WTF - no Girl In The Fireplace in your Best Of list?

As for worst, either of Helen Raynor's travesties should be there at the top (Daleks in Manhattan/Evolution of the Daleks & the Sontaren Strategem/Poison Sky - both ridiculously average stories that drag over two episodes when they could easily have been tightened into 45 minutes. What a waste)

I absolutely hated everything about Donna Noble. I just wanted to stuff a stinky, sweaty gym sock in her mouth everytime she opened it to keep from hearing the utter stupidity that spewed forth episode after episode.

Hey! I liked Donna. She wasn't my favorite companion (that was Martha) but she was pretty decent. And what happened to Forest of the Dead? That was a excellent episode. And so was Midnight.

Also, I hated the way the writers treated Martha on the show. She just seemed like a replacement for Rose and the Doctor treated her that way. Handled differently she could've been the best.

I thought that Love & Monsters would have been #1 worst. The Doctor leaving that girl (Ursula?) as a body-less face melted into a slab of concrete giving BJs for the rest of eternity seemed a bit out of character for the Time Lord.

Just wanted to raise the issue that for me, although the winner (loser?) of your worst episode award was indeed truly awful in all of the religious connotations and the 'telepathic mumbo-jumbo' that you describe it surely wins points for John Simms awesome depiction of The Master? Creepy, sadistic and just a little unhinged!

For any of you that did think he was probably the best thing in this (these) episodes you will be pleased to know he is back for Tennant's last outings as the Dr at Christmas. Along with Timothy Dalton (James Bond) oddly...

I have to agree, Girl in the Fireplace was a great one...

I liked Donna, and I hated the end of "Journey's End" because it took her entire season of character development and flushed it down the toilet.

But then, I never saw what was so great about Rose, so what do I know.

I have to make a comment here. I have NO IDEA why people liked Rose Tyler. I hate hate HATED that character since she was introduced. she was a whiney little whimp who somehow managed to make a romantic angle with the doctor as interesting as some of your Adult-fanfic horrors. Almost no one in the series, both old and new, generated as much distaste as she did (Colin Baker's stint as the doctor, Turlough, and the math kid whose name escapes me this moment are the only ones I can think of who were worse).

Her replacement, Martha, really kicked ass, and didn't get the credit she deserved (Coupled with a horribly written romantic crush on the Doctor as well. ugh). Now Donna I liked in most of the episodes (Fires of Pomeii I agree, was an awful episode that made her look like a real bitch). But other episodes really warmed me up to the character, as she acted like a real person, offsetting the nearly Manic acting from Tennent's Doctor at times.

That said, I couldn't be happier that they FINALLY got rid of Rose from the storylines in the future, PERMENANTLY. (Can you tell I hated her THAT much?). Also I felt Donna's exit from the series was well timed and well done.

- Polecat

I have to say that I liked Donna more than Rose, if only because Donna underwent character development from her debut through to her last episode (to date anyway).

Rose on the other hand was introduced as being "perfect" and her personality didn't really change through the entire length of her stay, while EVERYBODY praised how awesome she was.

I think that the Journey's End storyline was good, EXCEPT for that flipping ending. Yes, I understand that they had to have a reset button. But RTD relied to much on a Deus Ex Machina to stop whatever enemy shown up in the finale.

Literally pulling a lever to get rid of the Daleks and Cybermen in season two, and Rose just showing up with God-like powers in Season one for example.

If they had something other than MagicalJesus Doctor it'd been great, but that kind of let the entire season-long story down.

In 'the best and worst Doctor Who top 5's', these lists are going on first place on the 'worst Doctor Who top 5's' list.
Praising that annoying Doctor-groupy Martha and complaining about the Master?
The brilliant 'Fires of Pompeii' episode in the worst list and that terrible 'Journey's end' in the best list?
I should have stopped reading at 'the insufferable Donna Noble'.
Disasterously bad lists.

Love and Monsters was dreadful and Girl in the Fireplace deserved to be in the top five.

I guess it's not really a full Doctor episode, but I really liked Blink.

Agree with putting Girl in the Fireplace and Forest of the Dead in top five over Gridlock.

I agree with Deadpan (and others) while 'Blink' is a tremendous episode it is also a Doctor-lite episode so I think I agree with everyone else that 'Girl in the Fireplace' might make it on the list in stead.

And John Simms saves the otherwise horrendous 'last of the time lords'

Just to add my two cents, I think that Blink is indeed one of the better episodes and I'm hoping for Sally's eventual return. I would have thought that the episode where the Doctor reunites with Sarah Jane would have been on the Best list. That one really packed an emotional punch and was an all-around fun episode.

As for the companions: Martha is my favorite. Not only did she leave him of her own volition, but she actually developed and outgrew him (her desperate crush on his was just silly). Rose I could take or leave. I don't understand the overwhelming love people had for her, but there was nothing I actually disliked about her either. Donna was just the pits. She wasn't cute, she wasn't funny, and she wasn't interesting. Three strikes and you're out.

Doc

"Love and Monsters" has to be one of the worst Tennant episodes imo. One thing I'm really hoping for when Moffat takes over is to actually have doctor who seasons that have a story arc, and not just a flimsy thread that holds half of the episodes together and the other half are just garbage throwaway episodes, like love and monsters and fear her.

