Let me tell you a story. When I was ten years old, Sunday morning television was more exciting then Saturday morning cartoons. It started with “Star Trek,” ended with all day Kung Fu movies and in the middle was “Doctor Who.” I was raised with Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor, so he was my Doctor. The scarf, the hat, the hair, the goofy smile, my adventures in the TARDIS were led by the 4th incarnation of “Doctor Who.”
10 Things We Want To See In 'Doctor Who: The Day of The Doctor'
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10: A Real Reason For The Return of The 10th Doctor
While I’m excited to have David Tennant back, I’m hoping there is a solid reason behind it. Ratings and fan excitement is not enough.
I want writer Stephen Moffat to explain a true path as to why both Doctors have been forced to come together.
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9: Tension Between The Doctors
The gist of the Doctor’s transformation is that he returns with his memories, but as a completely different person. David Tennent and Matt Smith have similar approaches to the Doctor, though Smith is more eccentric.
It would be easy to have their interactions by comedic across the board, but it wouldn’t be true to the Doctor. The 10th and 11th incarnations had very different attitudes and ideas on who they were, and how the went about solving problems.
I’m hoping that Moffat has written some moments into the special where the Doctors' ideology clashes.
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8: Lots Of Villainy
As of right now we know the Dalaks will be there, as will the Zygons, but I’m hoping for blasts of many villains. Cybermen, the Weeping Angles, The Silence, all would be welcome in a battle against the three Doctors.
I would also love to see a return of The Master, but I highly doubt that is on the agenda.
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7: Explain The Scarf, Please
This is a big one with all fans, but especially those of us who worship at the alter of Tom Baker. During a trip the museum, Clara and the Doctor stare at a painting. Just to their peripheral is a young woman also enjoying the painting, and wearing a Tom Baker era scarf.
The woman is a UNIT scientist played by Ingrid Oliver. Why is she there? What does UNIT have to do with the Time War? And why the hell does she have a Tom Baker scarf?
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6: Let’s Make Sure To Tie Up Loose Ends
With such a massive undertaking, I fear that the end of the 50th Anniversary Special will end with too many loose ends. There is a lot going on in this episode, a lot of it drawn from bits and pieces of what we know about the fall of the Time Lords.
"Doctor Who" mastermind Stephen Moffat will need to make sure the story ends the Matt Smith era in such a way that the next Doctor can have his own identity.
Some will argue there is the upcoming "Doctor Who" Christmas Special, where Matt Smith finally changes into a new Doctor. But I’m hoping that show is really about the end of the Eleventh Doctor. Let’s resolve the Time War in the 50th Anniversary show.
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5: A Rose By Any Other Name…
In the trailer for the upcoming Special we see Rose Tyler conversing with John Hurt’s “War Doctor”. The last time we saw Rose, she was standing on the beach in another dimension, alongside her “human” Doctor, waving goodbye to David Tennant.
The Rose in the new trailer is a bit more ominous than the Rose we’ve come to know and love. Could this be Rose? Or is it Bad Wolf, the entity she became after absorbing the time vortex in the first season.
Whatever it turns out to be, I’m hoping there is a final resolution to Rose Tyler.
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4: The 13th Doctor?
This is probably a given, but with Stephen Moffat’s track record of leaving things unresolved I have to put it on this list.
According to the timeline, John Hurt is the Doctor during the Time War. This would make Peter Capaldi’s Doctor the 13th incarnation, not the 12th.
According to Moffat, Hurt’s Doctor does not screw up the numbering. I need to know how that works.
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3: An Understanding Of The Time War
Thus far the Time War has been spoken about in hushed tones, and the Doctor’s part in it is something that has haunted him since the series first began.
It appears that "The Day of The Doctor" will finally and fully address how the Time War began, how it ended, and what the Doctor’s role was in the conflict.
It might also explain how the John Hurt Doctor does not turn Peter Capaldi into the 13th Doctor.
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2: Say My Name, Say My Name
Keeping the Doctor’s name a secret has always been sacrosanct. I know many fans are hoping his name is revealed in "The Day of The Doctor," but I’m not one of them.
I want the Doctor’s name to remain a secret until the very last show to ever be televised. Even if I’m not around to see it.
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1: Who Is Clara Oswald?
While an intriguing idea! Thus far Clara Oswald has been more of a narrative device than a character. She is the woman who was born to save the Doctor. The woman who died several times.
What she hasn’t become is her own character. If the next Doctor is to succeed, his traveling companion must be somebody we care about. Moffat and crew need to use the 50th Anniversary show to give fans something more than plot devices when it comes to Clara Oswald.
Clara is spunky and cute like Rose Tyler, now she need to become as fully a fleshed out a character as Bllie Piper’s iconic companion.
