Things We Want To See In Doctor Who Season 12

Things We Want to See in Doctor Who Series 12

Even with five decades behind them, there’s still lots of room for improvement. Welcome to WatchMojoUK and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the things we want to see in “Doctor Who” season 12.

For this list, we’re looking at the things we hope to see in the 2020 series of “Doctor Who”, be it returning faces or tweaks and improvements.

#10: Less Sonic

Something many people have taken issue with is the Thirteenth Doctor’s newfound reliance on the sonic screwdriver. Just one sonic screwdriver moment an episode, or maybe every other episode, is just enough to remind us that the Doctor has a few tricks up their sleeve – but Thirteen on the other hand is hardly seen without it. It’s fair enough that she did build this one from scratch, rather than being given it by the TARDIS upon regenerating, but we hope to see it used more sparingly in season 12. There’s no reason why the Doctor can’t build more gadgets while she’s out and about, like the popular timey-wimey detector, instead of using the sonic for absolutely everything.

#9: More Companion Backstory

In an interesting return to form, season 11 saw us have three companions present on the TARDIS, much like the first ever TARDIS crew comprising of Ian, Barbara and Susan. But with more companions come more problems, namely that we don’t really get the chance to get to know any of them. Even though Ryan and Graham had some good moments, they still don’t feel like complete characters. Yaz has had almost no character development since “Demons of the Punjab,” so it would be nice to see all three of them explored a little more in the next lot of episodes.

#8: Darker Tones

Some of the show’s most powerful moments in its entire history have been those where the Doctor gets dark. The Seventh Doctor showed this when he tricked the Daleks into blowing up Skaro, while the Ninth and Twelfth Doctors had a range of moments where their moral fibre was called into question. We’ve seen very little of this in the Chibnall era so far, and very few episodes that have a real dark streak to them. Seeing Thirteen break many of the Doctor’s own rules arguably for the greater good, while going head-to-head with an especially monstrous villain, could finally let us see what kind of a Doctor she is.

#7: More Scares

The scariest things season 11 had in its repertoire were “Arachnids in the UK’s” CGI spiders, and the carnivorous, alien moths in “It Takes You Away.” Otherwise, “Doctor Who’s” famous scares were hardly seen at all. The Moffat era, and many of Moffat’s episodes in the Davies era, had some especially frightening monsters, including the Weeping Angels, the Gas Mask Zombies, and the Silence. Classic episodes were also famous for scaring kids and grownups alike, so it would be great for everybody if season 12 would turn the scare factor back up again.

#6: More Jokes

“Doctor Who” has always been able to balance its dark, serious moments with much lighter and funnier ones, and the Doctor always seems to have time to make a joke or a one-liner no matter how dire their situation. While there were some funny moments stemming from Thirteen’s constant name-dropping, Gallifreyan anecdotes, and her suggesting that she might – or might not be – Banksy, these seemed few and far between. Without much seriousness either, the show walked a strange middle ground of neither being funny enough nor frightening enough to justify the lack of the other. But really, let the Doctor’s famous sense of humour return.

#5: A Season Arc

The closest thing season 11 got to an arc was the return of Tim Shaw in the final episode, but since he was a brand-new villain it was hard to feel particularly excited for his return. Where previous seasons have had arcs like Bad Wolf, Harold Saxon, the cracks in time and Missy, season 11 falls flat. If season 12 came back with a long-running arc, hinted at briefly in every episode to make the final pay-off all the more engaging, it would be greatly improved. The subtle hints to a larger mystery are what keep the audience from coming back for the filler episodes; mentioning the Stenza every so often just wasn’t enough.

#4: The Return of Two-Parters

Two-part episodes could fix lots of the issues with weak villains, strange pacing, and not enough character moments, as well as improving the stories overall. Without them all being 50-minute standalones, we’d have room for explorations of alien worlds, more detailed adventures in other time periods, and more memorable side characters. The classic show was always serialised, sometimes telling its stories over half a dozen different parts. While this can make things feel a little slow, it can also make stories shine. We haven’t seen two-parters consistently since as long ago as season 6, after all. Longer stories would at least give us more time with our four crew members.

#3: Old Companions

Rumours abound about the return of River Song and Rose Tyler, but even if they don’t amount to anything – which is likely – it’s still evidence of the hankering fans have for some old faces. Captain Jack is another favourite we’d love to see again, with “Torchwood” never officially cancelled and John Barrowman always willing to reprise the role if asked. But old companions don’t even have to come in the form of actors; there are just as many people baying for the return of K-9, the clunky robot dog from the year 5000, and who can blame them?

#2: Time Lords

Unlike returning companions, returning Time Lords doesn’t rely on having the same cast members at all. After Gallifrey returned in “The Day of the Doctor,” it played host to a few episodes at the end of the Moffat era, but has gone almost entirely unmentioned in Chibnall’s tenure so far. Stories set on Gallifrey have a habit of getting tedious, but bringing back the Time Lords, or individual Time Lords, in a greater capacity, might give season 12 the boost it needs. The Master may have had their fair share of NuWho episodes, but other nefarious Time Lords like the Rani, Omega, and Morbius could also return and add some unique conflict.

#1: Better Villains

By far, the weakest part of season 11 wasn’t its heroes, but its villains. Chibnall made the bold decision of banning any and all returning foes, meaning we got a roster of entirely new and not-always-memorable figures for the Doctor to fight. After the Daleks came back for “Resolution,” and leaked stills show Thirteen with the Judoon, this could finally be at an end. Balancing new villains and classic ones has always been the best way to construct a season of “Doctor Who”, and would free up time otherwise spent on exposition since we all already know who the Cybermen, Silurians, Zygons, Autons, and whoever else, are.