Earlier this year I read the novel Frankenstein for the first time. As a lover of classic literature, I thought this was a wrong that needed to be righted immediately. The legend of the misguided scientist and the creature he constructs permeate our pop culture. As I’ve watched this current series of Doctor Who, I am fascinated by the parallels between the Doctor and Victor Frankenstein.
Since Davros questions the Doctor about the prophecy of a hybrid created “from two warrior races,” it seems that this has been an ongoing theme throughout the series. First, the Doctor uses some of his regeneration energy to revive Davros, which almost leads to the formation of a stronger race of Daleks. Then, we have Ashildr, who the Doctor grants the gift/curse of immortality thanks to using technology from a Mire helmet. The latest candidate for the prophecy is Osgood, who we discover is a hybrid herself due to her close relationship with her Zygon duplicate. Who is the actual hybrid of the prophecy? My guess is that it’s Clara, and there are several clues that point to this conclusion.
It is always fun to watch the evolution of the friendships the Doctor makes aboard the TARDIS. A companion that is present during a regeneration has an even more unique relationship because the dynamics shift between that companion and the newer Doctor. When Clara Oswald joined the Doctor, I personally did not care for her at all. I felt the whole lovesick girl pining for what can never be was a tired cliche that had been done before in a much better way. While it was a very inventive idea, I felt the whole Impossible Girl concept turned into a complete disaster. When the Eleventh Doctor regenerated, however, we were given a much different Doctor who elevated his relationship with Clara to a new level. Clara’s relationship with Matt Smith’s Doctor was a very good-natured one with a touch of romantic tension. This dynamic would drastically change following the Doctor’s regeneration.
In Series Eight, the relationship of the Doctor/Clara had strong echoes to another companion from the classic series. When Peri Brown first met the Fifth Doctor, she immediately formed a close attachment to the Time Lord who she described as young and sweet, something mirrored with Clara and the Eleventh Doctor. Both Peri and Clara were with the Doctor following a regeneration, and both companions were very unprepared for the changes that were in store for them. Colin Baker’s Sixth Doctor was brash, arrogant, and at times quite rude. The affectionate rapport Peri enjoyed with her previous Doctor was replaced with very argumentative dialogue, similar to what we initially saw between Clara and Twelve.
Bam Smack Pow
As Clara became more comfortable with Twelve, a new shift occurred with Clara growing more independent and more like the Doctor. In the episodes ‘Flatline’ and ‘Death in Heaven’ Clara took on the role of the Doctor himself. Since then, there has been a gradual progression of Clara’s “Doctorness” which has led to some concerns addressed by the Doctor in ‘Under the Lake’. In the following episode, ‘Before the Flood’, Clara uses Lunn to retrieve her cell phone after working out that he should be safe from the ghosts. As she continues to put herself in the Doctor’s shoes, one wonders where this path will ultimately take her. Since her personality is becoming more like her mentor and less like a regular human, could Clara be considered a hybrid herself?
Another interesting development is how often Clara has been placed in the role of enemy during this series. Missy used her to control a Dalek in ‘The Witch’s Familiar’. This embodiment of the friend inside the enemy is an interesting one considering we have the blurred boundaries this series of good and evil. We see this again in both ‘The Zygon Invasion’ and ‘The Zygon Inversion’ as Bonnie takes the guise of Clara. Are these events foreshadowing a tragic development for the Impossible Girl?
Next: Why the Surviving Osgood is Human
Traveling with the Doctor can be dangerous in more ways than one. Companions leave forever changed. Will the Doctor’s influence on Clara take her down a dark path? Like Victor Frankenstein, the Doctor wants to save people and hold back death. However, do his methods lead to worse consequences? In about one month, we will finally learn Clara’s fate. I think we should be prepared to have our hearts broken.