Evolution of the Daleks/Daleks in Manhattan deserves to hit the worst list as well. if for nothing else but for being the most disappointing.

Daleks? In New York? Pig Men? The Doctor? Where do i sign?!?

then its an idiot in a zoot suit with a dalek face... it was soooo stupid. stupid.

Blink is your #1 episode? Don't get me wrong, it's a good episode but the best? I agree with other commenters who have stated that Girl in the Fireplace should be on the list.

Another vote for "Girl in the fireplace" which is a fantastic episode.

"Why is there a horse on a spaceship?"

"Micky! Have some perspective, what's pre revolutionary France doing on a Spaceship!"

And how's about a vote for worst episode being "the Doctor's Daughter". An insanely stupid concept, made worse by having both Donna Noble, and Martha Jones involved. Freema Agyeman cannot act, and her crying after the brave fishheaded man is killed is now my yardstick for "least convincing acting ever preformed by someone who's not a talking horse".

good list no doubt it was hard to make. given all the episodes that could have made it. and glad to see blink ranked high on the good list even number one though would have had had journeys end there since the doctor reunited with all his allies. as for the bad list. in the pompeia episode the doctor explained he could not interfere for it was set in time can change and glad to see the last time lord number on for that was a waste of the master and the doctors riverly

John Simm was a brilliant Master, so despite the dumb ending, I thought that "The Last of the Timelords" had some really interesting moments. I definitely rank both "Partners in Crime" and "Fear Her" lower than it.

Also, I know Donna's not popular around here, but "Turn Left" had some truly chilling moments (the implied Holocaust for example) that really put it up there for me, and like everyone else definitely "The Girl in the Fireplace" as well. And honestly, despite establishing how awesome the 10th Doctor is, I'd have knocked off "The Christmas Invasion" for either of those (I'd put it at about 10 on my list). And where's "School Reunion"?

And I know it's a mini-episode, but why no love for the greatest onscreen Doctor Who moment ever, "Timecrash"? For me that's second only to Richard Morris's fancomic "The Ten Doctors" in terms of awesome Doctor Who stories.

A lot of people are asking why Rose is so special, and the way I see it is that she's the one who made the Doctor feel hopeful and love life again after seemingly having to sacrifice his people in a last-ditch (failed) attempt to remove the scourge of the Daleks once and for all. It's not that she was particularly amazing as a person, it's that she just happened to come along at the right time in his long, long, life. Sorta like how Ian and Barbara happened to accidentally make him care about humans and end up sacrificing his happiness for his granddaughter Susan's, Rose happened to bring back his love of life. That's my two cents anyway, but I don't blame you if you ignore it after my dickishness this weekend.

As a final note, am I the only one here who felt let down by Donna Noble's shitty fate? I mean, she goes from a total bitch to a genuinely caring and somewhat likable (if still brash) character, then loses all of it and goes back to her shallow ways just because of a cruel twist of fate...

Oh, and seriously, fart noises would've made "Fear Her" better for you? I guess you happened to be one of the people who LOVED the Slitheen, then (worst Doctor Who race ever, in my opinion).

The David Tennant Guide to Acting.

1. Shout.
2. If you can't shout, look blank.

Three miscast Doctors on the trot. Better luck when the Fugly Child minces off...

Journey's End is in the wrong list. That and the S3 finale were the perfect examples of why RTD should not be allowed to write finales.

And I agree, Girl in the Fireplace was one of the best, right up there with Blink.

Blink may be the best Doctor Who episode ever. It may be one of the greatest pieces of television ever recorded.

I never understood the hatred for Love and Monsters. It was a fun one off episode. I agree with Blink being number one. GREAT episode. I would have also put Girl in the Fireplace in before Gridlock though.

Sensaes,

Casanova. Go find it. Go watch it. Then record it onto VHS and cram it up your ass.

The top five best list could easily have been comprised of Moffat penned episodes had half of them not been two parters. His were easily the freshest, most original episodes of the last four years. I look forward to seeing what he does as show runner. While I give RTD all the credit in the world for bringing back Who, and I recognize his love and passion for the show, by the end of season four, his arcs were feeling repetitive, and I've never really thought the "Sci-fi" aspect of his writing was very strong. I'm also hoping for a return appearance of Sally Sparrow and Lawrence Nightingale, she was spunky and he could actually be quite clever when he wasn't being terrified. I also like the idea of more than just one person traveling with The Doctor. it really adds to the dynamic of the show.

@Greg. Ah, cheers for the reminder, since that's where point three really began.

3. If shouting or looking blank don't work, grin inanely.

I was just talking to a friend yesterday about "The Family of Blood" the end of that two parter still ends shivers down my spine! The Doctor was so badass.

Of course "Blink," was number one, just a brillaint episode. Everything worked perfectly. And I totally rock the tshirt!

Still haven't sat down and watched the Donna episodes. Loved Rose and even warmed up to Martha, but saying Donna is annoying is putting it lightly.

Yeah, gotta agree, where the hell is Girl in the Fireplace?

Donna sucked, Jones was awesome, Tyler was average, really, but damn cute blonde average.

