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From the Doctor becoming Lord President of Gallifrey to the many deaths of the Master, we explore huge moments in the Whoniverse that were retconned or simply ignored in later episodes.
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00:00As the series tries to progress since its debut in 1963, Doctor Who has had its fair share of
00:05huge moments. With 15 so far actors taking up the mantle of our titular Time Lord, each Doctor goes
00:12through their own adventures, adding to their incarnation's personal stories, as well as the
00:17larger story of the Time Lord and those around them. Everyone has their own personal favourite
00:22moments, but some events are literally entrenched within the DNA of the show. Huge moments in Who
00:28include first landing on Skaro, the Doctor's exile on Earth in the War Games, fighting the Time War,
00:34and the fall of the 11th on Trenzalore, all having lasting consequences for the Who-niverse and the
00:39characters within it. But sometimes these huge moments don't stick. We bear witness to so many
00:45revelations in one story, but by the following week it has meant very little, and any development
00:50is unwritten, forgotten about, or simply replaced by something totally different. So with that in
00:56mind then, I'm Ellie with Who Culture, and here are 10 huge moments in Doctor Who that no one cared
01:02about. Number 10. The Doctor, Lord President of Gallifrey. This is a tricky one. Lord President
01:08of Gallifrey is the highest level of office among Time Lord society, and once or twice the Doctor has
01:14found himself raised to that position. In the five classic stories including Gallifrey, starting with
01:19the deadly assassin, the Doctor goes from running for president but declining at the end to coming back
01:24the following season to take the role to defeat a foe, before returning in his next incarnation to
01:29find he is no longer president, to then being offered it again in the 20th anniversary later
01:34that year, but still runs from the responsibility. The Doctor makes one final return to Gallifrey in
01:39season 23, where the sixth Doctor is met by the line, since you willfully neglected the
01:44responsibility of your great office, you were deposed, resetting this moment once again.
01:50So, whilst this does pop up on and off in the classic era, and is touched on in Hellbent,
01:55the presidency of the Doctor is never actually explored, besides in the odd expanded media story.
02:00Hello, Big Finish. It's a thread which comes and goes when the Doctor revisits Gallifrey,
02:05depending on the story and the writers. The Doctor as Lord President is a big deal,
02:09but never seems to carry any weight or last beyond a story. Surely President Doctor would make a great
02:14storyline if fleshed out beyond one outing. Although, that may be a little tricky now.
02:19Number 9. The Death of the Master Again
02:22We all know the Master is the Moriarty to the Doctor's homes. That was always his intention
02:27during his original conception in the 70s, and like the Doctor, we've had a fair share of
02:32incarnations. But unlike our titular Time Lord, we barely see these regenerations taking place on
02:38screen. Sometimes we are simply left believing the Master is dead. A common thread of the Master's
02:43story in the 1980s especially, their appearance would often end with their death before reappearing a few
02:48stories down the line inexplicably. Looking at you, Planet of Fire, this Season 21 story sees the
02:54Ainley Master literally burning to nothing with the Doctor just watching on. However, the following
03:00season's Mark of the Rani just has the same incarnation turn up with no real explanation.
03:05The trope returned in New Who, with the first three storylines including the Master, Saxon,
03:10End of Time, and Death in Heaven, all ending with the death of the character. However, two of these
03:15occasions, we're actually provided with reasons for the return, through both resurrections and very
03:20handy last-minute teleports. It's an endearing character trait, and we don't always need the
03:25exposition of how the Master survives each encounter, but when death to the character becomes so casual,
03:30you start to wonder why the writers bother, when realistically all major fans know they will not
03:35properly call it quits on such a bankable villain after one appearance, leading to a lack of caring
03:41towards the stakes of their life. Number 8. The Time Lord Victorious
03:462009's Waters of Mars is regarded by many as one of Tennant's finest hours, and the ending of the story
03:52has some major ramifications for the character. But guess what? It doesn't beyond this story. The end of
03:58The Waters of Mars has the Doctor declare himself the Time Lord Victorious, as the last survivor of his race,
04:04and gaining a god-like complex when it comes to the laws of time. However, after changing time and saving
04:10the
04:10last few residents of Bowie Base 1, one member, Adelaide Brooke, does not believe this is right.
04:16Returning home, Brooke kills herself, setting her timeline back on course, leaving the Doctor to
04:21wonder if he's gone too far. But by the next episode, The End of Time, this seemingly huge
04:26moment is totally forgotten about. Yes, 2020 saw a massive, multi-expanded media storyline exploring
04:33the moments after this, but in the show, the moment the Tenth Doctor almost became comparable to a god
04:38is swiftly moved on from. This entry is a real shame. The fact this is glossed over, as this would
04:44have
04:44provided a fascinating new dimension to the show. The Time Lord Victorious is almost like an anti-hero
04:50arc, where Tennant is doing what he believes is right, when it actually goes against everything he
04:55and the Time Lords should stand for. Non-interference.
