The latest episode of Doctor Who Season 14 dropped onto streaming services on May 17. While the episode is undeniably mostly filler, one thing happened that has sparked discussion among eager Whovians—the Doctor’s next companion made a rather large appearance.
In the third episode of the latest season, ‘Boom’, written by Steven Moffat, the Doctor and Ruby find themselves on a wartorn planet where the Doctor runs headfirst into danger, directly onto a landmine. Cue an entire episode where he can’t move while the action comes to him. Like I said, it’s mainly filler.
Of course there are some key moments worth paying attention to, such as the fifth known re-appearance of Susan Twist, who plays the AI Ambulance in Boom, and the mysterious snow which seems to fall around Ruby at strange moments.
However, the biggest thing to come out of Boom is the fact that, ahead of her becoming the Doctor’s next Companion in season 15, Veradu Sethu made an appearance as what could be considered a main character in the episode.
I won’t go into too much detail about her role in the episode, but she plays an ordained soldier named Mundy Flynn (which was the source of a strangely timed joke about how she should marry Ruby and become “Mundy Sunday”), taking part in the war that’s currently ravaging the planet. Of course, she faces some heartbreak and tough decisions in the episode, but the question on the minds of Whovians everywhere is why is she here, and will she still be playing Mundy when she returns in season 15?
Let’s face it: this is Doctor Who, where even the Doctor himself admits that everything is possible, so Verada could come back as literally anyone else. We even have some precedent for that, given Jenna Coleman’s multiple roles before debuting as Clara proper.
However, the Doctor did openly say that he would be popping back to the planet to visit again at some point. Regardless, it was interesting to see the next companion before we have to get used to them being around for the long haul next season.
The news that Verada would play the next companion, alongside current companion Ruby, came in April 2024. The actress has previously appeared in Jurassic World Dominion and has said that it’s an ‘honour’ to be included in the cast of Doctor Who.
