously distinctive. And it was a trait that drew me quite strongly to the character. His choice in clothing showed that he was someone different. Unique. I wanted to learn more about the strange figure who was clearly eccentric. Even his general appearance showed off that fact. 

So let the Doctor look different. Even if it is impractical. This is what gets me to love an incarnation's costume more than anything. 

2) A "Period Feel": Some of the New Who Doctors are definitely going to suffer in this department. But I do like the Doctor better when he seems a bit "out of time". He might be wandering around a scrapyard in 1963, but he's wearing the suit of an Edwardian gentleman. Or he's stranded on Earth in the late 20th century, but he's still wearing a traditional dinner jacket and ruffled shirt. In this regard, even the fashion atrocity that Six sported still suits the motif. Yes, it's a mess of wild colors. But it still has those basic components of Victorian-era apparel. 

A good Doctor Outfit should harken back to a by-gone era where people sported wildly uncomfortable formal wear that still made them look astonishingly dashing. 

3) Tastefulness: A highly subjective concept, of course. But the Doctor should not just look distinctive, he should also looked distinguished. So the poor fashion choices that have sometimes been made in the building of a look will have a negative effect in the rankings. 

Once again, we'll drag the Sixth Doctor into this. He definitely stands out in a crowd with what he's wearing. So that will actually earn him points. But part of what causes him to be noticed will work to his detriment. In that same regard, as "iconic" as a long multi-colored scarf is, it also looks quite tacky. 

So both Bakers may end up suffering in this list. 

Okay. I think that's all we really need to cover in this pre-amble. As usual, I've gone on for way longer than I should. But I do like to be thorough in my explanations. 

Nonetheless, let's get to it 

OH WAIT! THERE ARE A FEW MORE NOTES:

I'm going to be fairly comprehensive in this list. But, at the same time, only so comprehensive. 

Where I will be thorough: 

We really are going to look at every incarnation of the Doctor.  This will include the Fugitive and War Doctor. Ten and Fourteen will also get separate rankings. Hell, I even thought about including the Valeyard in this (the skullcap looks a bit goofy but those black robes are slick)! In the end, though, I chose not to include the Doctor's Darker Side. I also won't be rating the Tom Baker incarnation in Day of the Doctor. We really don't see him for very long. He also needs to be properly established in the Doctor's timeline before I'll give him much attention!

Where I will be less thorough: 

The costumes of many Doctors change and evolve over time. We do have incarnations like Five. Where almost absolutely nothing gets altered. His predecessor, on the other hand, goes through several looks that change radically over the seven seasons that he played the role. I could be super-specific with someone like Four and rate every single distinct outfit that he wore. But that seems a bit much. Where he places on the list will be determined by the positive and negative aspects of all his different outfits. 

Okay, now we really can get into it: 

I think a lot of us long-time fans were pretty shocked when they unveiled what the Ninth Doctor would be wearing. I know I certainly was. It wasn't just the utter simplicity of the outfit that was throwing me off, it was also how modern it was. The Doctor in a leather jacked and jeans?! What?! 

I do like the idea that the costume was a reflection of this incarnation's character. He's very "stripped down" in his ninth body. So, in this respect, the look works. I also think the coat looks so gorgeous that I went out and got one like it. Not because I'm trying to cosplay Nine.  I just really love the coat! 

Overall, though, the whole look is a little underwhelming. Which is why it finishes up at the bottom. Some fans got so upset by it that they claim it mars their enjoyment of Series One. Which, to me, is a bit extreme. But that's just the way fans can be, I suppose. I do know people who genuinely complain about Trial of a Time Lord because they don't like the way Colin Baker grew his hair out a bit!    

Ouch! The sartorial tastes of those first two Doctors of the New Series really disappointed me! 

I get what RTD was doing.in those early days. He wanted the show to feel as accessible as possible to a new audience. Throwing the protagonist into outdated suits would definitely work against that whole process. I also do like the whole "geek chic" vibe that Ten is going for. 

Ultimately, however, Ten is just a guy in a cheap suit that fits a bit too tight who occasionally wears a long coat that was made from a couch! Like Nine, he's not very distinctive-looking. Nor does anything he's wearing have much of any kind of "period feel" to it. He gets some points for tastefulness - but it only counts for so much. 

Not a very Doctorish style, in general. So we're putting him low on the list. 

 

Twelve makes it a bit higher on the list because a lot of what he's wearing does have a much more "classic" feel to it. This does help a lot. But then, there are some other choices that get made that do the exact opposite and cause him to fall into the "looking too contemporary" trap that Nine and Ten also suffer from. 

Admittedly, some of my reasons for disliking the costume are a bit stupid! I do, for instance, like my Doctors to have neckwear. Twelve did, occasionally, don a cravat. But, most of the time, he just walked around with his collar buttoned up all the way. In its own right, this look makes him very unique and distinctive. No other Doctor really did this with their collars. Instead, they actually threw something around them. A tie, or a bow tie, or a cravat. Or something! And I just like it a bit better when the Doctor does that. 

The first time Twelve threw on a hoodie was also a bit of a shock. It seemed like an accessory that was just too contemporary. It did, eventually, grow on me. Once it did, though, he made another too contemporary choice and wore a sweatshirt for the bulk of an episode! 

Admittedly, the costume did go in some nice directions as he progressed through his seasons. I like that he started throwing on some longer coats in his later years. And the velvety one that was a bit of a tribute to Three was gorgeous. But, even then, he'd shoot himself in the foot. That one coat that he wore in his last season that was so beat up that it looked like he'd fished it out of a dumpster was very bizarre!   

Capaldi, himself, claims that he wanted his outfit to be something that would be easy for a cosplayer to put together. That's a nice gesture. But there's also such thing as making things just a bit too simplistic. 

I've seen some lists made by fans that place Eight at the absolute bottom. I do agree a bit with their reasoning. 

In this incarnation, the Doctor's costume feels just a bit too "generic". Like he knew he should look Victorian and put in the bare minimum effort. Some even say that it almost feels more like something an actor would wear in a Doctor Who parody. The sort of thing worn by someone who's trying to look just a little too "stereotypically Doctorish". The fact that Rowan Atkinson's costume in Curse of Fatal Death or Mark Gatiss' outfit in The Web of Caves strongly resemble what Eight's wearing really helps to re-enforce this idea. 

On the plus side: We're still, at least, getting that "period feel" that I love so much. And the version we get in both Night of the Doctor and Power of the Doctor looks infinitely better. Which is why Eight doesn't end up on the very bottom of my list but only does a little bit better in the greater scheme of things. 

Oddly enough, this one makes it considerably higher than what Ten wore. 

I think it's the vest that mainly wins me over. It's really quite unique and helps to make Tennant feel mush more distinctive this time round. As someone who owns far more vests than any human should (I have over fifty, now), this can have a strong bearing on my opinion. In fact, I enjoy this vest so much that I'm trying to find one that looks like it.  Not for cosplay. But to just to walk around in and, generally, look cool 

I also like the coat just a little bit better than the last one. Even though his first coat was quite fun by being so outlandishly long!

Of course, it's still just a little too simplistic and contemporary. But Fourteen manages to climb up the list a bit higher than Ten. 

There's a lot Patrick Troughton does to "sell" this costume. The  frock coat he's chosen, for instance, is super distinctive. It's not often you can find one that's cut like that. And we get that he's meant to be "the Cosmic Hobo", so he can get away with looking so shabby. That big 'ole hole in the knee of his trousers throughout the bulk of The War Games actually works! 

Ultimately, however, it feels just a tad too simple. It needs something more. Troughton does accessorize things a bit here and there. He throws on a cloak in Tomb of the Cybermen that looks quite nice. He sports a decent umbrella in The Krotons but it gets ruined pretty quickly by acid. 

Other attempts to add to the outfit don't always work so well. The fur coat in various Yeti-involved stories looks a bit too much like it should be worn by a woman, instead. And let's not even bring up the stovepipe hat! 

This one, I'm sure, will be controversial. 

A lot of Old School fans really love the Fourth Doctor's costume. 

"That scarf!" they'll proclaim, "It's just so iconic!" 

As I've already said, though, it is also a bit tacky. Particularly to the more objective eyes of New Who fans.

"I'm not sure what the fuss is about." some will admit, "The scarf kinda looks a little dumb." 

But even if you do love the scarf, there are other issues with this outfit. 

In the earlier days of the Fourth Doctor Era, he was going for a more "traditional" look. Underneath that scarf was a nice vest, cravat and coat combination. Strip away that scarf, however, and he looks almost as generic as Eight. We see this best in Planet of Evil, where he does ditch the scarf for most of the story. He still looks decent - but he doesn't look like anything special.    

