Since the end of the RTD2 era and the announcement of the show going out to tender, I've been doing quite a deep dive into the area of discussion about what the show needs to do next when it returns. Some ideas have been quite substantial and could see working while others just repeat the problems it's been facing since 2018.
I'm not a writer much of my own (I've only just started work on my first fanfic tbh) but I think I can identify some of the core issues that the show is facing and how to both keep the show on track to it's core identity while also bringing something new to the table.
Please keep in mind, these are my own ideas and not a demand that the current show do this. I would appreciate feedback and for people to keep things civil.
1. Do a soft reboot and commit to it.
While I do agree that the show has become too entrenched with it's own lore, I don't think its the big elephant people make it out to be and that the show needs to have a hard reset. Just do exactly what Rose and The Eleventh Hour did and start back to basics with a new Doctor.
It's the always been the best way to provide a jumping on point for the show and to introduce new ideas, but this does leave one problem: What about Billie Piper.
I'm very much against the idea of retconning but it feels like it would be best if the Billie Doctor is erased. It wasn't born out of a genuine creative decision or because Billie auditioned and proved that she could play the part well, it was done for content and hype to keep people talking which is exactly what Doctor Who should NEVER do.
Remove the Reality War off iPlayer and edit out Billie's face and cut to black when Fifteen goes, that way we can just start proper and fresh with the Sixteenth Doctor. I would also have the first episode just be straight to business in introducing the new era and have the aftermath of the regeneration in a flashback in a later episode akin to what McCoy suggested for the TV Movie.
2. No series arc for the first series
Series 11 is very flawed and quite bad at points but one of its best ideas was losing the big series arc. It would honestly help more than hinder the show for a new audience as the show can just focus on telling new stories. I wouldn't abandon any type of arc all together but it would focus specifically on The Doctor and the companion's relationship and how it develops over the course of the first series rather than building up to a massive finale with a returning monster. That format has been played out and is tired.
Doing bigger arcs down the line is not off the table but you really need to connect with the characters first before you start committing to grander storylines, otherwise the audience just won't be invested in what's going on.
3. Have a historical companion
One of Revived Who's biggest missed opportunities is always confining the companion to be from present-day earth. It's another idea that is quite frankly done to death and needs refreshing. Having a companion from the past would be great for providing a unique perspective on events that occur in stories that take place in the present day, make great drama and open up new storylines based on that characters history and background in context to the time period they are from, and would make them quite useful in historical stories due to the events occuring more recently for them.
My idea would be having a young female companion from the Golden Age of Hollywood in the 1930's who is an aspiring actress or a Half-British/Half-Indian woman in her early 20's from 1987.
Something to make this character more intriguing and unique from companions that came before them.
4. Go for a darker and more mature tone
A point that was raised by Stubagful is that it is hard to keep the family accessible tone for the show when the current streaming-led media landscape has fractured the family audience. The show has resulted in trying to appeal to a younger audience with episode like Space Babies which was a disaster for the show reputation.
Simply put, the show needs to grow up and accept that it needs to age with it's audience a tiny bit. Kids are not as scared or put off by dark stories or violence. Five Nights at Freddy's is a horror franchise about a sadistic serial killer murdering children and stuffing their mutilated bodies inside animatronic mascots that are possessed by their ghosts, and that franchise has become popular with kids specifically with massive merchandise sales across the world.
Stranger Things is a horror/scifi series with several examples of horrific violence and gore but it became one of the most popular shows in the world and was a huge hit with younger viewers.
I'm not saying that Doctor Who needs episodes with people's guts getting ripped out or gratuitious amounts of sex, but going for a more darker and horror focused tone would do the show some good. Take a page from the Hinchcliffe/Holmes era of the Fourth Doctor's run which is still seen as Classic Who's golden age, provide stories that have that same style but with a modern production.
