Chibnall Breaks Doctor Who Tradition (And Hurts Whittaker's Era)

Jodie Whittaker was one of the most controversial performances as the titular hero of Doctor Who, while Chris Chibnall broke with years of tradition and this did not help.

Chris Chibnall broke with one of Doctor Who's most beloved traditions and hurt Jodie Whittaker's time as the Thirteenth Doctor even more. Chibnall joins Whittaker on the long-running BBC series after previous showrunner Steven Moffat and Twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi both left the show after its tenth season. From 2018 to 2022, Whittaker played the Thirteenth Doctor in the centennial special "The Power of the Doctor," in which she transformed back into David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor. Despite the series' lengthy run, Whittaker's era was widely divided among die-hard fans, with many feeling the show's writing and trademark interconnectivity were woefully inadequate.

One of Doctor Who's annual staples since its revival in 2005 has been the Christmas Special, stand-alone episodes that follow Doctor Who and their companions on their festive adventures across the universe. Every incarnation of the Doctor, save Christopher Ecclestone's ninth, had to be played in the Christmas special's sandbox during their time as titular heroes, but Chibnall never gave Whittaker one holiday episodes, and instead decided to focus on the New Year's special. By breaking with the fan-favorite Doctor Who tradition, Chibnall may have broken Whitaker's time as the Doctor, especially since she's perfect for the Christmas special.

Why Didn’t The Thirteenth Doctor Get A Christmas Special?

Former Doctor Who showrunners Russell T. Davis and Steven Moffat revealed that they had trouble finding ideas for their Christmas special. These episodes need to distance themselves from the main series' story arc while also pushing the story forward and building a bridge between one season and the next. While their struggles were evident in some of the Christmas specials, most of which offered holiday cheer, Chibnall never seemed to embrace the idea of ​​a Christmas-centric episode, even in his Refusing to write Doctor Who's 2017 Christmas special "Once Upon a Time" forced Moffat to delay Capaldi's rebirth as Whittaker.

Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor Would Have Been Perfect For A Christmas Special

Frankly, it's a shame that Jodie Whittaker never played the Doctor in the Christmas special because Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor might be the most Christmassy ever One of the Doctors of Breath, especially since her avatar was actually born on Christmas Day at the end of "Once and Twice". Always upbeat, playful, and family-oriented, Whittaker's Doctor epitomizes Christmas. although She brings these joyful qualities to every episode she's a part of, and it would be great to see her in a Christmas-themed story.

While Eccleston also missed, Tennant had five Christmas specials, while Matt Smith and Capaldi each had four during their tenures, so it seems absurd that Whitaker should still miss despite having been a doctor for five years of. Instead, Chibnall let Whittaker air a few less festive episodes in January that were mostly about the Daleks, completely negating what audiences were craving by the end of the main season. Christmas cheer. Whittaker is finally reborn in October 2022, which means she'll never be the main Doctor in the Christmas special, but hopefully Davis will be in 2023 when a full season of Doctor Who returns after the 60th anniversary special Bring back a much-loved tradition.