(For the next paragraph, I will do an absolutely super duper ultra nitpick). 

During certain stories of this period, Tom Baker would pull up the collar on his shirt. Which is actually something certain types of shirts can do. The wing-tip collar that One wore, for instance, is meant to be worn that way. But it looks pretty stupid when you do this with a regular dress shirt. It almost seems like Tom doesn't know how to wear a shirt properly! 

And then we get to his mid-to-late period. Most specifically, Seasons Sixteen and Seventeen. It really looks like Tom just doesn't care anymore. Aside from the scarf, he's just thrown on a shirt, vest and coat. And quite a bit of the outfit is looking pretty battered. Troughton may have been the Cosmic Hobo, but Baker genuinely looks like he's living on the streets. One almost feels like we should be giving him change every time we see him! 

Thank God JNT orders a re-design for Baker's final season. The outlandishly long scarf is still present (and longer than ever), but the colors have been reigned in considerably. The whole burgundy-dominated motif actually looks quite beautiful. I even like the question marks. I know I'm one of the few fans that does! 

I will say: Were it not for the Season Eighteen costume, this Doctor would probably be much lower on the list. 

In the Grand Scheme of Things, Tom Baker starts off as a bit mediocre, descends into absolutely awful and then finishes strong. 

I should actually like this costume a lot less than I do. It doesn't have any kind of "period feel" to it whatsoever. And the "floods" that she's wearing do look pretty damned ridiculous. 

And yet, somehow, I appreciate it quite a bit. I think it has a lot do with the coat. It really is unique and looks absolutely great on her. To me, it feels far more "iconic" than some goofy long scarf ever could. 

I do disagree with everyone who complains that she should have worn the dark coat more often. It looks great too - but the original is equally excellent. And I like that she only actually wore the dark one when she was in some kind of surreal context: Like talking to her past selves in a mindscape or appearing as the Embodiment of Time. 

This, in many ways, is the most unique costume an incarnation has ever worn. But it makes sense. She is the first female Doctor. Thus making her different from all her predecessors. Which means the clothing can be radically different too. 

Another extremely unique costume for an extremely unique incarnation. 

The look almost doesn't have a style of its own. It seems more like a combination of McGann and Eccleston's costume. With only hints of "his own thing going on" with elements like the neck-scarf and the bandolier. 

But, like Thirteen, this makes a sort of sense. There's symbolism to all this. Because of all the atrocities he must commit during the Time Wars, this incarnation doesn't truly believe himself to be the Doctor.  He feels as though he's lost his identity. So the costume borrows a lot from the Doctors around him rather than establishing a presence of its own. It's a reflection of how this incarnation feels about himself. He takes items from other versions of him because he doesn't want to be who he is. 

It's a bit surreal that he's wearing a coat from his own future (albeit, more beat up than the one Eccleston wore), but still quite cool. 

Like Jodie, the outfit is still really only so exciting. It very much belongs in its middling state on this list. But I have little or no problem with it. It's really quite nice. 

I know a lot of fans, at the time, did not appreciate that the Doctor's clothes had become far more "tailored" during the 80s. But after coming off of an incarnation that was starting to look like he was homeless, I thought this was the smartest of moves. 

I also have just a bit of a bias. 80s Who was special to me. In my teens, I went back and watched all the 60s and 70s stuff. But it was in this decade that I first had to wait for new seasons to come out. In this sense, it's the era I grew up with. So I have lots of happy memories from this period. To the point where some of the costumes, maybe, should be lower on the list. But I do have stronger feelings for them. Much of those feelings that I have are, admittedly, motivated more by nostalgia than anything. 

With Five, the cricket motif looks classical enough that it still feels like we're getting that period feel. Which works well. It's a bit unsettling that this Doctor never wears any kind of neckwear like a tie or a cravat, but I get it - it's not something a cricketer would wear. 

This is another one of those coats that is gorgeously unique. You know that if you were to actually find one, it was completely made with the Fifth Doctor, in mind. It's not just something you come upon hanging off the peg at a regular clothing shop! 

And then, of course, there's the celery on the lapel. Why it actually works as well as it does, I cannot tell you. But Five really does manage to pull off a decorative vegetable. 

A very fun interesting Doctor whose costume matches her overall vibe quite well. 

The shirt is, in many ways, the centerpiece. It is gorgeously eye-catching. Not just because of the wild colors, but the design is very nice too. It's the first time in ages that we've seen the Doctor experimenting with ruffles. 

There are, perhaps, just a bit too many buttons going on, here. I get it, the whole outfit is about having a lot of buttons. But it does go just a tad too far with it. Which is why this is still a very pleasant costume, but it doesn't make it any higher on the list than here. 

With fans in the 80s already not liking question marks on the Doctor's collar, it's quite amusing how JNT really "doubles down" with this Doctor. 

The sweater definitely got quite a bit of hate when it first came out. But the sentiment really seems to have changed over the years. In the New Series, we have seen it come back as often as Tom Baker's scarf has (Osgoode sports the scarf in Day of the Doctor and the sweater in the Zygon episodes. Both elements are featured in the Master's Doctor costume during Power of the Doctor, etc...). Which almost leads one to believe that it just might be as iconic as what many fans believe to be the most iconic costume piece in all of Doctor Who. 

Admittedly, it also looks a bit tacky. But it's a good sort of tacky, really. A tacky that, somehow, works. 

The rest of the outfit is brilliant too. This is the incarnation from Classic Who that has the least amount of "period feel" to his look. But he still climbs quite high on this list. It's also impressive that when he comes back with a considerably different outfit in Doctor Who - The Movie, he doesn't feel as generic as his successor does. 

At long last, he appears. 

No doubt, many of you are savagely disagreeing with his placement. Particularly when you consider how many other Doctors he's beaten to get here. But I do genuinely believe that there is much to love about the Sixth Doctor's outfit. 

Yes, I'll acknowledge it: It is horrifically gaudy. But there is a great fun to that gaudiness. And it comes with an internal logic. The Doctor's regeneration had been very difficult, this time. Which had driven him temporarily mad. During that period of insanity, he put the outfit together. It seems to me that, once he had finally calmed down from it all, pride took over. Rather than admit the costume was a mistake, he kept wearing it. Even started making it tackier. 

My appreciation of it all becomes even more tenuous in Trial of a Time Lord when he dons a series of vests and cravats that are even more difficult to accept. Particularly what he's wearing in Terror of the Vervoids. That just might be too loud even for me! And yet, at the same time, I love the audacity of it all. The Doctor refuses to settle down. He's just going to keep ramping it up. To the point where some of his accessories appear almost child-like. Look at the way the chains on his vests appear in Trial of a Time Lord. They are brightly-colored, oversized, and made of cheap plastic. Almost like they belong on a toy rather than actual clothes an adult might wear. 

We also have yet another coat that is very extremely unique. Which, for some reason, always scores lots of points for me. I absolutely adore this coat. I hope, someday, to get one for myself. I know it won't be cheap, I will want it to look as authentic as possible and that will cost me some serious cash!. 

Still, I can't deny the tackiness of it all. But, honestly, if some of the features had been just a little more conservative, this would make it all the way to the top on this list. As it is, though, I do consider this to be "one of the Greats". 

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Matt Smith brought me great happiness as he took over the role of the Doctor. Not only do I love his portrayal, but the costume he chose had a much more classical feel to it. Which, after two Doctors in a row who wore outfits that did very little for me, brings great joy. 

The very first iteration of the costume does lack a little something. But I still like the way he looks like an eccentric professor rather than someone who is trying to impress the ladies (which is what the first two incarnations of New Who Doctors seem to be going for). It helps enormously that Amy keeps teasing him about how outdated he looks in a bow tie. It re-enforces the idea that this Doctor looks much more traditional.

Of course, as we get closer and closer to the 50th Anniversary, the Doctor looks more and more like he belongs in the Classic Series. Which is such a great direction for the outfit to move in. As we, at last, reach Day of the Doctor, we can believe that the most current Doctor belongs to a large pantheon of eccentrically-garbed characters. This is because he's no longer wearing jeans and a leather jacket or a skinny suit with a long coat. He truly resembles the Doctors of old. 

I do wish he'd worn that green coat a bit more often, though. Otherwise, this is another Great Doctor Costume.

Like the Second Doctor's outfit, this costume comes perilously close to being just a bit too simplistic. The Devil, however, is in the details. Or, at least, that's how the old saying goes....

