Doctor Who returns in the New Year with a special entitled “Revolution of the Daleks.” Not only will the episode bring back the fan-favorite villains that are iconic for their need to "exterminate," but it will also bring back the beloved former head of Torchwood, Captain Jack Harkness.
The 57-year-old series' Christmas and New Year’s specials are a seasonal delight that introduces new galactic threats or features the return of already existing baddies. Sometimes they are memorably unnerving and monstrous. Then there the creatures that range from underwhelming to downright silly. Which of these Whovian villains tops the naughty list for ruining Christmas?
Hydroflax
As the episode title suggests, King Hydroflax appears in “The Husbands of River Song” as one of the three husbands. Hydroflax is a bloodthirsty conqueror in possession of a diamond, so naturally, River seduces the cyborg and marries him under the pretense of stealing the precious jewel. However, once she’s found out and she and the Doctor steal his head, Hydroflax’s body goes on a rampage and takes the heads of Nardole and River Song’s third husband, Ramone.
Sadly, the Hydroflax’s only crime outside of numerous murders is being a forgettable antagonist when compared to the romantic tension between River Song and the Doctor. His demise comes in the form of Ramone and Nardole sharing custody of the large metal body and working as a server on Darillium.
The Heavenly Host
The Weeping Angels aren’t the only deadly angels in Doctor Who. “Voyage of the Damned'' finds inspiration in the disaster movie genre, specifically The Poseidon Adventure and James Cameron’s Titanic. The gold-plated androids, collectively called the Heavenly Host, operate as information sources and assistants to passengers on the Starship Titanic.
However, under the control of corrupt businessman Max Capricorn, the winged robots turn murderous and use their halos like Xena: Warrior Princess's chakram. The one-off companion, Astrid Peth, sacrifices herself to free the Heavenly Host from Capricorn's sway, and the Doctor becomes the next highest authority for the angelic robots to obey. Not the scariest monsters the Doctor has ever faced, but definitely the silliest.
The Sycorax
Outside of the lost episode “The Feast of Steven,” the 2005 revival of Doctor Who starts the trend of the annual holiday special with “The Christmas Invasion.” In addition to a comatose and newly regenerated Doctor, the planet Earth faces the threat of the skull-adorned Sycorax.
This alien race of warriors has the capability to control a portion of the human population with an A+ blood sample. They provide a contrast for the energized and charming Tenth Doctor in his debut, showcasing both his mercy and his low tolerance for "second chances." This point is emphasized when Prime Minister Harriet Jones orders the retreating Sycorax ship to be destroyed, and the Doctor, in his rage, ruins her political career with six simple words.
Racnoss
“The Runaway Bride” is not the ideal episode for arachnophobes. The Racnoss have the appearance of gigantic humanoid spiders, with the Empress being the last of her kind intent on reviving her species. She recruits a human named Lance to poison a human with Huon particles that would provide her with the ability to bring her "children" back to life. Lance does this by becoming engaged temp and future companion, Donna Noble.
The newly awakened Racnoss do not get far as the Doctor drowns them in cold blood, continuing his "no second chances" rhetoric from "The Christmas Invasion." The experience scares Donna enough to withhold her from traveling with him, a choice she will come to regret.
Kazran Sardick
“A Christmas Carol” is Doctor Who’s very own take on the Charles Dickens classic, wherein the Doctor serves as all three ghosts to the cold-hearted Scrooge-type character, Kazran Sardick. Like his father before him, Kazran is a loanshark that uses a weather machine to control the cloud belt above Sardicktown, where literal sky sharks swim.
The heartless Kazran refuses to assist a crashing starship that holds companions Amy and Rory, and this is where the Doctor decides to reform Kazran’s life by altering it. Kazran operates as both antagonist and protagonist, eventually finding redemption - just like his Dickensian counterpart.
Dream Crabs
The Kantrofarri, known colloquially as "Dream Crabs," are non-humanoid creatures introduced in the Twelfth Doctor adventure, “Last Christmas.” Both the episode and the Dream Crabs combine concepts of Alien and Inception, wherein the aliens attach themselves to the faces of their victims and place them in a never-ending dream state. The only way to survive? Wake up.
The Dream Crabs suffer from their unoriginal concept, but the fact that they paralyze their victims telepathically to consume their brains is horrifying.
Miss Hartigan and the Cybermen
In one of the most underrated Christmas specials, “The Next Doctor,” features Miss Mercy Hartigan and her collaborative efforts with the Cybermen. The matron of a workhouse, this ruthless Victorian woman orders the death of fellow workhouse owners and forces children to power a machine that will benefit the Cybermen’s plot.
Yet, allying herself with the Cybermen proves to be more than Miss Hartigan expects when the cybernetic army converts her into the CyberKing. The Doctor saves London from the Cybermen attack when he manages to bring Hartigan's awareness to the forefront and her horror destroys both the Cybermen and herself. While the Cybermen are undoubtedly more heartless and evil, Hartigan has the benefit of pulling off an iconic red dress.
The Daleks
After the Doctor regenerates into their current thirteenth incarnation, the series focuses on never before seen threats to the universe. But in 2019’s “Resolution,” Doctor Who begins its new tradition of a New Year’s special as opposed to Christmas, and the Daleks make a welcome reappearance after 2015's "The Witch's Familiar" and their albeit brief appearance in 2017's "The Pilot."
The Daleks have always had a handful of interesting abilities from inside their metal shells, from flying to scanning brainwaves. "Resolution" showcases a new power outside of its casing, with one Dalek taking control of human Lin's mind and body. While that Dalek's fate ended after colliding into a supernova, the upcoming New Year's special promises that the Doctor's problems with the Daleks are far from over.
Great Intelligence and the Snowmen
Considered one of the best Eleventh Doctor episodes, “The Snowmen” offers multiple great villains for the price of one 60-minute special. As a young boy, Walter Simeon develops a psychic link to a snowman that he built, pouring all of his dark thoughts into it and the snow reflecting it back. From there, the intangible entity known as the Great Intelligence is born, and both the Intelligence and Simeon proceed to build a deadly army comprised of deadly Snowmen.
But like all human accomplices that work alongside otherwordly creatures in Doctor Who, the Great Intelligence murders Simeon and takes over his body. However, the Intelligence is soon defeated by the grief surrounding the impending death of Clara Oswin Oswald, telepathically affecting the telepathic snow and melting it into rain.
The Master and the Time Lords, “The End of Time”
Marking the end of the Tenth Doctor's run, this two-part holiday special hinges on previous seasons and pays off in a big way. After he died in series three, the Master is resurrected in “The End of Time, Parts I and II” and becomes the definition of “unhinged.” He spends his time in a hoodie, with lightning powers, and manages to turn the entire world into copies of him. However, the plot twist for new fans is the arrival of the Time Lords of Gallifrey and the revelation that they are the primary threat.
Rassilon and the Council previously planted the sound of drums inside the Master’s head and planned to destroy Earth if it means saving their own planet. Through his own need for revenge against Rassilon and the Time Lords, the Master saves Earth and the Doctor by sacrificing himself and sending Gallifrey back into the last days of the Time War.