A new photo from the set of the upcoming holiday special for “Doctor Who” contains a major SPOILER and confirms a rumor that’s been floating around the Net for the past several weeks.
If you don’t want to know, please turn back now….
The photo, sent to io9 by an anonymous source shows actors David Tennant and John Simm joined by fellow British thespian and former 007, Timothy Dalton.
But that’s not the most SPOILERific part.
If you look at the photo, you’ll notice that Dalton appears to be dressed in the regalia of a Time Lord.
But wait, weren’t all the Time Lords wiped out in the Time War…well, besides the Doctor and the Master, of course.  Is this a flashback of some kind?
Details on the special have been limited, though we do know several recurring cast members will be back for the finale of the 10th Doctor’s era.
I have to admit that I’ve gotten my hopes up before believeing that The Time Lords weren’t totally wiped out. Since the beginning of the new series it I always figured a race that mastered time and space wouldn’t have some kind of escape plan just in case worse came to even worse so I’m really hopeing that The Time Lords and some version of Galifrey will be discovered. Finally, wow! Timothy Dalton, wicked casting.
I am so pissed that I don’t get BBC America right now.
Me too, Lejon…
Hey is that the Seal of Rassilon on his chest?
Yes they were all killed off during the infamous Time Wars. But remember, the Doctor is a Timelord and for him (or it) there is no such thing as death or ending. He can revisit any period, even the time before the destruction of all the Timelords, save him and the Master.
However, I tend to agree with Jason’s comment. Surely the Timelords knew of the impending war and made arrangements for their survival, or at least for the survival of a few….just as occurred with the good Doctor. Just because this single Timelord wasn’t aware of any survivors other than the Master doesn’t mean there weren’t any left standing after the war. Afterall, the Doctor may be eternal but that doesn’t make him omniscient.
and Sam, its possible following their “potential” escape the only way The Time Lords could be absolutely sure of their survial was for the Doctor to believe they were all dead and it appears its possible they suceeded. I also have to admit while its been interesting watching a series about the last Time Lord, I’m ready for The Time Lords to return in force. It should keep the series interesting but even without their return Stephen Moffet will make it interesting anyway.
Oh. My. God. That is AWESOME!
So, my brain is working as it’s been known to do on rare occasions. And I’m aware the following theory is a bit of a pipe dream. But the next special is titled “The Waters of Mars”, which some have pointed out is an anagram of “War of the Masters” (or “Wars of the Master”). So it occurs to me… could Timothy Dalton be playing a different regeneration of the Master? Are we gonna get the flipside of all those multi-Doctor stories? Could this be… The Two Masters?
Aww man… this is gonna be so freaking cool.
IIRC, Time Lords aren’t allowed to revisit their own (Time Lord) history. So, the odds of this being a visit to the past are lowered in my opinion….
As for Two Masters, I am not sure if that would work.
I always assumed that the Timelords were wiped from the universe start to finish. No matter where in time you go, the Timelords are now a myth. Simply destroying their world would be a mere inconvenience. A time war by it’s very nature would require the victor to eradicate the vanquished from time itself.
Of course it’s all speculative, since it’s all fiction, but whatever the case may be, returning the Timelord race to the universe would have to require more than simply going back in time before the war. It will definitely be a major event.
Plus there are so many interesting possibilities for who Dalton is. Rassilon, Omega, The Master, Drax…. The Valyard?
I would really love for this to be The Valeyard. Remember that the Valeyard was a clone made in the Matrix from a distillation of the dark sides of Doctors number 12 and 13. It could be that the Valeyard knew what was coming and decided to duck and hide for a while.
Can see three potential scenarios:
The daleks hid in the darkness between worlds with a timelord prison ship, no reason why the timelords couldnt have done the same.
Similarly the master was `resurected’ by the timelords for the time war, so potentially they could all be brought back from the matrix or some other piece of galifreyan technology.
Dalek Khan travelled into the time war to bring Davros back, no reason why the master couldnt have done the same, he’s already proved he’s happy to build a paradox engine.
There were a LOT of mentions at the fact that the Doctor was the last of his race in The Waters of Mars, almost as if RTD is subtley reminding us of that fact. Lets not forget that Davros was meant to have been eradicated by the events of the Time War too yet he managed to escape his fate. Whose to say a few of the TL’s couldn’t have done it too. Perhaps the Doctor interferring to change history in Waters caused some kind of chain reaction that might have un-did certain historical events. The Doctor has frequently reminded us that certain points in time are “fixed” and cannot (or should not) be altered. The Time War would almost certainly be included in that and the death of Adelaide Brooke and her team on Bowie Base One was also one of them. Perhaps him meddling in that latter event caused other fixed points in time to instead go into a state of flux thereby allowing the TL’s to return in some shape.
Of course that is merely speculation on my part but we do know that:
1 – The Master returns. As far as I could see he defintely died in The Last of the Time Lords but even the Master himself has said that the Time Lords resurrected him once before to fight in the Time War. Somehow he’s been resurrected again. Who else would have the power to do this.
2 – Timoth Dalton has been pictured on set wearing Time Lord robes
3 – The prophecy from Planet of the Dead said …”IT is returning through the dark” not “he” as some people think so I don’t think that part of the prophecy refers to the Master (the bit about knocking four times probably did). What could that It be? Gallifrey? Perhaps the dark she referred to is the void where the Daleks hid? Perhaps the TL’s did too to make it APPEAR they were dead. It would also account for why the Doctor couldn’t sense them.
My theory is that the Doctors actions at the end of Waters of Mars either caused a chain reaction through time which caused other fixed events to go into a state of flux thereby restoring the Time Lords or his actions have had a devastating effect through time which has caught the attention of some hidden away Time Lords who now have to reveal themselves to correct the problem. Either way because of his actions I think the Doctor breaking one the most fundemental of Time Lord laws means he’s being hunted by the TL’s in order to answer for what he did. To do this I think they resurrect the Master to bring him in. If he is brought before the TL’s then they might well force him to regenerate as a punishment (see 2nd to 3rd Doctor). I also think that River Song will have some part to play. I don’t buy into the idea that she’s some future lover of the Doctors to whom he revealed his true name. He didn’t even do that for Rose, argualbly the love of his life. And why not? To protect her from something as yet unrevealed. Why change that stance for his own wife? Doesn’t make sense. Someone picked up the Masters ring, perhaps to retrieve some DNA in order to clone him? Perhaps RS is an agent of the Time Lords or perhaps even a Time Lord herself? It would explain how she knows his real name and from the press pictures I’ve seen of her and the Eleventh Doctor they don’t exactly look chummy (I realise the events of Last of the Time Lords occured long before the Christmas 09 specials but the whole show revolves around time travel, how long ago something happened has no relevence as to when it would have an impact) .
From a writing point of view bringing back the TL’s will also solve the problem as to how the carry on the series when the Doctor has only a few more regenerations left (TL’s can bestow a new cycle if they wish).