Look, for instance, at what could easily constitute a simple black blazer. Instead, it's got cool oval lapels rather than the traditional triangular ones. And Hartnell frequently has a handkerchief hanging flamboyantly out of the side pocket. 

The vest and cravat also have a ribbon-like necklace that supports spectacles that help the Doctor to read. Even the key to the TARDIS is attached to the most eccentric of key chains. 

And then there's the way One chooses to accessorize things. The hats and scarves that he, sometimes, adds to his whole outfit look great. And the cloak he throws on from time-to-time is downright majestic. At the risk of sounding super-pedantic, I absolutely love its clasp!

One of the bigger elements that makes this costume so great is how definitive it is. These are the clothes that will help so many other choices that future Doctors will make as they finally spring into existence. For this reason, alone, One's apparel deserves to be this high in the rankings. 

The only Doctor who actually dresses as a time traveler should. He made a concerted effort on many occasions to wear clothes that will help him to blend in with the era he's visiting  

And yet, he still manages to stand out that little bit wherever he goes. Just look at something like The Devil's Chord. The Doctor and Ruby do that fun sequence where they exit the console room to visit the TARDIS wardrobe. They return a second later in absolutely perfect 60s garb. 

And that's just it. It's too damned perfect. Whatever Fifteen does, he does it with tremendous style. Which makes him impossible not to notice! 

At the same time, he still sports a "proper Doctor costume" on a regular enough basis. There is adequate consistency to the articles of clothing that he throws on so that he doesn't seem like just a regular person who switches up their outfits every day. He favors a certain type of shirt, for example, that we see him in quite often. And, of course, there's that long brown leather coat. A nice checkered one shows up now and again too. I also quite like his manskirts. And that's not just me trying to sound open-minded! 

He does, occasionally, make choices I'm less thrilled about. He's got a short black leather jacket that he likes to wear with just a basic white t-shirt that doesn't do much for me. And I'm really glad we didn't see him much in 73 Yards. That was, pretty much, the most unDoctorish outfit ever! 

Really, though, even the stuff that he wears that I don't like much still looks great on him. Which is why he ranks so high. Fifteen might not always choose what I feel are the sort of clothes that the Doctor should wear - but it hardly matters. He dresses spectacularly! 

The winner! 

I'm not particularly fond of the Third Doctor Era. I find most of the stories during this period to not be all that engaging and I even have problems with the way Jon Pertwee played the part. Nonetheless, I will not deny him the title of Best Dressed Doctor of Them All. 

As marvelous as Ncuti looks, he doesn't tick all those crucial boxes like Pertwee does. Not only does Three look distinctive, have a great "period feel" to his costume and show great taste, but he scores 100% in all these categories. There may be other things about him that I only like so much - but when it comes to Doctor costumes, he is King. 

Part of the appeal of his outfits is how much he varies his look while stilly maintaining a beautiful consistency. In every story, Three dresses differently. He'll add accessories for one adventure. Maybe he's in a vest or has a cravat or bow tie around his neck. But then some of those elements are altered or taken away for the adventure after that. Or it's a green blazer one week and a blue one the next. Or there's even that one time he wore a cummerbund during The Five Doctors. Something we never saw him in before or since. 

But regardless of all the different accessories, two important elements remain: He's always in a handsome dinner jacket and a cool ruffly shirt. These are the core elements of the Third Doctor Vibe. Everything that's built around it is so much window dressing. But all of it still looks amazing. 

And then, finally, there are the Inverness capes. So many different styles that he wore and he looked great in all of them! I am the proud owner of a somewhat cheap one, myself. It's funny how people will compliment me for it. Even say it makes me look a bit like Sherlock Holmes. 

"No way!" I'll answer with just a hint of angry defiance, "It's supposed to make me look like the Third Doctor!" 

He's the guy I want to resemble when I wear that thing. For the simple reason that no Doctor dresses better... 

LIST COMPLETE

And.... there you go. My list is done.  

No doubt, you all think I'm absolutely insane for ranking Six so high. And that's okay. You're entitled to your opinion. Also, I probably am just a little nuts. Who was it that once said: "Anything interesting is, at least, remotely insane!" 

It should be noted that, though I spoke poorly of some of these outfits, I don't genuinely hate any of them. Each costume helped to bring that particular incarnation of the Doctor to life in a new and interesting way. Often, there were still certain items within their whole look that I really loved. Even with the super simplistic style of Nine, I still adored the coat so much that I got one for myself. 

There is one exception to this: I really did genuinely dislike what Four was wearing during Seasons Sixteen and Seventeen. It almost seemed like the costumier for Baker had been caught sleeping with the producer's wife and had been sacked for it. It took forever to find a replacement so Tom was left to fend for himself for two years. During that time, he just decided to put as little effort into getting dressed as possible! 

Thankfully, they came along and cleaned him up for his last season! 

Other than that, though, I love everything the Doctor has worn. I've just loved some outfits better than others. And that's why, of course, I came up with this list. 

 

   

 

UNADULTERATED BOORISH OPINION: HOW MIGHT THE 2026 CHRISTMAS SPECIAL PLAY OUT?

SPECIAL NOTE:  So I had intended to post this on Doctor Who Day. But then a bunch of "leaks" came out. A reliable source (or someone purporting to be that reliable source) claimed to have learnt the basic premise of the Christmas Special's plot. A very convincing behind-the-scenes pic (that was, more-than-likely, some really good AI) also came out supporting what the "reliable source" was claiming. 

I am pretty sure there are some fans out there that are still insisting all of this is true. And perhaps they might be right. But I think most of us have gone back to believing that there's probably a very different plan in mind for what we'll be getting at the end of 2026. 

Now that we've calmed down a bit, let's try to take a more objective look at things. 

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OFFICIAL AND UNOFFICIAL NEWS 

It's Official: After several months of making the fans fret, we get a proper and real announcement from the Beeb. Even though Disney pulled out, BBC is going to keep making new eps of Doctor Who. From what we understand, we'll be getting a Christmas Special near the end of 2026 and then a full season sometime in 2027. 

While this can, mainly, be construed as good news, it's a bit grueling to hear that it will take so long to get new Who on our screens. But still, it's better to wait a while than to just get no new eps at all. Ultimately, this still represents a massive victory. Wish World/Reality War does not constitute a Survival of the 2000s. The show will not be taking another Long Sleep. 

At least, not yet!

Some fans are interpreting this news in an interesting manner. While I've seen nothing from the BBC to confirm this, many seem to think that the 2026 Christmas Special will be the final installment of the RTD2 Era. The new season we will get in 2027 will be made by a different Head Writer. And, more than likely, a new production team, in general. Essentially, RTD will have a single one hour episode to wrap whatever loose plot strands he still has lying around. 

Again, I have seen no official statement validating this idea (perhaps others have?). Which is not to say that this isn't what's actually going to happen. But, as far as I'm concerned, it's also just as likely that RTD is sticking around to helm a third series. Perhaps even more seasons after that. At least, at the time of writing this, either outcome is at equal odds of happening. 

LET'S PRETEND 

The main thrust of this essay will be to entertain this current fan notion that RTD has only one more story left to resolve all the arcs he still has up in the air. It seems like a monumental task, really. There are still quite a few mystery boxes floating around that I don't think can be properly explained in just an hour. Even if he was allowed a bit more run-time it would still be difficult to tackle everything without feeling too rushed. Which is why I'm inclined to believe that he will be hanging around for a bit after the Christmas Special. The odds really do seem strong that he will get one more year in the Driver's Seat. 

But let's say he's only got the one episode left. I'm filled with many questions, if that's the case. My biggest one being: If this truly is his final story, what does RTD definitely have to resolve in the Christmas Special? There are any number of minor plot points and/or mysteries that I think don't need to be examined any further (ie: What exactly was 73 Yards actually about?!)  But there are other elements of this period that we definitely need closure to before the ending credits for the Christmas Special roll up. 

But what are they, exactly?! 

There are also a few subsidiary questions that I have. They may even seem to take things in strange directions, but they still matter to me. One of the weirder ones would be: What is the order of importance of these unresolved issues that RTD still needs to tackle? Some of these mystery boxes mean more to me than others. So if we don't get answers to those "more important" ones then I will experience greater dissatisfaction with the story. Perhaps even the entire RTD2 Era, in general. Whereas less crucial storylines will still upset me if they're not properly concluded - but I won't be quite as bothered. 

