Classic Doctor Who villain returns after 50 years and fans are ‘terrified’
The villain last showed up in 1975 (Picture: Sophie Mutevelian/Bad Wolf/BBC Studios)
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Doctor Who episode seven, The Legend of Ruby Sunday.
The first half of the epic two-part Doctor Who finale starring Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor and Millie Gibson as mysterious companion Ruby Sunday has left fans shocked after a major villain reveal.
The episode saw the Doctor and Ruby arrive at UNIT headquarters to meet Kate Lethbridge-Stewart (Jemma Redgrave) and get to the bottom of their universe-wide stalker.
The character, played by Susan Twist, has popped up in various forms across the season including as an AI ambulance, a hiker in Wales and Lindy Pepper-Bean’s mother.
In today’s episode, she appeared as a woman also named Susan, the founder of S Triad Technology who is planning to release her company’s software for free, worldwide.
The Doctor was left wondering if she was the granddaughter he travelled with as the First Doctor back in 1963 (played by William Hartnell) who has the same name.
The mysterious figure following the Doctor across space and time is finally revealed (Picture: James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC Studios)
Soon enough the space-and-time travelling duo put the pieces together and realised this enigmatic figure could be linked to the mystery behind Ruby’s birth – who her biological mother is.
Ruby was abandoned by a disguised cloaked figure on a church doorstep on Christmas Eve in 2004, partially the setting for the Christmas special The Church on Ruby Road, but they are yet to discover the abandoner’s identity.
At the end of today’s episode, – after managing to return to that fateful day via a time window – everything went wrong when the TARDIS was consumed by a dark force.
Soon, through a demented, creepy speech, the mass revealed itself to be Sutekh, the God of Death who was using Susan as a vessel and was intent on destroying the universe.
But this is not the first time Whovians have been introduced to this villain. Sutekh’s first appearance was in 1975 episode Pyramids of Mars with the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker).
Sutekh first appeared in Pyramids of Mars (Picture: BBC)
Where he battled the Fourth Doctor and was trapped in a space-and-time tunnel (Picture:BBC)
In this almost 50-year-old episode, Sutekh the Destroyer, the last of Osirons (a God-like alien race) awaits to be freed to bring his gift of death to all.
The Doctor and companion Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) battle Sutekh when he is released and he is successfully trapped in a space-time tunnel for seven millennia with no hopes of escaping. Or so the Doctor thought until now.
How all of the different elements will tie together remains to be seen, but for now fans are simply ‘scared’ and ‘shook’ by the horrifying end-of-episode sequence and discovering the Classic Who ties.
‘That was fantastic and that cliffhanger! I can’t wait for next week it’s going to be incredible!’ @jordanshortman1 wrote.
‘As a new Doctor Who fan I am scared, shook, and excited! I don’t know who the hell SUTEKH is but when I saw To Be Continued I burst into flames,’ @bella_snowden added.
MY FACE WAS THIS DURING THE LAST 20 MINUTES#Sutekh #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/L4MMyGcjn1— Mason🇬🇧 (@BalaklavaMason) June 14, 2024
Easily one of the most tense and amazing villain reveals I think we’ve seen in the show since Yana/The Master. Holy shit this was so well done. #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/0bW9cnXVmK— Sally Calypso (@InnesBurnett) June 15, 2024
NAH THIS WAS GENUINELY TERRIFYING #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/RoVwltjcim— Safe Space Who (@SafeSpaceDrWho) June 15, 2024
Quite amazing how they managed to make the TARDIS of all things appear so menacing. That creepy sound design is going a long way but the way it’s framed ever so slightly off centre & lit to appear pretty much black is just enough for it to feel wrong and uncomfortable #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/QuUhuej0Db— nicholas #doctorwhospoilers (@thenickofit) June 15, 2024
pic.twitter.com/xLrgriJfb9— Beth Axford (@0hMySt4rs) June 14, 2024
me, an uncultured nuwho fan, rocking up to tardis wiki for answers pic.twitter.com/gZCp3quyb9— beth ✨ (@raggedydocs) June 15, 2024
AHAHAHAHHAHAHAAHAHHAHA SUTEKH!HE IS HERE – GOD OF ALL GODS! #DoctorWho #TheLegendOfRubySunday pic.twitter.com/MzA1i6EVDU— -ð‰ð€ðŒðˆð„- 🌌👶👹🎼💥7ï¸âƒ£3ï¸âƒ£ðŸ“⚪ï¸ðŸ«§ðŸ’°ðŸ“–♦ï¸â˜€ï¸ðŸ—“ï¸ (@AMadmanNotABox) June 14, 2024
general audiences watching the sutekh reveal #doctorwho pic.twitter.com/R3om07MXSJ— samuel • 💙 (@jackietyler616) June 15, 2024
Welcome back, Sutekh. #DoctorWho #TheLegendOfRubySunday pic.twitter.com/EjAU7NNFdj— -ð‰ð€ðŒðˆð„- 🌌👶👹🎼💥7ï¸âƒ£3ï¸âƒ£ðŸ“⚪ï¸ðŸ«§ðŸ’°ðŸ“–♦ï¸â˜€ï¸ðŸ—“ï¸ (@AMadmanNotABox) June 14, 2024
POV Sutekh coming out of BBC archives after 50 years #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/5xII0jBktp— MOT (@Harumi31415) June 15, 2024
sutekh coming back after nearly 50 years #doctorwho pic.twitter.com/9ok0ABEbqK— Gareth Clarke (@gxrethclarke) June 15, 2024
fans who’ve only watched since 2005 opening up tardis wiki #doctorwho pic.twitter.com/OBtuXHveTH— Gareth Clarke (@gxrethclarke) June 15, 2024
The episode also saw several returning characters including former Companion turned UNIT employee Mel (Bonnie Langford), Donna’s daughter Rose (Yasmin Finney) and Ruby’s neighbour Mrs Flood (Anita Dobson) who delivered the ominous line ‘he waits no more’.
With one more episode to go, showrunner Russell T Davies has previously teased this will be the ‘most devastating finale’
‘Every episode stands on its own. There will be a running theme and running story that’s going to build and build and build to ‘The Most Devastating Finale’. Literally, the biggest finale ever,’ he told SFX magazine in April.
Doctor Who returns for the season finale, Empire of Death, on Saturday, June 22 on BBC One. The rest of the series is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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