From the sound of it, I'm glad I missed Love and Monsters.

If I recall, The Family of Blood was great when I watched it on TV, until after doling out some righteous revenge on the bad guys for not leaving him alone... the episode seemed to lose all the dramatic momentum it had built for the next 15 minutes until the credits arrived.

I disliked Katherine Tate. I got turned off watching, and when talking to friends I mentioned that Little Britain's Vicky Pollard would have made an equally appropriate (and grating) companion. However having caught Turn Left, I did begin to appreciate her more. Although I was happy to see her go, Donna Noble's fate at the end of the last season was pretty tragic.

Love & Monsters also deserves mention. Any episode that seems just like an opportunity to include concrete fellatio in the end gag shouldn't be filmed.

Well, to toss out my own opinions, in no particular order.

Rose - far from perfect and by no means a Mary Sue. Marked a nice step back to the tradition of taking ordinary people and exposing them to the wonders of the universe through The Doctor.

Martha - worst companion in New Who, by simple virtue of Informed Ability. We're told that she's a brilliant doctor but she rarely uses her talents for anything past first aid and The Doctor is surely better equipped to handle anything the universe can throw at her. Additionally, for all the flack the Rose/Doctor romance got, I found Martha's unrequited mooning to be far more annoying. Funny how it's the "older, more mature" medical doctor who acts more like a whinny teenager than the actual teenage companions.

Donna - yes, she was annoying. That was the bloody point! Donna was the ultimate challenge - to take a character who has no business being in a Doctor Who story and making her work long-term as she changes into a better person. That was the most brilliant part of the end of Season 4 - the tragedy that this woman who saved the universe had to change back to her old horrible self. And that she knew what was going to happen and begged The Doctor to just let her die.

Gridlock? The Christmas Invasion? What are these doing in the Top 5 when wonderful episodes like Girl in The Fireplace, The Impossible Planet/Satan Pit, Doomsday and Midnight (no Donna, thank Christ) have been excluded? And don't even get me started on Journey's End.... The only thing that saved that so-laughable-it-couldn't-even-be-a-fanfic mess was Julian Bleach's super creepy Davros.

"As for worst, either of Helen Raynor's travesties should be there at the top (Daleks in Manhattan/Evolution of the Daleks & the Sontaren Strategem/Poison Sky - both ridiculously average stories that drag over two episodes when they could easily have been tightened into 45 minutes. What a waste)"

Quoted for truth.

Also, what does everyone think was the best episode of Christopher Ecclestone's run? Dalek was awesome, IMO.

Hee Hee.. finally got around to watching "The Next Doctor" thanks to this list.. wasn't bad, I thought.

Better than things constantly farting and eating. :D

I agree with everyone else here: GIRL IN THE FIREPLACE should be top 5, top 3 perhaps? Such a great episode. Maybe you didn't want to give Moffat too much love? Also, how about the eerie Forest of the Dead maybe?

Why not just do the worst seeing as the show sucks through and through?

Put me down for Love & Monsters as the worst... although I wasn't too thrilled with Turn Left, either.

My wife and I watched Blink while she was pregnant and it scared her so bad she almost went into labor. To this day, all I have to do now is say "Angel Statutes" and she starts screaming.

You're right that Journey's End is the most mediocre fanfic ever put to screen... so why nominate that? At least School Reunion has a great bad guy and a bit of actual dramatic weight in all the Doctor / Sarah Jane scenes, and Time Crash has David Tennant basically descending into the most awesome nerdgasm ever while he worships at the feet of Peter Davison. Both are far better episodes, with the added benefit of not having to deal with Rose's Mom / Donna / Gwen and Ianto / etc. Journey's end merely showed just how much dead weight has been kicking around. But I'm sure the six-year-olds loved it.

Also, failure for not mentioning Utopia, which has the hands-down best cliffhanger in Doctor Who history.

Oh, wait, no... I didn't catch that "Fear Her" wasn't the awful epsisode from that stretch (Season Two really went out with a whimper after the awesome start)... you forgot "Love and Monsters", aka "the one where a human transformed into a paving stone performs oral sex on his ugly girlfriend." That shit would even be laughed out of a Torchwood story meeting, yet it somehow made it to screen on the main show.

Oh, come now. How could "Love and Monsters" NOT have made this list? The last scene alone should put it on here. I couldn't stand this episode, as anyone who reads this: http://wilybadger.wordpress.com/2009/08/18/the-worst-of-doctor-who-love-and-monsters/ might gather.

(nothing like a legit chance to pimp my blog) ;)

Oh, and since I forgot - yup, Helen Raynor's the worst writer they've got on the show by a mile and a half. She's responsible for two seasons flying off the rails - it was only by the grace of god that Season Three got salvaged (having a tried-and-tested idea in Human Nature helped a ton, followed by Blink and Utopia), but Season Four, which wasn't strong to begin with, just kept sinking and even Moffat couldn't save the damn thing (I never liked the second half of that two-parter - I thought it was the worst of his episodes).

Davies' biggest problem is that he takes a lot of his plotting cues from Joss Whedon. Which is fine, but there's plenty of better writers to be borrowing material from if you're going that route.

