13th Doctor teams up with a pirate queen in Legend of the Sea Devils trailer

[Karlston]

It's the second of three specials counting down to Jodie Whittaker's exit from series.

Jodie Whittaker's time as the Thirteenth Doctor winds down with Legend of the Sea Devils, second of three Doctor Who specials in 2022.

 

We're counting down to another regeneration on Doctor Who, although exactly who will replace Jodie Whittaker to become the Fourteenth Doctor remains a tightly guarded secret. (No, it's not Tom Holland.) But the BBC this weekend dropped a teaser for Legend of the Sea Devils, one of three special episodes airing this year to mark Whittaker's final days as the Thirteenth Doctor.

 

As previously reported, the recently concluded 13th season was particularly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. (That's the 13th season since the franchise restarted in 2005, not the 13th season since the show debuted the day after the Kennedy assassination). Instead of the usual 13 episodes, S13 only planned for eight because of the pandemic. Ultimately, showrunner Chris Chibnall decided to cut the season down to just six episodes, with a complete narrative arc rather than the episodic structure that has been more typical of the series. (The decision is not unprecedented, however. The Trial of a Time Lord in 1986 was also one complete narrative.)

 

Collectively, the six-episode arc was given the subtitle Flux. In it, the Doctor and her companions encountered a universe-ending anomaly intent on killing the Doctor. The crew also faced a smorgasbord of classic Whovian alien races: the Ood, the Cybermen, the Sontarans, and the Weeping Angels. While some critics found the narrative arc confusing—almost inevitable when the Weeping Angels are involved—and the finale disappointing, it was generally a solid season.

 

Conspicuously absent from Flux were the Daleks, but that's because Chibnall was saving them for the first holiday special, Eve of the Daleks, which aired on New Year's Day. The special introduced a new kind of Dalek, the Dalek Executioners, who sought revenge on the Doctor for her actions in the S13 finale. The Doctor and her companions Yaz and Dan were caught in a time loop, thanks to a TARDIS reset (necessary to repair the TARDIS from damage incurred from the Flux). Every time the loop reset, it would shorten by one minute and was destined to collapse entirely at midnight.

 

Legend of the Sea Devils, in comparison, is a classic Doctor Who period story. In it, our heroic Time Lord encounters a famous personage from the past—in this case, a notorious pirate queen in 19th-century China named Zheng Yi Sao, aka Madame Ching. Born in 1775, historians speculate that Madame Ching may have started out as a prostitute or madame on a floating brothel.

 

Crystal Yu (center) plays 19th-century Chinese pirate queen Madame Ching.

YouTube/BBC Studios

 

Her life changed forever in 1801 when she married the notorious pirate Zheng Yi, who hailed from a long family of pirates. Madame Ching proved to be a valuable asset, using her diplomatic skills to help her husband consolidate the various pirate fleets into a loose confederation. Each fleet had its own distinctive flag color (red, black, blue, white, yellow, and purple), and Zheng Yi took command of the largest Red Flag Fleet.

 

When Zheng Yi died in November 1807 at age 42—he fell overboard during a gale, which seems an ignominious end for a pirate—Madame Ching took over the entire confederation. She had the support of Zheng Yi's nephew as well as his adopted son, Zhang Bao. ("Adopted" isn't quite accurate; the boy was abducted from his family at 15 and forced into piracy. It seems to have been a common practice.) While Bao took over his father's command of the Red Flag Fleet, he clearly wasn't the boss. Historical records indicate that Bao obeyed his stepmother's orders and "consulted her on all things before acting." The two were also romantically involved.

 

Many battles and much pillaging followed, but the mounting opposition from the Qing Chinese government, the East India Company, and the Portuguese Empire—all of whom suffered significant losses to the pirate confederation—eventually became too powerful. This occurred as the pirate confederation was showing cracks in solidarity: the leader of the Black Flag Fleet, Guo Podai, openly fought Bao in late 1808 and surrendered to Chinese authorities shortly thereafter.

 

The "Sea Devils" of the title are a sub-race of Silurians, who first appeared in a 1972 episode.

YouTube/BBC Studios

 

Madame Ching eventually decided to follow Guo Podai's example and negotiated terms of surrender for Bao and herself in April 1810. At the time, she personally commanded 24 ships and 1,433 men. Bao was given the rank of lieutenant and was permitted to maintain a private fleet of between 20 and 30 ships, and the two were granted permission to marry. Bao died in 1822 at the age of 36 while stationed in Peghu. Madame Ching lived a long and relatively peaceful life as the proprietor of a gambling house near Guangdong, dying in 1844 at the age of 68 or 69.

 

All in all, Madame Ching is a fine choice to feature in a Doctor Who special. The titular creatures of Legend of the Sea Devils are a subset of the Silurians, turtle-like humanoids who lived in Earth's oceans millions of years before humans evolved, per Whovian lore. That alone should delight long-time fans, since the Sea Devils haven't appeared since 1984's Warriors of the Deep. Adding pirates to the mix should double the fun.

 

At the end of Eve of the Daleks, the Doctor and her companions were off to hunt for the lost treasure of Flor de la Mar. That's the perfect setup to introduce a legendary pirate queen, and Dan in particular seems keen to get into the swashbuckling spirit. Apparently, Madame Ching (Crystal Yu) has unleashed a powerful force—most likely awakening the Sea Devils from their long hibernation, although we do catch a glimpse of what looks like a genuine sea monster heading straight for her ship.

 

Legend of the Sea Devils premieres on April 17, 2022. Chibnall will step down as showrunner at the same time Whittaker concludes her run as the Doctor, presumably in the third special episode, which is traditionally when the Doctor regenerates into a new form. That third special will coincide with the BBC's centenary. Russell T. Davies—who revived the series in 2005 with Christopher Eccleston as the Ninth Doctor—will return as showrunner for the next season.

 

Listing image by YouTube/BBC Studios

 

 

13th Doctor teams up with a pirate queen in Legend of the Sea Devils trailer