For many, Doctor Who is the sci-fi franchise that rivals Star Trek and Star Wars in terms of scope, but I can’t be the only one who’s noticed that many fans’ love have has cooled. It could be due to Moffat writing, the unpopularity of Clara, or the return to an older, gruffer Doctor with Peter Capaldi. Whatever the reason, there just seems to be a lot less fanfare around the latest season’s trailer release:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWkxwN6wiAE
While it is nice to have a woman of color as a companion again, Pearl Mackie’s Bill seems like an annoying airhead, constantly asking questions and generally being kind of annoying and fast talking. There’d be nothing wrong with it in a show with a more competent showrunner, but Moffat has issues writing women in a nuanced light. Clara, the last companion, ended up being morphed into this one-dimensional caricature of a self-sacrificing manic pixie dream girl for the majority of her run on the show. Still, one can’t judge anything from how an advertising department crafts a trailer. Kudos, at least, for picking an actress with natural, curly hair.
Of course we’ve got the Dalek, and time travel shenanigans (both forward and backwards in time), and Nardole as well, though why he isn’t listed as a companion but rather as a “regular” for the season I am not sure. It looks like the season will see The Doctor starting off as a university lecturer, at least for a time before going off on some more adventures. What he’s teaching, and why, is going to be interesting, and how he will be now that he has forgotten Clara and all the adventures they’ve had, as well as taking on a new role.
Doctor Who Season 10 is set to return sometime in April 2017, along with the new spin-off series Class.
