Before I start this list, I have to say something. This was immensely difficult to write. Doctor Who is one of my favorite shows of all time, even at it's silliest and most badly written, I still have a stubborn love for it. Sure, when it's bad... It's really bad. But when good, it's fantastic. I realize that many dislike the new interpretation of the show, old fans saying it's "trying to hard" or "overly dramatic", but I have to say that I enjoy the complicated plot lines, and the drama between characters. It makes me feel like people are taking the show seriously. In fact, my main dislikes in the series are when it forgets it's budget and tries it's hand at a special effect that looks terrible, or spouts some cringy dialog. And yes, I have to say I am not a big fan of Steven Moffat being show-runner. Sherlock is wonderfully done and perhaps he should just focus on that and write the occasional episode on Doctor Who. Anyway, I'm rambling. So, to celebrate the last 10 years of rebooted Who, lets count down the top ten greatest episodes of the last ten years shall we?
10.Dalek
While it's special effects have dated noticeably, the story of this episode still holds up brilliantly. During the first season of the the reboot's run, the ninth Doctor and his companion Rose travel to the near future into a collection of alien artifacts owned by an eccentric rich American. One of the artifacts turns out to be a damaged Dalek, presumably the last of it's kind. The brilliance of this episode was the way it intrigued new viewers and made the older ones look at it with fond yet frightened nostalgia. The Daleks were the Doctor's greatest enemy, and after discovering one is still alive, he gets fairly angry. The acting is what really makes the episode, namely by Christopher Eccleston, who left the series far too soon. You see the madness grow within him as the thing he hates most in the world tells him "You would be a good Dalek.". It's eerie, sad, and the end is surprisingly heart-warming.
9. Turn Left
If I were to say one thing about this episode, it would be that it has one of the greatest endings in Doctor Who history. I remember watching it and being so amazed by this practically Doctor-less episode, that was so entertaining, only to be greeted with an ending that left me open mouthed and begging for more (insert "that's what she said" joke here). The episode also introduces the two greatest Doctor Who companions of the past ten years to each other. Rose was the first companion we were introduced to in the new show, so she became many people's first and favorite, only to return as a total BA, while Donna was played by the brilliant Catherine Tate, who gives us a headstrong, witty and tough companion that everyone loved. The episode poses the question "What if Donna never met the Doctor?" without existing outside of the canon. It creates an alternate time-line in which the Doctor dies, and the earth is pretty much plunged into mayhem. It's dark and extremely entertaining.
8. School Reunion
This picture actually makes me a little teary. Another meeting of companions, the late great Elisabeth Sladen reprises her role as Sarah Jane Smith, a Journalist who traveled with The Fourth Doctor in the original show, and meets The Tenth Doctor and his companion Rose. It also re-introduces fan-favourite K-9 (A robot dog) and a group of winged beasts lead by Anthony Head. As in Giles from Buffy The Vampire Slayer.
(Closest thing we ever got to a crossover)
The episode has some nice emotional moments, as well as a funny scene where the two companions compare the monsters they've thought. The episode even earned the character a five season children's show spin-off, which ended when Sladen unfortunately lost her life to cancer.
7. Blink
(I hope you weren't planning to sleep tonight)
While many dislike Steven Moffat's choices with the iconic show, this is an undeniably brilliant episode. It's also an undeniably brilliant science fiction story. Seriously, a non fan of Doctor Who could watch this episode and still follow it easily. It's fairly doctor-less (bar a video and a scene at the end) but it introduced one of his most iconic villains of the modern age. The weeping angels. They move super fast but only when you're not looking, and they're arguably the creepiest monsters to ever feature on the show. Definitely worth a watch.
6. The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances
(Certainly no sleep for you tonight.)
Once again, we have one of the creepiest monsters of Doctor Who's modern era. We also have the introduction of everyone's favorite sexually ambiguous time agent, Jack Harkness.
This guy is one of the greatest Doctor Who characters ever conceived. He's tough, he's cool, and fairly forward thinking. Also, probably the only main American character on the show. The episode(s) are set during world war 2, with the Doctor up against an army of empty children. Who all wear gas masks and creepily ask "Are you my mummy?" it's a chilling episode but with a surprisingly heartwarming ending.