I have two more Big Questions that are quite complimentary in nature: What is the most likely outcome to the Mystery Box? And: What is the outcome I most want to see? On some occasions, the answer to both these questions will be the same. Most of the time, however, they will diverge greatly. 

Let me try to give an example: 

As I have mentioned in other entries (oftentimes, to the disdain of my readers who have poor taste in music), my other great "geek passion" is for the Canadian prog rock band: Rush. For most of the group's career, they worked with a drummer named Neil Peart. Sadly, he passed away a few years ago. After grieving his loss for quite some time, the two surviving members found a replacement drummer and have embarked upon a new tour. Many Rush Nerds suspected something like this would happen.  We also guessed that they would do what most bands of their stature do in a situation like this. They selected a really talented up-and-coming musician who had made a bit of a name for themselves but was still only so big in the industry. There are several reason why a band like Rush does this. But it is a decision that makes a lot of sense. It is, quite simply, the most likely outcome to a situation of this nature. 

What I was hoping they would do, however, was pick the only other drummer I know in Prog Rock that could truly fill Neil Peart's shoes. I wanted them to hire Bill Brufford. A drummer who has already worked with very "Rushesque" bands like King Crimson and Yes. This was the outcome I most wanted to see but knew was highly unlikely of happening. Especially since Brufford officially retired as a musician quite some time ago. 

Do we see the difference, now? Most Likely and Most Desired outcomes can vary greatly.  .  

While I do think this little example illustrates the concept I'm trying to explain, I also believe the real reason I included it in the entry was so I could have an opportunity to talk about Rush for a bit! Having done that, let's get back to my real point: 

This essay will take the time to explain all the different ongoing storylines that RTD must wrap up if the Christmas Special really is his last ep. It will then rank those arcs in order of importance. Finally, it will discuss the most likely way in which the plot strands will be resolved. But it will also include how I'd most like to see them end. 

Right then, now that we've established all this, let's get on with it, shall we? 

PLOT POINT #1: 

So this is the biggest one of them all. The one that has gotten all of us eager to see what happens next. Quite simply: Why does the Doctor now look like Rose?!

The simplest answer is, of course, that this is what the latest version of what the Doctor looks like. We know, already, that regeneration can give a Time Lord a face they've seen before. Six was a copy of Commander Maxil from Arc of Infinity and Twelve looked like Caecilius in Fires of Pompeii. The Doctor can even "revisit old faces" like he has with his fourth and tenth incarnations. The process isn't so random that he always gets a completely original appearance. So looking like Rose doesn't come from completely out of nowhere. 

If this is, indeed, the case - then I have little problem with it. Billie Piper has more-than-proven that she is a highly competent actress and will give us a great interpretation of the role. She not only excelled as Rose in Doctor Who, but has gone on to play in many other TV shows over the years where she did an equally-awesome job. In several of these series, she even played the lead. So she can, easily, carry the weight that's required of a performer in a part of this stature. 

Most fans, however, suspect that there's a bit of a trick going on, here. The most commonly-held belief is that the Doctor will only look like Rose for a brief period of time and will then "properly regenerate" into the actor that will go on to play the Doctor in the next season(s) of Doctor Who. Many are citing how the ending credits of Reality War had a caption that read: "And Introducing Billie Piper". They believe this to be quite suspicious. Any other time that the Doctor has regenerated, that sentence finished off with: "as the Doctor". Because of this omission, many are convinced Piper will not be the latest incarnation of the Doctor. But something else, entirely. 

While I'm impressed by those who noticed this (I caught it, too!), I'm actually a bit amazed that no one seems to be remarking on how the regeneration was visually-represented this time. Since New Who started, the process looks, pretty much, the same. Exposed skin on a Time Lord's body glows in a sort of golden hue for a few seconds and then fades away as a new body appears. With Fifteen, however, the energy isn't just enveloping his head and hands. Instead, it seems to be swirling all around him. Coming out from all over the place. Go back and have a look. 

This visual cue seems to indicate that the regeneration isn't quite normal. Which does help support the idea that something weird is going on, here. It looks quite likely that Rose's appearance will not be the permanent result of this particular transformation. 

Using the actual Lore of the show, there are two potential outcomes that we can extrapolate: 

1) This might be something similar to the regeneration Romana had at the beginning of Destiny of the Daleks. For some reason, the Doctor is suddenly capable of trying on several bodies before making a final choice. For all we know, Rose will disappear just a few seconds into the Christmas Special and the Doctor assumes another form entirely. And, perhaps, a few more after that. And that will be all we see of her. 

2) This could have something to do with The Moment from Day of the Doctor. Perhaps the Interface has hijacked the Doctor in mid-regeneration. Out of familiarity, she gives him the same shape she has taken in their last encounter. She's doing all this because she needs him to prevent some major disaster. We have been seeing the Villengard Corporation a lot lately. Perhaps they've built a Moment of their own and the Gallifreyan version is trying to stop them. Or something to that effect... 

While both these theories tie in nicely with ideas we've already seen represented on the show, neither of them strike me as being all that particularly likely. The second one does hold a bit of water. I do think some external influence has affected the Doctor's appearance for a brief period of time - it's just not the Moment. Eventually the regeneration will complete itself and Rose will be replaced by someone else. I also think that whatever outside force this is, it's not something we've seen before on the show. It could be possible, however, that it's some sort of special technology being operated by a previously-established character from the Doctor's past, But that's as close as I think we'll get to employing continuity to solve the riddle. 

This does seem the most likely outcome to this situation. In this instance, it's also the one I most want to see.

SPECIAL NOTE: Some of you might feel that there is a third explanation that uses previously-established continuity that I'm neglecting to mention. I've heard any number of fans postulate that all of this has something to do with that brief moment in Series One when Rose Tyler was able to stare into the Heart of the TARDIS and become the Bad Wolf. It is a theory that does make a bit of sense. During that moment, Rose was able to see all of Time and Space. There might have been a moment in the far-flung future where she saw that the Doctor would need her help again. 

The biggest problem with this idea is that, when Rose became the Bad Wolf, her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she talked and acted in a god-like manner. We see none of this behavior during the brief final seconds of The Reality War. Which leads me to believe this has nothing to do with when she was the Bad Wolf. 

PLOT POINT #2: 

The second mystery box that needs solving tugs at me almost as hard as the stuff about Rose. It was the very first arc RTD teased out way back in The Star Beast and we're still waiting for an answer. In fact, it even got mentioned near the tail end of The Reality War. Just to make sure we're all still asking ourselves the Big Question:  

Who is the Boss?   

There are many possibilities, of course. It could be a character we've never seen before. Or it could be one of those one-time-only villains that writers will, sometimes, bring back for a second battle (Please God, let it be Meglos. Please God, let it be Meglos. Please God, let it be....) Or it could be a recurring baddie that has plagued the Doctor on any number of occasions, already. It could even be that Super-Computer from The Green Death that was actually called The Boss! 

The thing is, though, it's pretty obvious who it is: 

The Boss is the Master. 

There are just a few too many clues that got thrown out. Particularly in the Sixtieth Anniversary Specials. When discussing the Boss, the Meep speaks of species that have two hearts. And then there's all the stuff involving the Toymaker's golden tooth in The Giggle. 

This could be a bunch of misdirection, of course. RTD could just be setting all this up to make things easy for a future writer who wants to bring the Master back. But RTD was never all that good at such tactics. He doesn't tend to create plot threads like this without cashing in on them later. He's also only so good at keeping his clues subtle (look how one little trailer got us all to work out that Neil Patrick Harris was the Toymaker!). So I'm going to safely say that the Boss is the Master. 

There is, perhaps, only one thing that contradicts this idea. The Toymaker's golden tooth isn't recovered till after the events of Star Beast. So how could the Master be the Boss if he hasn't actually been saved, yet? The solution is pretty simple, of course. He's a time traveler. He was rescued from the Toymaker's mouth and then went back in time and established himself as the Boss. He did something similar when he became Harold Saxon in Series Three. He is messing, ever-so-slightly, with Gallifreyan Mean Time when he does that (something that is no longer just a Fan Theory as it does get discussed in The End of Time - Part 1) but not quite enough to cause any kind of serious trouble. 

The Bigger Question in my mind is actually: Will Sacha Dhawan come back as the Master? I absolutely adored what he did with the role and would love to see him return. Dhawan has even said that he doesn't feel done with the part and wants to continue. And then there's the fact that we've yet to have a  Master in New Who "do an Anthony Ainley" and face the Doctor in several different incarnations. These are all factors that have me praying that they bring Dhawan back for more. Not just in this story but for others in the future.. 

