AI Predicts Doctor Who’s 60th Plotlines: Wild Blue Yonder
Feature article by Albert Connors.
AI is a hot topic this year, and gifted with this incredibly powerful tool, I decided to conduct some vital research into things that will actually benefit humankind. Before that though, I was curious about what our future overlords would make of Doctor Who’s 60th-anniversary specials, so I set to work.
Specifically, I asked the AI to predict what will happen with the plots of each of the three specials. Of course, AI needs some prompting before it gets on with the task, but I tried to keep the info to a minimum. I told it only a few essentials: the titles of the specials, that the 14th Doctor and Donna would feature as Doctor and companion, respectively, and who the villains were (if known).
In a series of articles, I will be revealing what the AI came up with. Of course, these storylines are entirely fictitious, so you don’t have to worry about it actually being spoiled. Or do you? Maybe the AI knows more than it’s letting on. Maybe it hacked into Russell T Davies’ laptop in between, secretly plotting the demise of the human race. We won’t know until later this year… Anyway, let’s begin. Allons-y!
In part one, we looked at the first special, “The Star Beast”. Now we will look at the second special, “Wild Blue Yonder”…
“Wild Blue Yonder” – The Complete Plot (According to AI)
The 14th Doctor and his companion Donna Noble find themselves thrust into a new adventure when the TARDIS is drawn to a mysterious signal. The signal is coming from the “Edge of Creation,” a previously uncharted region of time and space that even the Doctor has never ventured into.
Upon their arrival, they are shocked to discover the shattered remnants of Gallifrey, previously thought to have been completely destroyed by the Master. The signal they’ve been following is actually a distress call, echoing from the ruins of the Time Lord’s home planet.
The distress call is revealed to be from a group of Time Lords who managed to escape the Master’s destruction by hiding in a pocket universe. This group of survivors, led by an old friend of the Doctor’s, Romana, have been trapped in this pocket universe due to a temporal lock put in place to protect them from the Master.
The Doctor and Donna face a difficult task. They need to navigate the ruins of Gallifrey, filled with the Master’s traps and temporal anomalies, to find a way to unlock the temporal lock. Along the way, they encounter echoes of Gallifrey’s past, including Time Lord ghosts stuck in time loops and the ruins of the once-magnificent Citadel.
Facing both physical and emotional trials, the Doctor and Donna eventually manage to unlock the temporal lock, but not without making a grave sacrifice. Romana and the other Time Lords return to the main universe, but the Doctor is stuck in the pocket universe, seemingly lost forever.
In a final twist, Donna, with the aid of the returned Time Lords, manages to pull the Doctor back from the pocket universe, saving him from an eternity of isolation. In the end, they manage to bring a semblance of the Doctor’s home back, giving him a glimmer of hope for Gallifrey’s future.
Despite the victory, the Doctor is reminded of the Master’s destructive actions and the price that has been paid. As they leave the ruins of Gallifrey behind, they carry with them the hope and the determination to prevent such a catastrophe from happening again.
What is the “Edge of Creation”
In the 2nd cryptic teaser trailer, we hear a mysterious character say, “This is the Edge of Creation”. I asked the AI to explain what it thinks that is. Here’s what it came up with:
The “Edge of Creation” refers to the boundary or limit of the known universe, where time and space as we understand them start to break down or behave differently. It’s a place that even Time Lords, with their advanced technology and understanding of temporal mechanics, find challenging to comprehend or navigate.
It could be a region where the laws of physics, time, and reality are unstable or radically different. It’s an area of the universe that has not been fully explored or understood, making it a place full of potential dangers as well as wonders.
The term “Edge of Creation” itself suggests a boundary or frontier, beyond which the mechanisms that govern the creation and functioning of the universe might be observable or might operate differently. It could refer to the edge of the known universe, the edge of time (the beginning or the end of time), or even the edge of reality (where our universe might intersect with other dimensions or universes).
In the context of this story, the “Edge of Creation” is where the remnants of Gallifrey are found, hidden away in a pocket universe, and it symbolizes a place of beginnings and endings – the end of Gallifrey as it was known, and perhaps the beginning of its rebirth. It’s a location that challenges the Doctor and Donna in new and unexpected ways, pushing them to their limits and forcing them to confront the consequences of the Master’s actions.
Thoughts on the AI’s story
Unlike the first special, which we have a lot more info on (and a comic strip to boot), the AI had to speculate a lot more this time. We know almost next to nothing about this special, so the chances of it being accurate are far slimmer. The only clues we have are from a few vague clips and lines from the teaser trailers. Still, it came up with a pretty compelling story given the limited knowledge.
I’d be surprised if RTD went this deep into a lore-heavy story in the second special. RTD generally likes to wait a while before he does stories like this, as a more casual audience may be put off and find themselves lost by characters like Romana reappearing. I also question if RTD bring the Master back again so soon after we last saw him. The AI’s story could still work without the Master though.
They are keeping this story very secret, and that usually suggests some important lore-heavy elements, so this could go either way. A story like this may also be required to re-establish that Gallifrey is still out there and offer a bit of a reset after Chibnall’s divisive and canon-altering finale, “The Timeless Children”. RTD may want that groundwork to be done before the 15th Doctor’s era so that era can start more “fresh”.
Can AI script some dialogue from just four lines?
I thought it would be interesting to ask the AI to incorporate the four lines of dialogue we know from the special from the previously released trailers. Those being Donna exclaiming, “Oh my god! Where are we?” and the Doctor saying, “I’m sorry, Donna.” A mysterious voice stating,“This is the Edge of Creation” and the Doctor adding, “She mentioned Gallifrey”.
Let’s see how the AI did:
INT. TARDIS – DAY
The TARDIS shudders and groans as it materializes. The DOCTOR and DONNA NOBLE step out into an alien landscape.
EXT. EDGE OF CREATION – DAY
DONNA gazes around at the strange, nebulous formations swirling in the sky.
DONNA: Oh my god. Where are we?
DOCTOR, looking around cautiously:
DOCTOR: A place I never thought we’d see, Donna. The very limits of everything.
A MYSTERIOUS VOICE echoes through the surreal landscape.
MYSTERIOUS VOICE: This is the Edge of Creation.
DONNA, startled:
DONNA: What was that, Doctor?
DOCTOR, squinting into the distance:
DOCTOR: I’m not sure, Donna. But it seems we’re not alone here.
They continue on, coming upon the shattered remnants of familiar structures. The DOCTOR picks up a piece of rubble, the emblem of Gallifrey still visible on its surface.
DOCTOR, softly:
DOCTOR: She mentioned Gallifrey.
DONNA, confused:
DONNA: Who did?
DOCTOR, gripping the piece of rubble:
DOCTOR: Romana. She left a message in the TARDIS. I didn’t understand until now.
DONNA looks worried. She turns to the DOCTOR.
DONNA: Doctor, what does this mean?
DOCTOR, looking at DONNA sadly:
DOCTOR: I’m sorry, Donna. It means we’ve found the last remnants of my home. And we’ve got a lot of work to do.
FADE OUT.
Verdict
As with part one, overall I was impressed with what the AI came up with. Actually, even more so than the first part, mainly because there is so little to go on in the first place. The AI had to be a lot more creative here in all respects.
Well, that’s it for part two, join me again next time when we’ll look at the third and final special, The Giggle. We have a little more story to go on, so it should be interesting!