Wow, your lists are surprisingly bad. WHOSE RESPONSIBLE THIS?

You hit the nail on the head with Blink, but then you missed some good stuff. Also, Gridlock should be on the worst 5, not the top. RTD has written very few successful stories, and Gridlock is not one of them.

Generally Doctor Who is judged by stories, not episodes. I don't think it is right to break up a two parter.

Here's my list:

5 Human Nature / The Family of Blood
4 Midnight
3 The Girl In the Fireplace
2 The Impossible Planet / Satan Pit
1 Blink

Fanboy alternates for top 5 = School Reunion and maybe Time Crash

I'm not even going to make a worst five, but I know for sure Daleks in Manhattan / Evolution of the Daleks must be number one on the worst list. Anything else for #1 is pure fail. Yes, it should be ranked as crappier than Love and Monsters.

I cannot wait for Steven Moffatt to take the reigns. It is sad he will not have an extended chance to develop Tennant's Doctor.

Oh - apologies for the multiple posts, but I'd forgotten about this - "Fear Her" is kinda excusable, as that was the replacement for the nigh-mythical episode slated to be written by Stephen Fry. They slapped it together at the last minute, and it's actually based far more on Davies' idea than on what Graham brought to the table (a man who has discovered how to drain things of their beauty, leaving his planet sterile and grey).

I'm surprised no one has gotten my name yet, but anyway, I'd have to disagree with a few on the worst list. But hey any Doctor Who articles on here especially any lists has to rock in my book. ^_^

For Eccleston, The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances is my favorite, although Dalek is a very, very close second place.

"insufferable Donna Noble"?
Catherine Tate is an amazing actress and Donna Noble (in my opinion) is the best of the newer companions.
Also, I liked quite a lot of the episodes in your "worst" list.
I just don't agree with your list today.

Seriously, y'all? The The Girl In the Fireplace makes me want to hurt people every time I watch it. It has *no* place on the best list. But I do agree that The Impossible Planet/Satan Pit should've been somewhere up there. Terrific, terrific episodes and utterly terrifying.

And what's with all the Donna Noble hatin'? She was so much fun. There was never the threat of her going all googly-eyed over the Doctor, or confessing her undying love to him. She was a perfect foil.

Blink was awesome and really deserves the number one spot here (ironic considering the lack of the Doctor).

Best news is that I've heard that the Weeping Angels may be making an appearance in the next series, which is more than enough to make up for Matt Smith (I wanted Alan Davies :(

1: If you're ripping on Colin Baker, you've never heard the Audio Adventures.

2:One has to realize that there are 2 RTD's; One who can pull out 'Midnight', 'the Parting of the Ways' ect. and there's the other RTD, who writes.. well, they're up above. You have no way to tell which RTD is writing which episode.

I did not initially care for The Girl In The Fireplace when it first aired. I thought it was out of character for the Doctor to fall in love so easily, especially since there was a strong (yet contrived) subplot regarding the tension between he and Rose. However, upon additional viewings, I find this episode to be one of the best examples of true time travel used in the history of Doctor Who.

RTD laid the groundwork but is a pop culture guy. Doctor Who is first and foremost a sci-fi show and Steven Moffatt gets it.

The master episodes were awesome... too bad the ending was so horrible.
I have to admit I HATED the Blink episode. It felt cheap and pointless.

Lastly... The best thing about the Master episodes was the fact it was the only season finale with out the Daleks.

"Lastly... The best thing about the Master episodes was the fact it was the only season finale with out the Daleks."

A-FUCKING-MEN.

The Daleks are another one of those "UK vs rest of the world" things - they're viewed as far more integral to the show in the UK than they are anywhere else, because most fans outside the UK caught onto the show when they weren't being used all that much (4th / 5th era - three Dalek stories in ten years).

On the other hand, Davies has said in Confidential that he thinks the show should be re-titled "Doctor Who and the Daleks", which isn't surprising since the man doesn't have a subtle bone in his body and doesn't understand when he's overexposed / overplayed something (EG going back to the well with Martha having a crush on the doctor, as mentioned above).

I'm not sure what is most scary about Last of the Timelords - The Master dancing to Scissor Sisters or the Doctor being turned into Gollum. The episode would have been vastly improved if Martha's very annoying mother had been bumped off anyway.

wow...
first off i must say that most of you are off your damn rocker!!!
what the fuck do all of you see in Rose Tyler?! now granted that at first, she was just an ordanary gal who was shown the wonders of time and space and that was fine, but around the end of season 1 and all of season 2, she became a Mary-sue of EPIC proportions, and i'm glad they FINALLY got rid of her! and yes, Martha's problem was that she was a "replacement" Black Rose, but she did come in on her own as a character kinda. wish they had her do more "doctor-like things besides first aid, but whatever. that, and she decided to leave and stop that stupid crush on The Doctor. her acting was so-so on most episodes, but she wasn't that bad. and as for Donna, she was win! yes, she was a bitch in those few episodes especially in Runaway Bride, but i was more convinced in her character than all of the others. i had enjoyed her progression throughout the series while being with the Doctor. he actually made her into a better person! though she was a bit dumb, she was just in for the excitement and adventure, not there to fuck the Doctor like everybody else was!!! that's what annoyed me the most about the newer series. why was everyone after the Doctor's nut's all of a sudden?! it just got old real quick, and i hope Moffat can put a stop to that bullshit when he does season 5.

as for top favorite episodes, mine go like this!