Unless, of course, they decide to make the Boss Meglos. That would be the only thing that would make me happier!

PLOT POINT #3: 

Priorities are lowering every time we reach a new plot point, but this one still matters quite a bit to me. 

This is, perhaps, the most cleverly-built of the RTD2 arcs. It starts as a mere bit of fannish throwaway dialogue in The Devil's Chord. The Doctor mentions to Ruby that, in another part of London, the events of An Unearthly Child are happening. It's a quick reminder that the Doctor has a granddaughter. The season then ends with the Doctor and Ruby returning to modern-day Earth and suspecting that Susan Triad might actually be that granddaughter. She's not, though. 

For a while, there's no talk of Susan. And then, suddenly, in the middle of The Interstellar Song Contest, Susan starts communicating with her grandfather through some sort of weird telepathic link. She continues to do so throughout the rest of the season. 

Susan is still alive! She's out there, somewhere. And she's trying to get in touch with the Doctor. Which leads us to the latest Big Question: 

What the Hell is going on with Susan?!!   

It seems that RTD's main goal will be to finally sort out the complexity of the relationship between the Doctor and Susan. It doesn't seem to be as simple as the Doctor having a kid who had a kid. The conversation he has with Kate Stewart in Empire of Death hints at something far more complicated. The Doctor revealing in The Reality War that Time Lords are sterile makes the whole situation even murkier. I'm guessing that, if the Christmas Special is all that RTD has left, then the Doctor will finally find Susan and we'll get some explanations. 

I do hope, however, that we'll get more than just some confusing canon sorted out. That Susan is actually useful to the plot of the Christmas Special in some way. If we do get that, however, then it could lead us to a very sinister outcome: 

Susan might actually be the Boss. 

PLOT POINT #4: 

These last few points are very low on the totem. I'd like to see them get solved. But, quite honestly, if RTD doesn't get around to them because he's only got an hour-or-so of screentime left, then I'll be okay.

So the Doctor did this thing in Wild Blue Yonder that I thought was pretty cool. Basically, he poured a bit of salt and kinda changed the entire fabric of reality. The Whoniverse is now much more supernatural. It's not just the Pantheon that's crept in, there's all kinds of crazy things going on that don't necessarily have a proper logic to them.  

Prior to the events of Wild Blue Yonder, everything in Doctor Who had a proper scientific explanation to it. The science might be a little "wonly", at times. Or it might be more of a pseudoscience than the real thing. But there was still an internal logic going on. 

This is not so much the case anymore. Breaking a Fairy Circle can have devastating consequences. Or barber shops can travel on the backs of spiders that are powered by stories. And none of this requires a proper explanation. And I'm quite enjoying the more fantastical edge Doctor Who currently has.

But the Doctor does need to, eventually, "fix" the Universe. He has to find some way to restore things to what they once were. All the gods and goblins and what-have-yous need to get banished back to beyond the edge of the universe. We need to return to a reality that is governed by science and rules. 

This doesn't need to happen right away. I, for one, would be happy if we got a few more seasons like this before the problem was finally fixed. I'd almost even be a bit sad if RTD hits the re-set button in the Christmas Special. There's much more that can be explored...

Having said this, however, I would understand if we get our old Whoniverse back by the end of the episode. A new Head Writer might not want to step into something like this. They would probably prefer to return to the reality we've had for most of the show's run.  . 

PLOT POINT #5: 

And now we are moving into the Land of the Virtually Irrelevant. The world of I Am So Close to Not Caring About This. But let's examine these last few points, anyway!

There seems to be a bit of a consensus amongst Fandom that the Doctor needs to eventually "re-unite" with himself. That a bi-generation can only go on for so long and then the two separate incarnations must merge together again. Some seem to think that this is yet one more thing that will happen in this jam-packed Christmas Special: The two Doctors that now exist will bond back together into one. 

Interestingly enough, some believe that it won't be David Tennant playing the role of "the Other Doctor" when this happens. Many that feel a reunion between incarnations is due think that the Tennant version has also regenerated (which may be why they need to come back together - perhaps this is all part of the process of bi-generation. Once both incarnations have regenerated they need to re-unite. We don't really know since there are no established rules about how all of this works!). These fans believe that, when the two different versions meet again, the Other Doctor will now be Tom Baker. 

This will, of course, get that bit at the end of Day of the Doctor to finally have a proper place in the canon of the show. At some point offscreen, David Tennant changed into Tom Baker. Tom Baker went off to be the Curator for a while in the Secret Undergallery of London, There he briefly met Matt Smith and told him to go look for Gallifrey. Sometime after that, he ventures into the Christmas Special. There, he re-joins his other incarnation and the bi-generattion closes itself back up. 

If RTD does decide to do this, it could help with the idea of Rose serving as only a temporary incarnation. The Doctor takes on the form of his old companion until he can "heal" the bi-generation. Once the incarnations are back together, a proper regeneration ensues and we get the real actor who will play the Sixteenth Doctor. 

PLOT POINT #6:

Okay, this one barely even counts. But it may actually come up. 

Some fans who despise the Timeless Child arc that Chris Chibnall created were hoping that RTD would retcon the whole thing. That he would come up with some sort of plot contrivance that would wipe the entire concept from canon. Like the Doctor suddenly wakes up in the TARDIS still in his twelfth incarnation and proclaims: "All that time I spent as a woman. It was all just a dream!" 

Or something to that effect....

But RTD ended up doing the exact opposite. He clings quite tightly to the notion. In Church on Ruby Road, for instance, the Doctor mentions to Ruby that he recently discovered he was a foundling. We even get the briefest of cameos from the Fugitive Doctor during The Story and the Engine. Clearly, our current Head Writer is not wiping the Timeless Child out of existence. 

Chibnall, of course, left things very open-ended with the whole storyline. We learn a bit about the Timeless Child but then Thirteen tosses the fob watch that can tell her everything about her hidden past down a chasm in the TARDIS. While the gesture frustrated some fans, I thought it was pretty cool. Quite honestly, I'm glad we haven't gotten all the answers. It allows other writers to build on the myth in their own way.

It might be nice if RTD actually does some of that during the Christmas Special (if he can fit it in somewhere!). Perhaps the Doctor even stumbles upon the fob watch and allows it to share a bit more information with her. Or the Fugitive Doctor makes an appearance and tells the Doctor a bit more about her past. 

Or something to that effect.... 

RTD has made enough mention of the Timeless Child throughout Ncuti's era that if he did want to breach the subject a bit more in his final episode, it wouldn't seem out of place. 

IN THE END 

So, there it is. All the things that need sorting out if all we're getting is one more story from RTD. It seems like a lot, of course. But, as I pointed out, some of these issues are far less important than others. In some cases, they don't even really need to be resolved. The next Head Writer can deal with them. Or not! Doctor Who has a long history of hanging threads that were never properly concluded. It's become a legitimate core element of the show's format. 

You don't believe me? Look at how they had planned back in the Pertwee Era to reveal that the Master was the Doctor's brother. The story arc was abandoned after the passing of Roger Delgado but then still gets hinted at years later in Planet of Fire. Which means that, all this time, the two Time Lords may actually be related. But we still haven't really been given a proper answer. Or how about the way the Cartmel Masterplan never truly came to fruition because the show went off the air before the full story could be told? Or the very open-ended conclusion to The Doctor's Daughter where Jenny flies off into space expecting to get in more trouble and see her Dad some more .... but then we never see her again! The show is full of this kind of stuff. So it stands to reason that we get more of this in the years to come. 

If RTD only deals with my first three plot points, I'll be content. Although, really, I still think he should get one more season. I wish Ncuti was the star in that final season but we can't always get what we want.  Still, I'll be happy to see these arcs being allowed to breathe a bit rather than get compressed into one tiny little Christmas Special. Even if it's a new Doctor that has to wrap them up rather than one that started them all. Unfortunately, however, we have some very vocal grumpy old fans that want to see the back of this current Head Writer as quickly as possible. 

Sadly, they just might get their way.

. 

 

 

ANALYTICAL: THE FINAL INCARNATION - HOW A TIME LORD DEALS WITH THE END

Here's another one of those "studies" I decide to do every once in a while... 

As someone who possesses the entire series on some form of tangible media, (which does make a difference - more and more stories are not making it into the archives of  the streaming platforms that have bought the rights to the show), I can select episodes that deal with specific themes and watch them all back-to-back. As I do this, I can also record some observations I made while viewing the content and share them with you in my cute little Blog. 

Hope you enjoy my latest subject of study.  

