Doctor Who spoilers: How a Seventh Doctor story handled Orphan 55’s key twist
By James Aggas
Orphan 55 featured a major twist in its story. But a much earlier Doctor Who serial starring Sylvester McCoy explored a very similar idea… (Spoilers follow.)
1989. The final year of Doctor Who, at least during its original run. Of course, this was also the era when the show was arguably the best it had been in years. A sense of mystery had returned to the Doctor; the companion had a fantastic arc and of course, we got a lot of great stories.
One of those stories was The Curse of Fenric. This is a classic that packs in a lot. Initially focused on World War 2 and featuring hints of a curse (naturally), the story rapidly escalates to give us major revelations about Ace; an ancient, powerful god and of course, vampires.
Well, Haemovores, to be exact. They’re basically very close to the vampires of mythology, but they’re also generally a lot uglier. But they feed on blood and can be stopped by something as simple yet powerful as pure faith.
But where do these Haemovores come from? The answer is rather horrifying…
Dark future
The Curse of Fenric reveals that the Haemovores (or one of them, at least) are from Earth’s distant future. After thousands of years of pollution, the human race had horrifically mutated. And if that twist sounds familiar to you – even if you’ve never seen Curse – you’ll know the reason why. Essentially, it’s the exact same twist that the latest episode used.
The Dregs in Orphan 55 are of course radically different to the Haemovores. They’re even more beastly and are implied to feed on much more than just blood. But the same core idea is there: they’re a dark and horrific future for the human race.
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What’s interesting is how each story handles that idea. In Orphan 55, it’s played out completely as a shocking twist that everyone’s horrified by. In The Curse of Fenric, where the Haemovores came from is only quietly acknowledged by the Doctor.
In some ways, the future described in The Curse of Fenric is even more horrific than the future seen in Orphan 55. Because the Ancient One is not just the only Haemovore that’s arrived from the future. But he was also the last living thing on Earth, before he was sent back into Earth’s history and created more Haemovores. Essentially, he represented the worst possible future for humanity.
The pollution aspect of the story isn’t explored in Curse as much as in Orphan 55. But that’s what makes Curse a stronger story by comparison. Orphan 55 had some really interesting ideas, but was rather crude in exploring them. The Curse of Fenric explored those ideas, but it also gave us a fantastic story for Doctor Who‘s final year.
dark. Next. When the Doctor previously met Ada Lovelace
Have you watched The Curse of Fenric? Did Orphan 55‘s Dregs remind you of the Haemovores? Which story do you think is better, and why is it The Curse of Fenric? Let us know in the comments below.