Warning: Spoilers ahead forDoctor Whoseason 15, episode 1, “The Robot Revolution.“Doctor Who’s season 15 opener, “The Robot Revolution,” is largely a self-contained story, but it finds time to break the fourth wall and reference previous episodes - and one of those meta nods happens right at the end and was very easy to miss. Thecomplex timeline in “The Robot Revolution"is an impressive distraction from the fact that Varada Sethu’sBelinda Chandra looks just like Mundy FlynnfromDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 3, “Boom.” Although Belinda’s debut does address this phenomenon, it isn’t at the heart of the story.
Mundy Flynn is an Anglican Marine from the 51st century who is also portrayed by Varada Sethu. It’s now been established that Sethu’s presence as Belinda among theDoctor Whoseason 15 castisn’t just a matter of her playing two unconnected characters. Instead,Mundy is a direct genetic descendant of Belinda from 3,000 in the future. The matter of their shockingly identical faces teases something more than mere chance, but no more has yet been revealed about this imminent twist. Regardless, Fifteen breaks the fourth wall in “The Robot Revolution” to deepen the enigma.
Fifteen Points Right At Belinda & Says “Boom” At The End Of “The Robot Revolution”
The Doctor names out loud the episode in which he met Sethu’s OTHER Doctor Who character
Near theend ofDoctor Whoseason 15, episode 1, “The Robot Revolution,“the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) gleefully points out there’s no need to rush back to Earth by pointing out to Belinda that the TARDIS can travel in time. WhenSethu’s character confirms the reveal by asking, “This is a time machine?”, Fifteen points at her and replies with “Boom!” The Doctor’s reply feels innocuous, as it could easily mean something like “Bingo!” or “You know it!” However, he’s unknowingly breaking the fourth wall by naming the episode in which he met Sethu’s otherDoctor Whocharacter.
I know this could seem like a stretch, but the factFifteen goes on to recount the events of “Boom” to Belindaimmediately after name-dropping the episode pretty much confirms that the Doctor’s outburst isn’t a coincidence. Of course, he doesn’t know he’s saying the name of aDoctor Whoepisode. To him, it’s not an episode at all, but a real adventure he experienced with Millie Gibson’s Ruby Sunday. Regardless, showrunner/writer Russell T. Davies allows Fifteen the semi-self-aware moment.
The Doctor’s Meta “Boom” Reference Continues Gatwa’s Era’s Habit Of Breaking The Fourth Wall
Davies has given incredible meta moments to characters other than the Doctor
Doctor Who’s Disney era has broken the fourth wall several times, although this trend only really started to kick in when Ncuti Gatwa took over as the show’s leading man in 2023’s “The Church on Ruby Road.” A lot of attention has been drawn to Mrs. Flood (Anita Dobson) directly addressing the audience, butFifteen himself has also had other moments where he has seemingly acknowledged he’s in a TV show. So, his “Boom!” moment in “The Robot Revolution” is nothing new. I’d also be very surprised if it turned out to beDoctor Whoseason 15’s finale fourth-wall break.
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“The Story and the Engine”
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