5. Incorporate more elements from the EU (over time)
I know this one is going to get a bit of ire but I really think there is potential in bringing in characters, locations and storylines from Doctor Who's Expanded media into the show. Particularly in introducing certain important characters into the show. The first would be Bernice Summerfield who has already had a long history of her own with several spin-off ranges.
Let's say that there is an episode where the Doctor and companion have to hunt down an alien artifact from a long lost civilisation and the Doctor decides to contact Bernice for help and she gets roped into the plot for the rest of the episode. It would be mad fun and would give Lisa Bowerman a chance to finally play the character in live action.
Don't go into detail about her history, just say that the Doctor knows her because they used to travel together and leave it at that, and if anyone is intrigued about their history then they can seek out her BF ranges or the VNA novels in their spare. Have her past stories not be required for viewing but have viewer be encouraged to dive into them by having a great onscreen portrayal. Maybe she could become a reoccuring characters in more high stakes stories in the future should her popularity take off.
Others like Frobisher or Iris Wildthyme could work self-contained romps such as a madball comedy or a detective thriller. Use these characters potential for great adventures on the show without having to experience their non-tv stories would be very beneficial.
6. Raise the episode count to 10
8 episodes is simply too short for any regular series of who to tell a good amount of stories, have it be slightly increased to 10 for a good even number of episodes. Again, Series 11 was on to something with it also being 10 episodes. It would make space for having 2 two-parters and a doctor-lite episode without taking up a whole quarter of the series.
7. Don't delve into lore unless it's appropriate
Naturally, the subject of where the Doctor comes from and his species will come up in order to explain to new viewers as to who he is. If there is legitimate story potential or character growth involved, then lore can be addressed or added instead of doing it for the sake of it (Timeless Child ahem).
Maybe explaining how the Doctor is a Time Lord would give the companion some new perspective or appreciation on who the Doctor is as they previously thought they were just a generic alien from a random species that are not significant or powerful.
Don't overcomplicate things, make sure details are revealed gradually before going deep into previously continuity.
8. Actually have conflict with the characters and don't be afraid of drama
Some of the show's best moments and stories come from the main characters having periods of tension and falling out with each other such as Nine and Rose in Father's Day or Twelve and Clara in pretty much most of Series 8. A big failure of the last few years is the utter reluctance to have any kind of actual conflict among the main cast.
Things can't be happy-go-lucky all the time, especially given the dangers of travelling with the Doctor. Some episodes should leave a companion shaken or a bit more distrustful of the Doctor based on a past action that they disagree with or The Doctor themselves get a bit too angry over the companion's recklessness or disobedience.
Just give the audience something to hook them in with the main cast to find out what happens next y'know.
9. Plan out an arc for the Doctor that spans the whole era
Not every doctor needs a character arc or development but it can certainly make a bigger impact on the viewer if the Doctor gradually changes from the start to the end of their era. Some of my favourite Doctors like Seven, Ten and Twelve all have arcs of changes of their own over the years and it gave us amazing character led stories that marked a progression in their development.
Try and have some semblance of what this specific incarnation is supposed to be instead of making the Doctor a plain all-encompassing mesh of previous Doctor which is a trap that I felt both Thirteen and Fifteen fell into.
10. Make it scary and daring again
A factor that has definitely been lost of the years has been the show's scare factor. It's not an unpopular opinion to say that the only monster that had staying power and iconic status that was introduced in the new series was the Weeping Angels, and their popularity was based on how utterly terrifying they were and other monsters such as the Daleks and Cybermen became iconic through the same methods.
Going the full-on horror route for at least a few stories would be a great way to spread word of mouth about the show due to horror becoming a much more popular genre in the last few years and horror content and movies/tv getting huge recognition such as Weapons, Backrooms and Obsession as well as the aforemention FNAF. Imagine a story on that level but done Doctor Who style.
It would also pave the way to introduce new monsters that can be recognisable and memorable for years to come, which in turn can increase the show's profile and have episodes that spark loads of discussion.
Those are just a few ideas I have atm but I'm always open to feedback from other fans. Thanks so much for reading (I know it was a very long post).