5.Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead
4.The Empty Child/ The Doctor Dances
3.Dalek
2.Girl in the Fireplace (minus the romance part)
1.Blink

that can really be a top 7 list, but i digress.

we all know what episodes were bad, and i personally enjoyed The Next Doctor, mostly out of sheer guilty pleasure. and let's not get me started on the Slitheen episodes! they were pointless aliens, and we all know it!!!
and yes, i hope the next season has more consistency and more nightmare fuel and less on the "OMG, I WANT TO FUCK YOU, DOCTOR!!! leave all that mess to your crappy fanfictions! and add more companions than the plucky girl!!! the older Doctor's had more than one at a time!!! come on now!!! but you can keep Captain Jack. he makes me lul!

that is all from me!

and P.S: get of Tennant for a second and give credit where credit is due, the 9th was just as good as the 10th! yes, Tennant is brilliant! maybe even better the previous Doctors, but i'll be dammed if Eccleston doesn't get any kind of love for trying to be the Doctor! he did his best, and i respect him for that.

THE END!

Girl in the Fireplace gets my vote for best.

Brilliant. Absolutely Brilliant. Go paradox yourself to oblivion Time Traveller's wife!

WHOSE RESPONSIBLE THIS??!!

"that's what annoyed me the most about the newer series. why was everyone after the Doctor's nut's all of a sudden?! "

Strictly a heterosexual male here, but have you ever taken a good look at McCoy / either Baker / Hartnell / etc.? Davison was the only prior Doc who didn't look like Quasimodo.

"the older Doctor's had more than one at a time!!!"

Which was fine when every story was a multi-part serial. One's the best option when every episode is, at most, a four-parter in the traditional format. If they had more time, it would be different (EG the recent Torchwood series, which felt like it needed an additional lead character simply to give the viewer a relief from Jack)

All these posts, and not a mention of The Unicorn and The Wasp? Agatha Christie and a giant space wasp, really?

"Gridlock" and "Journey's End?" Really? To each his own, I guess.

Great choice in "Blink" at #1, but I'm with the chorus crying out for "Midnight" to be included, as well. It's taut and smart and a great bookend to the Doctor-light Blink.

And "Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead" is top drawer and worthy of a mention.

Kudos on the "worst" choices.

Forest of The Dead. Gives Tennant some of his best acting moments in the series (pleading with River Song to tell him why she knows his real name), the "screwdriver scene" when he learns about the stasis pattern, and the epic end scene.

"which is more than enough to make up for Matt Smith (I wanted Alan Davies :("

Seconded. Why are the Doctors getting younger? :S They just want younger viewers swooning over Matt Smith's floppy Robert Pattinson haircut. And they need to stop making The Doctor a style icon.... what happened to the days when you could dress like the Doctor and not look like a freak (I speak, of course, of the Ecclestone and early Tennant years)?

I disagree with the #1 "best" choice.
To me, both "Blink" and "Love & Monsters" (and to a lesser extent "Turn Left") are the worst episodes. Why? I'm watching Doctor Who, not "the Sally Sparrow show" or the "'people investigate the Doctor' show". If the show is called Doctor Who, then I want to see Doctor Who in the show!

And, yes, I have the same grievance against other shows (such as Star Trek) when they take an entire episode to focus on one cast member. Again, the show is called Star Trek, not "Troi's adventures with the Romulans".

However, I know that these kinds of episodes were made to save money: by focusing one episode on one cast member and the next episode on another cast member, the producers don't have to pay the actors to appear in both episodes. Or something like that.

Second comment on the episodes. Personally I didn't care for "The Girl in the Fireplace". For my money's worth, #1 should've been "Forest of the Dead". "Blink" was good, but to me it felt less like a Dr. Who episode and more like a different show entirely. "Forest of the Dead" tho was an astounding piece, well paced and with an eerie feel from beginning to end. I also liked the "promised" sidekick in the one lady (name escapes me) that ended up left in the computer at the end. I really wish, before Tennant finished his run, we could have seen her as a full fledged "companion" (ignoring the romantic angle again. Seriously, why the hell do we need a romantic sub-plot with everyone?!?)

I'm on board with those who liked Donna, and a few put it better then I could have. Unlike Rose and Martha, she showed an evolution from a real harridan in the beginning to a "real person" towards the end. Enough of a change that she herself hated the thought of going back. I'll be honest that her being "reverted" and her memory wiped got to me.

- Polecat

Dear god where is the Agitha Christie episode on the worst list? I can take hokeyness, but space wasps and Agitha Christie? Really?!

My vote for the best Tennant episode is School Reunion. Sarah Jane is my all-time favorite companion. The bittersweet reunion between her and The Doctor was handled magnificently and I really liked the vaguely catty interplay between Sarah Jane and Rose, like the ex-wife meeting the new trophy wife for the first time. Poor Rose didn't stand a chance. Bonus: Mickey's realization that he is the "tin dog" of the team, and the real "tin dog" kicking demonic ass with his nose laser (How did ever manage to avoid a K-9/Dalek throwdown in "Journey's End"? Imagine the Doctor spending a century or two upgrading K-9 an anti-Dalek wild card.)

