Is Doctor Who making the same mistake as Killing Eve?

Doctor Who Easter special 'Legend of the Sea Devils' spoilers follow.

Doctor Who's Easter special is titled 'Legend of the Sea Devils', but something far more legendary is going on here than just the return of a classic villain.

Following Yaz's admission in 'Eve of the Daleks', fans have been holding out hope that a queer relationship would finally take centre stage in Doctor Who's new episode. Sure, the show has explored LGBTQ+ themes before – Yaz isn't even the first queer companion – but this is the first time that a queer relationship with the Doctor, this show's lead character, has been hinted at.

Thankfully, it doesn't take long for this episode to dive into all things #Thasmin. For reasons too convoluted to summarise here, the Doctor and Yaz soon end up on the ocean floor, shielded by a TARDIS-generated oxygen bubble – and also an aqua shield, "just in case".

There, the Doctor says, "Not a bad date, am I?", which leaves Yaz all kinds of flustered. And then, just briefly, yet another tender moment hangs between the pair, one which hints at a possible kiss. But the Doctor doesn't notice, or chooses not to, so Yaz ends up disappointed again.

At least the awkwardness doesn't last too long because a giant sea monster then comes between the pair and tries to eat them both. Now that's definitely not the date that Yaz was hoping for, in more ways than one.

Dan later sticks his nose in again, asking Yaz how things are getting on with the good Doctor. She seems annoyed, asking: "Did you say anything to the Doctor about what I said to you?"

A chaotic sword fight quickly interrupts the conversation, but still, it's good to see the show at least acknowledge how Dan essentially outed Yaz, which is terrible no matter which era you might find yourself in.

Following this and a few more fishy escapades, the Doctor finally opens up more about that earlier comment she made at the bottom of the sea: "Dates aren't something I really do, but if I did, believe me, it would be with you. I think you're one of the greatest people I've ever known, including my wife."

Clearly, the Doctor has had these thoughts on her mind for quite some time, just like all the #Thasmin shippers watching back home, but that "wife" reveal does throw Yaz for a loop. "It was a long time ago," the Doctor explains. "I was a different man, but the point is, if it was going to be anyone, it would be you. But I can't."

Yaz asks "why?" as she struggles to process all this new information. "Because at some point," the Doctor replies, "time always runs out."

It's a pivotal moment for #Thasmin, and the show as a whole, but before we ourselves can process all this, the pesky Sea Devils plot gets in the way again. Cue a heroic sacrifice and some brief timey-wimey stuff before we cut back to Yaz and the Doctor one last time, sitting together on a beach.

"Yaz, I can't fix myself to anything. Anywhere. Or anyone. I've never been able to. It's what my life is. Not that I wouldn't want to. Because I might. But if I do fix myself to somebody, I know sooner or later, it will hurt."

At long last, the Doctor has explained why she's kept Yaz at bay all this time, despite her obvious romantic feelings towards her.

It's because this life is one of chaos, and eventually, that chaos will consume any relationship the Doctor pursues. By holding her own feelings back, she hopes that she can at least keep Yaz safe, even if it hurts to never act on those feelings.

Yaz's response shows that she still wants to make it work though: "My Nan says courage is knowing something will hurt and doing it anyway. Mind you she also said it's the definition of stupidity."

"Can we just live in the present with what we have while we still have it?" the Doctor replies.

It's a pivotal moment, but also a deeply sad one. Because yes, it's truly groundbreaking to see the Doctor admit her feelings for Yaz out loud, but the conversation is also rooted in pain and fear. And that's something a lot of queer viewers can relate to, regardless of context.

At the end, the Doctor skims a stone and wishes out loud that "this would go on forever". But we of course know that it won't.

Following this special, there's only one more Jodie Whittaker episode to go. Even if Mandip Gill does stay on the show for longer after that, Yaz will no longer be with this version of the Doctor, and that could complicate things.

Hopefully, that won't be the case though. Speaking recently about this romance to the Radio Times, co-writer Ella Road said: "I think that we were all keen to make sure that we were handling all of that stuff delicately."

However, some might argue that Doctor Who has done anything but handle this "delicately". While we're overjoyed to see the show catch up to modern times and finally explore the Doctor's inherent queerness, the timing of all this is far from ideal.

Chris Chibnall and his team have had three seasons to explore a potential romance between Yaz and the Doctor, yet they've waited until the last three episodes to actually make this a reality. Some might say it's better late than never, but that's not always the case, especially when it comes to LGBTQ+ representation.

Instead of giving this dynamic room to breathe, instead of focusing on some queer joy for a change, it looks like the show will soon tear Yaz and the Doctor apart before they've even become an actual couple.

You can argue that this reluctance is simply part of the Doctor's character, and you could also argue that Yaz may somehow continue this romance in future seasons still, but the odds of that actually happening seem low given the usual companion cycles we've seen play out before.

So if Doctor Who is indeed going to give us #Thasmin in the final episode, just to immediately take it away again, that's arguably worse than having no queer relationship at all.

Killing Eve made that exact mistake all too recently in the final episode, ripping 'Villaneve' apart just minutes after shippers finally got what they've always wanted. That episode caused outrage, and rightly so, which leaves us more than just a tad concerned for Doctor Who in this regard.

Of course, given all of the wibbly-wobbly shenanigans that Doctor Who gets up to, there might be a way for the show to have its cake and eat it too.

But unless Yaz and the Doctor get a happy ending, or at least a few more episodes together than are currently planned, these final episodes could end up feeding into the same kind of damaging queer tropes we still see far too often, even now in 2022.

If that is indeed the case, then Jodie Whittaker's last run could end up being "legendary" for all the wrong reasons.

Doctor Who airs on BBC One in the UK. In the US, the show airs on BBC America, with series 1-12 available on HBO Max.

For more information on Doctor Who: Time Fracture, head this way – tickets are also available via retailers including LOVEtheatre, London Theatre Direct, Fever and Ticketmaster.

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David Opie

After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival. 

In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.

David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.

Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends. 

As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound. 

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