Doctor Who fans are divided over number of Season 15 episodes

The episode count for Doctor Who Season 15 has been revealed, and fans aren’t too sure what to think about it.

As Doctor Who Season 14 has continued to grow (with only two episodes remaining), fans are already looking ahead to Season 15. Some new Doctor Who episodes have garnered more praise than others, but there seems to be one common wish among viewers: that there could have been more.

Their complaints revolved around the fact that eight episodes doesn’t seem like enough time to settle into the new Doctor and his companion, Ruby Sunday. And with so many of the new episodes — such as ’73 Yards’ and ‘Dot and Bubble’ — lacking time with the duo together, it’s a fair assessment.

But, thanks to the season’s Wikipedia listing and previous statements from the showrunner Russell T Davies, it appears as though Season 15 will also have just eight episodes, plus a Christmas special.

This has caused fans to reflect on whether this is a smart move or another mistake. Many aren’t happy with the decision at all, reaffirming that they think the new season was hurt by the shorter run.

“Honestly disappointing they’re sticking with the 8 episode format,” said one Reddit user. “My biggest complaint about the new season is that the relationship between The Doctor and Ruby feels very underdeveloped, more episodes would have helped this I’m sure.”

Another added: “I’ve just really grown to hate how rushed doctor who has felt ever since 2012. At this point I’d like to see them go back to the serialized format of classic Who, when proper stories could be told without feeling like we’re only getting the highlights of something.”

“Dammit,” complained a third. “I mean quality over quantity for sure, but it gets to a point where you don’t have enough episodes for things to breathe. That hasn’t been the case so far this season, and I’m enjoying it, so hopefully they’ll keep the momentum. Just slightly sad that it can’t be at least 10 plus a Christmas special.”

However, others were more forgiving. Those on the side of eight episodes have pointed out that they’d rather have consistency than quantity, and acknowledge just how difficult it can be to produce huge numbers of episodes, especially for a show of this scale.

“We’re getting 8 episodes plus a festive special every year under Russell T Davies,” one comment said. “It’s an easier workload to manage, especially with the audience expectations of higher quality, both in writing and in post-production.”

“I’d be happier with 8 episodes every year as opposed to anything where I have to wait up to 3 years for more,” added one user.

One wrote: “I see people take issue with only getting eight, but this must be placed in context. 12 or 13 was never sustainable and damn near killed Davies and Moffat. Both speak about that at length. For a British drama series in 2024, eight episodes per season is already very high. We’re being spoiled here. Context is key.”

Now that audiences are more familiar with Ncuti Gatwa’s version of the Time Lord, hopefully an eight-episode arc won’t feel as lacking.

We’ll be sure to keep you updated on Doctor Who Season 15. In the meantime, take a look at all the Doctor Who Season 14 villains, as well as all the biggest Season 14 theories.