Worst episode? Gotta be "Fear Her". Was that even a Doctor Who episode? Looked more to me like the pilot episode for a spinoff with Rose doing all the heavy lifting and the Doctor popping in for a cameo at the end to light the Olympic torch. Borrrrring!

Partners in Crime and Last of the Timelords worse than Fear Her? Are you INSANE?

I've always felt "the Next Doctor" never got a fair shake.
It was really good up till the giant Cyberman showed up.
Then it all went to hell.

All the Doctors had really good shows as well as really bad ones. But it all came out in the wash. Enjoyed them all.

Anybody else wish they had made at least one episode with Donna's grandfather as the Doctor's companion?

Are you asinine? I loved Donna. Guess I just have a thing for sassy redheads though. I thought she was the perfect balance to the Doctor, the only one of the companions that had enough of her own oomph not to be overshadowed by him. And she never once thought of herself as more than a temp from Chiswick, yet she did some wonderful things. I liked Rose at first, until I had something to compare her to. Martha was great and capable, but she was always pining after the Doctor and that was lame. But Donna was just fiery. Her end was terribly sad, I thought.

And I'll agree that Girl In The Fireplace is one of the best and that Gridlock doesn't really make any sense whatsoever. I don't really care for Family of Blood either, but I can see why others may like it. One that may or may not have been mentioned that SHOULD BE one of the best is Midnight. That one is freakin' intense and marvelously portrays how sometimes the monsters are actually ourselves.

Love & Monsters worst epoisode every, who ever made this list only got one episode right, Blink.

The Infinite Quest definitely belongs in the worst 5.
Guess it's excluded as it's not an episode.

I didn't like Gridlock either. Everyone was so helpless.

Okay, I have to say I'm tremendously amused by the "X was the greatest episode / companion! No, X was the worst episode / companion!" commentary above. It's a wonder the show is as geek-popular as it is, based on the above.

That all said:

I thought "Blink" was brilliant, though I understand the concern that it's a non-Doctor episode.

I'll take three seasons of Donna Noble vs. a season of just-plain-blonde Rose Tyler or I-love-you-inexplicably-and-obsessively Martha Jones.

I never did care for "The Girl in the Fireplace." Great idea, but the Doctor falling madly in love so quickly was just goofy writing.

I thought "Gridlock" was great. Madcap adventure, gut-wrenching drama, offbeat characters, the Doctor vs. a Planet. Classic Who.

I agree the "Daleks Take Manhattan" 2-parter was ... unnecessary. As were, honestly, about 2/3 of the Dalek episodes produced.

Derek Jacobi was the best Master.

And, to be particularly blasphemous, Christopher Eccleston was a far better Doctor than David Tennant.

@Jeff:
Wait 'til around Christmastime.

I LOVED "The Next Doctor" for it's overwhelming camp, not to mention teasing that David Morrissey might be the next doctor. It's not a good Doctor Who episode per se, but it was entertaining TV.

Same goes for "Love and Monsters."

I'd put "Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel" on the best list because we see Mickey finally take a stand, get a look inside Rose's head, and have a decent villain. It also doesn't have anything horribly gimmicky about it, even with the ending, unlike many other episodes.

One thing that has bothered me are the Daleks. At the start had been destroyed along with the Time Lords, but then one was found on earth. Then a few more showed up outside the universe. A while later, they start making new Daleks out of humans, and finally a Dalek wishes upon the brightest star and brought back Davros along with billions of new Daleks. Pretty soon they'll be driving taxis and traveling door to door doing missionary work.

yes.... Girl in the Fireplace was an outstanding episode where a human was able to discuss something personal to the Doctor on an equal basis but then again so could Professor River Song in Silence in the Libary.

Yeah, "Love and Monsters" really should've been on the worst list...seriously THE absolute worst episode of Doctor Who I've ever watched...and I sat thru the 1st Doctor storyarc "The Web Planet"!

I think, however, you're being waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too harsh on Colin Baker; I thought he was absolutely fantastic--he and Patrick Troughton are my two all-time favorites. Colin Baker basically gets blamed for an era of really awful writing; and how is the writing his fault? What's even funnier is I thought he managed to salvage the worst crap ever written; nobody else would've been able to make it work, only Colin. Hell, stick Peter Davison in half those shitty scripts, and then tell me how much it's Colin's fault that the storyarcs weren't that great. At least he absolutely shined in The Two Doctors, and Vengeance on Varos.

Colin Baker did get some shitty scripts, but I don't think he really brought anything to the character until his second chance with the audio dramas.

Also, I am a huge fan of Peter Davison's run, but I always thought he got the short stick with writing as well, or more specifically, production. Let me clarify. He had some really good stories and enemies. Although I am not a John Nathan Turner hater as some are, the TARDIS always seemed too cramped during the 5th Doctor's run. He usually had too many companions in general, and most of them were very whiny. He spent all of his time either protecting his crew or dealing with their bad decisions and he very rarely got to shine like he did in the Cave Of Androzani. Could you imagine the possibilities with just Doctor #5 and Nyssa taking on the Sontarans in a brains vs brawn matchup?

