Warning: spoilers ahead for Doctor Who season 14, episode 4, “73 Yards.”
Summary
Ruby’s alternate path doesn’t completely make sense thanks toDoctor Whoseason 14’s time skip between episodes 1 and 2. From releasing on Disney+ to a bulbous sonic screwdriver, everything is new inDoctor Whoseason 14, and that includes the character dynamic between Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor and Millie Gibson’s Ruby Sunday. Taking place immediately after 2023’s Christmas special, the premiere, “Space Babies,” depicted the duo going through the tentative feeling-out phase that all new companions experience when they first meet the Doctor.
During the following episode, however, Ruby stated June or July 2024 as her present-day, tacitly confirming a six-month gap between episodes, during which Fifteen and Ruby had, presumably, traveled together on undocumented adventures and grown closer as friends. InDoctor Whoseason 14, episode 4, “73 Yards,“the Doctor mysteriously disappearsafter breaking a fairy circle, abandoning Ruby for the next 65 years. As hard-hitting as the episode may be,Doctor Whoseason 14’s time jumpmeans Ruby’s reaction to the Doctor vanishing doesn’t quite add up.
Doctor Who Season 14 Cast & Character Guide: Who Appears In Each Episode
Doctor Who season 14 is Ncuti Gatwa’s first full outing as the Doctor, and he is joined by an exciting cast of newcomers and familiar faces.
Ruby Claims She Hasn’t Been With The Doctor Long In “73 Yards” - But She Has
Ruby Sells Her Relationship With The Doctor Short
When not engaging in political activism and a disappointing dating life, Ruby makes several comments pertaining to her relationship with the Doctor after the Time Lord disappears without a trace. The first quote comes shortly before Ruby leaves Wales without the Doctor. Standing in front of an empty TARDIS, she utters, “I haven’t even known you that long anyway.” Ruby reiterates this point when talking with Kate Lethbridge-Stewart later in the episode, claiming, “I was hardly with him, really.” These remarks make Ruby Sunday seem like a fleeting addition tothe Doctor’s list of companions- like Katarina, or Adam Mitchell.
Because of the time skip between episodes 1 and 2, however,Ruby has been traveling with the Doctor for six or seven months at the very least - likely longer, since it’s highly improbable that “The Devil’s Chord,” “Boom,” and “73 Yards” all happen within a week or two. To travel with anyone - Time Lord or otherwise - for more than six months and then make comments like “I haven’t even known you that long” and “I was hardly with him” doesn’t exactly ring true.
Ruby’s “73 Yards” Story Makes No Sense For The Doctor & Ruby’s Relationship
The Doctor & Ruby Aren’t As Close In “73 Yards”
Beyond simply contradicting Ruby’s dialogue,Doctor Whoseason 14’s time skip creates a bigger issue for “73 Yards.” After first meeting in “The Church on Ruby Road,” Ruby and the Doctor were still figuring each other out during “Space Babies,” but their connection switched in “The Devil’s Chord.” Throughout their adventures in 1960s London, the Doctor and Ruby were visibly closer - as much as any platonic Doctor and companion have been before.
If Amy Pond, Sarah Jane Smith, or Donna Noble were in Ruby’s shoes duringDoctor Who’s “73 Yards,” they would not rest until the Doctor was saved.
Their friendship blossomed further in “Boom,” with Ruby even ignoring the Doctor’s pleas and risking her life to save him from a landmine. After sharing so much together, endangering their lives for each other, and becoming firm friends, the Doctor’s relationship with Ruby takes a big step back in “73 Yards.“The companion speaks of her time in the TARDIS like a vacation, and the Doctor like some big enigma she never truly got to know.
Making matters worse, Ruby puts no real effort into helping the Doctor after his disappearance, focusing squarely on the old woman instead. It’s perfectly understandable that Ruby would make it her priority to banish the creepy figure haunting her 24/7, but if Amy Pond, Sarah Jane Smith, or Donna Noble were in Ruby’s shoes duringDoctor Who’s “73 Yards,” they would not rest until the Doctor was saved.
“Space Babies” and “The Devil’s Chord”
“Empire of Death”
June 21
Doctor Who
Doctor Who: Released on August 12, 2025, this series follows the Doctor and their companion as they journey across time and space, encountering a range of extraordinary friends and adversaries, expanding the universe of the long-running British science fiction series.