04:59Number 7. The Flux
05:00Okay, okay, Jodie and Chibnall's tenure in control of the TARDIS is not over yet, so there is still room
05:06to
05:06rectify this. But right now, this is a hugely glossed over plot point from Series 13. For the
05:12first time in New Who, Series 13 embarked on one interconnecting serialised arc, a refreshing change
05:18that updates Who to the style of other modern series. The series focused on the titular Flux,
05:23a huge apocalyptic event in time and space described as a hurricane ripping through the
05:28structure of the universe. Pretty cool, right? Doctor Who is going pretty bold here.
05:32Well, obviously being a show which isn't entirely bleak, the Doctor and co. stop the Flux. After it
05:38wipes out the combined forces of the Daleks, Cybermen and Sontarans, and finally when it is
05:43absorbed by a passenger. The passengers were an endless space intended to hold prisoners,
05:48and the vast space within was seemingly enough to extinguish the chaos. Fair enough, but what about
05:53all the destruction? Azure states that the Ravagers would restore the universe after the final Flux
05:58event, but did that happen? The end of Series 13 is a little vague-slash-confusing, and come the next
06:03episode, Eve of the Daleks, the events are barely mentioned. The Daleks know a considerable amount of
06:08their feat was destroyed, not the entirety we're originally led to believe, and Dan mentions how
06:13the Doctors saved the universe, but is that it? We just gloss over the cataclysm that just occurred.
06:18For now, yes.
06:20Number 6. The Doctor is Merlin
06:22Sylvester McCoy's seventh Doctor is renowned from going from a clown-like buffoon in his first
06:27season to becoming the great schemer by his final adventures, using his companion Ace as his pawn.
06:33As a part of this, 1989's Battlefield introduces the idea that the Doctor at some point in his life
06:39will be the man behind the myth of Merlin. As Merlin, the Doctor would help Arthur fight the
06:44sorceress Morgaine. As the Doctor had no memory of being Merlin, he assumes that this must be a fate for
06:49him that'll occur later in his life. We've had plots of the Doctor being woven into various histories,
06:54occasionally arriving sometime before this in his timeline, but the legend of Merlin is quite a big
07:00position to fill. Sadly, season 26 is Doctor Who's final classic season, with both the TV movie and
07:06New Who providing reboots, so whether this would develop further if a season 27 happened, we may never
07:11know. Therefore, the idea goes nowhere. The concept has been followed in expanded media in various
07:17differing ways, but on screen, this is simply a loss we have to bear.
07:21Number 5. Daleks without the Doctor
07:23Asylum of the Daleks gives us our first introduction to Jenna Coleman in Who, playing Oswin Oswald,
07:29who's seemingly connected to our future companion Clara Oswald. However, in the end, it is revealed
07:34poor Oswin has been converted into a Dalek. As a last gift to the 11th Doctor to escape, she reveals
07:40to
07:40him that she removed every trace of him from the Dalek's database, allowing him to escape the asylum.
07:45Upon making it back to the Dalek Parliament, we are left with the final knowledge that all the
07:50Daleks have forgotten him, and not just those in the asylum, leaving them to question Doctor Who.
07:56So with that ending, surely the next appearance of the Doctor versus the Daleks, it's Doctor Who
08:00that's obviously going to happen, is going to be pretty interesting, right? Wrong. The next
08:05appearance of the Daleks, barring their 50th anniversary appearance in the Time War, is in the
08:10time of the Doctor, and once again, the Daleks remember their arch-nemesis. When asked by the
08:15Doctor how they knew who he was, we get the convenient explanation of They Took the Memories
08:20of Tasha Lem, a character we are only just introduced to in this episode, who is apparently
08:25significant enough to provide the Daleks with everything they need to know about the Doctor.
08:30In the end, it feels lazy to write the ending of Asylum, to then simply do a full 180 as
08:35soon
08:35as they reappear for convenience. Why bother in the first place?
08:38Number 4. I'm half-human on my mother's side
08:42Love it or hate it, the 1996 TV movie did one thing absolutely perfect, the casting of Paul
08:48McGann as the 8th Doctor. But one major aspect of his character has not ever been taken too
08:54seriously. I'm half-human on my mother's side is a comment made various times throughout the
08:59American-produced special. Now that is pretty huge. Not a lot is ever really discovered about
09:04the Doctor's past in the classic series. The only family member we are introduced to is
09:08granddaughter Susan in the first seasons of the show. But otherwise, it is always just assumed
09:13the Doctor is 100% Time Lord. Of course, once again, the Chibnall era has decided to add its own
09:19spin on the character's origins, and currently seems a lot more concrete of an explanation than
09:24this throwaway line. But even before this retconning in 2020, the half-human comment is never really
09:29taken as gospel. It's a storyline that maybe could have worked properly, but almost feels too
09:34cliché. With no follow-up to the TV movie, we'll maybe never truly know the intentions.
