The Epic Payoff: Peter Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor Surprises Fans with a Decades-Long Doctor Who Companion Joke

Summary

Doctor Who pays off an old joke by referencing a line from the companion of Tom Baker's Doctor, highlighting the show's humorous continuity.

Including recurring Doctor Who monsters adds tongue-in-cheek moments that enhance the show's charm and appeal. Despite creating a minor continuity issue with the origin of the Daleks, this joke serves as a delightful nod to the classic Doctor Who.

Doctor Who cleverly acknowledges a long-standing joke with Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor, and what makes it even better is its connection to Tom Baker’s Doctor. This kind of comedic continuity is one of the greatest advantages of Doctor Who's enduring presence, as well as its ability to maintain a relatively consistent canon over the years. While the joke may particularly resonate with fans of both Classic Who and New Who, all viewers can appreciate the show's meticulous attention to detail, especially when playfully teasing itself.

Throughout Doctor Who's history, there have been various recurring characters and adversaries that span both Classic Who and New Who. This is especially true for iconic monsters like the Cybermen, the Daleks, and the Sontarans. While it can be challenging to preserve the distinct traits and vulnerabilities of each species throughout the show's extensive timeline, doing so has allowed for the inclusion of lighthearted moments that would otherwise lose their impact.

The Twelfth Doctor's Skaro Scene Finished A Fourth Doctor Companion Joke

During Capaldi’s run as the Twelfth Doctor in Doctor Who, a tongue-in-cheek moment occurs in season 9, episode 1 titled "The Magician's Apprentice." The Doctor finds himself on Skaro, the home planet of the Daleks, where he encounters a Kaled alien wielding a bow and arrow. This is a clever reference that longtime fans will appreciate, harking back to a line from Harry Sullivan, one of the Fourth Doctor's companions. In the 1975 serial "Genesis of the Daleks," Sullivan remarks that the Daleks' precursors, who were engaged in internal conflict, would eventually resort to using bows and arrows.

Harry's comment highlights the deteriorating state of war on Skaro, with both the Thals and Kaleds witnessing a decline in their technological advancements. The Doctor speculates that the prolonged conflict has hampered their ability to develop and sustain technology. Consequently, Harry humorously suggests that they may eventually revert to using archaic weapons like bows and arrows. It is amusing that the Twelfth Doctor comes across a Kaled actually employing this primitive weaponry.

Steven Moffat's Doctor Who Joke Payoff Creates A Plot Hole

The fulfillment of Doctor Who's prophetic joke is delightful, but it presents a minor issue regarding the continuity of the Daleks' origin. In the Fourth Doctor's first encounter with the Thals and Kaleds, Davros, the creator of the Daleks, is already elderly. However, in "The Magician's Apprentice," a scene depicts Davros as a young boy. This inconsistency makes it implausible for the Kaleds to have regressed to using bows and arrows. Nevertheless, the mention of bows and arrows serves as a whimsical nod to the classic Doctor Who era.