I am also one of the few that prefer Ecclecson to Tennant, although I enjoy the both. I've noticed a pattern for Ecclecson fans. We seem to be Americans that caught the new series from the beginning. It seems that Ameircans whom caught on late or the Brits in general seem to gravitate towards Tennant. Does anyone else agree with this observation?

"Anybody else wish they had made at least one episode with Donna's grandfather as the Doctor's companion?"

It's your lucky day, Jeff. Tennant's last story will feature Bernard 'The Crib' Cribbins as the companion. Which I think is balls, but each to his own.

"I LOVED "The Next Doctor" for it's overwhelming camp, not to mention teasing that David Morrissey might be the next doctor. It's not a good Doctor Who episode per se, but it was entertaining TV.

Same goes for "Love and Monsters."

I'd put "Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel" on the best list because we see Mickey finally take a stand, get a look inside Rose's head, and have a decent villain. It also doesn't have anything horribly gimmicky about it, even with the ending, unlike many other episodes."

SQUEAL You're not Russel T Davies by any chance, are you?

"It seems that Ameircans whom caught on late or the Brits in general seem to gravitate towards Tennant."

Well, I liked Eccelson just fine, but since Davison's always been my favourite Doctor the fact that Tennant's version is about 90% his interpretation of Davision, he wins out with me. Both have had really good turns - it's just that Tennant's era has had a much wider range of episode quality, from the absolutely brilliant to the unfathomably terrible. Eccelson never really had a standout episode (Dalek was probably his best), but he never had a really bad one either (aside from the Slitheen bullshit).

Sorry...I really liked Donna. Martha was my least favorite, but mostly because of what was done with her. She mooned over the Doctor while he mooned for Rose. Really got tired of that. I loved the scary, take-charge military Martha, though. I hope she ends up as a regular on Torchwood.

You're right...those episodes did suck, but I'll take a "bad" David Tennant Dr. Who episode over just about anything else on TV. I'll miss him.

I agree with Zadek. Why no Girl in the Fireplace?!?! Totally betrayed his character and his love for rose.... stupid madam de pompaduer..... or however you spell that. Much as I love Steven Moffat's writing, I hate that episode. Most of the Worst list I agree with. Fear Her wasnt that bad. And The Next Doctor was AWESOME. I wish Morrisey was the next doctor for real... not this Matt Smith... he's too young dammit! Over 30 pleaaaaase! I like my men older anyways, with him, I can't letch on the doctor anymore. I wudda letched on Morrisey more than happily... he rocked Blackpool. (19 btw, and I still dont want a young Doctor...)

Oh, and what the fudge is Journeys End doing on the best list?! Hell no..... Total betrayl.. and the split Doctors was a major copout. They shouldn't have bothered with that at all. I would have been happier with Rose Doctor-less than with a half Doctor half Catherine Tate... *shudder* And dont get me wrong, I warmed to her during the series, was sad she had to have her memory wiped... but still. Two Doctors. Bad move.

Glad Blink is top. Brilliant ep. I must ask though, why the hell isn't Doomsday on that list of best? I mean really.... Doomsday trumps Journeys End by a long shot.
Midnight and The Shakespeare Code also deserve honorable mentions for being awesome. Midnight is just brill.

"Love and Monsters" was a Blue Peter contest winner story, from what I'd read. The monster was created by a kid, which would explain at least part of the strangeness(though not the obviously memorable nod to oral sex!)...

I adore Christopher Eccleston, and didn't think David Tennant could ever win me over. Glad to see I was wrong! It's because of Tennant that I'm even willing to try and watch Emo-boy... well, Tennant and Moffat.

I've been re-watching a BBC mini-series Moffat wrote called "Jekyll." The writing is pretty awesome, albeit feeling rushed. I'll be very happy to see what Mr. Moffat has in store.

Dave, I thought I was the only one who called it "Daleks Take Manhattan!" Gotta love the mind-flayers knockoff, though...

Oh, and I LOVE Catherine Tate. Donna Noble was a great companion!

OK, I'm taking my life into my hands but I had problems with BLINK. I thought it wonderful in so many ways (great characterizations, great aliens and really wonderful writing by the great Steve Moffat) but two things ruined it for me: First and least important - who threw the flowerpot (or whatever) in the first scene? Didn't the weeping angels sneak up on you and steal time? For just this once they THREW something? Come on. Second: They should have cut the scene at the bank - if the angels could really move fast enough to get from across the street to the bank in one blink then the scene in the house at the end just didn't work because they could move much faster than they did. It took me completely out of the story by breaking believability. My favorites were (in no particular order) GIRL IN THE FIREPLACE, SILENCE IN THE LIBRARY/FOREST OF THE DEAD and HUMAN NATURE/THE FAMILY OF BLOOD. Cut the one scene at the bank in BLINK and it would be in the top as well.

Russel T Davis has written some occasionally watchable episodes, but the truly appallingly awful ones he's also written and the stuff he comes out with in interviews make it pretty clear its entirely by accident. The guy has no clue what he's doing.

