10 TV Fates Worse Than Death
7. Doctor Who - Turned Into A Gas-Mask Zombie
One of the most haunting Doctor Who episodes of all time, The Empty Child isn't just spooky, it's downright nightmare-inducing. Ask anyone who watched the episode as a child when it first aired, and they'll shiver with nostalgic terror.
Not only is this due to the spooky atmosphere and disturbing visuals, it's because of the creeping existential horror surrounding the notion of being turned into a gas-mask zombie. If the Empty Child or anyone that he has infected touches you, you succumb to the most grim of afflictions. The child's injuries appear on your body, and your mind is slowly erased, replaced with the child's obsession with finding his mother ("are you my mummy?").
With your mind entirely replaced, now it's your face's turn. As your transformation begins, a feeling of sickness overwhelms you as something forces its way up your throat and out of your mouth: the breathing apparatus of a gas mask.
Your eyes turn dark and expand, forming the mask's oversized lenses. Then, the mask comes together, sealing itself in place by fusing with your skin, never to be removed. With the transformation complete, you are unrecognisable, your body and mind replaced by that of a terrified child wearing a gas mask. Scared yet? Run along to mummy...