
The BBC apparently received a number of complaints after last weekends Doctor Who episode ‘Dark Water,’ which dealt somewhat with death, but most controversially the afterlife.
‘Dark Water,’ which aired last weekend saw the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) learn more about the mysterious organisation 3W’s beliefs on death and cremation.
The BBC has revealed that it received several complaints from viewers who were unhappy with a storyline about death and cremation.
n an official response, the BBC said that the long-running programme is “a family drama with a long tradition of tackling some of the more fundamental questions about life and death.
“We were mindful of the themes explored in ‘Dark Water’ and are confident that they are appropriate in the context of the heightened sci-fi world of the show.”
“The scene in which a character reveals 3W’s unconventional theory about the afterlife was preceded by the same character warning the Doctor and Clara several times that what they were about to hear could be distressing.
“When the Doctor does hear these claims, he immediately pours scorn on them, dismissing them out of hand as a ‘con’ and a ‘racket’. It transpires that he is correct, and the entire concept is revealed to be a scam perpetrated by Missy (Michelle Gomez).”
The current series of Doctor Who concludes with ‘Death in Heaven’ this Saturday (November 9) at 8pm.
Those complaints were sadly inevitable. Personally, I’m glad of the twist. Back when RTD did Army of Ghosts/Doomsday, I thought it was a copout that the Cybermen weren’t literally an army of cyber-ghosts. Apparently, Moffat agreed. It adds a level of poignance that RTD’s rebooted Cybermen lacked.