The Dr Who sonic screwdriver is a little bit of a mystery and we will probably never know all that there is to know about it. But with a little look into the Dr Who history we can put together the information to discover quite a bit about the Dr Who sonic screwdriver.
Where does the Dr Who Sonic Screwdriver come from?
Back in the nineteen eighties the Dr Who sonic screwdriver is destroyed by the Terileptil and the writer, Eric Saward, originally wrote an extra scene at the end of the episode where the TARDIS provided the Doctor with a replacement. John Nathan-Turner scrapped this scene as he wanted to get rid of the sonic screwdriver because he thought that the writers were getting too dependent on it as a solution to any situation. The Doctor does however get a replacement when his is destroyed during the episode “Smith and Jones”.
What can the Dr Who sonic screwdriver do?
There seems to be no end of uses for the sonic screwdriver, but maybe it is more defined by what it cannot do. We are told that the sonic screwdriver cannot kill, wound or maim. For those of you who are now thinking of all the instances when the sonic screwdriver was used to beat an evil force, you need to think carefully. In these situations the sonic screwdriver is used to create a weapon from something else, or to enable or disable equipment essential to a life form.
Does anyone else have a sonic screwdriver?
The Doctors assistance Romana builds a sonic screwdriver. The Doctor likes this so much that he actually tries to switch his with hers! The Doctor gives Sarah Jane Smith a sonic lipstick, which seems to be a feminine version of his own. The Doctor also give River Song a sonic screwdriver, but as we learn at the end of the episode, this was because he know what would happen and he gave her this to deal specifically with an incident in her future.
We know from the jokes made by the likes of Captain Jack Harkness that a sonic screwdriver is not a tool held by most time travelers. However, despite Captain Jacks jokes, he carries a sonic blaster which does seem to have some similar properties. We also discover, on the return of the Master, that he has a laser screwdriver. The Masters laser screwdriver has almost nothing in common with the Dr Who sonic screwdriver. The laser screwdriver is specifically designed to kill and maim, exactly what the Doctors does not do. He also uses his laser screwdriver to age the Doctor. The laser screwdriver is certainly not designed with helping or saving in mind.
So is the Dr Who Sonic screwdriver indispensable?
Certainly not! Any Dr Who fan will tell you that the Doctor is resourceful and intelligent and he could not possibly be dependent on any one piece of equipment!