Summary

• Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor, despite limited screen time, has left a lasting impact and reshaped the Doctor Who universe in various mediums.
• "The Power of the Doctor" episode playfully poked fun at McGann's unique portrayal and the controversial elements from his TV movie.
• Modern Doctor Who has integrated McGann's unconventional Doctor into the larger mythology, showing that the differences are now smaller than before.

Jodie Whittaker's farewell to Doctor Who allowed the Eighth Doctor's most notable appearance in franchise canon to be gently made fun of, and it happened with Paul McGann present. In her finale episode, Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor came face-to-face with an impressive number of former actors to play the Doctor, and an exchange between two of them was a coy nod to McGann's Doctor Who movie.

Of long line of actors to redefine the Doctor. Although he has barely featured within the franchise's flagship property, McGann's Eighth Doctor has been used quite liberally in Doctor Who novels, comics, and even audio adventures. However, most fans will know him from his 1996 TV movie.

Doctor Who's "The Power Of The Doctor" Poked Fun At The 1990s Movie

The Seventh Doctor makes a sly criticism of the Eighth in Whittaker's final episode

Paul McGann's Doctor Who movie served as the actor's introduction to the franchise, and it made some divisive changes and additions to the universe's continuity. At the time of its release, the movie was the most unique installment in the Doctor Who franchise - and for more than one reason. The outlier status of both the movie and its leading man is referenced by a line of dialogue from Sylvester McCoy's Seventh Doctor in "The Power of the Doctor." When Eight tells Thirteen, "I don't do robes," Seven retorts with, "There's always one. Has to be different."

He was the first Doctor to have a romantic encounter with his companion, and the only Doctor to be "half-human."

However, Seven's reply could be in reference to more than Eight's refusal to don the appropriate attire. McGann's Doctor up until that point had differed greatly from the other iterations of the Time Lord. For instance, McGann is still the only Doctor to appear in a movie. In addition, he was the first Doctor to have a romantic encounter with his companion, and the only Doctor to be "half-human." As such, the Eighth Doctor was indeed "Different" in various ways from his previous regenerations.

Despite McGann's storied history with Doctor Who, "The Power of the Doctor" marked his first appearance in the main show outside the use of archived footage.

The Eighth Doctor Is Less "Different" Now

Modern Doctor Who has rectified the issues with McGann's version of the Time Lord

McGann's Doctor may have been unusual at the time of the movie coming out, but there have since been other Doctors who also diverge from the classic understanding of the character. For instance, John Hurt's War Doctor, who canonically came after Paul McGann's Eighth, was brought in only for the story for the Doctor Who anniversary special. There is also the Fugitive Doctor to consider, played by Jo Martin during Chris Chibnall's time as the showrunner. Martin's Doctor was from even before the very first version of the Time Lord, which was a major shakeup for the title character's timeline.

In addition, the Eighth Doctor's claim of being "half-human," although nonsensical, can now be explained by the Toymaker meddling in the Doctor's past. Therefore, this particular piece of confusing canon no longer needs to raise the eyebrows it once did. So, while the Seventh Doctor's playful dig at Eight was accurate to a degree, the disparity between McGann and his fellow Doctor Who lead actors is smaller than ever.

The classic era of Doctor Who is available to stream on Tubi. All the 2005 revival-era episodes can be found on Max, but all the episodes from 2023 onward are on Disney+.