Doctor Who: 10 Times The Doctor Was The Bad Guy

8. NOT Destroying The Daleks

Genesis of the Daleks
BBC

While preventing himself from wiping the Dalek race from all of history, one would expect that this would land the Doctor in a very positive position on this list. However, one needs to examine the fallout from this decision to really grasp the enormity of the Doctor's actions here.

Assigned by the Time Lords to go back to Skaro and find the moment of the creation of the Daleks, the Fourth Doctor is handed the power to undo everything that the Daleks have ever done. Considering that they are solely responsible for genocide, galactic destruction and all manners of sins, for the Doctor not to act in this moment poses, potentially, an even greater question that the ethics of the decision. Is the Doctor now at least partially responsible for the death and mayhem that they have wrought in time and space?

He stops himself by saying he hasn't the right to wipe an intelligent race from ever having existed which on paper is fair. Yet the Kaleds, several million Time Lords and countless others may disagree with this rationale. While the Doctor himself may be able to sleep with this decision, there are many more who would say that as they looked up and cried help us, the Doctor whispered no.

Contributor
Contributor

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"