Today, season finales of science fiction shows are almost always epic. From massive space fleets in various Star Trek season finales, to the big blow-outs in season finales in Foundation, even the most subtle sci-fi shows like to go big at the end. And, in the 21st century, one show that set the standard for massive and epic season finales is the one show that didn’t actually need to go big at all.
Twenty years ago, on June 18, 2005, after a massive cliffhanger called “Bad Wolf,” Doctor Who dropped the finale of its rebooted “Season 1” in an epic episode called “The Parting of the Ways.” This finale channels aspects of Aliens, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and, of course, throws the entire classic Who canon kitchen sink in the mix, too. It’s also aged particularly well, and feels harder-edged and more serious than many of the equally beloved Who finales that followed it. Here’s why “The Parting of the Ways” holds up 20 years later, and also why it was such a tough act to follow.
