Can David Tennant’s return to Doctor Who usher in another golden age?
Russell T. Davies’ return to Doctor Who as showrunner is the kind of Hail Mary thrown out by a franchise dangerously close to drowning. He left at the top of his game, handing the keys to Steven Moffat, who built up the show to a frenzied peak during Matt Smith’s run. The show broke viewing figures in 2012, and also finally broke through as a bona fide phenomenon in America thanks to a heavily marketed partnership with BBC America. While RTD (as he’s known by fans) saw further success with critically acclaimed shows like A Very English Scandal and It’s A Sin, Chris Chibnall’s tenure at Doctor Who was much less successful, and the show reportedly came close to being canceled as Jodie Whittaker’s run as the first female Doctor was poorly critically reviewed, and saw ratings go into free-fall.
That was when I imagine RTD went into Supernanny mode. In my head he tells the BBC, “You guys are in a crisis, I’m on my way.” The news that he would be coming back to the show in time for the 60th anniversary made many fans who had dropped off in past years perk up and begin to pay attention again — including me. I may have begun watching the show as a teenager during the Eleventh Doctor’s first series in 2010, but Davies’ run from 2005 to 2010 is forever the era of my heart. So it feels particularly notable that he’s bringing David Tennant and Catherine Tate with him, as the Fourteenth Doctor and crowd favorite companion Donna Noble. Nostalgia is being used as a shameless marketing tactic, but it’s doubtful anyone will complain when longtime fans are being catered to so directly.
As anticipation for this comeback grows, fans are wondering what to expect from the era being dubbed “RTD2.” Davies’ first era defined what Doctor Who cou
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