Doctor Who: 8 Mistakes That Series 13 NEEDS To Fix

You never want Doctor Who to be bad.

This is a show that many of us have been watching since childhood, and that means we have a genuine lifelong attachment to it. There are few better feelings than tuning in every week to see what your favourite Time Lord gets up to next.

But ever since Chris Chibnall took over as showrunner, there’s been a realisation slowly dawning on the fan base - and it’s not a particularly pleasant one. Despite even the efforts of the most optimistic Gallifreyan devotee, there’s just no denying it.

The Thirteenth Doctor era has not been very good. Falling ratings and few episodes that stick out as being even pretty good have marked a notable decline in the show’s quality since 2018. With a New Year's special on the way and Series 13 to premiere sometime thereafter, the fans spirits have never been lower.

So what can be done? What needs to change for Doctor Who to reach the heights that it once did? Is the show doomed to cancellation once more, or is it not too late for our favourite programme?

Read on and see if you think that these 8 suggestions are enough to bring the TARDIS crew back from the brink. Spoilers for Series 12 follow.

Back in the days of Classic Who, it was fine to have three companions in the TARDIS along with the Doctor because the serials were often so long, sometimes over three hours in total.

In fact, the very first core team in the show’s history was made up of the Doctor and his three companions – Susan, Ian, and Barbara. But in the age of NuWho, the maximum number of full-time companions has usually been capped at two and with good reason.

Individual stories are now only about an hour long, maybe two if they’re two-parters. With the number of guest characters appearing each week in the Chibnall era, all with their own motivations, this leaves no room for Ryan, Yaz or Graham to properly show off their personalities. We’re two series in to the Thirteenth Doctor’s run now, and we still don’t really know who these people are.

Let’s hope that the rumours are true about Ryan and Graham both departing the TARDIS after this year’s festive special. Maybe once they’re gone, Yaz will finally have some breathing room and actually be able to develop a few traits of her own.