As The Deadly Assassin premiered, several hitherto-unknown saliant points regarding the show's Lore get established. The adventure, in general, has much to say. One of its most important messages, of course, is to stay away from railroad tracks (even if the trains look pretty small). But, in terms of creating new canon, it presents a major detail concerning the lifespans of the Gallifreyan Elite. In an almost off-hand way, it gets mentioned that a Time Lord is only capable of regenerating twelve times. Meaning that, after thirteen incarnations, that's the end for them. They must accept death.  

It seems the main reason this new "rule" was created was to take the Master's character in a new direction. But it still caused some long-reaching consequences for the entire thrust of the show. If anything, it gets us to ask one Huge Question: What happens when the Doctor reaches his final incarnation?

Which is, eventually, a dilemma that we arrive at. Many years after the Master faces this deeply-troubling limitation, the Doctor must deal with it, himself, in Time of the Doctor. But, between those two point, the "Only Thirteen Lives" Rule has a significant role to play in the life of, at least, one other Time Lord. 

The purpose of this entry will be to examine how getting to that last incarnation influences the behavior of the Doctor and those other individuals who have found themselves in this situation. We'll see that, in every case, a Time Lord accepts their mortality in a different way. 

PROPER DEFINITION

As is often the case in these analyses, we need to make things as clear as possible: 

Over the many seasons of the show, we've seen any number of Time Lords face their mortality in all sorts of ways. In fact, the very second Time Lord that the Doctor meets once he flees Gallifrey is murdered by an execution squad in Part Nine of The War Games (even though every fan in existence seems convinced that he regenerates from the incident!). This sort of thing is not just limited to the Time Lords he meets, though. The Doctor, himself, seems convinced he's reached his end in episodes like The Wedding of River Song or The Magician's Apprentice. 

If we want to get really technical, there's been any number of instances throughout the whole history of the series where the Doctor thought he was going to die. Particularly as he reaches a cliffhanger. Part Two of Trial of a Time Lord, for example, ends with him actually uttering: "I really think this could be the end!". But there are any number of other occasions where his reactions express that same sentiment without him actually verbalizing it. Time Lords (including the Doctor, himself) often seem convinced that they are on the verge of death. 

In order to clear up any sort of confusion, we need to create a nice specific definition of what we're going to discuss, here. So, to be concise: In this entry, we are looking at Time Lords that have reached their final incarnation. We will examine the sort of ramifications that ensue when they arrive at such a point in their lives. 

Unlike other situations where a Time Lord thinks they might die, we will look at instances where they really do know they've reached their end. In most other scenarios where a Time Lord thinks they're in fatal danger, there's a little bit of hope. They believe they might still find a way out of their deadly predicament. If nothing else, they might actually regenerate from the whole thing. But not this time. This time, they truly are done. That "I might just regenerate" option has been legitimately exhausted. If the Time Lord is lucky, they might just age to death in their final incarnation. But if something unfortunate does happen, it's definitely going to kill them.    

Clearly, such a state of being is going to affect a Time Lord in a very unique way. They're going to have a different outlook on their life. They might accept their inevitable fate. Or they might do everything they can to fight it. They might even find a way to use the whole misfortune to their advantage. 

And that's what we're going to look at in this entry. We're, basically, going to examine the different sorts of attitudes we've seen a Time Lord exhibit at the end of their regeneration cycle.  

THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENS 

So we're actually going to tackle this one in a linear fashion (odd choice for a show about time travel, I know!). We'll start with the first Time Lord we witness suffering from this problem. The scoundrel who this whole rule was created for: the Master! 

The Master is probably the best example ever of a Time Lord refusing to accept the inevitable. Which makes sense for the character. Megalomaniacs tend to crave immortality. It would be even worse for the Master since he was now on his final incarnation and still hadn't achieved his greatest ambition of conquering the Universe. There's no way he'd let himself die before accomplishing his ultimate dream. Bur even if he was ruling all of Time and Space, he's not ever going to let go of that title, easily. He would resort to anything in order to extend his lifespan or even just dodge the problem altogether by, somehow, achieving immortality.

In order to avoid his Final End, the Master hatches some mad schemes. His first plan displays just how massive his hubris is. There are, of course, some tactical advantages to returning to Gallifrey and robbing the Eye of Harmony of all its power. He'll be able to navigate his way through Time Lord society efficiently since this is where he hails from. But there are any number of huge risks involved in such a venture. There are Time Lords that he's trying defeat. Immensely powerful beings that even the Doctor admits have beaten him. The Master is practically a fool for pitting his will against them. But, mad egotist that he is, he still tries. 

His second plan of becoming the Keeper of Traken was far easier to execute. But he intentionally chooses to try the more challenging gambit, first. It's just one more thing that shows off one of his more prominent core traits. The Master is completely delusional. We see it in the way he wants to take over the Universe. In the way he refuses to accept death. And even in the way he creates his plans to avoid his demise. His massive conceit is at the center of everything. Which means, of course, that there is no room in his ego for the humility required of him to bravely face his end. 

The Master will fight the consequences of being in his thirteenth incarnation until his dying breath. 

SOME QUESTIONS....

While the Master's attitude during his final incarnation is quite straightforward, his whole experience in this state raises a lot of questions. 

The biggest one being: why does a man who was once a Handsome Roger Delgado suddenly appear to be a corpse? Is this what becomes of a Time Lord when they hit the thirteenth incarnation? Or did something else happen that caused him to look this way?    

Fortunately, we've seen other Time Lords reach this point and not become some emaciated skeletal being. So we know it was something else that caused the Master to take on such an appearance. However, nothing has been said on the show that offers any kind of clear explanation. 

Other forms of media have tried to give a backstory. The most popular one stems from the novelization of Deadly Assassin. It seems that, sometime after Frontier in Space, events start occurring in the Master's life that cause him to rapidly move through his regenerations. Something goes wrong with a plan that causes him to get badly injured or he needs to assume a very quick disguise or other such incidents that precipitate a sudden regeneration after going through the process only a short while previously.. Regenerating so often in so short a time creates a sort of "burn out" that causes him to look so hideous in his final incarnation. 

It's a solid enough theory that I'm willing to subscribe to. 

The other problematic issue is the fact that a different actor is brought in for Keeper of Traken to play what is meant to be the same incarnation of the Master. This new actor isn't required to shout his way through a fright mask like the previous one. He's given a make-up job, instead, to achieve the corpse-like appearance. So he looks and even behaves quite differently but is still supposed to be the final incarnation of the Master. Again, no explanation is given within the context  of the show for why we have a Master that seems so different. 

I like to think that the Master did manage to tap some of the energy from the Eye of Harmony and use it to trigger a sort of partial regeneration. He's still in the same incarnation but has used the power he stole from the Time Lords to rejuvenate himself slightly.  

It's the best the evil renegade could do, under the circumstances, to extend his lifespan a bit more. 

If you should desire to check it out, I explore both of these concepts in greater detail in these entries:https://robtymec.blogspot.com/2016/10/chronologies-and-timelines-master-part-1.html and : https://robtymec.blogspot.com/2016/10/chronologies-and-timelines-history-of.html

AT LONG LAST, A NEW BODY

Hell-bent on not submitting to his fate, the Master's determination pays off. He lives beyond the thirteenth incarnation by being able to summon a certain amount of energy during his brief Keepership. With such powers, he hijacks Tremas' body (with a name like that, the poor guy never stood a chance!). 

The Trakenite body does seem to last him quite a while. This is, in fact, the only version of the Master that faces off with the Doctor in several of his incarnations (okay, John Simm kinda does it too but it's a bit of a cheat!). Quite a few years seem to pass from Fourth Doctor to Seventh, which would indicate a decent amount of longevity for the Ainley Master. Eventually, though, that version of the evil renegade seems to reach its end. As we get to Doctor Who - The Movie, we see him ever-so-briefly in one body played by Gordon Tipple and then he takes over an unfortunate ambulance driver portrayed by Eric Roberts. 

We could analyze these events in greater detail, here. But we are actually falling out of the parameters of our study. Ainley, Tipple and Roberts do not constitute "final incarnations" of the Master. At this point, the renegade is just body-snatching to keep himself alive. Which, to me, creates a very different mentality for a Time Lord. In his thirteenth body, the Master's fighting against the Laws of Nature. But, after Keeper of Traken, he's full-on breaking them. 

JUST A BIT MORE ABOUT THE MASTER....

