Doctor Who: “The Power of the Doctor”: Spoilery Edition – All the Feels

*Full and complete spoilage ahead.*

I’m going to get more into the details of the story and its execution next week, but today, I’m just going to focus on the callbacks and moments that made my fangirl heart sing. Shortly after watching this special, I rewatched Spider-Man: No Way Home and realized that, while I think No Way Home is better done overall, both do an excellent job on delivering fan service that really counts. Rather than feeling like an easy nostalgia grab, it’s clear that every continuity moment comes from a place of deep love.

As I said in my review, I already knew from the trailer that Tegan and Ace would be in special, and it was lovely to see them. They definitely go in hard on Tegan’s loudest, most opinionated traits, but we get some humor and vulnerability in there too. I especially like her choosing to stay at UNIT and help Kate with the Cyber Masters, along with her snippy, “And yes, I would like to go in the TARDIS”—oh, Tegan. Meanwhile, Ace’s characterization does a nice job of taking an incredibly teenaged companion and reasonably extrapolating her to a woman in her 60s. There are enough touches that she’s still very recognizably Ace—I squeed at the jacket and baseball bat—but she also feels genuinely grown-up. I love that she and Tegan connected at some point, either independently or through UNIT, and have been investigating mysterious occurrences on Earth.

I’ll have more to say on the Master next week, but I love the continuity references we get from him too. He immediately recognizes both Tegan and Ace, getting in digs that are personal for each of them, while Ace gives as good as she gets—“Last time I saw you, you were half cat.” Ha! And when Kate takes him into UNIT custody, the Master tells her, “Your dad was an idiot.”

Then there were all the surprises. Oh, the lovely, lovely surprises. In Thirteen’s limbo between regeneration, I smiled at seeing David Bradley’s version of One again, from the way he grips his lapels to the way he says, “Hmm?” But then Five, Six, Seven, and Eight??? Oh my god, my little Whovian heart could hardly take it. I couldn’t even squee when I saw them, I just stared rapt at the screen in a fandom stupor. I love Eight’s very simple, “I don’t do robes,” and it’s wonderful to see the different incarnations alternately reassure Thirteen and bicker with each other.

Best of all, for me, is the way Thirteen rigged up an AI holographic interface so she can still help Yaz and the others while she’s out of commission. This means that, when Tegan and Ace interact with the hologram, they see it as their respective Doctors, not Thirteen. And oh man, to see Five in his jacket and Seven in his hat. Five and Tegan griping at each other before Five promises her that he never forgot her, that the Doctor never forgets any of them. Ace apologizing to Seven for their falling-out and Seven assuring her that it’s right for children to grow up and leave the nest. Absolutely beautiful from top to bottom, no notes!

There were a few Thirteen-era returns too, namely Yaz briefly getting the interface to assume the form of Jo Martin’s Nth Doctor and a reappearance from Graham. As great as multi-Doctor specials are, I never feel like we get enough of companions from different eras interacting, so Graham’s delightful introduction to Ace is a lot of fun. Given that it was Thirteen’s last episode, I wish we could’ve gotten at least a glimpse of Ryan, though as it was, we only get one token mention.

But speaking of companions from different eras interacting? Companion. Support. Group. Yes!!! I love everything about it. Mel! Jo! Ian!!! Along with, of course, Graham, Dan, Yaz, Tegan, and Ace (with Kate there too, hoping to recruit some of them for UNIT work.) I love the idea of these people meeting one another and sharing their experiences and adventures with the Doctor, finding community in the only people who could truly understand them. It makes me think of “Death of the Doctor” from The Sarah Jane Adventures, and even though Elisabeth Sladen is no longer with us, I like to imagine that Sarah Jane just wasn’t able to make that particular meeting.

And of course, our last blast from the (more recent) past comes in the final scene, when Jodie Whittaker regenerates, not into Ncuti Gatwa, but into David Tennant! I’ll talk more about this next week, but for now, I’ll part on these thoughts: 1) I love the callback to Ten’s teeth. And 2) if there was ever a moment for a classic David Tennant “What? What?! What???”, this is it!