There is no denying the popularity of Doctor Who over the past few years. The program has become a phenomenon unto itself, generating millions upon millions of dollars for the BBC. Considering the network needed to lay off quite a few employees recently, one would imagine that the future health of Doctor Who, at least while it continues to generate money hand over fist, would be a top priority.
However, there are rumors that, at least in 2016, we will not have a full season of Doctor Who. It may be that Steven Moffat will be too busy with Sherlock, another beloved BBC program, to put the effort into a full season of Doctor Who net year. So what could this mean for the Doctor?
As Moffat has promised that this season will end on a tremendous cliffhanger, this would appear to be a strange point in time to take a break from Doctor Who, regardless of the reasons. Yes, the timing of when both programs would begin filming would not work out, yet one would imagine that something could be done. Perhaps that series of specials would come into play, where there may not be a new series per se, but we would be able to get our fill of the Doctor.
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This type of solution would work even better should this end up as Clara’s last season. If she does indeed depart, the idea that the Doctor could have a series of one-off adventures, while potentially looking for a new companion, would make perfect sense. Likewise, should the promised cliffhanger involve some sort of issue with Clara, perhaps being kidnapped and spirited away somewhere in the vastness of time and space, these adventures would be a great way for the Doctor to search for her.
Likewise, a series of specials could be the perfect way for a transition of power on Doctor Who. Should Moffat truly be too busy with his other projects, like Sherlock, to put the effort and time into Doctor Who, then it is time for someone else to take over. A series of specials would be a nice way for Moffat to see if he can locate someone with the same passion for the program that he has, and allow for a smoother conversion.
Should these rumors happen to be accurate, then perhaps this is the beginning of that change from Steven Moffat as showrunner on Doctor Who. His tenure has certainly been great in terms of expanding the popularity of the show, yet Moffat has been quite polarizing. If this would truly be the case, Moffat would be missed, despite his, at times, questionable responses and thoughts. Nonetheless, it will certainly be fascinating to see not only what Series Nine has in store, but what will happen with Series Ten.