Doctor Who needs to be "woke" - and there's a reason every sci-fi fan should agree

The thing is, the argument that "wokeness" has ruined Doctor Who is not only predictable, boring and lazy - it's also nonsensical. Doctor Who certainly has its problems but "wokeness" isn't one.

First off, we need a definition here to be clear on what we're talking about. The idea of being "woke" has evolved in recent years, and now has a particularly negative connotation, often used to refer to people viewed as over-sensitive about political and social issues. But, at its base level, being "woke" refers to the idea of "being aware of and attentive to important issues, especially social and racial injustice".

Looking at that definition, it's not exactly groundbreaking to argue that Doctor Who has always been "woke". It's pretty obvious, but we'll say it again for those in the back. From its very inception, the show has always depicted the Doctor fighting against tyranny and oppression, and it has always been aware of current culture. Too many of the storylines to count, both in classic and modern Doctor Who, have covered poverty, evil empires, capitalist greed and more.

It has always been progressive and inclusive for its time (lest we forget, the show was initially made by a woman ahead of her time, and initially directed by a gay man).

In fact, the criticism angled against Doctor Who has often shown why we need its inclusivity and representation so much. The sexism we saw when Jodie Whittaker was cast as the Doctor shows exactly why we needed a female Doctor. The racism which Ncuti Gatwa has faced as the first permanent Black Doctor was heartbreakingly unsurprising, proving why we needed him. The homophobic complaints against the gay kiss in Rogue (though it was far from the first same-sex kiss in the show) spoke for themselves.

As our culture progresses (or regresses, as might be the case), Doctor Who should and will always be a mirror of that. The series, as an enduring pillar in the sci-fi genre, has always, and will always be "woke", so it can reflect our society back at us - otherwise, what would be the point?

Sci-fi, after all, has a responsibility to hold a mirror up to society, to comment on it and to help us see things from a different viewpoint. The magic of sci-fi is being able to escape our lives for a little bit and be immersed in another world, another time, or another civilisation. And in doing that, we can take a look back at our own world, and our own society and culture in a new light.

And yes, that does mean your favourite sci-fi novel, TV show, film, or franchise is "woke" too. All of them cover topics from colonialism and war to gender and LGBTQ+ issues, to capitalism and corporate greed, to technology and AI. And, by definition, all of them have to have an awareness (or "wokeness", if you will) of our culture to be able to shine a light on humanity and our society. It quite literally comes with the territory.

How about iconic sci-fi novels like Dune, Left Hand of Darkness and Brave New World? Woke! Modern classic novels like Ender's Game, Lilith's Brood and Leviathan Wakes? Woke! Iconic sci-fi TV and film franchises like Star Trek and Star Wars? Woke! YA dystopia franchises like The Hunger Games and Divergence? Woke! Modern sci-fi phenomenons like Black Mirror and Severance? You guessed it - also woke!

But we don't hear other sci-fi franchises being criticised for being "woke" quite as much as we hear it about Doctor Who. As for why that is, a few reasons come to mind, but the most prominent one is that it's an easy (and lazy) excuse to jump to about an incredibly heavily scrutinised show.

"Wokeness" is an easy excuse for the times that Doctor Who is sloppily written, for when the ratings show a small drop, for when there are rumours about the Disney partnership coming to an end and more.

But when Doctor Who is sloppily written, and when the ratings show a small drop, and if the Disney deal does come to an end, it certainly won't be because Gatwa wore a skirt in one scene, or because the Doctor kissed a man, or because there was a transgender character in the show.

Because what's often condemned as Doctor Who's biggest failing is actually its biggest strength. Reflecting our culture back at us and being so progressive and inclusive is the reason the show has endured for so long - because it's spoken to millions of people across the globe and given them a place to belong.

There may well come a day in Doctor Who's future when it needs to take a break - that day has certainly come before and the world will not implode if it comes again. Last time it happened, it only ensured that the show came back stronger than ever.

But if it does happen, those expecting to see "wokeness" erased from our screens will be in for a very rude awakening indeed.

Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney Plus internationally.

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