I don't want to pre-judge the new baby doctor but I do think the one thing all doctors need is authority and I don't see that happening. Now that Steven Moffat is taking over he should give Jack Davenport a call, I reckon he'd be an awesome doctor.

I loved Donna Noble. I keep hoping that beings from across the universe will visit her on her deathbed to thank her.

Rose was a slut. I found it rewarding when she was forced to watch the others interact without her. I wished Mickey could have relished her pain.

Here's the thing, yeah they did leave some of the best episodes out (Midnight, Girl In The fireplace, and even though it isn't an actual episode, the Time Crash special was amazing... But what really bothers me are the bad ones they left out... (Tooth And Claw, 42, the Lazarus Experiment, Turn Left)... And As for Companions, Rose and Donna were the only ones I've liked, Martha and the temporary Sarah Jane are whiny bitches pining after the doctor... Rose wasn't that smart, but she made up her lack of intelligence with imagination and could come up with things that the Doctor's analytical mind couldn't see. And Donna, however bitchy she may be, was always noticing things the Doctor missed because of his "Holier Than Thou" mindset. Not that he doesn't have a good reason for acting that way, but still, you saw what would've happened without Donna. The Doc died a hell of a lot earlier... The companion I wanna see come back though is Prof River Song how about you guys..?

he is the best and he rocks

david tenent

I agree with most of you best and worst ratings, but I'm pretty sure you put "Gridlock" in the wrong list.
Very, very far from being RTD's best work, this unsuccessfully camp outing had only a couple of redeeming features; keeping it slightly above the woeful depths of "Fear Her".
When watching it, I have to reimind myself that this is the same writer who penned the magnificent "Midnight", lest I remove him from the Christmas card list.

Donna was by FAR the most retarded stupid bitch I have ever seen in ANY Doctor Who episode EVER. There where so many moments where I would have just screamed at her “SHUT YOU FUCKING MOUTH, STAY HERE, ANY FUCKING DIE, YOU STUPID PIECE OF SHIT”. If I was the Doctor, I would have let her die right there in that volcano in her first episode! Kicking her into the fire, and still kicking her while she’s burning. That stupid screaming bitch! She can be lucky she’s not real. Because if, then I’d make absolutely sure that she’d stop being real! ^^

I think Donna would like to push *you* into that volcano, BAReFOOt, for all that you've said about her just there :\ Seriously, her being lucky she isn't real... you're the one who should count yourself lucky that she hasn't just read all of that hateful shit you've said about her.

Donna = awesome. End of story :)

'Doomsday' and 'The Christmas Invasion' are definatly some of Tennant and RTD's best work. I thought 'Tooth and Claw' and 'Love and Monsters' were probably some of the worst episodes during Tennant's reign.

By very very veeeeeeeeeeerrry far, I believe journey of the damned was much much worse than fires of Pompeii, partners in crime and Fear her.
Seriously. Nicole Kidman? No.

what teh fark, why is voyage of the damned not included in the worst?

First and foremost one MUST remember what the target audience is for this program. It's supposed to be "family" or "young humans", but in reality the avg viewer is a 25 year old male or thereabouts. Knowing that is who they are writing for, everything becomes clear. Billy Piper is a really cute, very likeable young blond human. Show me a 25 year old male human who would turn her away from his door. Her soul mate/best friend/young innocent minded girl role who was taken in by the 903 year old man who has always been around young women as companions as well as others, and who is the ultimate older father figure to admire, and be admired rightously and you've got the perfect romance without having to show the intimacy. Children and young teens wanted to be Rose. They could be rose. 25 year old men would marry Rose. Older men would either drool over Rose, or be so flattered she loved them truly, they'd be thunder struck. Women could not be jealous of Rose, she was too innocent and sweet and honest. Can't think of one demographic that would hold negative feelings towards a Rose character. Unfortunately they let Rose AND the Doctor fall in love. Can't have that. That was the first mistake. Because it could never be the Doctor Who and Rose show. But in all honesty, who amoung you didn't tear up when he said "Quite rightly" to her "I love you".

It is the #1 program. It will Always be the #1 program. You all just don't want to admit you are all romantics but we all know the truth. It is very heartbreaking. As is the moment when he leaves her forever with his xerox copy as a gift.

It will be a very hard job to replace Mr. Tennant. I thought it was going to be hard to replace Christopher Eccleston. I was wrong. I hope I am wrong again. But there is always another Doctor out there right now somewhere dreaming a young man's dream of being the Doctor. Have no fear. And Even if no other doctor lives up to #9 and #10. We've had the best doctor's and we were alive to enjoy them.

buck up little soldiers.

We've still got that half doctor/half human out there who could pop up at any time and give us all a thrill.

All he has to do is get through those walls.

I have faith in him.

Happy Spring and the return of new stories.

without a doubt "new earth" was not one of the best. Despite the mind scramble about the Face of Bo being Captain Jack and all the thinking that caused, as in why didn't the Face of Bo ever greet Rose (who presumably made him immortal), or tell the Doctor who he was, and what happened to that "baby Bo" he announced on the news, how could he be the last when he reproduced, and what happnened to his body, and WHAT were those fleshy dreadlocks, and if he was immortal, why does he die. but the program on the whole was just too weird.