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5 Storylines 'Doctor Who' Season 10 Needs to Resolve

The clock is ticking.

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After over a year without a new season, the time-traveling alien from the planet Gallifrey is back. On Saturday, April 15, Doctor Who returns for its 10th season, or perhaps 36th season if one starts with the classic show in 1963. Notably, not only is incumbent Doctor Peter Capaldi leaving the show at the end of this season, but showrunner Steven Moffat is also stepping down after seven years and six seasons at the helm of the TARDIS. In terms of loose-ends, Moffat cleared up most of the 11th Doctor stuff back in 2013 with “The Time of the Doctor,” but there are plenty of storylines from the Capaldi era that don’t quite ad up, yet.

From shapeshifting allies, to half-erased memories, to a a very famous intergalactic war, here are the five biggest plot points that Doctor Who season 10 hopefully tackles. Not every question on this show will ever be answered completely, but these five seem to be the most urgent.

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5. Is There a Human Version of Osgood?

Though Osgood first appeared in the 2013 anniversary special, “The Day of the Doctor,” she returned in the Season 8 finale, “Death in Heaven,” only to be seemingly killed off by a zap from Missy. But then Osgood returned again, twice. In the Season 9 two-parter, “The Zygon Invasion” and “The Zygon Inversion,” there are two Osgoods. Presumably, one Osgood could still be human, but maybe not. Are both versions shape-shifting aliens covered in suckers?

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4. Where Are Clara, Lady Me, and Their Stolen TARDIS?

The Season 9 finale, “Hell Bent,” set up an awesome scenario: Immortal character Lady Me and impossible girl Clara Oswald stole a TARDIS. From the outside, this TARDIS looks like a 1950s diner. Though Clara has to eventually return to the time of her death on Earth, the use of time travel could allow her and Lady Me to travel indefinitely. What are they up to? Because both of these characters seem connected to writer Steven Moffat’s era, a resolution for their storylines, or at least a peak at what they’re doing, seems deserved. Plus, come on, a second TARDIS? Let’s check up on it!

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3. What’s Up With the Doctor’s Half-Erased Memory?

Speaking of “Hell Bent,” just how much of the Doctor’s memory is erased, exactly? If he doesn’t have any memory of Clara, does that mean he also doesn’t have a memory of Clara helping out with the whole Time War stuff in “Day of the Doctor?” Like it or not, Clara has been a huge part of Doctor Who since 2012! Explaining what he does and doesn’t remember about his time with her seems really, really tricky. Was the Doctor faking it? Or will he get his memory back?

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2. Who Was the Hybrid?

The entire ninth season was semi-obsessed with a terrible legend of a “hybrid” created during the days of the Time War. At first, we were told this hybrid was half-Time Lord, half-Dalek, but later the Doctor said “nothing could be half-Dalek.” When Lady Me and the Doctor hang out at the literal end of time in the episode “Hell Bent,” they chat about the idea that maybe the Doctor is the hybrid, and maybe they both are, together. Will this actually get explained? It’s unlikely, but it would be nice to untangle the confusion. Plus, if the Doctor is half-human, lets just get it over with and say it.

1. What Role Did the 12th Doctor Play in the Events of “Day of the Doctor?”

Without a doubt, if there’s is one thing the new season of Doctor Who should address, it’s this: When and why did the 12th Doctor join all his previous selves in saving Gallifrey? Further, was he the version who told the first Doctor what exactly everyone was supposed to do? It’s never made clear in “The Day of the Doctor” exactly how and why Doctors 1-7 know to join everyone else in the Gallifrey Stands jamboree. And there are a lot of fan theories: The TARDIS somehow knew; the three Doctors in the episode sent a message back. But, honestly, none of it is satisfying. So, Season 10 should offer an explanation, perhaps one that involves the 12th Doctor visiting the first Doctor before they both regenerate. Who knows? Because Peter Capaldi has suggested a “new” kind of regeneration, it’s conceivable the 12th and first Doctors could briefly fuse or something bonkers like that.

Capaldi’s attack eyebrows were first seen in “Day of the Doctor,” meaning it would be nice to revisit his first scene and explain it, before he departs.

Doctor Who Season 10 debuts on April 15 at 8 p.m. Eastern on BBC and BBC America.

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