With all the talk surrounding Peter Capaldi leaving Doctor Who and who might replace him, it's easy to forget that there's still a whole season and a Christmas special before the Doctor actually regenerates again. In fact, season ten is set to make its debut in just a couple of months, but filming is still ongoing in Cardiff, U.K., with Capaldi spotted on set with Matt Lucas as Nardole and Pearl Mackie as the new companion, Bill Potts.
There's few specific details known regarding season ten, but we do know the list of writers include current showrunner Steven Moffat, veteran Doctor Who writer Rona Munro, and Mark Gatiss, who will be bringing back the Ice Warriors. Another specific that has been talked about since last year, is the return of Michelle Gomez as Missy. The actress confirmed her return to the show in a short video posted online today, which can be viewed, above.
The lighthearted look at Missy painting the TARDIS essentially confirms what we already knew from Gomez herself; that Missy will be back to antagonize the Doctor again, but it's not known whether she will have any bearing on the Doctor's regeneration. One thing Gomez has said, however, is that she is very interested to see how it all plays out when Missy and Bill meet for the first time. Bill knows nothing of time travel or alien worlds, so what will she make of a villain so malevolent as Missy, who could almost be human? Bill is described as feisty, which is exactly one of the adjectives that could be used to describe Missy too, so we foresee a clash up ahead.
Elsewhere, the lineup of writers for Doctor Who season ten possibly points to a lighter outlook, which will make a change from the rather dark and bleak final episodes of season nine. Though the latter episodes of Doctor Who's ninth season showcased Capaldi's acting talents well, there was little humor or eccentricity that we have come to expect from the Doctor. Hopefully, a more lighthearted outlook will also, in turn, bring back many viewers who had deserted the show in recent years.
Certainly the return of Missy always brings some mischievous fun, as she manages to wreak havoc and generally rile everyone up, while still being deeply unstable and menacing. It remains to be seen how she will fare with a new incarnation of the Doctor, whomever that may be.
Doctor Who returns to BBC 1 and BBC America on April 15th.
Source: BBC