114 Into the Dalek

Series 8 Episode 2

Doctor: 12th

Companion: Clara Oswald

Also featuring: Danny Pink, Missy, Courtney Woods

First aired: 30th August 2014

Writer: Phil Ford & Steven Moffat

One of the most unique attempts at a Dalek story came in Peter Capaldi's second episode as the Doctor. He and Clara join a mission to go literally into a Dalek, which had turned "good" and wanted to kill all other Daleks. It's an interesting concept in that it explores what makes a Dalek a Dalek in terms of its inner workings, which was picked up on again in The Witch's Familiar the following series. Once you get past the constraints of the episode - the inside of a Dalek has convenient corridors and vents like some sort of spaceship, which slightly cheapens the vibe (but of course it's a BBC budget and I wouldn't have expected more) - there's a lot to enjoy. The Doctor talking to Rusty and understanding what made him "good" is interesting, as well as the concept of how a Dalek could be "good" if it still wants to commit genocide, and whether the Doctor himself is effectively a "good Dalek" in his decision to make Rusty good again at the end. The concept of the antibodies was quite cool and I loved 12's brutal response to the soldiers' deceased colleague being the top layer of the liquid gunk they ended up hiding in...! Journey Blue was an interesting side character and could have made for a unique companion too. I think this episode requires a lot more suspension of disbelief than most but it's largely successful in what it set out to do and there's no other Dalek story like this one.

ITD I think is great and had some excellent action sequences. The scenes of the Daleks attacking the base look like something from a film.

Things lose their way slightly in the last part… also the Doctors hate for soldiers in this and throughout series 8 is grating.

Good story though for the most part

TDC , was intriguing them going for a music centric episode, especially so close to the goblin king song, Maestro was an intriguing baddy, although probably would of saved for a more longer episode at least 60 minutes long, for a God creature they were defeated way to quick, Ruby and the doctors chemistry was shown off effectively though, overall another enjoyable episode that could of done with a little more

ITD the idea of whether a dalek can be good is an intriguing concept, I just feel it was tackled much better in series 1s Dalek, maybe if we saw Rusty again this episode would of been more effective, however it did go along well with the 12th doctor questioning if he was a good man are

7 hours ago, 777666jason said:

ITD the idea of whether a dalek can be good is an intriguing concept, I just feel it was tackled much better in series 1s Dalek, maybe if we saw Rusty again this episode would of been more effective, however it did go along well with the 12th doctor questioning if he was a good man are

We do see Rusty again… in Twice Upon a Time. However I get what you mean, it’s not like that reappearance had any bearing on the Daleks etc

Into the dalek has so many iconically funny quotes a deeper look into the daleks as well as the doctors view of them

113 The Doctor’s Daughter

Series 4 Episode 6

Doctor: 10th

Companion: Donna Noble, Martha Jones

First aired: 10th May 2008

Writer: Stephen Greenhorn

My favourite series of Doctor Who actually isn't the last to lose an episode! That said, this is a sign that we're firmly into episodes that I have time for, because I maintain that series 4 doesn't have a single weak episode. The Doctor's Daughter saw the Doctor, Donna and an unwilling Martha transported to the planet Messaline, in the middle of a war between humans and fish-like creatures called the Hath. Both sides utilise progenation machines to rapidly generate adult soldiers born with the knowledge of how to fight. The Doctor is quickly reeled into this, effectively generating his own daughter, Jenny. I think there's some really interesting themes throughout this episode and it's the only time in modern Who we've really seen the Doctor be a parent figure (not counting Wish World / The Reality War here as the Doctor doesn't actually have lots to do with Poppy really). It sparks some interesting conversations with the Doctor and Donna, as well as between the Doctor and Jenny, as well as debating what it means to be a soldier. What lets the episode down, and I hate to say this, is the Martha scenes. Martha will always be my favourite (alongside Donna), but the Hath scenes felt less fleshed out, and the journey across the surface of Messaline felt a bit amateur, not to mention Peck's sacrifice in the quicksand. That said, I love how Donna gets to shine in this episode, it's the first time we really grasp how intelligent she actually is by spotting the sequencing and solving the mystery of the war! There's a few moments that feel a little underbaked and perhaps the concept would've worked better as a two-parter, to make Jenny's death hit even harder with the Doctor having more time to get to know her. Georgia Moffett (now Tennant!) excelled as Jenny, who was a really exciting character, and I'd love to see her again one day!

