Almost half a year since Peter Capaldi announced that he’ll be departing the TARDIS for a new Doctor to take over, and the BBC have found their latest Time Lord: Jodie Whittaker.
Meet the Thirteenth Doctor #DoctorWho #Doctor13 pic.twitter.com/wycdcneZ7o
— BBC One (@BBCOne) July 16, 2017
Jodie Whittaker takes over from Peter Capaldi, once the upcoming Christmas special is done and dusted. Not only the next Doctor, Whittaker is now also the very first female version of the Doctor. Sorry guys, Joanna Lumley technically doesn’t count in the official canon of the series.
I won’t be throwing any spoilers here for those of you who haven’t caught up on the latest season (Shame on you! SHAME!), but let’s just say that the upcoming Christmas special sounds like it’ll be examining the cost of the Doctor leading a life of constant change and the mental toll it takes on him after centuries of fighting evil.
Still, stepping into Capaldi’s Loake shoes won’t be an easy task for Whittaker. After Matt Smith’s more jovial incarnation as the Doctor, Capaldi’s take on the character wasn’t entirely established from the first episode. An apparently darker Gallifreiyan who wouldn’t hesitate to end a life, this blunt and impatient Doctor evolved over his three seasons to become a kinder man, one who was never cowardly or cruel.
Even if some of his episodes and story arcs were terrible (URGH, DOSE MONKS!), Capaldi could make a turd shine like a diamond with any script given to him. Whittaker has her work cut out for them in carrying Capaldi’s sonic screwdriver. Series 11 also marks a new beginning for the show yet again, as longtime showrunner Steven Moffat waves farewell to the series so that Broadchurch creator and writer Chris Chibnall can take over. A show that Whittaker also starred on, so the two have a connection to build on for Doctor Who.
What do you think of the Doctor’s new face?
Last Updated: July 16, 2017
konfab
July 16, 2017 at 18:52
This is blatant PC shoehorning tbh. Apparently people didn’t learn from Ghostbusters…
Anyway, Dr Who has been dead to me since season 3 so meh.
Tracy Benson
July 17, 2017 at 07:38
Blatant PC shoehorning? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA that’s hilarious! Oh my word, you are too funny ?
For the Emperor!
July 16, 2017 at 19:34
Still somewhere in season 2…
Milesh Bhana
July 17, 2017 at 08:18
The reaction to this is funny. They pretty much telegraphed this move by testing the waters with another gender hopping Time Lord. If this Doctor wasn’t female, 14th one would have been.
Original Heretic
July 17, 2017 at 08:20
Called it. This last season had so many nods to the next Doctor being female, especially in the final story arc.
miaau
July 17, 2017 at 10:35
Damn, wife and I got stuck and mired in Season 7, which sort of went all over the place.
We really, really, really need to catch up and watch it, maybe just start on season 8. read synopsis of season 7 online or something. We loved the show up till then. This is also a show we CANNOT watch in front of the children, we are very protective parents and some of the imagery is not cool for the littlies.
I remember as a child, like 4 to 10, just seeing Freddy Kreusger on a video cover at the store was enough for horribly vivid imagination to completely screw over any chance of sleep when the lights went off. Oh the shadows, but then Oh the complete darkness.
Original Heretic
July 17, 2017 at 10:43
Jeesh, and Season 7 is one of my favourites! Clara is introduced and the finale ends off with a twist that had every single Dr Who fanatic screaming for more!
And yeah, I hear you with regards the imagery for the little ones. There are certain things I cannot WAIT to watch with my boy, but he needs to get a bit older first.