So good they brought him back, twice. David Tennant‘s impact on the Doctor Who universe cannot be understated, taking the mantle from the one-season wonder Christopher Eccleston at a time when the show still sat on uneven ground. Not since Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor was the lead actor so cherished within the fandom, with Tennant’s beaming grin and endearing charm making for the perfect leading man.
To this day, the Tenth Doctor is widely considered the best ever and certainly the most recognizable face of the modern era. Across his era, and the subsequent specials he appeared in as both the Tenth and Fourteenth incarnations, Tennant has treated viewers to some of the most iconic episodes of all time. From the first meeting with the Weeping Angels to the largest library in the universe, there is no task Tennant cannot sink his acting claws into with both energy and detail. So, with that in mind, here is a look at Tennant’s 10 best episodes of Doctor Who, ranked.
10 “School Reunion”
Season 2, Episode 3
Upon the revival of Doctor Who in 2005, it was imperative that much of its lore was brought forward to the modern day. In the first season, concepts like regeneration and the show’s laws of time travel were made palatable and clear, with the show’s classic era somewhat ignored in favor of a forward-facing view. When Tennant and Season 2 arrived, it was obvious that the classic era would finally need to be addressed. Russell T. Davies chose to do so by re-introducing one of the era’s best-loved companions, Miss Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen). After bumping into the TARDIS and awash with the memories of her time on board, Sarah Jane joins the Doctor, Rose (Billie Piper), and Mickey (Noel Clarke) on a mission to uncover the truth behind an abnormally academically successful school.
Despite being the newest actor to take on the role, the glint of nostalgia in Tennant’s eyes when he first sees Sarah Jane, that of a man proud of his friend’s accomplishments, is one of the show’s most touching moments. The episode is an entertaining romp with a classic feel, perfect for the return of a classic companion, highlighted by Rose and Sarah Jane arguing over who has seen the scariest monsters. Fun and frantic with a touch of tenderness, this is one of the best episodes of a fairly average season.
9 “The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit”
Season 2, Episodes 8 and 9
Of all the battles he has faced, The Doctor versus the Devil himself was the most unexpected. Arriving at a deep-space exhibition sanctuary, The Doctor and Rose quickly realize that the planet is orbiting a black hole, something the Doctor quickly declares impossible. One by one, members of the team are being picked off by an unknown entity that slowly infects minds, leaving the Time Lord with no choice but to dive into the belly of The Beast.
Backed by a superb cello-based score that remains one of the show’s best, this two-parter is tension personified. From the slow turn of the once-friendly Ood to the breathless scene in which The Beast corners Toby, this story is littered with iconic moments. The Tenth Doctor and Rose, by this point in the season, have sparked quite a romantic chemistry, leading to an enraged Doctor doing everything he can to save the day, fearing for his separated companion’s life.
8 “Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead”
Season 4, Episodes 8 and 9
Steven Moffat was at his best when writing as a guest for Davies, with this two-parter the groundwork for his era as showrunner. Arriving at the biggest library in the universe after a distress call, The Doctor and Donna (Catherine Tate) find the place strangely abandoned. The mystery continues when a team of explorers arrives, led by archeologist River Song (Alex Kingston), who seems to know the Doctor without him even recognizing her. Add an invisible villain lurking in the shadows and a recipe for thrilling success abounds.
This winding story takes enticing pieces of an abstract puzzle and slowly puts them together. Featuring a brilliant cliffhanger to part one, the second half is just as much a pulse-racing adventure as it is an introspective character study, with the relationship between River and The Doctor slowly evolving. By the time The Doctor finally realizes her importance, polished by a Lost in Translation-esque whisper in the ear, there is not a dry eye in the house. However, in typical Moffat fashion, there’s still enough time to save the day.
7 “The Day of the Doctor”
The 50th Anniversary Special
One Time Lord wasn’t enough for a celebration this big. In commemoration of 50 years of Doctor Who, Moffat, alongside Matt Smith‘s Eleventh Doctor, brought back Tennant’s Tenth incarnation and a mysterious never-before-seen War Doctor (John Hurt) to put an end to the long-awaited Time War saga. Split between a present-day Zygon invasion of UNIT HQ and the moment the War Doctor destroyed his home planet to end the Time War, the trio attempt to save both Earth and rewrite history.
Not long before production began, this episode only had Jenna Coleman‘s Clara signed on, with Moffat even producing a script that only included her character. Thankfully, the right calls were made and the trio of Doctors were on board, with the chemistry between them simply immaculate. From Tennant’s suave charm to Smith’s bumbling quirks and Hurt’s weary sickness of the pair of them, “The Day of the Doctor” isn’t just a fascinating and emotional celebration, it is also hilariously funny – a credit to Moffat’s sitcom roots.
6 “Human Nature/The Family of Blood”
Season 3, Episodes 8 and 9
What would happen if The Doctor became human? That question is answered in this Season 3 two-parter, where The Doctor and Martha (Freema Agyeman) hide in a 1913 British public school from the deadly Family of Blood. To try and conceal his identity, The Doctor places it in a special fob and turns himself into a human with no memory of his past. As the villainous clan gets ever closer, Martha is tasked with trying to convince the now-human Doctor, known as John Smith, of his true identity. However, this proves a bitter challenge now that John Smith has fallen in love, an outcome that the alien Time Lord hadn’t even considered.
