Doctor Who series 8 has been one of the best of the revival’s run. But how can series 9 live up to the challenges?

I’d like to take a look at what (I think) series 9 needs to make sure that series 8 is the start of the glory days of Doctor Who (at least of the revival, because let’s face it: Nothing will ever beat Tom Baker). I have written two of these articles before, but that was on the scale of a single episode. Let’s take a look at what this series as a whole needs.

1. Missy Missbehaviour

The Mistress is perhaps the most loved aspect of series 8. She is funny, flirty, and just plain evil. Moffat made it clear that he doesn’t want Michelle Gomez’s villain to be cuddly, hence killing off Osgood(?), but now Missy is back and rumor has it she is working with Clara on something big. But it’s just like Moffat says: We need to keep her a villain. So let’s just hope we still have Missy killing and being manipulative.

2. A Halloween Special

For many years now a Halloween special has been something that many Doctor Who fans have wanted. We’ve had specials for New Years, Easter, and 10 Christmas Specials. But there’s never really been any reason to do a Halloween Special for Doctor Who. But that may change this year, because this year Halloween just so happens to be on the day that (theoretically) episode 7 should air on. This, as fans know, will be the first of two stories featuring UNIT and the Zygons. Will this be a Halloween Special? Probably not. Could it be? Hell. Yes.

3. The Longest Running Companion

Clara is, as of now, the longest running companion in Doctor Who history, taking the crown from her predecessor Amy. The reason Amy stayed on so long was because the dynamic worked really well between 11, Amy, Rory, and River. But, and I hate to say it, there’s really no reason for Clara to stay this long other than the fact that Moffat is, unfortunately, scared of changing the lineup. In his five series he has had two main companion-Doctor pairings, with a little bit of Clara/11 in the middle. And don’t get me wrong — the Clara/12 dynamic is pretty great, but series 9 needs to prove Clara is great enough to make history.

4. A Whopping Premiere

The two-part premiere is shaping up to be a huge adventure. It features the Doctor, Clara, Missy, Kate, Skaro, Earth, UNIT, Battles, Daleks, and “cataclysmic repercussions,” which as any Wizard of Oz fan knows, warrants at least three “oh my”‘s. This premiere needs to be a huge adventure like the series 6 premiere, series 3 finale, and series 4 finale. These episodes all feature what Doctor Who has been lacking in recent years; less complex storytelling and more action sequences. We don’t want it to be just all action, no plot. But Moffat spends too much time setting up the plot to ever really let the characters explore the plot. Let’s just hope “it’s gonna be a whopper.”

5. The Master Reborn

When Missy returned in series 8 fans were excited to see the return of the Master. She is confirmed to be the Master after the events of “The End of Time.” But the obvious question that comes with this is, how did Missy escape Gallifrey, and how did she regenerate? This could be the setup for either a huge plot twist or a single throwaway line. With Moffat there isn’t an in between. But let’s just hope for the former.

6. It’s Alive

The series 8 finale ended with four deaths; Danny Pink, Osgood, Seb, and Missy. What’s even more shocking is that since then three of those characters have returned. Danny Pink made a long cameo in “Last Christmas,” last Christmas. Missy is set to return sooner than we thought (but we all knew she wasn’t dead). And Osgood is set to be in the Zygon episodes. Missy’s death was never really expected to be terminal, but Osgood comes as a bit of a shock. Missy had been almost certainly teleported away (rewatch those episodes; blue blast means teleport, red blast means death), but Osgood was prematurely cremated, there’s no doubt about it. Our only hope is that Danny can remain dead and Osgood’s alive-ness has a reason.

7. Cinematic Storytelling

Series 9, as seen in the trailer, is going to be quite huge. With five, two-parters and only two, one-parters, it seems to be looking like quite the adventurous season. In recent years Doctor Who has shown that it can have great episodes that are movie-like. Even now there are rumors that say that the series 9 premiere will be in theatres, and in recent years there have been two episodes in movie-length format and shown in theatres. These two episodes have been renowned for their brilliance. As seen with Sherlock, Moffat can make a TV show that is basically a film series and still make it interesting. Do we want every episode to be a huge deal? No. It would just make it not interesting when the opportunity for a huge deal comes along. But in New Who, no two-parter has ever been anything less than a big adventure.

