‘73 Yards’ finally acknowledged Doctor Who Season 14’s biggest mystery

The fourth episode of Doctor Who Season 14 just made a point of acknowledging one of the season’s biggest mysteries so far, tying back to the enigmatic Susan Twist.

Doctor Who Episode 4, aka: ‘73 Yards‘, just threw Ruby Sunday into a solo companion mission, as she’s stalked through the years by a mysterious figure who always remains 73 yards away. With the Doctor having disappeared in a single moment, this adventure reaches heightened levels of suspense and confusion.

Of course, Susan Twist is there, too. Since she’s appeared in all but one episode from Wild Blue Yonder onward, it would have been more surprising if she’d been absent. But this episode stands out from the rest, marking a very important milestone.

Ruby finally acknowledges Susan Twist’s frequent appearances when she encounters her on a cliffside, where Twist is playing a hiker. Ruby stops and asks her for help, but upon seeing her, asks: “I haven’t met you before, have I?”

Twist then replies: “I don’t think so. Have you?” To which Ruby brushes the thought off, saying: “No, that was a different…” and then promptly moving on.

It’s a small moment, ended when the Hiker walks past Ruby and towards the stalking woman, who causes her to run away screaming after whispering something unknown in her ear.

It’s a brief exchange but a big deal, as Susan Twist is the source of some of the biggest Season 14 theories so far. She’s appeared in almost every episode, playing a different background character, seemingly following the two travelers through time.

Many fans believe that she’s a major Doctor Who villain in the making, possibly even The One Who Waits. Others also believe she’s the Doctor’s granddaughter, Susan Foreman (which would be a literal Susan plot twist).

Either way, this is the first time either the Doctor or Ruby have acknowledged Twist as an ongoing presence in their universe. On the commentary for a previous episode, ‘Boom’, showrunner Russell T Davies tried to debunk claims that Twist was anything more than a recurring actor, stating that her inclusion was due to an “Equity shortage.”

However, with Ruby finally making a point of noting that she might have seen Susan before, this is all the more reason to believe that she could be playing a bigger role. Why would they draw attention to it in the script if it was merely a convenient casting choice?

There’ll be more to unpack when the new episode of Doctor Who Season 14 is out. In the meantime, find out everything there is to know about Mundy Flynn, and take a look at the ’73 Yards’ ending explained.