Doctor Who: Why Nine’s regeneration is one of the very best
By James Aggas
The Ninth Doctor’s regeneration isn’t just a great final scene in its own right. It’s also one of the best regeneration scenes in Doctor Who history.
There’s no question that The Parting of the Ways is a fantastic story in its own right. Especially as a regeneration story – generally speaking, a huge event for most Doctors. This is particularly impressive, considering that Christopher Eccleston had only done one series as the Ninth Doctor. So it’s fantastic that he gets arguably one of the stronger regeneration stories in Doctor Who – not just in the New Series, but as a whole.
On top of that, there’s the regeneration scene itself. Russell T Davies gave us two memorable regeneration scenes – first with Eccleston, then later on with David Tennant in The End of Time. (In fact, he even gave us his own completely non-canonical take on Eight’s exit earlier this year. It’s a fascinating read, although to be honest, The Night of the Doctor is much more satisfying.)
Both of Davies’s regenerations stand out as extremely emotional and fitting endings to their Doctors. But – out of the two of them – Christopher Eccleston’s final scene was stronger as a whole. Here are a few reasons why.
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A fantastic exit
What stands out about this final scene is how relatively little buildup it has. While I enjoyed The End of Time, The Time of the Doctor, and Twice Upon a Time, all of the crucial final scenes had been given a great deal of buildup, with the Doctor either facing regeneration or the end of his life directly throughout each story.
In this case, however, there’s been no time to focus on that. He knows he’s going to die, but with half a million Daleks to stop, he doesn’t have time to dwell on it. It’s not until after he chooses to save Rose and explain to her what’s about to happen that he has to face it.
The reason this works so well is that for this key scene, both Nine and the audience go through so many emotions at once. And Eccleston portrays all of those emotions so beautifully. We see his initial fear of knowing what’s about to happen. We see him put on a brave face as he tries to reassure his friend. Through that reassurance, we then see him start to worry, not just for himself but also how much Rose will accept the new him. Finally, with a great big smile on his face, we see him accept the end of this life as he faces the next one.
That’s a lot of emotions to process in just a couple of minutes. And yet Christopher Eccleston portrays all of them so brilliantly, ensuring the audience goes through every single one of them with him.
Final words
Lastly, there are Nine’s final words. Honestly, I think Russell T Davies gave him the best final lines, if not out of all the regenerations, then certainly of his own.
"Before I go, I just want to tell you, you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. And you know what? So was I!"
Every single time I watch it, it’s hard not to get emotional. It’s a perfect goodbye: heartbreaking, and yet at the same time, a wonderful celebration of a short-lived era. It’s an excellent final scene, one that’s not just well-written but also perfectly performed. In short, the Ninth Doctor’s regeneration stands out as one of the very best in Doctor Who history.
Next. The Parting of the Ways is still one of the best regeneration stories. dark
Do you agree with Nine’s regeneration being one of the best? What’s your favorite regeneration scene? Which Doctor did you hate saying goodbye to? Let us know in the comments below.