TDD, Jenny another forgotten character, like if they were never gonna use her again why didnt they stick to the original intended ending that her death stuck 🙈 i get the Martha seems a bit redundant character here and her role could of easily worked if it was just the doctor and Donna split up (although they were split up in nearly every episode ao im guessing maybe not) saying that as a big Martha fan the more of her the merrier, other than that another great episode in a series that didnt have any bad ones

112 The Beast Below

Series 5 Episode 2

Doctor: 11th

Companion: Amy Pond

First aired: 10th April 2010

Writer: Steven Moffat

The second episode of Matt Smith's tenure as the Doctor, and indeed showrunner Steven Moffat's, was one that I feel set the tone for much of his time on the show. The Beast Below saw the Eleventh Doctor take Amy Pond on her first trip in the TARDIS, landing on Starship UK, where some of the human race end up in the future, but there's a secret hidden even from Liz 10, the reigning monarch. There's a certain magic to this episode, and a lot of it comes from Matt and Karen themselves, who hit the ground running with their chemistry. Amy's compassion towards Mandy, and later the Star Whale itself, is a real strength of character that I'm pleased was established so early on. Sophie Okonedo is superb as Liz 10 and makes for one of the Moffat era's most memorable guest stars. The actual plot of the episode is a little run-of-the-mill in parts and the Smilers don't amount to much in the end despite the cool concept, but it makes important points about taking advantage of people's generosity, and the consequences of not questioning what's in front of you, for yourself and whatever's being kept a secret.

The next episode to drop is our first two-parter to leave the countdown - which one will it be?

TBB was an interesting episode which you could say has relevance to what's going on in the world right now, Karen and maths chemistry was very strong here and was further proof the correct 2 were cast, Liz 10 was an interesting character (other than another appearance in The Pandora opens) that might pop up more frequently that didnt (somewhat common in the Moffat era) overall enjoyable that works well even just watching as a one off random episode

111 The Rebel Flesh / The Almost People

Series 6 Episode 5-6

Doctor: 11th

Companion: Amy Pond, Rory Williams

First aired: 21st and 28th May 2011

Writer: Matthew Graham

Our first two-parter to drop is this from the first half of series 6. The Doctor, Amy and Rory find themselves on a remote island on Earth in the 22nd Century, which houses a factory that pumps a highly corrosive acid to the mainland. Its staff make use of "gangers", flesh duplicates, when working with the acid to avoid risking their lives. The Gangers are supposed to be controlled by the crew, but they begin to take their own stand, prompting a moral dilemma. I like that Rory gets some agency of his own in this story, separated from the Doctor and Amy as he tries to help Jennifer, whose Ganger becomes the ringleader for the uprising. The Doctor having his own Ganger was a great cliffhanger and I liked that, to prove a point, they swapped shoes to appear like each other, to hammer the point home about how valid the Gangers' existence is. The Jennifer Ganger becoming some crazy CGI monster felt a bit silly and it didn't look particularly great, and some of the other side characters feel a little uninteresting (though I do like Raquel Cassidy as Cleaves). I also liked how important this two-part episode became for the story arc, with the conclusion revealing Amy has been a Ganger for a period of time, and of course, baby Melody is swapped out for a flesh duplicate in the following episode, too.

TRF/TAP enjoyable episode that was very well fleshed out, The dangers were a good idea and they did help move the arc along, shame they haven't been used since though considering the main plot is to show how human and gangrs living and working together is important, it also works in making it more believable that Amy being a ganger all along is easily missed though (Did we ever find out exactly when she was replaced though)

The Lazarus Experiment - Defining a filler episode here with really bad CGI to boot, Martha was unfortunately a very sidelined companion and her family were just not as interesting as last time.

Cold War - See my comment for Empress of Mars, unfortunately found the Ice Warriors were never that memorable.

The Bells of Saint John - This was a bit of an average period of the show, mainly cos Clara just hadn't hit her groove until her will was really challenged when Capaldi came, this was typical of it, a bit of a mess overall.

The Wedding of River Song - The climax to a very wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey filled season, I think I need to rewatch to fully appreciate as it was a bit much for me at the time.

The Vanquishers - Generous placing! I think this final was pretty terrible on the whole, just one big, hyperactive, mess that by no means justified all the many threads in the last four episodes, Flux had good parts, but it just couldn't build them to a coherent whole. Jericho and the multiple Doctors (especially the sinister talk about her future at the end (even if that never actually came to anything)) were the only highlights.