“Human Nature” and “The Family of Blood” are a wonderful example of showrunner Davies’ mission statement for his era. By taking sci-fi concepts and using them to tackle human stories and themes, Doctor Who has never been more relatable. This episode is also the first to properly tackle the horrid history of racism in the British class system, something attempted poorly in a previous Season 3 episode, “The Shakespeare Code”. A wonderfully sensitive and unique story, this two-parter is highlighted by John Smith having to make the decision to leave his human life behind, punctuated by a montage of the loving life he had not yet lived, reminding viewers of the real disassociated alien-ness of their titular hero. Publicly and critically acclaimed, it was even nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form in 2008.
5 “The Girl in the Fireplace”
Season 2, Episode 4
No one understood the perils of time travel quite like Moffat. In only his second outing for the show (discounting the hilarious “Curse of Fatal Death” special episode), the soon-to-be showrunner took the usually linear narrative style of Doctor Who and spun it on its head, creating “The Girl in the Fireplace”. After landing on a spaceship in the 51st century, the discovery of an opposite fireplace leads the Doctor through time and into 18th century France. He first meets and saves a young Madame de Pompadour’s (Sophia Myles) life, and continues to move back and forth between the centuries as he joins her at various points in her life, with the two eventually entering into a romance.
Considering this was a budget-saving Season 2 episode, it is remarkably one of the season’s most gorgeous. From the pristine period costume to the intricately designed villainous droids, it feels as if every technical aspect of this episode is pitch-perfect. However, it is the story at its heart, one of love, loss, and aching for the passage of time, that stands out, with Tennant putting in one of his best early performances.
4 “Turn Left”
Season 4, Episode 11
This episode of Doctor Who was the precursor to Davies’ politically charged dystopian drama, Years and Years. After Donna is encouraged to go back in time and take a different turn in her car, she inadvertently alters the course of history, which leaves The Doctor dead after she was never there to first save him. As a Doctor-less world spirals out of control and the war against alien invaders turns sour, Donna and her family are turned into refugees, with the parallels to Britain’s current crisis striking.
Despite many people suggesting that Doctor Who has never been more political, this is the most partisan of any episode. Watching the world slowly destroy itself, helpless, is a feeling many Doctor Who audiences aren’t used to, with the steady decay of the world they love simply harrowing. This is illustrated heartbreakingly in a scene in which, now under martial law, non-English people are taken to internment camps, including Donna’s new friends, the Colasantos. As they are loaded onto the trucks, former World War veteran Wilf (Bernard Cribbins) tearfully declares, “It’s happening again”, in a moment that feels ripped from a deeply dramatic Academy Award winner, not an episode of family-friendly television. “Turn Left” is the most underrated episode inTennant’s best season.
3 “Blink”
Season 3, Episode 10
One of Tennant’s best episodes of Doctor Who barely includes him, with this the best of a sub-genre of the show known as ‘Doctor-lite’. Perhaps the most famous episode of all time, “Blink” follows Sally Sparrow (Carey Mulligan), who is contacted by The Doctor through the use of DVD Easter Eggs. Through the use of timey-wimey… stuff, The Doctor encourages Sally to help him save the TARDIS from the brutally frightening Weeping Angels.
This episode is dedicated to horror. By using several of the genre’s timeless techniques, a breathless atmosphere is created in the first second and held on to for the entire runtime. Now famous and, arguably, misused, it is difficult to explain just how fear-inducing the Weeping Angels were to an unsuspecting 2007 audience. Not only did they inject fear into viewers’ veins through their unseen, rapid movement, but they are also based on something that exists in everyday lives, with fans of the show never able to look at a simple statue the same way ever again.
2 “The Waters of Mars”
2009 Specials, Episode 3
The change in structure for Doctor Who in 2009 meant just a handful of episodes would be produced, with each a standalone special leading to Tennant’s final bow. The best of these is “The Waters of Mars”. After landing on Mars in 2059, The Doctor meets the first-ever human colony. However, after discovering the date, The Doctor realizes that this is the day they all die, and their death is an immovable-fixed point in time. Despite this, and staring at the possibility of death himself, The Doctor takes the laws of time into his own hands, becoming the “Time Lord Victorious”.
Tennant is at his best during highly charged and emotionally demanding scenes, thanks in no small part to his background in Shakespeare. Episodes like “Waters of Mars” are where he is at his most comfortable, able to scream burning monologues whilst buildings crumble and fires blaze behind him. After saving the day despite all the odds being against him, viewers feel safe in the knowledge that this is going to end exactly how the rest do, albeit brilliantly. However, this episode has one last trick up its sleeve, with the ending to “Waters of Mars” perhaps the best and most poignant of any Doctor Who episode.
1 “Midnight”
Season 4, Episode 10
Tennant’s best performance as The Doctor. In this bottle episode, The Doctor decides to take a leisurely trip around the titular planet Midnight on a bus with some other tourists. Expecting to see the dangerous but glistening diamond landscape through the safety of the vehicle, those on board soon become disturbed by a knocking from outside, made even more terrifying when learning that no lifeform can survive the planet’s atmosphere. As the unknown and invisible entity enters the bus, it infects the mind of Sky Silvestry (Lesley Sharp), before turning its attention to The Doctor.
For every episode that Tennant marvels as the sonic-wielding hero, it is the episode in which he is the most helpless that he shines the most. The genius of “Midnight” is the choice to use The Doctor’s best asset against him – his voice. Usually, The Doctor will swan into any room, announce himself the leader, and talk his way out of danger, often with a cocky one-liner or two. This time, his bravado raises red flags for the passengers, with The Doctor’s shouting that he is the cleverest only making them suspect him more. Then, when the entity steals his voice and uses it against him, The Doctor is left with no choice but to pray that the people around him make the right choice. Not just one of thebest episodes of Doctor Who, “Midnight” is one of the best episodes of television of all time.
