The One Question That's Troubled Doctor Who Fans For Years

There's one mystery that's had the very cool bow ties of the Whovians all mussed up for years. And it's not "why does the Doctor's age fluctuate so much?," or "What was the Doctor talking about when he said he was half-human in that TV movie?" or "Why, oh why, do they keep giving the Weeping Angels new superpowers?," or "Do you really expect us to believe that the Meta-Crisis Doctor from the 2006 Doctor Who Christmas Special would've been content living a quiet suburban life stuck on one planet? Because that seems insane," or whatever, either. 

No, this is about about the Face of Boe — that wise, enigmatic, supersized, Futurama-style head-in-a-jar first introduced in the 2005 episode "The End of the World." It's been hinted, if not directly alluded to, that the Face of Boe was none other than Jack Harkness, the character in the Whoniverse most likely to spend his weekends trying to figure out the Andromeda galaxy's area code, so he can call let them know that they should get themselves checked.

The fan-favorite TV series has bumped up against stating outright that Bo and Jack are one in the same, with Harkness recalling in "Last of the Timelords" (an episode containing some particularly dark TV moments) that legacy as the first member of the Time Bureau from the Boeshane Peninsula earned him the nickname "the Face of Boe." Combined with the character's speculations about what will happen to his body over a seemingly endless lifespan, it seems like Boe's identity is pretty straightforward.

Still, former showrunner Russel T. Davies has been famously skittish about nailing down a definitive answer when it comes to the Boe/Jack connection. In the DVD commentary for "Last of the Timelords," he wouldn't give a direct answer, and he stated in one interview with NJ.com that "the moment it (becomes) very true or very false, the joke dies." If that's the case, it's time to start mourning. During a Doctor Who Twitter party on May 30th, 2020, Davies tweeted about Boe, saying "So... why does Captain Jack looks (sic) like that after 5 billion years? The question is, why not? Have you seen how your ears keep growing, your nose? After FIVE BILLION YEARS, extraordinary changes must happen. And here they are!"

If you feel a rush of relief, finally having answers after all these years, you are not alone.