8. Gallifrey Stands

The mystery of Gallifrey’s return has been looming for almost two years. It’s no longer burned and its ready to come back. But there’s just one problem: Moffat might not want it to return. At least, not yet. Perhaps Moffat is saving it. Perhaps he’s lying (it wouldn’t be the first or last time). Will Gallifrey be in series 9? Who knows. But depending on how many loose ends the finale has to tie up, there may or may not be time to see the Time Lord’s home come back.

9. The Monsters

As of right now, series 9 has returns from the Master, the Daleks (including one of the classic-era Daleks), the Zygons, some eye-less things, cool new robots, and something called the Mire. These monsters are great looking based on what we see in the trailer. New monsters never get old on Doctor Who, and old monsters get old in a different sense. I think it’s fair to say that series 9 could be full of memorable monsters.

10. Twelve’s Time

Series 8 was a great introduction to Peter Capaldi’s doctor. But the only thing better than a new doctor is a familiar Doctor. Tom Baker, David Tennant, and Matt Smith are great examples. Once the Doctor finds his groove, you can just enjoy the Doctor for being the Doctor. Now that Twelve has been introduced, its time for the fun that comes with not being the new Doctor to come in.

On Page 2: The Tale of Three Peters, character development, and the finale

11. The Tale of Three Peters

If you thought you recognized Peter Capaldi but you couldn’t place him, it may be a surprise to know that Capaldi has played not one, but two characters in the Whoniverse before the Doctor. It’s been promised that we will go more in depth with this, and even Peter Capaldi may have accidentally revealed that Caecilius is returning. The most shocking thing is how similar the storylines of the three characters are. All of them have lost everyone close to them, and two of them were the ones holding down the trigger in their respective situations. Caecilius watched everyone he knew (save his family) die in a fire. John Frobisher killed his two daughters, his wife, and himself in an attempt to save their family from tragedy. And the Twelfth Doctor is looking for everyone he apparently murdered. Is there a connection? Probably.

12. Character Development

I’m pretty sure I’ve said this in every one of my articles: There’s one character in particular that needs to be developed. That would be none other than Clara Oswald. The charming and bubbly companion has developed into a strong woman who is independent of the Doctor. That could just be the end of it, if it weren’t for the events of Death in Heaven. Clara’s boyfriend — possibly the love of her life — was killed twice and she was talking to him both times it had happened. Now Danny Pink is gone forever and Clara’s life is shrouded in tragedy. But when something like that happens you don’t just stay the same. Clara has been wounded and with every wound comes regrowth. I speak now to the Gods of Doctor Who. Please Moffat, do not ignore the fact that Clara finally found someone to love and then watched him die twice.

13. A Trio Dynamic

I mentioned earlier that the dynamic between Amy, Rory, and 11 worked really well. And now that Missy is at least somewhat joining hands with the Doctor and Clara it is looking a lot like a trio is forming. Trios are great in Doctor Who. Be it Rose/Jack/9, Donna/Martha/10, or even Jack/Gwen/Ianto. Trios are, well, badass. Let’s hope that no matter how much plot and action the series premiere has to pack in, there is still room for a great team.

14. Kate Stewart in Depth

Kate Stewart is set to return in two separate serials. This is no surprise. She is a fan favorite. But now that we know that she is divorced with children, it begs the question: What else can Kate offer other than being a badass? Perhaps we can see her face a real threat where her children are in danger (think Clint Barton in Age of Ultron). She is absolutely a great character, but she needs depth before she turns into, well, Strax.

