Doctor Who Series 11: 10 Big Questions After Episode 5
8. What Other Shows Did It Remind Us Of?
There was a distinctly Star Trek meets Farscape vibe about this story, especially with the guest cast. The neural navigation of the ship is a cruder, simplistic variation on the spore drive used in Star Trek Discovery. But it was the little critter-like alien, the Pting that provided the most obvious links to other franchises.
Whilst some fans have seen a likeness to the series four creatures the Adipose, a more likely source of inspiration was the Futurama character Nibbler. Although of far greater intelligence, Nibbler shares the Pting’s insatiable appetite and ability to eat things far bigger than his size. He is also characterised as baby-like in appearance, wearing a diaper.
The Pting also shares a family resemblance to various other deceptively cute but highly destructive little characters, from Disney’s Stitch to the Gremlins, and even the Niffler from Fantastic Beasts. The mole like character might be completely different in appearance, but he is another bringer of chaos because of an insatiable urge – in this case to gather shiny things. Less complimentary, others have noted a certain likeness to the Crazy Frog, originally known as the Annoying Thing.