2017 was a year to remember for Doctor Who fans. For one, it gave us season 10 of the beloved sci-fi series, which was, in our opinion at least, one of the show’s finest outings, ever. Hitting the reboot button – well, kind of – it provided us with a very different and unexpected Who for Peter Capaldi’s final year in the role.
Clearly echoing the 2005 season with Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper, the focal point this year switched back to the companion, as we followed Bill’s point of view as she got to know the Doctor and jumped into his crazy life of time travel and monsters. Furthermore, the writers really dialed down on the season-long story arc, which for the most part allowed for the individual episodes to stand on their own.
The first half of the season, in particular, had a fun mystery which the audience was asked to solve: who was the prisoner in the vault hidden under Bill’s university? The second half, on the other hand, switched to the concept of Missy joining the Doctor, which was bubbling under the surface until it was brought into focus with the penultimate episode.
Beyond that, though, we also got a ridiculously fun and very emotional Christmas special, which sent Capaldi off on a high note, brought back a familiar face and also made history by introducing the first female Doctor ever – Jodie Whittaker. All in all, it capped off what had been a truly successful year for the show, leaving Whovians yearning for more. And thankfully, they’ll get just that in 2018.
Though Doctor Who may be gone at the moment, the BBC has released the bite-sized promo up above reminding us that Whittaker’s No. 13 and her new companions will be back next year to bring us season 11. Granted, we don’t actually get to see any of that here, with the video instead showing us the dismantling of Capaldi’s TARDIS, but it’s still a nice gesture from the network to ensure fans that though the series may be on hiatus, it’s most definitely set to return in the not too distant future.
