The Sixth Doctor is a major character in Season 21 and the main protagonist of Seasons 22 and 23 of Doctor Who.
He is portrayed by Colin Baker.
Biography[]
The Sixth Doctor regenerated from the Fifth Doctor after he gave Peri Brown the only remaining antidote to the spectrox poisoning they both were suffering and allowed himself to perish from it, resulting in his regeneration into the Sixth Doctor. At first, the Sixth Doctor was incredibly incorrigible as a result of his regeneration sickness, acting aloof towards Peri and occasionally lashing out, as well as displaying tendencies that were very unlike the Doctor's previous personality, such as cowardliness. However, after the regeneration sickness wore off, the Doctor began to slowly regain the compassion he had in his previous incarnations.
Season 22[]
One of his early adventures saw the Doctor and Peri track down a signal on 1985 Earth, which led to him encountering the Cybermen once more. The Doctor and the TARDIS were commandeered by the Cybermen, and the Doctor found Lytton, a mercenary who worked for the Daleks was the one to set up the signal. On Telos, the Doctor encountered the Cryons, and discovered that the Cybermen were scheming to alter history by destroying Earth before Mondas would be destroyed, angrily realising that the Time Lords had manipulated him into doing their bidding. The Doctor and Peri aided the Cryons in overthrowing the Cybermen, but discovered that Lytton had been working for the Cryons. An attempt to save him from the cyber conversion process led to an explosive confrontation with the Cyber Controller his second incarnation had previously faced. Unable to save Lytton, the Doctor sadly mused at how badly he had misjudged his former enemy.
The Sixth Doctor would encounter his second self after he was kidnapped by the Sontarans and Androgums. After he and Peri rescued Jamie, they headed to Spain and thwarted their attempts to discover the secrets of time travel. The Doctor would also encounter Davros again after the wicked Kaled scientist set up a base of operations on the planet Necros, where he plotted to engineer a new race of Daleks loyal to him.
Afterwards, he and Peri would go on many adventures, as seen in the expanded universe, where they would grow closer. In the Doctor Who Magazine comics, while Peri was living in New York, the Doctor ended up with a private detective shapeshifter, who would call himself Frobisher, as a companion. The Doctor would be forced by the "Lord of Life", Voyager to track down the mad Renegade Time Lord Astrolabus, whom had stolen his star charts.
Trial of a Time Lord[]
The Sixth Doctor would later be forced back to Gallifrey by the Time Lord High Council and made to stand trial, where the lead prosecutor, the Valeyard, made repeated attempts to discredit the Doctor and portray his character in a negative light. During this time, the Doctor discovered that he had been separated from Peri before he could save her from the schemes of Sil and Lord Kiv, and was heartbroken to discover her death. The Doctor tried to explain he would improve in the future by showing an adventure he would have with Mel Bush on the Hyperion III, only to then be charged with genocide against the Vervoids. However, the Master later intervened in the trial and it emerged that the trial had really been orchestrated by the Time Lord High Council to cover up their destruction of Earth, and that the Valeyard was really a future incarnation of the Doctor embodying his dark side who sought to claim his past self's remaining regenerations. After defeating the Valeyard, the Doctor found that Peri had been saved.
In the audio The Marian Conspiracy, the Doctor and university lecturer Evelyn Smythe ended up having to resolve a paradox of her ancestors during the reign of Mary I. While dealing with a conspiracy, the Doctor found himself sympathising with Mary. Afterwards, Evelyn proceeded to join him as a companion, and the Doctor's gentler side began to blossom, with her proving to be an equal, not lest in verbosity. Together, they were the first to encounter The Forge, which forced him to learn true humility. During their adventures together, while dealing with unfinished business with his former companion Thomas Brewster, the Doctor met Flip Jackson for the first time.
The Doctor went into reunite with Frobisher for a few adventures and travelled with a future companion in the form of Charley Pollard. Under the alias of Claudius Dark the Doctor became reacquainted with Jago and Litefoot, eventually revealing himself and they managed to battle the Sandmen Kempston and Hardwick, with the Doctor going onto share a couple of adventures with the gentlemen. He would later travel with Flip and Constance, two women from very different times. Eventually, the Doctor also began his inevitable travels with Mel, putting up with her attempts to put him on a diet.
The Sixth Doctor would later be fatally wounded during another encounter with the Rani, resulting in his regeneration into the Seventh Doctor. As seen in The Brink of Death, due to a life long manipulation by the Valeyard, the Doctor was forced to arrange his own death to prevent his dark self gaining the power of the Time Lords.
Personality[]
The Sixth Doctor was much more brash than his previous incarnations, as well as more willing to resort to violence against his enemies. Initially, as a result of his regeneration sickness, the Doctor was also highly paranoid and prone to lashing out, though this eventually wore off. Despite being a more morally grey figure than previous Doctors, the Sixth Doctor still had a passionate desire to save others and help where he could. Indeed, he was far more openly emotional compared to his reserved predecessor, and when he found himself in error, he was quick to amend his mistakes. The Doctor had an interest in language, being fond of literature and citing (and often changing) quotations, and had a rather extravagant and theatrical manner.
Quotes[]
“ | In all my travellings throughout the universe I have battled against evil, against power-mad conspirators. I should have stayed here. The oldest civilisation, decadent, degenerate and rotten to the core. Ha! Power-mad conspirators, Daleks, Sontarans, Cybermen, they're still in the nursery compared to us. Ten million years of absolute power, that's what it takes to be really corrupt! | „ |
~ The Doctor denounces the Time Lords, The Ultimate Foe. |
“ | It doesn't matter to whom the cruelty is directed to. The cruelty itself is wrong! | „ |
~ The Doctor, The Holy Terror |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The Sixth Doctor's greyer and more anti-heroic portrayal alienated many viewers during his tenure, resulting in Doctor Who going on hiatus and not returning until over a year later with the "Trial of a Time Lord" season-long serial, which was in part made to "put the show on trial" in a meta-sense. After this failed to bring up ratings, the BBC fired Colin Baker from the role, and when Baker refused to return to film a regeneration, the BBC had Seventh Doctor actor Sylvester McCoy play the Sixth Doctor for a brief moment up until his regeneration.
- In spite of the controversy the Sixth Doctor generated during his initial run, his tenure is now looked on much more positively by fans, with it being noted that his brasher qualities softened over time and two of his serials, "Vengeance on Varos" and "Revelation of the Daleks", being highly praised. In addition, the character's appearances in Big Finish's audio dramas have also been highly acclaimed, with the Sixth Doctor even being voted "Best Audio Doctor" by fans.
- Even if he was acting pretty antagonistic towards Peri, he still liked her as companion, and he was happy to see her again in third episode of Tales of the TARDIS.
- Colin Baker actually disliked the garish out for his Doctor; having wanted a dark black outfit to reflect his darker incarnation. However, John Nathan-Turner said that he wanted bright colors to contrast the new personality of the Doctor.
- He did not wear the coat in his Tales of the TARDIS episode; instead wearing a salmon and pink suit, with a rainbows handkerchief. Which makes it a tamer and uniform update to the look.
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