Doctor Who: 10 Historical Figures That Need To Be Explored

A visit to Feudal Japan is long, long overdue for the show, which has often seemed to shy away from Asian history. A shame, given the interesting nature of this period of history and the unique setting it offers, both culturally and aesthetically.

We deliberated over which figure from this period could make for an interesting plot, before finally settling on Minamoto Yorimoto, a famous shogun (military leader) who ruled Japan in the late 12th century. He was responsible for forming the first shogunate, which was a military-led system of government that would would continue in Japan for around 700 years. This was a time in which conflict was rife, with rival clans warring on a near constant basis, vying for power. Only the most skilled warriors and samurai rose to power as the ruling elite.

There are many directions in which the writers could take this plot, and many parallels that could be drawn with certain races from the Whoniverse, which is why, for this particular plot, we'd love to see the Cybermen involved. It wouldn't be hard to write in an stranded platoon of stompy metal boys, nor difficult to explain their motives for seizing power.

It's rare we see the Cybermen in an episode set in the past, especially this far back, but if any military force in human history could give the Cybermen a run for their money, it would be the Samurai. Plus, imagine the possibilities should the Cybermen attempt to fight fire with fire and convert their foes - there is not a person on this green Earth that can tell us that a Cyber-Samurai wouldn't be at least a little bit cool...