Warning: Spoilers ahead forDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday.”
Summary
Doctor Whoseason 14, episode 7, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday,” brings about the revelation thatThe One Who Waits was Sutekh the whole time, and his return was foreshadowed by a noise coming from the TARDIS that started during David Tennant’s temporary return to the role for the 60th anniversary specials.Sutekh’s only previous onscreen appearance came in 1975’s “Pyramids of Mars"story, with the god of death facing off against Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor almost half a century ago.
The lore surrounding Sutekh appears to have been retconned slightly, placing him atopDoctor Who’s Pantheon of gods, but his return during the Disney era comes with more implied information. The horrified reaction of Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor proves just how fearsome and powerful Sutekh is, and the villain fromDoctor Who’s classic erahas been hiding in plain sight - right under the Doctor’s nose.
Doctor Who Season 14 Cast & Character Guide: Who Appears In Each Episode
Doctor Who season 14 is Ncuti Gatwa’s first full outing as the Doctor, and he is joined by an exciting cast of newcomers and familiar faces.
The Previous Doctor Who Episodes That Featured The TARDIS Making A Groaning Noise
It all started in “Wild Blue Yonder”
The TARDIS' groaning noise in “The Legend of Ruby Sunday” isn’t the first time the Doctor’s blue box has sounded strained. The first time the Time Lord’s iconic space and time machine lets loose the ominous noise is in “Wild Blue Yonder,” when the TARDIS crash lands after Donna Noble’s coffee mishap. At the time, the damage to the Doctor’s blue box makes the noise seem very understandable, although evenDavid Tennant’s Fourteen Doctor describes the sound as “Strange.”
The TARDIS didn’t repeat the noise until after Ncuti Gatwa had taken the show’s reign and stepped into the role of the Fifteenth Doctor.
The TARDIS didn’t repeat the noise until after Ncuti Gatwa had taken the show’s reign and stepped into the role of the Fifteenth Doctor. InDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 2, “The Devil’s Chord,” the Doctor narrowly preventsJinkx Monsoon’s Maestrofrom hijacking the TARDIS, putting the blue box under great strain. Again, in context, the sound doesn’t sound all that suspicious, althoughthe Doctor does seem cautious about its possible cause. So, “The Legend of Ruby Sunday” may be the most prominent instance of the TARDIS' worrying moan, but it isn’t the first.
Why The TARDIS Was Groaning In Doctor Who
Sutekh was putting a lot of strain on the blue box
The strongest theory to explain the TARDIS' groaning is that it was directly related to being forced to carry around Sutekh as a passenger. The classic era villain is an incredibly powerful being, and it couldn’t have been easy for the TARDIS to carry such a lethal figure through time and space. Like the Doctor,the TARDIS was likely unaware that Sutekh was aboard, so although it probably knew something was wrong, it wouldn’t have known what it was or how to rectify the problem.
What’s currently unclear is exactly how long Sutekh has been integrated with the TARDIS systems. One possibility is that he has been there sinceTom Baker’s Fourth Doctor trapped Sutekh in “Pyramids of Mars.“Four used a piece of the TARDIS to help carry out his plan, so he could have unknowingly bound Sutekh to the TARDIS. Then,the Doctor’s ship could have started to feel the strain as The One Who Waits started to stirin “Wild Blue Yonder.”
Alternatively, Sutekh may have been able to latch onto the TARDIS when Fourteen and Donna were forced to crash-land on a ship so close to the edge of the universe. The laws of reality are different so far out, and so Sutekth may have been able to reenter the universe and then stow aboard the TARDIS until he was ready to emerge. Either way,Sutekh’s presence is more than likely the cause of the TARDIS' fatigue.
What The TARDIS Noise Reveals About Sutekh’s Doctor Who Return
Doctor Who has made it clear how powerful Sutekh really is
Sutekh’s power can be seen as early as his first franchise appearancein 1975. All it takes is for him to touch a living being, and they turn to dust before him. He can also inhabit sentient, organic beings and make them serve as his avatars, such as Harriet Arbinger andSusan Twist’s Susan Triad. Even out of context, his abilities are fearsome, but they’re highlighted even more by what he’s able to do to the Doctor and his TARDIS.
All 12 Confirmed Gods In Doctor Who’s Pantheon Explained
The Pantheon is a blend of new Doctor Who villains and familiar antagonists from the long-running British sci-fi show’s 60+ year history.
The TARDIS harbors its own immense power, and it’s proven to be too much for certain beings to handle. For example, Rose Tyler almost dies when she looks into the heart of the TARDIS, and it even causes Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor to regenerate.The TARDIS' power doesn’t seem to be a hindrance to Sutekh, as the god of death successfully stows away without being harmed. There’s also the matter of the Doctor being duped for an extended period of time, making Sutekh an even rarer breed of villain inDoctor Wholore.
“Space Babies” & “The Devil’s Chord”
“Empire of Death”
Doctor Who
Cast
Doctor Who: Released on June 24, 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.
