We recently did a feature for Lorcana Week asking who we at TheGamer most wanted to see get a card from across Disney’s evergrowing catalogue of IP–my answer was Jules Winnfield from Pulp Fiction because I’m a prick, to which Tabletop Editor Joe Parlock DM’d me, “You’re a nightmare I swear to god”.
Fair, but I have an even more asinine pick that’ll take a few loopholes to jump through, but one that I think would really bring Lorcana together—The 8th Doctor
Back in the ‘80s, Doctor Who had nearly been cancelled twice, leading to 6th Doctor actor Colin Baker’s firing, the possibility of bringing 2nd Doctor actor Patrick Troughton back, and, eventually, an American soft reboot where 7th Doctor Sylvester McCoy regenerated into 8th Doctor Paul McGann. This American reboot started with a TV movie that was planned to lead into its own series, attempting to expand the show’s audience beyond little ol’ Britain, but it was a critical failure and all plans were scrapped. However, it’s now a cult favourite among fans, and McGann has won hearts across the nation with his audio dramas—he’s probably my favourite Doctor, and I’m not alone in that.
The problem is that the TV movie is a contentious cauldron of messy rights. Doctor Who is owned by the BBC, but the American film was co-produced by Universal Television and broadcast on Fox. That’s why you don’t see many characters from it pop up in Big Finish audio dramas unless they’re pre-existing Doctor Who staples like the namesake Doctor and his arch-nemesis The Master. But now Disney owns Fox and has worldwide distribution rights to the newest series with 15th Doctor Ncuti Gatwa. It doesn’t own the show or even fully own the movie, but it’s undeniable that Doctor Who and Disney are tied together.
This offers a unique opportunity. We’re seeing Magic: The Gathering jump headfirst into a Doctor Who crossover later this year. And while Wizards of the Coast has already confirmed no content from the movie will be in those cards (with the 8th Doctor being his appearance from Night of the Doctor), it’s clear that the BBC wants to expand the show’s reach and tap into new audiences wherever it can.
Its own forays into the world of gaming have averaged from mediocre to awful, but licensing the show out for others to use has the potential to actually work. Just look at Lego Dimensions. The next step in that push is to take a spot on Lorcana’s stage, joining the Disney classics, and who better to be the first Doctor Who character than the 8th? Disney is the American media juggernaut, now representing Doctor Who overseas, and the Doctor who most sums up that American expansion is the 8th.
In an ideal world, we’d go back to basics and have the 8th Doctor from the TV movie, given it’s his most iconic look. That seems more likely with Disney now owning Fox, but there’s still the Universal elephant in the room—will it play ball? If Hulk is anything to go by (distribution rights being why we haven’t had a standalone Hulk movie since 2008), I’m probably getting my hopes up far too much. Especially since not even Pixar is in Lorcana, but ignore that.
In a still-not-realistic-but-slightly-more-realistic-world-than-that, we have the newer 8th Doctor appearances. Unfortunately, MTG wasn’t allowed to use anything from the film, which isn’t too surprising given how messy the rights are. Disney might find it easier given that it now owns Fox and therefore has a slice of the pie, but even then, I know it’s a pipe dream. Instead, we have a couple of other options.
As part of the 50th Anniversary, the 8th Doctor popped up in a mini-episode called Night of the Doctor, finally giving Paul McGann his regeneration scene. But to avoid clashing with MTG, there’s always his appearance as a Guardian of the Edge in the BBC Centenary special from last year, The Power of The Doctor. I’d rather his suave Edwardian look of the TV movie got a card, but if we can get the 8th Doctor in Lorcana, who cares what version it is?