There is one more important point that we should bring up before closing the book on the Master. It's that all-important scene in The Five Doctors where he's summoned by the High Council of the Time Lords and asked to sit in on one of their board meetings. The Council wants him to go into the Death Zone and save the Doctor. At first, they try to appeal to his better nature. But the Master quickly shows them he doesn't have one. So Borusa makes him an offer he can't refuse. If the Master cooperates, he'll be granted a whole new regeneration cycle. 

This scene is important for several reasons. Firstly, it shows that twelve regenerations is not some sort of naturally-occurring biological limit that Time Lords are stuck with. It is, in fact, a rule that is imposed upon them by the society they live in.. 

More importantly, though, it is a rule that can be broken. Under the proper circumstances, the High Council will grant extra lives to a Time Lord. If they deem it fit.  Which means, of course, that there is now some kind of hope for the Doctor when he reaches his final incarnation. 

It should also be noted that, although the Master did not receive the reward Borusa offered him, we can safely guess that, when the High Council resurrected the evil Time Lord  to fight in the Time Wars, the Master was given the new regeneration cycle he so badly needed. This is re-enforced by the fact that we have now seen several incarnations of him (or her) in the New Series. 

One can't help but wonder how much longer he has before he uses up all his bodies again. Or what sort of damage he might do, this time, to artificially extend his life once he reaches that point. 

THE MASTER OF JOCUNDA 

While the Master did the worst job of accepting his mortality, the next Gallifreyan we meet who's in the same situation seems to be the polar opposite. Out of all the Time Lords we've seen that have reached this point in their lives, Azmael from The Twin Dilemma does the greatest job of handling his final incarnation. 

This is probably displayed best when he actually tells the Doctor that he can't regenerate anymore. It's not some great admission of shame or inadequacy or some other such melodramatic declaration. He's very matter-of-fact about it. Even a bit brutally honest. "I'm really not that useful, these days." he's plainly stating, "I can't even regenerate anymore." This indicates a very comfortable adaptation to his current situation. He's near the end of his existence and he's pretty okay with that. 

The little backstory that we get about him seems to reinforce this idea. Apparently, he was a well-respected professor at the Time Lord Academy for a good chunk of his career. But he chose to leave the position as he got older and even decided to depart from Gallifrey, itself. One gets the impression that, as he reached his thirteenth body, he felt the need to retire. More than likely, he wanted to just live peacefully on a nice planet like Jocunda. But the inhabitants were so impressed by his knowledge and wisdom that they asked him to become their ruler. 

What truly shows his calm acceptance of the inevitable is the fact that he realizes his inability to regenerate can actually be used to his advantage in his fight against Mestor. With the consciousness of the evil gastropod trapped within his body, Azmael literally wills himself to death by trying to induce a thirteenth regeneration.  

It may be the story that ends up on the bottom of most fans' lists, but that's still a pretty clever way to resolve the conflict! 

ELEVEN IS REALLY THIRTEEN 

Finally, many years after the Big Revelation in Deadly Assassin, the Time Lord we're most concerned about reaches his last incarnation. As Moffat takes over as Head Writer, the Doctor is now on his thirteenth body. Ironically enough, we don't realize he's arrived at that point until he's nearly at his end. 

Some bizarre things occur during New Who that really start messing up the Incarnation Numbering System. The first complication that we experience happens towards the end of Series Four. Ten does that weird thing where he regenerates back into himself. As we see this happen, we have to consider whether or not this constitutes a "real" regeneration. If we do consider it to be "proper", then Eleven won't actually be Eleven. He'll be Twelve.     

And then we get to the Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration. Moffat decides to drop a huge bomb. There's been a "secret" incarnation of our hero that, apparently, existed during the Wilderness Years. He's a version of the Doctor that fought in the Time Wars that he doesn't like to talk about. Which means, of course, that if Ten changing back into Ten counts as a valid regeneration, then the Doctor is now on his last body. 

One gets the impression that, during Eleven's reign, Moffat waited till the absolute last minute to make that crucial decision about Ten's regeneration at the end of Series Four. Without a doubt, the War Doctor counts as a legitimate incarnation. So the Doctor is definitely on his twelfth body when he transforms during Part 2 of The End of Time. But what about that crazy cliffhanger resolution for Stolen Earth? Does that actually put him at Thirteen? 

Moff really doesn't seem to truly make up his mind on the matter until we get to Time of the Doctor. Where Eleven sits with Clara in the clock tower in the town of Christmas and explains to her that he's truly at his end. Until that moment, it really does seem like he still has a regeneration to go. There are any number of instances during Matt Smith's three seasons that seem to indicate this. 

Or are there? Let's take a specific look at the various situations where the Doctor seems confident that he can still regenerate. There are some interesting nuances to those moments that create a certain degree of ambiguity. Which suggest that maybe Steven Moffat had made up his mind a long time ago that the Eleventh Doctor really was the final incarnation. 

A CERTAIN LACK OF CLARITY

To make this part of the analysis a bit easier to process, we will properly number the various instances where it's indicated that the Doctor can still regenerate. We will then point out that those moments are "greyer" than they seem: 

1) River Shoots Him

This one is pretty cut-and-dry. At the very beginning of Series Six, we watch the Doctor get assassinated by a mysterious astronaut that climbs out of Lake Silencio and shoots him dead. After the first shot is fired, the Doctor begins to regenerate. He's shot several more times so that the regeneration process is halted and he dies, instead. 

This one gets dismissed pretty quickly. As we would later learn, we're not really seeing the Doctor, here. But rather, it's the Teselecta impersonating him. Which means, of course, that it's just creating the illusion of an attempted regeneration. The real Doctor inside the Teselecta might no longer be capable of regenerating, but the vehicle he's traveling in can fake it quite easily. Especially since the people operating said vehicle know that the regeneration won't complete itself. Just gotta project some golden energy for a few seconds and then drop to the ground. Nothing too difficult. 

So seeing the Doctor attempt to regenerate in this scene has no real bearing on whether or not the Doctor really is capable of still doing it. It's all just a bunch of fakery.

There is still one thing that doesn't quite make sense. Who, exactly, is the Teselecta creating the false regeneration energy for? Amy and Rory don't really know the rules of regeneration, so why would they need to see a failed attempt? River Song, as we would later learn in Husbands of River Song, knows that Eleven represents the last incarnation. So a regeneration attempt could potentially confuse her. 

My guess is that River is still not sure, at this point, that the Doctor has used up all his regenerations. So that little display does make things more convincing for her. I'm also guessing that the Kovarian Schism of the Silence is watching the whole proceedings from a distance (Amy did, briefly, see one of their priests and then forgot about him). The Doctor would probably not want them to know he's on his last incarnation. So he would have the Teselecta create a failed regeneration to keep them fooled.

2) and 3) Poisoning and Illness

The next two instances that hint at the Doctor still having a regeneration left can both be tackled at once. They involve him being poisoned by River Song in Let's Kill Hitler and his attempts to avoid contracting Chen-7 in The Girl Who Waited. 

In both instances, the idea of regenerating from the harm of the poison or disease is discussed. We are told that regeneration won't work under these circumstances. We presume that effects from either of these toxins are so powerful that the process can't actually ensue. 

But what if it was something else entirely that was affecting the whole situation? During Let's Kill Hitler, for instance, the TARDIS Interface simply claims: "regeneration not possible". We all assume that it's because of the effectiveness of the poison extracted from a Judas Tree. But what if the TARDIS is just simply stating a fact? Whether he's been poisoned or not, the Doctor just won't regenerate. 

The same can be said about all the Chen-7 that might be floating around the Wellness Centre on Apalapucia. When the Doctor says he won't regenerate if he becomes infected, he's not referring to the potency of the virus. He's actually just stating that he can't regenerate anymore. 

Listen carefully to the wording in both of those instances. It's not particularly specific. Which leaves things quite nicely open to interpretation. Perhaps we're talking about how certain poisons or illnesses can prevent regeneration. Or perhaps the conversation is about something else. 

4) Healing River's Hand 

For quite some time, this one seemed to strongly contradict that the Doctor was on his final incarnation. 

About halfway through The Angels Take Manhattan, the Doctor uses some regeneration energy to heal River Song's broken hand. If the Doctor is meant to be on his last incarnation, how would he be able to do that? He should be completely out of regeneration energy. But, somehow, he gives some to River Song. It doesn't quite make sense. If, perhaps, he still had "one regeneration bullet left in the chamber", he could borrow a bit from that one to help heal her. But if you no longer have the ability to regenerate, where does that energy come from? 

