Warning: There are Doctor Who season 15, episode 6 spoilers ahead.

After two seasons of teases, allow the TARDIS to return them to present-day Earth. However, no matter how far they ventured, one face was always not too far behind, keeping track of their progress.

After working her way into the life of the Doctor and Belinda, Flood decides to stay for the show, but is caught up in Kid's (Freddie Fox) plot and jettisoned into space. Despite being revived alongside the other attendees and contestants, the exposure takes its toll on Mrs. Flood, forcing her Time Lord genetics to take effect.

The Rani Explained

The Rani Was An Old Friend Who Walked A Very Different Path

With her knowledge of Time Lord secrecy and possessing the capabilities to pursue the Doctor through time and space, Mrs. Flood has finally been confirmed to have been an alias of the Rani. As previously revealed by the Fifteenth Doctor in Doctor Who season 14's "Space Babies", the Rani is a fellow Time Lady from Gallifrey and former close friend of the Doctor and the Master. She was heralded as a scientific genius, but her methods set her on a path of villainy as her experimentation always came first, with little regard for the damage it may do.

The Doctor, the Master, and the Rani were part of a rebellious group named the Deca at Gallifrey's Prydonian Academy, which also included First Doctor-era (William Hartnell) foe the Monk.

The Rani's first appearance came with 1985's "The Mark of the Rani", where she was portrayed by Kate O'Mara. After her experimentation on Miasimia Goria renders its population a sleepless, violent horde, the Time Lady attempts to extract neuro-chemicals from 19th-century humans that promote sleep to quell the chaos. This plot brought her into once more with both the Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) and the Master (Anthony Ainsley), with the former thwarting an alliance between the villainous Time Lords.

However, the Rani would get revenge on the Doctor in 1987's "Time and the Rani", where she ambushes the TARDIS mid-flight, forcing it to crash-land on the planet Lakertya and wounding the Sixth Doctor in ways that force him to regenerate into his seventh incarnation, played by Sylvester McCoy. As she attempts to manipulate a still-recovering Doctor, the Rani also seeks to experiment with the evolution of life by using the planet as a Time Manipulator. Once more, the TARDIS team would defeat the Time Lady, leaving her at the mercy of Lakertya's Tetrap population.

O'Mara's final appearance as the Rani would come with 1993's Children In Need 30th-anniversary special "Dimensions in Time". The Rani sets her sights on all incarnations of the Doctor, hoping to trap each one so she can assemble an intergalactic menagerie that she can use to try and gain domination over all life in the universe. However, the Doctors and their companions would thwart her scheme, and soon a major event would lead to her disappearance from the universe.

For many friends and foes of the classic Doctor Who, the contracts for early writers allowed them to retain copyright of their characters and concepts, and led to negotiations having to be made to include them in the show.

With the Last Great Time War seeing both the Time Lords and Daleks seemingly destroyed, the Rani were assumed to have been among the casualties. Despite expanded media such as Big Finish's Time War audio drama series fleshing out the event, writer Nicholas Briggs revealed in 2021 the ing of the Rani's creators, Pip and Jane Baker, made it difficult to acquire permission to use the character. As such, even with Gallifrey briefly restored between seasons 7 and 12, the character's final fate had been left unknown.

What Caused The Rani's Bigeneration & Who Is Her New Actor

The Star Behind The Rani Is One Of Season 15's Biggest Stars

Despite having followed the Doctor and Belinda through the Time Vortex, Mrs. Flood was also caught off guard by the Hellion extremist Kid's plot, and ultimately left her double brainstem frozen, something that should have spelled the end of Dobson's incarnation. However, much as the Fourteenth Doctor (David Tennant) did in the 60th-anniversary special, the Rani finds herself undergoing a once-fabled bigeneration, leading to her splitting between Dobson's incarnation and a new Rani, played by Archie Panjabi. Panjabi is best known for her roles in Life on Mars, The Good Wife, and Bend it Like Beckham.

Despite going through the same process, however, things are colder between both incarnations of the Rani when compared to how the two bigenerated Doctors shared an instantaneous friendship. Panjabi's Rani seems closer to the colder characterization of O'Mara's portrayal, showing disgust at being subjected to bigeneration and immediately stating herself to be the definitive Rani. Flood's incarnation, in response, becomes a more subservient pseudo-companion to her new self, handing over her Vindicator while preparing for the next stage in their plan.

Doctor Who Still Has A Lot Of Mrs. Flood Questions To Answer

Flood Possessed Several Traits Unlike Her Preceding Incarnations

Though the truth behind who Mrs. Flood truly is may be revealed, there are still some lingering questions about her past appearances that stand out. Her tendency to break the fourth wall that previously helped her stand out was not a trait tied to the character previously. Instead, the closest thing relating to fourth wall breaks for the Rani were found within gags in "Dimensions in Time" made by other characters, so Flood's use of them beyond raising suspicion could be a nod to the infamous story.

Alongside this, it remains to be seen just what Mrs. Flood knows of what is to come. While it is clear that the Time Lady has been laying the groundwork for some time and has been aware of certain events ing, such as the coming of Sutekh (Gabriel Woolf), other instances have seen her fail to for several factors, as she needed time to realize the Doctor's Vindicator plan and couldn't prepare for the possibility of receiving a fatal wound that forced her to regenerate.

Mrs. Flood has also been noted to be donning outfits reminiscent of past companions, including Mary Tamm's Romana and Jenna Coleman's Clara Oswald.

However, given the bigeneration twist, Flood's continued presence may offer time for these lingering questions to be answered. It is clear that bigeneration is something that neither incarnation of the Rani is pleased about, which is a fitting reaction for a Time Lady that values progress above all else. As such, Mrs. Flood stands out even more among the other incarnations of the Rani for just what she is, leaving room to explain how she differs.

What Mrs. Flood Being The Rani Means For Doctor Who

While The Rani May Be The Finale's Villain, There May Still Be Hope

When faced with the possibility of being the Last of the Time Lords in the past, several incarnations of the Doctor have chosen to try and convince their respective Masters to them and end their rivalry. With the Doctor once more in this position, he may offer the hand of friendship to the Rani once more. While Panjabi's new incarnation seems to be a return to her classic villainy, Flood has shown genuine iration for the Doctor's efforts, meaning she could still be convinced.

Michelle Gomez's Missy is currently the sole incarnation of the Master to truly take up the Doctor's offer to be better, but is struck down by her older self, portrayed by John Simm.

For the time being at least, Mrs. Flood and the Rani have seemingly finally assumed the role of Doctor Who season 14 and 15's overarching villain, and will now take center stage in the season finale. Alongside the return of Conrad (Jonah Hauer-King), the trio seemingly fulfill Davies' promise of an "Unholy Trinity." With the Earth at stake and the Doctor and Belinda seemingly becoming the latest victims of the disaster that claimed it, the Rani may finally be free to meld the universe to her most twisted desires.