Doctor Who Flatline: 5 Questions On The Future Of Clara And The Doctor

Teacher / Companion / Girlfriend / Doctor / Saviour Of The Universe - What's next for Clara Oswald?

This week's Doctor Who brought another twist in the turbulent relationship of the Twelfth Doctor and Clara. We've seen her question who the Doctor is in Deep Breath, his stubbornness in Robot Of Sherwood, his callousness in Kill The Moon and finally his ability to be a hero in Mummy On The Orient Express. This week, having decided that travelling in the TARDIS was an addiction she couldn't break, Clare got to have a go at being the Doctor. Armed with a sonic screw driver, she found herself a plucky young companion Rigsby, a host of humans to save, a mystery to solve and found the solution by turning the enemy's energy against them. Through her actions, the TARDIS was brought back out of crisis mode, allowing the Doctor to help rid Earth of the alien menace once and for all. In the end, Clara's actions were met with great approval by the Doctor, even though her lying - and now refusal to answer her phone - is putting her Earth-bound relationship with Danny in jeopardy. For the second week in a row she learned to lie to the people around her for the greater good and this time it was a little easier for her. Is she becoming more like the Doctor? Will she replace conscience with ruthlessness? The Doctor too is turning a new page. Last week he really was the hero, saving the passengers from the exploding Orient Express. In Flatline he told the alien menace Earth was protected. Is this the Doctor of old finally returning? Is he still the hero we've followed for 50 years? Well of course he is. Each Doctor is different and the Twelfth Doctor is a little darker than his immediate two predecessors, but his is still the Doctor. He will still save the day.. Series eight has been a fascinating study of the Doctor / companion relationship. All the events of the past week, the new dynamic presented in Flatline and that final revelation in the closing moments of the episode have pushed Clara far. In this article we look at the impacts of what happened in Flatline, all of series eight to date and ask what direction will the relationship between the Doctor and Clara go next? Click NEXT for the first possibility...
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A writer for Whatculture since May 2013, I also write for TheRichest.com and am the TV editor and writer for Thedigitalfix.com . I wrote two plays for the Greater Manchester Horror Fringe in 2013, the first an adaption of Simon Clark's 'Swallowing A Dirty Seed' and my own original sci-fi horror play 'Centurion', which had an 8/10* review from Starburst magazine! (http://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/eventsupcoming-genre-events/6960-event-review-centurion) I also wrote an episode for online comedy series Supermarket Matters in 2012. I aim to achieve my goal for writing for television (and get my novels published) but in the meantime I'll continue to write about those TV shows I love! Follow me on Twitter @BazGreenland and like my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BazGreenlandWriter