8 Doctor Who Villains NOT Improved In The Reboot

1. The Zygons

Doctor Who Clara The Zygon Inversion
BBC Studios

This is an odd entry as the episodes featuring the Zygons in the revival of Doctor Who are all superb. The Day of the Doctor, The Zygon Invasion and The Zygon Inversion have all gone down as modern classics, so what lands these shape changers on this list? Simply it is how they are used, weakened, and eventually a bit sily.

In the Day of the Doctor, they are more of a catalyst for the plot than anything else, so judging them there doesn't seem overly fair. In the ninth series two-parter that features them, they are suddenly desperate are humanized to the point where they are no longer truly alien. Now, that as a theme is no issue at all - frankly, it's a big part of Doctor Who overall.

However, the Zygons were a massively fun villain in the classic series. They controlled the Loch Ness Monster, using it to further their goals of world domination. This is a far cry from simply trying to share the planet and live alongside humans. They could have been any old alien in the revival, as opposed to a shape-changing villain who could have inspired truly paranoia and terror.

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Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"