Summary
Warning: Spoilers for Doctor Who: The Fifteenth Doctor #1!
Doctor Who’snotoriousCybermen take their creepiest form in franchise history in the Fifteenth Doctor’s latest comic book adventure. The Cybermen have notoriously been one of the more unsettling creatures of The Doctor’s rogues gallery.The horror of the Cybermenis truly unmatched, even as they continue to evolve intonew, epic forms over time– and now they’ve truly reached the apex of their potential for terror.
Doctor Who: The Fifteenth Doctor#1 – written by Dan Watters, with art by Kelsey Ramsay –reveals that at the turn of the 29th century, the Cybermen get far more twisted and distorted than they ever have before, as they appear in a horrifying, zombified form.
While there is still much to learn about this version of the Cybermen, enough has been hinted at to get a sense as to what the potentially final form of the Cybermen implies about their future.
Doctor Who’s New Big Bad Is Already the Franchise’s Most Nightmarish Villain
The Doctor has faced some terrifying monsters in their day, and now they find themselves face to face with perhaps the scariest one yet.
As The Doctor points out, these Cybermen “look even worse” than they traditionally do. Each Cyberman model is barely hanging on by a thread as their wiring circuits are exposed.
Going into this issue, the Doctorand Ruby Sunday set out to go to the 29th century to find the origins of a time-displaced Cyber-Gauntlet, which they happen to stumble upon. In the 29th century, a series of solar storms caused by solar flares causes enough holes in the ionosphere that it makes the Earth nearly unlivable. Consequently, the bulk of humanity evacuates the planet in favor of others, while others take solace in the last shopping center on the planet. Despite finding the Gauntlet in the 18th century,the Doctor learns it originatedin this 29th century mall.
Their investigation takes them to the lower-levels of the mall’s basement, where they find a lost little girl, but also a horde of Cybermen. As The Doctor points out, theseCybermen “look even worse” than they traditionally do.Each Cyberman model is barely hanging on by a thread as their wiring circuits are exposed and dragging across the floors; still, these Cybermen appear as crafty as ever before, as a zombified, waltzing stalker of a Cyberman is still able to catch up to Ruby Sunday, while the rest shoot at the heroes.
It’s unclear what could have happened, or will happen, to the Cybermen in the future to warrant such a drastic appearance in the 29th century.
The Zombie Cybermen Of The Future Are A Big Mystery For The Doctor Who Universe
An Intriguing Start To The Fifteenth Doctor’s Tenure
It’s unclear what could have happened, or will happen, to the Cybermen in the future to warrant such a drastic appearance in the 29th century. Maybe it is the result of this era’s solar storms that have plagued the planet. Maybe it’s a case of natural wear and tear. Then again, one has to wonder if the mysterious sommelier who appears just before the chaos breaks out, and knows a suspicious amount of knowledge regarding Ruby’s dreams, could be the blame. Only time will tell,asDoctor Who: The Fifteenth Doctorcontinues to unravel the adventuresofthe next great Doctor.
Doctor Who
Cast
Doctor Who: Released on June 16, 2025, this series follows the Doctor and their companion as they journey across time and space, encountering a range of extraordinary friends and adversaries, expanding the universe of the long-running British science fiction series.
