Continuing our look at old school Time Lords and Ladies we probably won’t see again, let’s take a look at a villainous Time Lady who faced off against the Sixth Doctor.
The Rani
First appearing in The Mark of the Rani, she was another renegade Time Lord with evil intent. Her aims were not simply to amuse herself or even to gain power; she had scientific curiosity and an obsession with biology and chemistry. Her research takes precedence over all and she will sacrifice the lives of hundreds if she has to and not even blink.
In The Mark of the Rani she was attempting to use the miners of a small town to distill from them the neurochemicals that enable sleep. This is to create a workforce that does not sleep and will work without stopping. She has a gift for chemistry and the Master respects her talents, even if he insists on meddling, which ultimately leads to the downfall of the both of them.
When she next appeared in Time and the Rani, she was attempting to use the minds of a collection of brilliant scientists from across time and space to create a time manipulator, which would allow her to control time itself anywhere in the universe, at the expense of all life on the planet Lakertya, where she is operating from.
Having also appeared twice on television, it might be supposed she is another candidate for recurring villain. Indeed, in recent times Big Finish have cast Siobhan Redmond to play the Rani in audio adventures. These adventures have seen the Rani’s back story expand, seen her villainous plans grow ever more ambitious, and have exposed us to a Time Lord villain who is very different to the Master.
But why won’t she be coming back to Doctor Who on television any time soon?
While she may make a comeback eventually I don’t foresee it being soon because much of the focus at the moment with regards to the Doctor and his relationship with Gallifrey is very personal. The Rani was most certainly not interested in the Doctor as a person. She perhaps respected his mental abilities, but generally gave him very little thought. From a dramatic standpoint it would be a bit of a break from what we’ve been building for the past decade or so to leap into a story about an enemy who couldn’t care less about the Doctor, despite their past.
If she did make a comeback, I would be terrified, to tell the truth, that she would end up in a romantic entanglement, possibly with the Doctor. You know what Moffat is like.
Check out the article on the Meddling Monk.
