The key to Doctor Who‘s long-running success is its skill to vary, adapt and regenerate. 13 actors have led the present over its virtually sixty-year run and many alternative producers/writers have been at its helm.
When Physician Who returned in 2005, it was Russell T Davies on the controls of the enduring TARDIS. Many memorable characters and monsters have been launched in Davies’ authentic period and lots of the tales produced throughout this time have gone on to change into fan-favorites, which is what makes the present runner’s upcoming return so thrilling.
Flip Left (Season 4)
For the primary time in New Who, the main focus is nearly totally placed on the companion in season 4’s “Flip Left.” This story explores the devastation of a potential world the place Donna by no means met The Physician and he’s lifeless.
Through the episode, Catherine Tate delivers a powerhouse efficiency that proves she’s excess of only a comedic actor; Donna goes via a large number of various feelings right here. The callbacks to different tales and mentions of previous characters present an thrilling setup for the finale that follows too. Additionally, after teasing it earlier within the season, Rose Tyler lastly returns to the forefront on this story (which is an thrilling deal with for long-time followers).
The Stolen Earth/Journey’s Finish (Season 4)
Whereas the season 4 finale wasn’t fairly the top of Davies’ period, it offers an ideal near this chapter of the present. Having the Daleks and their creator, Davros, shifting the Earth definitely brings excessive stakes however it’s the return of many previous characters that permits this episode to actually shine.
Not solely do a number of of The Physician’s previous companions present up within the story but it surely additionally serves as a crossover with spinoffs, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. Whereas the second episode does comprise some questionable plot conveniences, it’s plain that this story is big. Having so lots of the present’s characters come collectively towards the Daleks is a tantalizing payoff to 4 seasons of world-building.
Utopia (Season 3)
When Jack returns in season 3, The TARDIS travels to the top of the universe to try to shake him off. The newly fashioned trio of The Tenth Physician, Jack, and Martha encounter the terrifying Futurekind and the mysterious Professor Yana.
The episode is most memorable for that includes one of the best plot twists in Doctor Who when Professor Yana reveals a fob watch which, as soon as opened, reverts him to his former self: The Grasp. This twist, together with the return of Jack, makes this an unmissable episode of the present. Though the eventual decision within the following two episodes shouldn’t be fairly as satisfying, this installment particularly is a continuous thrill experience.
Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Lifeless (Season 4)
This season 4 story is memorable for introducing the longer term recurring companion, River Tune. Uniquely, that is really an important story to be careful of order as lots of River’s future adventures with The Physician (as seen later within the present) are talked about throughout these episodes.
The setting of the library is each stunning and atmospheric and the flesh-eating shadows are a terrifying menace. The episodes additionally give each David Tennant and Catherine Tate one other likelihood to shine, each of their scenes collectively and when they’re forcefully separated. Even when the viewers are clueless about River’s id, her dying on the finish of the story remains to be surprisingly heartbreaking.
The Woman In The Hearth (Season 2)
Within the present’s authentic run, romance was by no means a outstanding theme however this season 2 story is maybe one of the romantic. Most of the themes and concepts launched within the episode foreshadow author Steven Moffat’s future work on the present and his love for ‘timey-wimey’ tales.
The thought of The Physician assembly somebody all through their life inside one episode is an intriguing and sophisticated one. The scene when The Physician returns for Reinette solely to find she has handed away is devastating and reinforces the loneliness of the titular character. The Clockwork robots are additionally a chilling and typical Moffat creation.
Dangerous Wolf/The Parting Of The Methods (Season 1)
Whereas the stakes are undeniably excessive in The Ninth Physician’s regeneration story, it’s far more restrained and fewer bombastic than others in New Who. What begins as a tongue-in-cheek satire of British actuality tv, the episode quickly descends into an all-out battle with one among Doctor Who‘s best monsters, The Daleks.
Throughout the story, Rose is given the chance to actually show herself as a companion when she absorbs the time vortex with a view to save The Physician. The episodes additionally introduce Jack’s immortality (which turns into an enormous plot level in a while within the present and is pivotal to spin-off, Torchwood). 9’s eventual regeneration is tragic but heroic and Rose’s bewilderment is an ideal reflection of the viewers’s emotions within the scene.
The Waters Of Mars (2009 Specials)
Proper from the get-go, “The Waters of Mars” is a singular episode. Not solely is The Physician companion-less however the viewers is rapidly advised that everybody on Bowie Base One is about to die. The dying of facet characters is nothing new for the present however being advised this prematurely units the stage for the momentous resolution The Physician will make within the story.
The present had explored the thought of mounted deadlines earlier than, comparable to in “The Fires of Pompeii” when Donna begs The Physician to save lots of somebody however by no means fairly as a lot as on this particular. The horrifying water-based zombie-esque virus that’s plaguing the bottom is terrifying however the true horror of the episode comes when The Physician takes it upon himself to save lots of among the crew. A a lot darker facet to the title character is seen right here and his resolution has tragic penalties.
Midnight (Season 4)
What makes Midnight one of the scariest episodes from Doctor Who is the actual fact followers by no means see the alien menace that targets the area shuttle. As Donna does not be a part of him on this journey, The Physician is alone and way more susceptible than ever earlier than.
The thought of an unseen alien terrorizing the characters could appear creepy sufficient however it’s the lengths the people are ready to go to within the story that provides it a very chilling edge. The viewers is used to seeing The Physician take management and acquire the belief of full strangers; nonetheless, with no companion, The Physician’s tendency to take cost really works towards him and causes suspicion. The episode is easy in nature but it surely does border on psychological horror.
Human Nature/The Household Of Blood (Season 3)
This two-parter has one of many extra distinctive premises for a Physician Who story. As a way to conceal from creatures generally known as The Household of Blood, The Physician turns into human (together with his human-self solely recalling his previous life as a Time Lord via goals). Though The Physician is technically not current for a lot of the story, it nonetheless offers a powerful character examine for the Time Lord.
As John Smith, he falls in love. In a intelligent twist, when The Physician lastly returns, it’s revealed that he hasn’t been hiding from The Household as a result of he fears them however as a result of he fears what he’ll do to them in the event that they meet up with him. Regardless of being one-time villains, the performances of the actors portraying The Household are sinister and memorable and the story is cleverly plotted from begin to end (solidifying it as one among the best two-part stories from Doctor Who).
Blink (Season 3)
After season 2’s divisive Physician-lite episode “Love and Monsters,” it was a threat for the present to do that once more the next 12 months. The Physician’s absence from an episode might show a hindrance but it surely really elevates “Blink” because the viewers see what occurs in conditions when he cannot be there to assist.
Sally Sparrow is a charming one-off lead who ensures the viewers stays invested within the episode even with out the titular character. The episode can be accountable for introducing the now-iconic Weeping Angels who’re one of the threatening and efficient villains from the present and proceed to look even to at the present time. The thought of The Angels solely with the ability to transfer when they don’t seem to be noticed is a masterstroke and the episode is the proper showcase for the way the present you may nonetheless create new and progressive ideas even after a long time.
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