Doctor Who Series 11: 10 Huge Questions After It Takes You Away
9. Is It Time To End The Doctor's Love Affair With Her Sonic?
Has there ever been a Doctor more in love with the sonic device? When the fifth Doctor’s sonic was destroyed by the Terileptils, we saw for the first time the Doctor’s affections for the gadget “I feel as though you just killed an old friend.” But the then production team didn’t hold it in such high regard and it wasn’t to be seen again until the 1996 TV Movie. The Doctor might have been sad to see it go, but he didn’t miss it enough to make a new one.
Since 2005 the Doctor has never gone without a version of his ‘old friend’. Without the TARDIS being there to manufacture a new one, the thirteenth Doctor even builds her own from scratch. And it appears this one is for keeps with the Doctor showing no signs of wanting to replace it with a TARDIS grown model.
If the sonic feels as if it has been overused in series 11, then it’s because of the Doctor's over-the-top and unnecessary posturing. The troll-like keeper of the anti-zone, Ribbons, had his eyes on the prize as part of a trade deal, but there was no way the Doctor would so easily part with her go-to tool.
To begin with the sonic kind of functioned as a defining feature, reminding her and us that she is still the Doctor. Now that Whittaker has been fully established in the role, perhaps it’s time to give the sonic a break?