I created some head cannon for this, of course. But we do get an answer of some sort many years later in the story Lux. It does seem like the Doctor is capable of tucking away a bit of energy from his latest regeneration to save it for a rainy day. When he needs to quickly cure a light wound, he can tap into that reserve. He explains this as he cures some burns he acquired to his hand while fighting Lux's attempts to imprison him within false realities. 

So we can safely guess the Doctor did something similar as he regenerated at the conclusion to End of Time - Part 2. He stored away a bit of extra regeneration energy from that transformation and decided to finally use it on River during Angels Take Manhattan.     

It's entirely possible that Professor Song, by this point, knows the Doctor is on his last life. It would help to explain why she gives him such a vicious slap. She's extremely upset with him for using whatever regeneration energy he has left on her instead of himself. He needs it way more than she does. 

5) Threatening the Cyberiad 

This one also becomes a bit difficult to rationalize without receiving a better explanation. During Nightmare in Silver, the Doctor appears to be having deep confrontations within his Id with the part of his mind that's being controlled by the Cyberiad. At one point, he points out to the Cybermen Hive-Mind that he could just initiate a regeneration and that would  "burn out all the cyber-widgets" in his head. He decides not to, however, and challenges his opponent to a game of chess, instead.  

But why would the Doctor say such a thing if he was out of regenerations? My only guess would be that he was still hoping to intimidate the Cyberiad a bit by threatening to burn him out of his system. But it was all just a big bluff. Stating such a thing, however, makes little tactical sense. Was he hoping his enemy would just leave his mind out of sheer fear of being "regenerated away"?! 

Unlike the situation with River Song in Point 4. we never get a future episode that explains a bit better what happened. And I doubt we ever will. I just can't visualize some kind of throwaway dialogue in a story where the Doctor says something to the nature of:: "Yeah. I tried to scare away the Cyberiad by claiming I was going to regenerate - even though I couldn't!"

DOES ELEVEN AND/OR MOFF KNOW OR NOT? 

Before we can actually get into the Doctor's attitude towards being at the end of his regeneration cycle, we need to look a bit more at this whole concept of whether or not it was always known that Eleven was on his final incarnation. In order to get some degree of clarity on all this, we need to try to determine what was the perspective of both the protagonist and the Head Writer. 

As careful as some of the wording could be when the subject of regeneration came up in a script, I'm more inclined to believe that Moffat just wasn't really sure if he should tackle this whole issue until he got to Time of the Doctor. The attempts to keep things fairly ambiguous during such discussions may have been intentional so that he could be allowed to think things over. Alternatively, he may have decided right upfront that the Doctor was on his last incarnation but wanted to keep that a secret throughout almost all of Eleven's tenure. Which could also explain some of that careful wording during regeneration discussions. But that does seem a bit unlikely. Particularly when you have instances like the Doctor threatening the Cyberiad in Nightmare in Silver. That one really points strongly to the idea that the Doctor can still regenerate. Which indicates to me that Moffat was fairly uncertain about what he was going to do about all this which incarnation is the Doctor really on? business. I suppose if I were ever able to sit Moff down for an interviewer, questioning him about this would be, pretty much, at the top of my list.

But things become even more complicated when we try to work out if the Doctor actually knew he had used up all his regenerations. Even if the Head Writer was probably uncertain about the whole thing, it's nice to try to work out some sort of internal logic to it all.  So we need to ask ourselves: Was the Doctor, himself, being intentionally vague when the subject of regeneration came up? And, if he was, then why?  

It's entirely possible that, like the audience, the Doctor also wasn't sure if his tenth incarnation changing back into himself was an actual regeneration. Because it didn't involve a complete change of appearance, it might just be some sort of "partial" regeneration that didn't use up the full energy. While some of that remaining energy was syphoned into a nearby bio-receptable, a lot of it may have actually returned to his body (or, perhaps, never left it at all - he may have only released just a bit of regen power in order to cure his wounds). So it just might be that the Doctor thought there was a possibility that he had used so little energy to heal himself from the Dalek death ray that he would still be able to induce a full regeneration after the one he had in End of Time. 

Or maybe he couldn't. He really wasn't sure! 

He may have also been a bit in denial about the whole thing. Maybe, in his hearts of hearts, he knew that he'd used up a full regeneration during the Series Four finale, but he just didn't want to face up to that fact. This would certainly account for those instances where he seemed more certain that he still had one more incarnation left after him. During those moments, his level of denial was quite high. The other times when he stayed more cryptic about things, he was being more honest with himself. 

I suspect that it was a combination of both uncertainty and denial. Sometimes, he was sure he'd reached his end but still didn't want to admit it. Other times, he really was at a loss.

AT TRENZALORE, THE DOCTOR FINALLY MAKES UP HIS MIND 

As Eleven soldiers on, he hears more and more doom and gloom about this world called Trenzalore. He even manages to dip into his own future and sees his grave on the planet's surface. Eventually, he arrives there "properly" and knows what fate awaits him. 

Shortly after his arrival, the denial and uncertainty die out. The Doctor, at last, reaches his conclusion on the matter. The "weird regeneration" he had during his last battle against Davros and his latest breed of Daleks counts as genuine. He is certain, now, that he's in his final body. 

Up until this point, his attitude has been more like the Master's. While he's not willing to destroy civilizations to maintain his existence, he still fights against his own mortality. In more subtle ways, of course, but he's still doing it. His general sense of vagueness whenever regeneration comes up in a conversation indicates a refusal to face the facts. He's not like Azmael, who admits quite openly that he's no longer capable of regenerating. He's the exact opposite. He seems to be trying to keep the whole thing a secret. In this sense, his behavior really does resemble that of his greatest foe: He won't accept that the end is near. 

But landing on Trenzalore does almost seem like a final submission to the inevitable. Once there, the Doctor adopts the mentality of his old mentor. He seems to go into a sort of retirement. Just like Azmael, he's still keeping pretty active. He's not ruling an entire planet, but he is defending a small town against invaders. Overall, though, he's settling down. He actually manages to stay in just one place in time and space for several centuries. This, alone, proves how determined he is to live a quiet life. Back in Power of Three, he could barely manage such a feat for even a few days! 

It is, perhaps, most interesting to note how meekly the Doctor accepts his fate when it finally arrives. For what he thought would be the final time, he climbs the bell tower and waits for his death at the hands of the Daleks. Had this been happening to the Master, he would have been dragged to the place kicking and screaming. But the Doctor has made his peace. He's ready to go. Only Clara's last-minute pleading with the Time Lords gets him a new lease on life.

FINAL ASSESSMENT

As we reach the conclusion of this whole Analysis, things actually seems to work out to a decent symmetry. We have a bit of a Goldilocks and the Three Bears pattern going on. The Master sits on one extreme of dealing with his final incarnation. He steadfastly refuses to die. Azmael is on the other end of the spectrum, peacefully accepting the inevitable. And the Doctor rests somewhere in the middle. Fighting his mortality for a time but, ultimately, facing his fate with dignity and grace.  

Admittedly, I am skewing things a bit with my own head cannon. At no point do we actually hear Eleven making claims to the nature of: "I'm really not sure if that time I regenerated but kept the same face actually counts." or "I know I'm in my final incarnation, I just haven't been willing to admit it to myself." Or words to that effect. The idea of the Doctor's uncertainty or denial over no longer being able to regenerate is something I came up with to explain the vagueness of certain discussions that occurred during Matt Smith's three seasons. My theory only holds so much water - it can't be entirely proven. But it does make some solid sense (if I dare say so, myself!). 

In the end, though, I'd like to think that the whole Goldilocks motif works fairly well. By no means do I believe it was done intentionally. There are just too many years between each case of a Time Lord being on their last life. I don't think anyone in production would play that long of a game. I can't picture Phillip Hinchcliffe sitting down with JNT in the early 80s and saying: "I showed the Master displaying one extreme of what it's like to reach the thirteenth incarnation. You need to make a story with a Time Lord that displays the other end of the spectrum." And then the Ghost of JNT appearing to Moffat many years later and saying: "The Master and Azmael were pendulum swings. Have the Doctor sit somewhere in the middle."  

In the end, it's all just a string of coincidences creating a theory that's being ever-so-slightly fueled by my own feverish imaginings. 

Always feels good when I do an ANALYTICAL essay. I'm actually doing some legitimate research when I write this. Rather than just spewing out the empty rhetoric of my overblown opinions! 

Since we're on the topic, there are certain fans who now believe that the Eleventh Doctor was never actually on his last incarnation. That the whole Timeless Child story arc nullifies the idea. I don't believe this to be the case. Here's why: 

https://robtymec.blogspot.com/2022/05/fixing-continuity-glitches-emergency.html