Doctor Who fans are seriously underwhelmed by the season’s “disappointing” finale.
The sci-fi series has reached the end of its highly publicised 14th season, which saw Ncuti Gatwa take over the reins as the new Time Lord and Russell T Davies return as showrunner.
Its finale – titled “Empire of Death” – landed on BBC iPlayer at midnight on Saturday (22 June) before it was broadcast on BBC One at 6.40pm late that night.
***SPOILERS FOR THE SEASON FINALE OF DOCTOR WHO SEASON 14 BELOW!
Since last year’s Christmas special, Doctor Who has teased the “mystery” of Ruby Sunday’s origins (played by Millie Gibson).
Across seven subsequent episodes, several hints were dropped in the storyline as to the identity of Ruby’s birth mother.
Viewers were largely disappointed, then, to learn that Ruby’s birth mother is, in fact, an ordinary woman named Louise – who had left her daughter at the church gates in a panic when she was 15 years old.
Many have criticised the reveal as being hugely anticlimactic, especially given that past instalments have portrayed the mysterious mother figure as a haunting, hooded figure.
In a two-star review of the episode for The Independent, TV critic Ed Power writes: “The argument Davies proceeds to make, using the Doctor as a mouthpiece, is that it is Ruby’s average quality that makes Louise – Ruby’s mum – so extraordinary.
“Or as the Time Lord puts it: ‘She was important because we think she’s important. That’s how everything happens. Every war, every religion, every love story.’ Erm, alright.”
Doctor Who fans all over the country the minute pictures of a completely normal woman came up on screen: pic.twitter.com/9ArDRmxlhy
— Joel (@PoorlyAgedWho) June 22, 2024
Viewers online felt similarly let down by the big reveal, with many sharing hilarious reactions to the episode on X/Twitter. Find some of the best below…
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One user wrote: “Doctor Who fans all over the country the minute pictures of a completely normal woman came up on screen,” alongside a GIF of The Boys’ Homelander actor gazing straight-faced at a movie screen.
Another said: “How I felt after that #DoctorWho” together with a clip from Gavin and Stacey in which Alison Steadman’s Pam points at a TV screen and exclaims: “Is that it?”
How I felt after that #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/CDF1qEncWW
— Alfie Green (@alfiejoegreen) June 21, 2024
where is a 15 year old mum getting this traitors ass cloak from #DoctorWho pic.twitter.com/uDAMC2mZjU
— chris. ! 🪼🫶 (@whats0ccurin) June 22, 2024
Bit deflated by the #doctorwho finale. Not gonna lie. All that build up to Rubys mum? For someone random?!
— Daniels mummy ❤🌺 (@NikkiABoleyn) June 22, 2024
Others compared the cloak that Ruby’s mum wore to those worn by the contestants on BBC’s hit game show The Traitors. “Where is a 15-year-old mum getting this Traitors [...] cloak from?”
Several people compared the unsatisfying plot reveal to the one concerning Daisy Ridley’s character in the Star Wars franchise, with the overwhelming consensus from viewers so far emerging that the finale episode disastrously failed to live up to expectation.
“Empire of Death” is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
