Doctor Who: ‘Hell Bent’ to be “A Tiny Bit Devastating”

With the Doctor finding Gallifrey, the hope is that the Doctor will find something pleasant during the series finale for Doctor Who. Well, according to Steven Moffat, that will not be the case.

Series Nine of Doctor Who has been a great many things. It has been a darker season, seemingly better suited to the ways of the Twelfth Doctor. It has seen a lot of growth, both from the Doctor and from Clara before her death in Face the Raven. This season has also been a trying one for the Doctor, as he has had to deal with a great deal of loss and heartache.

Now that he has found Gallifrey, or what may appear to be his home planet, there is that hope that Series Nine will end on a positive note for the Doctor. He will have found what he has been looking for since the end of the 50th Anniversary Special, when he realized that he had hidden Gallifrey away instead of destroying the Time Lords and their home outright. Ideally, all of the trials and tribulations that he has undergone, and the various consequences for his actions, would end in a nice homecoming.

Well, that is not going to be the case. According to Steven Moffat, the Doctor is in for another roller coaster of emotions. In Moffat’s words, Hell Bent will leave the viewers “hopefully satisfied, and pleased, and a tiny bit devastated. It’s pretty emotional stuff. We get quite dark. It’s quite a journey.”

More from Doctor Who

• Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor Who Christmas special is a “complete reinvention”
• Ncuti Gatwa is “so nervous” to take on Doctor Who role
• The Doctor and Donna are better than ever in “Wild Blue Yonder”
• Take the Black: House of the Dragon season 2 trailer hints, the Fallout show, and more
• Jodie Whittaker didn’t pick up on any of the hate for her version of the Doctor

Even though it would have been nice to see the Doctor have something go his way during this season, and have a joyous reunion with his fellow Time Lords, this is not in the cards. The rest of Series Nine has had that darker feel, so it makes sense that the finale would as well. Still, after losing Clara, who had come to truly be his best friend, one had to hope that the Doctor would have something positive happen in the season finale.

It will certainly be interesting to see what happens. Series Nine was already expected to end on a cliffhanger, setting up anticipation for Series Ten to be at a fever pitch. With the Doctor finally locating Gallifrey, the possibilities for how Moffat could end the episode would be seemingly endless.

(Article continues after the next post box.)

Next: John Barrowman Watch: December 2015

The Doctor is due for a pleasant, happy ending to one of his stories. It just will not happen during Series Nine on Doctor Who.