WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Doctor Who, Season 14, Episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday”!
Summary
Doctor Whoseason 14’s big bad and his villainous affiliation was set up by a forgotten RTD character who was last seen 15 years ago. InDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday”, theidentity of The One Who Waitsis confirmed to be Sutekh (Gabriel Woolf), the god of death.Sutekh debuted in the classic Tom Baker serial, “Pyramids of Mars”, in which the Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) prevented the godlike alien from bringing his gift of death to humanity in the 1910s.
As well as the return of Sutekh,Doctor Whoseason 14, episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday” contains a reference to another villain with a link to Sarah Jane Smith. However, this villain isn’t from her time traveling with the Doctor, but from her mid-2000sDoctor Whospinoff,The Sarah Jane Adventures.One of the recurring villains inSJAwas The Trickster (Paul Marc Davies), who delighted in causing chaos for the Doctor’s former companion. 15 years since the Trickster was defeated by Sarah Jane and the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant), he’s referenced inDoctor Whoseason 14, recontextualizing his appearances inSJA.
Doctor Who Season 14 Episode 8 Finale Trailer
The trailer for the Doctor Who season 14 finale “Empire of Death” reveals that Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor must face a returning villain to save humanity.
How The Sarah Jane Adventures' Trickster Is Connected To Sutekh
The Trickster fromThe Sarah Jane Adventuresis revealed to have a big connection to Sutekh in “The Legend of Ruby Sunday”.Doctor Whoseason 14, episode 7 reveals themembers of the Pantheon of the Gods. Among callbacks to recent villains like Maestro (Jinkx Monsoon) and the Toymaker (Neil Patrick Harris), other classicDoctor Whovillains are revealed to be Pantheon members. The Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) era villain, The Mara, is named as the God of Beasts, whileThe Sarah Jane Adventures' The Trickster is the God of Traps.
InThe Sarah Jane Adventures, the Trickster sets up a series of increasingly cruel traps for Sarah Jane Smith. In his first appearance,SJAseason 1, episodes 7 & 8, “Whatever Happened To Sarah Jane?”, the Trickster manipulated a childhood friend so that Sarah died as a young girl. When he returned inSJAseason 2, episodes 9 & 10, “The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith,” he offered her a chance to save her parents from the car accident that claimed their lives.
Although defeated by Sarah Jane and the Tenth Doctor, the revelations about the Pantheon could set up the Trickster’s return.
Finally, in “The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith”, the Trickster broke Sarah’s heart when he tricked her into falling in love with a dead man, because he believed marriage would convince her to stop fighting aliens. Like Sutekh, the Toymaker, and Maestro,the Trickster is a godlike being that delights in toying with the Doctor and their friends. The Trickster fed on chaos and catastrophe, and constructed elaborate traps to remove anyone that could stand in the way of that chaos. Although defeated by Sarah Jane and the Tenth Doctor, the revelations about the Pantheon could set up the Trickster’s return.
“The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith” was the last thing that David Tennant filmed in character as the Tenth Doctor.
Doctor Who’s Trickster Introduced The “Pantheon” Concept Before Season 14
In “The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith”,the Trickster is identified as a member of The Pantheon of Discord by the Tenth Doctor. The Doctor states that the Time Lords had heard the legends of the Pantheon and were aware of their existence. It’s not a huge stretch, therefore, to suggest that the Pantheon of Discord is the same one that is now wreaking havoc inDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 7. The connection becomes more pronounced when you remember that the First Doctor (William Hartnell) is similarly aware of the myths about the Toymaker (Michael Gough) when entering his domain back in the 1960s.
Doctor Who’s Pantheon Of The Gods Explained
The Pantheon in Doctor Who consists of beings whose power isn’t to be underestimated, and their threat could transform the show’s dynamic.
Given whatDoctor Whoseason 14 has revealed so far, it’s interesting thatthe Pantheon of Discord was introduced in one of David Tennant’s final appearances as the Tenth Doctor. In “The Giggle”, David Tennant’s Fourteenth Doctor brought the Toymaker into our universe by using magic at the edge of the universe. This is presumably whyThe Sarah Jane Adventures’Pantheon have now returned with force in Ncuti Gatwa’s first season ofDoctor Who, bringing chaos and discord in their wake.
Gods of Malice, Mischief, and Misery
Child of The Incensor
Doctor Who’s Pantheon Reveal Makes Sarah Jane’s Trickster Story Way More Important
The Trickster would have been revealed as the father of Sarah Jane’s adopted daughter Sky, which has worrying implications for Ruby Sunday’s own parentage.
Now that the Tricksteris confirmed to be part ofDoctor Who’s Pantheon, it adds a new dimension to his story inThe Sarah Jane Adventures. Firstly, the Trickster’s obsession with Sarah Jane Smith proves that the Pantheon can interfere in the lives ofDoctor Whocompanions when they’re no longer in the TARDIS. Secondly, it means thatThe Sarah Jane Adventuresfeatures one of the most powerful villains in theDoctor Whouniverse. Thirdly, an unmade Trickster story forThe Sarah Jane Adventuresseason 5 could help identifyRuby Sunday’s mother.
The death of Elisabeth Sladen in 2011 led to the decision to endThe Sarah Jane Adventureshalfway through season 5. In the plannedSJAseason 5 finale, “The Battle for Bannerman Road”, The Trickster would have been revealed as the father of Sarah Jane’s adopted daughter Sky, which has worrying implications for Ruby Sunday’s own parentage. There has to be a reason that Sutekh was present at Ruby’s birth. Given that Ruby’s story has already borrowed elements fromRTD’sDoctor WhonovelDamaged Goods, it’s entirely possible that he may adapt this unmadeSarah Jane Adventuresstory for the upcoming finale, swapping the Trickster for Sutekh.
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Doctor Who: Released on June 06, 2025, this series follows the Doctor and their companion as they journey across time and space, encountering a range of extraordinary friends and adversaries, expanding the universe of the long-running British science fiction series.
