Doctor Who: Do I Need To Watch From the Beginning To Understand It?

With the arrival of the recent Doctor Who 60^th Anniversary specials, viewers will be whether they need to start watching the show from the beginning to fully understand it. So, here’s all the information you need to know about starting Doctor Who.

Do I need to watch Doctor Who from the beginning to understand it?

No, you don’t need to start Doctor Who from the beginning to understand the show.

There are a few basic concepts that the viewer should be aware of before starting Doctor Who. Over time, we’ve had multiple iterations of the Doctor. The first one arrived in 1963 and Doctor Who’s 60^th Anniversary specials bring in the 14^th version of the character.

The Doctor is an extraterrestrial scientist, a Time Lord from the Earth-like planet, Gallifrey. He regularly goes on adventures across the cosmos. But when fatally wounded, he can regenerate and change his form.

As a result, we’ve seen the Doctor take over a dozen forms, with the 60^th Anniversary specials bringing in his 14^th version (which looks exactly like his 10^th form) played by David Tennant.

Which seasons of Doctor Who can I skip?

New viewers could simply start Doctor Who in 2024 with Ncuti Gatwa as the 15^th Doctor Who. But the 60^th Anniversary specials might need a bit of homework.

The latest specials introduced us to Ncuti Gatwa as the next Doctor. But the central figure in them was the 14^th Doctor, who looks like the 10^th Doctor. The debut of the 10^th Doctor happened in the finale of Series 1 (season 1) of the revived era in 2005. Post that, he continued his adventures in 2006’s Series 2 and appeared in Series 3 and 4, along with all the Christmas Specials from 2005 to 2010.

So, those are the seasons and special episodes that one should go through to fully understand Doctor Who’s 60^th Anniversary Specials. After all, the latest 3 episodes also bring back characters such as Donna Noble and the Noble family members that appeared in the 10th Doctor’s era.

One could simply watch the three 60^th Anniversary Specials with the awareness that Jodie Whittaker’s 13^th Doctor regenerated into David Tennant’s 14^th in her final episode. But to understand the relationship of the Doctor with every character in the 2023 specials, the aforementioned homework of 3 seasons and specials from 2005-2010 is needed. All other seasons could be skipped.

For more updates, check out who is playing Jimmy Olsen in Superman: Legacy. Also, find out how much money Wonka is predicted to make domestically.