While some could argue that Chris Chibnall’s tenure as the showrunner of Doctor Who has mostly been well-received, there’s no denying that Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor has seen her fair share of criticisms over the past couple of years.
The adventures of a Mad (Wo)man in a Box continued this year with another season packed full of surprising revelations that kept viewers at the edge of their seats. One of these unexpected twists was the reintroduction of the Master, who longtime fans of the show recognize as the one and only arch-nemesis of the Doctor.
This time around, Sacha Dwahan played the latest incarnation of the Master and he managed to bring back the sadistic nature of the rogue Time Lord after taking over from Michelle Gomez’s Missy, who perished at the end of season 10. The surprise comeback actually injected new life into the lackluster veins of Whittaker’s run and most people instantly fell in love with Dwahan’s version of the villain.
Not everyone has been on board with some of the more controversial decisions that Chibnall made in the last two seasons, though, and many fans have come to criticize the show for being too politically correct, or as they’d like to call it, “woke.”
Dwahan, on the other hand, doesn’t share these sentiments and has recently hit back against those who’d argue otherwise. Talking with Digital Spy, the actor had the following to say about the role of diversity in the world of Doctor Who:
“You know, there’s this idea of ‘woke’, but I think [Doctor Who] has always thought outside the box, and it’s continued to embrace that, and continued to take it even further, to be honest,” He said.
In fairness, not everyone criticizes the new run for its diversity, and some genuinely dislike Chibnall’s episodes in spite of their alleged PC agenda, which the actor continued to defend by saying:
“It’s almost considered that some of the decisions [the writers are] making is controversial, in some way. But it shouldn’t be seen like that. It’s just embracing real life, and multiculturalism, for instance, in real life. It’s got to challenge that as well, in one sense, and change people’s opinions, and get them thinking more. There’s no point being safe.”
At any rate, Chibnall is set to return for another season next year, and it would appear that the network is satisfied with the result so far as ratings are concerned.
Meanwhile, Dwahan’s character had a masterful return in the penultimate episode of season 12, and we’re excited to see where he’ll end up when the dust settles. Don’t miss the Doctor Who finale, titled “The Timeless Children,” Sunday night on the BBC.
