Ever since showrunner Chris Chibnall took control of Doctor Who following the exit of Steven Moffatt, the show has become embroiled in controversy, shedding over half its initial viewer base since the series eleven opening episode. This has triggered a mudslinging contest between Chibnall and long-term Whovians who have become quite upset at the creative directions the show has taken.
It's obvious that Doctor Who requires a course correction if it hopes to survive. For that reason, we're counting down ten things that Doctor Who needs to do in order to get back on track. While this might be a touchy subject, it's important for the health and longevity of the show as we move forward.
10 LESS COMPANIONS
Doctor Who never fared well when the TARDIS started getting too full. Classic Who proved this during the Fifth Doctor's era, when several companions were glued to one location because the writers couldn't fit them in properly. The series is now making the same mistake all over again.
It's time to shed the load, and snip a few companions. The thirteenth Doctor isn't big on niceties and hugs to begin with, so there's little reason to suspect that she'd truly enjoy a room full of pals.
9 NO MORE MASTER
The Master has been a central plot character since Peter Capaldi's run, and it's high time he was put on ice. Missy was a fantastic take on the traditional Master formula, but her death at the end of season 10 should have signaled a break period.
Instead, the Master has returned once again, not just to rival the Doctor, but to serve as a conduit in destroying a huge part of Doctor Who lore. Either kill the Master permanently, or give him a long vacation.
8 NO MORE CYBERMEN
The Master and the Cybermen have gone hand-in-hand since Capaldi's run, and they've overstayed their welcome. It was great to see the Mondasian Cybermen in season 10, but that should have been the catalyst for putting them back in the toybox for a while.
Chris Chibnall's initial reluctance to feature any classic Who monsters during his tenure as Executive Producer seems to have gone by the wayside, as he's now relying far too much on these classic villains as part of a greater plot arc.
7 DON'T ALIENATE FANS BY BEING ACCUSATORY
Chibnall's take on Doctor Who has largely been used to push his own political views. With no end in sight to the ongoing culture war between traditionalists and those who consider themselves progressive, many franchises have had their say, and it doesn't always go well.
Instead of taking its cues from Star Trek: The Next Generation, which brilliantly tackled social and political issues in a clever, non-accusatory manner, Doctor Who has essentially gone straight for the jugular, and alienated a large portion of its fan base as a result.
6 MAKE THE DOCTOR A LEADER AGAIN
It's been established that the 2005-era Doctor is a very different one from the classic series, thanks to the trauma suffered during the Time War against the Daleks. Subsequent Doctors have teeter-tottered between bitter and resentful, to happy and joyous, but all of them have been leaders at one point or another. The Thirteenth Doctor feels less like a leader, and more like an unpredictable renegade. Sometimes it works in her favor, but other times it reminds the audience that she can't really be relied upon.
For Whittaker's third series run, fans would like to see a Doctor who embodies the characteristics of her predecessors - most notably confidence, compassion and warmth. Her blunt response to Graham's admission that he has cancer caused many fans to do a double-take. This is clearly not the Doctor they grew up with. With speculation that Whittaker would only partake in three seasons, we'd like to see her character sent off on a high note.
5 BETTER WRITING, ALL AROUND
There are rumors floating around as to why the writing for series and twelve haven't exactly been up to par, but that's neither here nor there. In order to move forward, Doctor Who needs to seriously yank its socks up and start delivering better stories. To date, each episode has been caught in a quagmire of plot holes, weak character development and unconvincing resolutions to problems.
This is an argument that goes back a number of years, ever since the writing quality began to slide near the end of Matt Smith's tenure. However, Chris Chibnall seems to have accelerated the process, proving that he's no Steven Moffatt or Russell T. Davies. The stories have taken a tremendous hit, and although they have creaked up a bit in season twelve, we're still in dark territory.
4 NO MORE RETCONNING
The real damage of season twelve came in the form of story retconning. Several plot elements involving the Doctor and the Time Lords have thrown the entire continuity of Doctor Who out of whack, leaving long-time Whovians scratching their heads as a result. This kind of ill-advised writing knocks the legs out of established canon, forcing fans to contemplate whether it was done to destroy the past, and reforge a new future.
This never goes well, since many fans have spent decades following Doctor Who into adulthood, only to be faced with a new team coming in and changing everything they once held dear.
3 UNDO "THE TIMELESS CHILDREN"
The season twelve closer "The Timeless Children" has done nearly irreparable damage to Doctor Who lore, which has sparked an immediate backlash from long-time fans. Not only does it wreak havoc on the series' continuity, but it directly contradicts over 50 years of established Doctor Who plot points.
Attempts have been made to hammer this square peg into a round hole, but it's painful work at best. In order for Doctor Who to survive and move forward, this story arc needs to be undone. Call it a trick of the Time Lords, a lie told by the Master, or corruption of the Time Lord Matrix which gave false information. Heck, bring the Valeyard back and blame the entire thing on him! Whatever is necessary, do it.
2 NO MORE HUGE PLOT ARCS
The problem with universe-sized plot arcs is that eventually you run out of universe. Each series of Doctor Who has tried to one-up itself in terms of spectacle and scale, and that's become a major problem for writers who have to continually yank rabbits out of an empty hat.
Doctor Who would benefit massively from adopting the kinds of smaller-scale arcs seen in Classic Who. No more stolen planets, rebooted universes or Gallifrey flip-flopping between total annihilation and miraculous return. Some of the best Who stories were self-contained, and didn't threaten the fabric of reality as we know it.
1 JODIE WHITTAKER NEEDS TO FIND HER DOCTOR
Jodie Whittaker has failed to make the Doctor her own. To be fair to her, she's been handed a number of difficult scripts, forcing her to cut and paste various elements from David Tennant and Matt Smith's Doctors, respectively. We're now at the end of her second season as the Doctor, and Whittaker still hasn't managed to secure the role for herself.
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