Yesterday’s special episode of Doctor Who, “Revolution of the Daleks,” was an eventful adventure if ever we’ve seen one. But the story also sets up Jodie Whittaker’s upcoming third season as the Doctor in a subtle way.
The narrative picked up several hours after the events of 2019’s New Year’s Day episode, “Resolution,” depicting the aftermath of the Doctor’s confrontation with the lone Dalek scout. Jack Robertson, a past villain, steals the empty metal shell in a clandestine operation, whereupon a scientist named Leo Rugazzi clones the work to create an army of security drones to sell to the UK government and the world.
Back in interstellar space, meanwhile, the Doctor is still serving time in the Judoon prison. And weirdly enough, it’s been years since we saw her last in the season 12 finale. Luckily for her, Captain Jack Harkness breaks into the seemingly impenetrable intergalactic jail and rescues the Doctor. The two then make it back to Earth on the TARDIS, where the companions reveal that it’s been 10 months since they parted ways on Gallifrey.
The awkward reunion is cut short, though, when the trio explain that the Daleks are once again at large. So, as you’d expect, the Doctor quickly gets to work, this time with her old companion Jack at her side, which gives way to a lot of nostalgic moments and emotional callbacks.
But amid all these heroic deeds and the struggle to thwart the Daleks’ plan yet again, the special’s most intimate moments are what sets up the future of this overarching narrative. Throughout the episode, Tosin Cole’s Ryan shows reluctance to join the crew of the TARDIS again. Of course, we could pretty much say the same about the other two as well. The companions simply can’t come to terms with the fact that the Doctor left them for 10 months, and the titular protagonist somehow knows that explaining what really went down isn’t going to change anything.
What’s more, the Doctor is also at odds with herself following the Timeless Child revelation. This all culminates in a heartbreaking goodbye at the end of the story. With the Daleks defeated and everything back to normal, relatively speaking, Graham and Ryan reveal that they want to take a break from the Time Lord, deciding instead to live their normal lives in Sheffield. And as for Captain Jack, it’s safe to say that Whovians haven’t seen the last of him yet.
Moving forward, then, the Lonely God will probably embark on a quest to find more about her hidden past, with Yaz currently serving as her only companion. Though as the BBC recently announced, that will soon change when the thirteenth season of Doctor Who premieres sometime in 2021.