The Return of Davies

To-day brought some unexpected but very welcome good news--Russell T. Davies is returning as showrunner of Doctor Who after an absence of twelve years. Davies had his flaws and I think Moffat's scripts were more consistent in quality but, compared to Chibnall, Davies is a massive step up. I find myself with a very real hope, for the first time in years, that Doctor Who could be something exciting again. Even if it turns out time has made Davies woke or the BBC will routinely tamper with his scripts he at least has a basic understanding of how to create characters and make them fun and intriguing.

There's no word yet on who Davies will cast as the Fourteenth Doctor. I hope he casts another woman, it would be a real shame if the only female Doctor ended up being one of the worst Doctors in the show's history. Okay, I'll say it, Whittaker has actually been the worst. At this point, it's not an especially controversial opinion. And I agree with most people who say it's not likely Whittaker's fault but the writing. I look forward to her being redeemed in the audio plays much like the Sixth Doctor. It would be cool if they starred in one together titled The Worst Doctors.

So Davies will be in charge for the 60th anniversary special. This in itself is enough to justify the BBC's decision but I think we all know it's about the plummeting ratings. Naturally they'd want to go back to the winning horse. The fact that they're thinking in terms of repairing the franchise likely means they're minimising risk so they might not allow Davies to cast another female Doctor. On the other hand, and this is what I'm hoping, maybe they were forced to give him carte blanche to woo him back.

I suppose the closest Doctor Who has come to something like this was when Robert Holmes came back in the troubles mid-1980s. He delivered The Caves of Androzani, now considered one of the best, if not the best, story in the show's history. Let's hope Russell T. Davies has the same luck.