09:39Both RTD and Moffat have mentioned before they don't truly believe into it, with another widely
09:45believed theory of whom the Doctor's mother is being the nameless woman in the end of time.
09:49This could be a monumental moment for the show, but after the TV movie is pushed aside,
09:55many chalk this up to post-regenerative trauma. Maybe lineage should be left alone, keeping the mystery
10:00in Doctor Who.
10:01Number 3. Morbius Doctors
10:03In 1976's The Brain of Morbius, during a mind battle with the titular villain, it is revealed
10:09the Doctor had faces before the Hartnell incarnation. Did the fandom go mental? What did this mean for
10:15the series going forward after such a shock reveal? Not a lot. Granted, this potentially means more now
10:21in 2022 with the Timeless Child plot, but in 1976, this meant nothing in the show or to fans, really.
10:28It is a widely known fact that New Who is definitely a lot more plot-lore-heavy than classic, with
10:34various
10:34contradictions in the original run, some of which we will get into later. The Morbius Doctors are brought
10:40to life on screen by members of the production dressed in classical outfits, meant to boost up the scope
10:45of the Doctor and Morbius' mind battle. These incarnations were portrayed by directors Graham
10:50Harper, Douglas Canfield, and Christopher Barry, as well as writer Robert Holmes and producer Philip
10:55Hinchcliffe. Some fans believe these incarnations were Morbius' rather than the Doctor's, however,
11:01this seems to have been proven wrong since. Yes, we now have the wonderful Joe Martin, who we are
11:06currently led to believe is a pre-Hartnell Doctor, and a very brilliant montage in The Timeless
11:11Children. But before this, these chaps had no acknowledgement in canon, besides maybe being
11:16considered a gag. More Doctors should be huge events, as the War and Fugitive Doctors were,
11:22but it's taken 44 years for this true potential meaning to come to screen.
11:262. The Valiard
11:28The Sixth Doctor's era receives mixed reviews from the fans, but his final story drops a bombshell to
11:33rock the character to their core. The Trial of Time Lord sees the Doctor put on trial for his
11:38exploits through time, and is being prosecuted by a Time Lord referred to as the Valiard.
11:43As the series comes to a head, the Master returns and reveals that he knows the Valiard as the
11:48Doctor. The Valiard is an amalgamation of the darker sides of your nature, somewhere between your
11:54twelfth and final incarnation. So surely something exciting must happen with this character next?
11:59An evil incarnation of the Doctor? Surely a big deal for our hero?
12:02Nope. Whilst he goes on to play various parts in expanded media, the Valiard only appears in
12:08season 23 and is briefly mentioned in Capaldi's final story. As a premise, the Valiard is a really
12:14interesting idea, and has so much potential, especially since after David Tennant's second
12:19incarnation, the Valiard is meant to come about. When written in 1986, obviously the intention of
12:25the Doctor is to have 13 lives, so this fits between Tennant and Smith. However, since the time of the
12:30Doctor,
12:30the Doctor's lifespan has been expanded, and so there is now a full cycle of possibilities.
12:36Hopefully, this is one moment which is eventually addressed, as seeing what happens when all the
12:40darkness of the Doctor takes form would be a real treat. But for now, this is another moment no one
12:46has cared about.
12:47Number 1. Gallifrey Returns
12:50The planet of the Time Lords has been a part of the show's history since the late 60s,
12:54with later seasons fleshing out the planet, society and people. But turn to New Who, and Gallifrey is gone,
13:00wiped out by the Doctor in the Time War. That, again, is until the 50th anniversary,
13:05where the planet was saved. So surely now, Gallifrey is back as a staple of the Hooniverse.
13:10I think again. Series 9's finale Hellbent marks our first proper exploration of the Doctor on
13:15Gallifrey, with the planet being stuck at the end of the universe, but very much there. However,
13:20the next time we see Gallifrey in Series 12's Spyfall, the Master has reduced the planet to a
13:25smouldering wreck. Yes, the shot in Spyfall is beautiful, but after the work of the 50th,
13:31the 11th Doctor's last stand on Trenzalore and the arc of Series 9, Gallifrey and the Time Lords
13:36are once again taken from us. Some may argue that the Time Lords as a species aren't that
13:41interesting. We'll tell them to go check Big Finish's Gallifrey series. But there is so much
13:46potential, and another monumental U-turn makes you question the point of the build-up to its return
13:51if not to be explored. Of course, there is every chance Gallifrey and the Time Lords are restored
13:56once again. That could be useful for the Timeless Child arc, since it is literally its foundation.
14:01But right now, the return of Gallifrey feels like a meaningless waste of time.
14:05And that concludes our list. If you can think of any other huge moments that no one cared about,
14:10then do let us know in the comments below. And while you're there, don't forget to like and
14:13subscribe and tap that notification bell. Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there,
14:18and I can be found across various social medias just by searching Ellie Little Child.
14:22I've been Ellie with Who Culture, and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye, sweeties.