The Lodger - I hated this when I watched it solely because of James Corden, I haven't revisited it since for that reason, may be worth a rewatch but the lighter, comedy-themed episodes very rarely clicked with me.

The Crimson Horror - Another S7 one that I don't really have strong memory of, though I did enjoy the Paternoster gang and quite liked the aesthetic.

Robot of Sherwood - There's this one Guardian commenter that comments that every episode was 'no Robot of Sherwood' which is kind of all I associate with it now x I didn't like this one much as I found myself hoping Robin Hood as a sci-fi simulation would've been innovative, but it went the fantasy route instead which I don't associate the show with.

Thin Ice - I did really appreciate this one exploring racism as the show hadn't really explored it properly before, let alone when there was a mixed race companion previously, not the most subtle but still good, and the 'we are the villains actually' plotline was done a lot better than Chibnall would go on to do.

The Pyramid at the End of the World - This was where the Monks three parter started losing steam a bit, I do think there was some attempt at political commentary here, but the episode as a whole didn't quite come together.

Planet of the Dead - The worst of the 2009 specials, very unmemorable, most of the episode is spent on a bus and very little actual threat, Zoe from Eastenders is the only thing I remember!

Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror! - One of the better Chibnall episodes, I really liked the focus on Tesla and Edison and the talk between the Doctor and Tesla is one of the great moments where the show slows down a little to see them connect. It soon disperses into the usual tropes and the giant scorpion plot was really silly, but definitely had it's moments of, ahem, spark.

New Earth - I was really immersed in this world when I was younger, I'm guessing the CGI hasn't held up as well now but I have fond memories of it, definitely not up there with the best of the season, but it's a fine intro and Piper and Tennant have immediately brilliant chemistry.

The Devil's Chord - This had real potential, but it didn't come together in the end. The Beatles in Doctor Who is a fab idea and they actually resembled them well in the short time they were on the screen, the world losing it's music sequence was really powerful too, but the problem I had with all these Gods is that it's too fantasy based when the show is sci-fi and that they're all so easy to defeat and then never come back again. It just cuts all the tension.

Into the Dalek - Definitely one of the highlights of early S8 which was a bit of a lull at first, very unique way to introduce this iteration to the Daleks, even if it wasn't quite as great as the S1 way.

The Doctor's Daughter - Cute bit of behind-the-scenes lore I guess, but in the behemoth that was Season 4, this falls short. Introducing a family member definitely needs more than one episode and Martha is yet again sidelined quite a bit, the show really goes for emotion but it's hard when we barely know this character!

The Beast Below - this was a fine first outing and furthered the bond between Eleven and Amy well, the Smilers looked great and were very threatening, but didn't play much of a role in the end and the eventual climax felt a little rushed and half-baked.

The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People - I mean of all the two parters to go first...(there is one in particular I can't believe is still in!), I thought this was really good, paced well and built a sense of unease throughout and that last minute rug pull is effective not only for what's to come, but just because it happens so rarely.

110 Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS

Series 7 Episode 10

Doctor: 11th

Companion: Clara Oswald

First aired: 27th April 2013

Writer: Stephen Thompson

Series 7B is wiped out with this episode and this is perhaps a hot take to be my favourite episode of that half-series. The Doctor enlists scavengers and brothers Gregor, Bram and Tricky to help find Clara in a wrecked TARDIS after they attempted to salvage the ship. I'll start with the negatives - the brothers were really unlikeable guest characters. Tricky being, well, tricked into thinking he was an android for much of his life just because his other two brothers wanted a laugh... it's silly before you even consider how awful that must make them as brothers...! That said, I don't think the episode tries to pretend they're anything other than awful, the Doctor only enlists them because they caused the problem in the first place, and there is some good character stuff that comes of it, even if it's basically undone by the conclusion. I love seeing more of the TARDIS finally, it's something the new series has shied away from for some reason but it does a good job of reminding us just how expansive the TARDIS is! The pacing of the episode is good and I think there's some good timey-wimeyness in how the conclusion comes about, whether it totally makes sense or not. I have a good time watching this episode despite it being a little messy, and it's one of the few episodes that actually tries to further the Impossible Girl storyline between The Rings of Akhaten and the finale so bonus points for that. Ultimately, a messy episode but with big ideas and it entertains me, so I'm somewhat forgiving of the shortcomings.