15. Arya’s Adventure

Maisie Williams is going to be in series 9, but her character has been shrouded in secrecy. It’s a common formula on Doctor Who — A strong, sassy, woman comes into the Doctor’s life and is a complete mystery; River, Clara, Missy. It brings up the horrible prospect of the promising acting skills of Maisie Williams becoming a redo of River all over again (Moffat has been known to re-use ideas, however unaware of it he is). I think fans will agree that Maisie’s character needs to be something more than a mystery.

16. Consistency with Clara

One problem with Clara is that her character is different every season. Remember when Clara was a mystery, or when her mother was dead, or that thing with the Maitlands? Remember Coal Hill School? Remember Courtney and Danny? Remember the Alamo? The point is that Clara has undergone so many changes with barely any mention of something that happened before she was like that. Hell, I’m pretty sure she’s lived in around 4 different houses. Even if it’s just some throwaway lines, we need to hear about Clara’s mum, or her book of 1,000 places to see, or that time she was ripped into a million pieces and became probably the single most important person in the Doctor’s life.

17. Serial Killer

In 2005 Doctor Who returned in the format that most TV shows are today, but before that it was a serial format (look it up if you must). Some argue this format was much better and allowed the planet/monster/story of the week to become the place fans returned to for a couple weeks before leaving. Now series 9 comes with four, two-parters in a row. This may be the slow return to the format of Classic Who. It may also just be the return of two-parters every episode, like with the 6th Doctor. I personally favor the serial format, but let’s wait until series 10 to worry about this.

18. The Finale

As mentioned before, the series premiere is packed full of fun. But as for the casting announcements for the finale? So far there’s only Capaldi and Coleman. But if you compare the premiere to that of series 6, it only makes sense to have a minimalist finale with mostly character development and a downsized intimate piece. “The Wedding of River Song” did have a huge plot, but the plot was more or less abandoned to deal with how the characters interacted with each other in the face of crisis. This also goes for “Midnight,” a fan favorite. Also, if Clara is going to leave Doctor Who, it would make sense for the finale to be a character piece.

19. Rigsy’s Return

Risgy, the fan favorite from “Flatline” of last year, is returning to Doctor Who. As for recurring characters, they usually become the best characters (see Mickie, Jackie, the Face of Boe, Harriet Jones, Jack, The Master, Wilfred, River, Rory, Winston Churchill, Craig, Madame Kovarian, Dorium, Vastra, Jenny, Strax, Kate, Osgood, The Mistress, Danny, Courtney, need I say more?). The list goes on. I don’t even think that we have to worry about Rigsy becoming an absolutely great character.

20. Echoes of the Past

As I mentioned, Clara’s story is inconsistent. But the other thing is, Clara is everywhere. Seriously, she is everywhere in time and space. She exists about a million times. It’s a shock they have not run into one of her echoes yet. But speculation says that this is the season in which it happens. At Comic-Con, the panel dodged a question concerning Clara’s echoes returning. There is also speculation that Maisie Williams is a young version of Clara’s echoes. Do all fans want this? No. Do I? Heck yeah I do.

And the one thing we don’t want…Clara Extending her Stay

Clara is perhaps one of my favorite companions. She is everything I want in a companion. She has had two great series and one more on the way. But here’s the problem: Capaldi should expect maybe one or two more seasons after 9. It’s just how its been done in recent years.

The problem with Clara staying, besides hurting her own character’s likability, is what happened with Amy and 11. They were great and it worked really well, but they had too much time with the same dynamic. It was just the timing. The fact that Doctor 10 regenerated companionless left two open slots in the TARDIS. This round, however, it isn’t a timing problem. Clara has had enough time without the 12th Doctor to not take up his whole run.

Honestly, my excitement for her has lessened. Right now there are no plans to say goodbye to the Impossible Girl. I hope that is because they want to keep it a surprise. But if I am tuning in on December 25, to Clara and Twelve, its sad to say it will be with much less excitement than usual.

What are you hoping to see in Doctor Who series 9? What bullets do you want to dodge? Let us know in the comments.