5. The Angels take Manhattan
When Matt Smith was first announced as the Doctor, I'm ashamed to admit I was one of the people who doubted him. Coming off the back of David Tennant, he certainly had a challenge ahead. But hell, he did brilliantly, as well as his companions Amy and Rory. So when Matt went through the heartbreak he did in this episode, we all felt it too. Sure, a scene or two are pretty silly, but the acting, the shots and the monsters save it easily. The ending brings it up to my number five spot.
4. The Day of The Doctor
Not the first time this premise has been done, but it certainly doesn't feel tired. The Day of The Doctor brings three Doctors together (and Rose technically... I guess?) for the second last adventure of Matt Smith. It was a fiftieth anniversary special that received a limited cinematic release and critical praise. While not featuring the greatest monster or villains, the interactions between the three Doctors (especially Tennant and Smith) are hysterically brilliant. The introduction of John Hurt as the War Doctor is wonderful, it ties up two or three plot points that had been a mystery for years, and, an unexpected cameo may make all the adult whovians in the room a little teary.
(Don't cry...)
3. The Girl in The Fireplace
Lets just say two and three are tied shall we? I really can't decide on which is better. The Girl in the Fireplace is everything an episode of Doctor Who should be. Funny, frightening, odd and sad. When the Doctor finds the French 18th century on a space ship, he befriends Madame De Pompodour, the future (or past?) queen of France. Through a series of time windows, he becomes what she assumes is her imaginary friend. She grows up while he doesn't age a day and eventually they fall in love. The romance and character growth in the episode are so strong that the villains should feel like an afterthought, but they don't! They're frightening and weird clockwork Robots, who need to find "the right parts".
2. Army of Ghosts/Doomsday
No one really saw this coming, because it had never been done before. The Doctor had to face the Daleks, and the Cybermen in one episode. All while they quarreled between each other. Everyone knew that the Army of Ghosts were Cybermen, but Fanboys and girls went insane when the Daleks emerged from the sphere at the end of the first part. The ending also sees the departure of beloved companion Rose, with a memorably emotional goodbye on the beach on a parallel world.
(I can't figure out if I should laugh or cry.)
So, before I give away my number one choice, I thought I would give a few honorable mentions.
HM 1. Planet of The Ood
When first encountered, the Ood were slaves to the Devil, and fairly terrifying monsters. Now... They're slaves to us. The episode does a good job at making the Ood sympathetic, while still displaying them as aliens not to cross.
HM 2. Asylum of The Daleks
Why don't we take the most hateful beings in the galaxy, and top their personality of with a little insanity. Then we can fill a planet with them, and drop the Doctor and his companions in the middle. Oh, also, theres a fairly dark twist. Tell me you're not intrigued.
HM 3. Lets Kill Hitler
Surprisingly enough, this oddly titled episode is more about the past of the Doctor's wife, who is the daughter of his two Companions, who went to school with their daughter, who learned about the Doctor from them. Who married her. Yeah. Timey Wimey. It's an awesome Matt Smith adventure though, that I can't help but recommend.
HM 4. Utopia/The Sound Of the Drums/Last of The Time Lords
Jack is Back, and so is a certain time lord. I don't want to spoil it, but it's an epic trilogy of episodes which ties into Jack Harkness' spin off Torchwood.
*Drumroll*
1. Human Nature/Family of Blood
The Doctor, running from a family of aliens, disguises himself as a human school teacher in 1913, with Martha a Maid at the school. The Doctor, really wanting to disguise himself, hides his memories and re-writes his DNA so he is actually Human. He remembers nothing of his adventures, and only Martha knows the truth. The Doctor falls for the school nurse and is plunged into an uncomfortable dilemma. Be happy, or save the world? The episode is suspenseful and creepy, with David Tennant and his accompanying actors giving a wonderful performance. It's brilliant, and the pinnacle of the new series. Also, the ending is incredibly dark.
So, that was my list. What do you think? What are your top ten episodes? Leave a comment below.
-CapedCruVader