'Doctor Who' Theory Corner: Wibbly-Wobbly Timey-Wimey Season 1

Doctor Who's much-ballyhooed move to Disney+ didn't quite work the way most assumed, with the House of Mouse deciding not to bother to do much to promote the trio of 60th anniversary specials. To be fair, the three-episode mini-season featuring former-turned-current Doctor David Tennant was an odd place to come in if you were just joining the show, already six decades in progress. The Christmas special with the singing goblins, or better yet, "Space Babies," with the "all the hallmarks of Doctor Who explained to the new companion" tradition, were better places for new viewers to start. But that accidental division also hid something rather large. The 60th anniversary episodes may have been treated as separate; however, they were crucial in setting up the new season.

By now, everyone who deep-dives into the theory world of their favorite TV show is aware of the Liverpool-born actor with the really great name: Susan Twist, who has been turning up like a bad penny in every episode this season, and even had a very random song dedicated to her existence. They've also probably discovered her first appearance was at the very top of the second 60th Anniversary special, "Wild Blue Yonder," checking out Sir Isaac Newton's backside as he headed off to an Apple Tree and accidentally discovered "mavity" instead of gravity due to a small TARDIS interruption.

Up until that point, the running "mavity" joke seemed to be just that, a silly gag from an accident. But there's nothing accidental here, with this Twist at the beginning. Because, as the song says, the Twist comes at the end. Let's sit down and talk about something totally accepted by every Who fan and yet not properly considered: The Docor having a time machine means the experienced linear time of the series does not necessarily happen in the order it appears onscreen.