JTTCOTT interesting concept, showing a darker side of the 11th doctor in order to save his companion, do enjoy the fact we explore a bit more of the tardis for a ship so huge its weird this doesnt happen more often, nice to see it advances but also not advance the impossible girl arc (which for a big series arc is scarsely touched on as much as youd expect) another fun episode but echo what I said earlier a shame we didnt get more of Matt and Jenna because we really didnt learn than much about clara is series 7

I really enjoy the doctor's daughter and the beast below as episodes. I wouldnt rate them high but I enjoy them whenever I re-watch. As for the other two I must admit I don't remember a ton of what happens so when I do rewatch it they will defo be ones to pay attention to. I do remember how awful that CGI is in the final part of The Almost People is.

109 The Witchfinders

Series 11 Episode 8

Doctor: 13th

Companion: Yasmin Khan, Graham O'Brien, Ryan Sinclair

First aired: 25th November 2018

Writer: Joy Wilkinson

Generally, the best part of series 11 was the historical episodes it contained. I found the choices of setting and historical events to be inspired and varied, and The Witchfinders was interesting because it brought about direct consequences for the Doctor herself. Landing in Lancashire in 1612, the Doctor and the fam quickly end up at a witch trial. Even without any sci-fi elements, this posed a unique risk for the Doctor, who later in the episode was accused of being a witch herself, experiencing the misogyny many women of the time also faced - the first time we get to see the direct consequences of the Doctor now presenting as a woman. Alan Cumming is superb as King James, and Siobhan Finneran is great as Becka Savage, the landowner who is conducting the witch trials. I think the sentient mud is an interesting concept but it doesn't quite come together so well and feels a little more like a scrambled attempt to put something sci-fi into an episode that was conceived on its historical basis, and as a result, its conclusion feels a little messy and weirdly paced. It's a good episode overall though, even if it is outshone by two other historicals from series 11!

TW was an interesting historical episodes even more so for me living in thos neck of the woods, this part of the UK is scarsely represented in British tv, was a nice change having a doctor who episode with very few sci-fi elements to it too, Siobhan is a fantastic actress in anything she is in and her and Jodie worked so well against each other

108 Twice Upon a Time

2017 Christmas Special

Doctor: 12th

Companion: Bill Potts

Also featuring: 1st Doctor, Clara Oswald, Nardole

First aired: 25th December 2017

Writer: Steven Moffat

Drawing Peter Capaldi's tenure to a close, and indeed Steven Moffat's time as showrunner, was a Christmas episode that paid homage to both the preceding 3 years of the show, as well as a serial that aired in 1966. The Tenth Planet saw the introduction of the Cybermen, who we saw in the previous story in their original Mondasian form, and was also the first instance of regeneration as William Hartnell bowed out, handing the reigns over to Patrick Troughton. Similarly, this was the end of the Twelfth Doctor, fatally injured in The Doctor Falls and desperate to put off another change of appearance. The TARDIS lands near to where the First Doctor was not long before his regeneration, and the two work together to solve a mystery involving a World War I soldier, time being paused, and Bill Potts' reappearance. I think it's a touching story to end Capaldi's time on the show, with a great callback to Rusty the Dalek, and of course, the cameos from Nardole and Clara alongside Bill's presence in the episode. David Bradley does well as the First Doctor, albeit the writing went much too over the top with the sexist remarks towards Bill. The plot's a little thin on the ground and perhaps the blockbuster finale of series 10 would've worked as a better final episode in some regards, but I like the breathing space this episode allows, it feels like a prologue to Capaldi's era, and closes Bill's story off on a more positive note too. A nice episode all round, very well suited to being a Christmas special too, though it is the first regeneration episode to fall.

TUAT, where i agree the preceding 2 part finale would of made more sense to end capaldis tenure, think I remember reading somewhere this was so they didnt lose a festive slot and chibnall hadn't quite finished Briadchurch duties so Moffat stretched it 1 episode more

As much as I agree with the sexist remarks DB was portraying WH first doctor, this does show how far the show has come and I parts society since the 60s, was also nice that Bill was in here and the story got closed better although she did suddenly become an afterthought when he was saying goodbye to the clara illusion after regaining his memories so I did feel fir her there, other than that not too bad an episode to close of Moffat and capaldis tenure