With One Line, Doctor Who Season 15’s Premiere Proves Why Belinda Is The Perfect Companion

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Doctor Who season 15, episode 1, “The Robot Revolution.”Despite Belinda Chandra’s ongoing resistance to filling the role left vacant by Millie Gibson’s Ruby Sunday, Varada Sethu’s new Doctor Who character has already proven herself very worthy of being the primary protagonist’s companion. Although her main goal is to return to Earth and resume her regular life, Belinda being forced into adventures with Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor is at the heart of Doctor Who season 15’s story. Toward the end of Doctor Who season 15, episode 1, “The Robot Revolution,” Belinda utters a line that establishes why she’s perfectly suited for traveling with the Doctor.

The best Doctor Who companions sit proudly in the category’s upper echelon for many reasons, but most of the Doctor’s sidekicks share at least a few traits in common. It takes a special kind of person for a character to have what it takes to journey through space and time, but they must also gel with the Doctor in a specific way. Even though the Doctor has been drawn to Sethu’s character because of the connection between Belinda and Mundy Flynn, “The Robot Revolution” gives Belinda her own opportunity to make herself unknowingly eligible to step into the TARDIS.

Belinda Choosing To “Talk” To Al Proves She’s Perfect As A Doctor Who Companion

The Doctor’s new companion immediately chose an attempt at peace over further violence

When Belinda discovers the gruesome procedure she’s about to be forced to endure, she resists the Doctor’s attempts to take her place. However, it’s not only this heroic decision that makes her stand out but also her reason for doing so. As it turns out, her logic is that she can “talk” to the AI Generator, and try to convince Missbelindachandra One’s dictator to free its people from the war raging on the planet’s surface.

“Once I’m part of the machine, I can talk to it. Maybe I can lead it towards peace.”

– Belinda to the Doctor in “The Robot Revolution.”

Other Doctor Who characters wouldn’t be so willing to make such an extreme sacrifice in the name of a tactic that is far from guaranteed to even work. Certain figures would have resorted to violence instead or used their union with the AI Generator to destroy it from the inside. That thought doesn’t even seem to pass through Belinda’s mind, which makes her a brilliant match for the Doctor. If she hadn’t escaped from the fate she tried to give herself to, the most likely future for Belinda would have been a life of subjugation.

Belinda’s Reluctance To Become A Companion Further Proves She’s Suited To The Role

Fifteen’s new sidekick isn’t afraid to call him on his mistakes

Belinda is a different type of companion, especially in Doctor Who‘s modern era. Although she’s in awe of what she witnesses in “The Robot Revolution,” she doesn’t want to continue traveling with Fifteen. Instead, she just wants to go home, and she isn’t afraid of letting the Doctor know that. Belinda’s critical analysis of Gatwa’s character and actions at the end of the season 15 premiere is exactly what the Time Lord needs to be reminded of, which is another reason why, despite her plan to return to Earth – she’s actually a fantastic Doctor Who companion.

Doctor Who

5/10

Release Date

December 25, 2023

Directors

Douglas Camfield, David Maloney, Christopher Barry, Michael E. Briant, Barry Letts, Michael Ferguson, Richard Martin, Peter Moffatt, Pennant Roberts, Lennie Mayne, Chris Clough, Ron Jones, Paddy Russell, Paul Bernard, Michael Hayes, Timothy Combe, Morris Barry, Gerald Blake, Graeme Harper, Waris Hussein, Rodney Bennett, Mervyn Pinfield, Hugh David, John Gorrie

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