Peter Capaldi (2014-2016)
Peter Capaldi has taken over as the first older actor in the role since the new version of the show began, and that has been a big transition for younger viewers unfamiliar with this long-standing tradition.
Whereas Matt Smith was an old Doctor in a young body, in many ways Peter Capaldi is a young Doctor in an older body. There is something very whimsical about most of his performances that frequently resonates with the off kilter humor of Tom Baker at moments. He is another good Doctor, but after the two amazing Doctors that preceded him, his episodes don’t always resonate with the emotions of some of his predecessors’ episodes. Hopefully with his third season he will get a chance to show greater emotional range.
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Best Companions: Clara Oswin Oswald / Ashildr
Clara Oswin Oswald
Ashildr
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Honorable Mentions: River Song/Bill Potts
River Song
Bill Potts
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Worst Companion: Danny Pink
Danny Pink
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BEST EPISODES (STORY ARCS):
Heaven Sent
NUMBER #1
Heaven Sent (#261)
Why it’s the best: One of the difficulties facing the show currently is how to keep it fresh. The episodes have a tendency to feel like they are treading the same ground sometimes. Not to mention with Clara (as much as I love her) taking more center stage since Matt Smith left and being such a long-standing companion, Peter Capaldi does not always stand out with her. That is one of the many reasons this episode proves Peter Capaldi really is a fabulous Doctor. This episode is both a one man show and a testament to how great the writing in this show can get sometimes. This is also one of the best episodes to show the full extent of what well thought out time travel stories can be. Truly one of the very best of the show.
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Listen
NUMBER #2
Listen (#245)
Why it’s the best:
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Hell Bent
NUMBER #3
Hell Bent (#262)
Why it’s the best:
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The Husbands of River Song
NUMBER #4
The Husbands of River Song (#263)
Why it’s the best:
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Face the Raven
NUMBER #5
Face the Raven (#260)
Why it’s the best:
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The Woman Who Lived
NUMBER #6
The Woman Who Lived (#257)
Why it’s the best:
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Mummy on the Orient Express
NUMBER #7
Mummy on the Orient Express (#249)
Why it’s the best:
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Robot of Sherwood
NUMBER #8
Robot of Sherwood (#244)
Why it’s the best:
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Time Heist
NUMBER #9
Time Heist (#246)
Why it’s the best:
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Last Christmas
NUMBER #10
Last Christmas (#253)
Why it’s the best:
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The Doctor Falls
NUMBER #11
World Enough and Time/ The Doctor Falls (#275/ #276)
Why it’s the best:
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The Magician’s Apprentice
NUMBER #12
The Magician’s Apprentice/ The Witch’s Familiar (#254/ #255)
Why it’s the best:
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NUMBER #13
The Zygon Invasion/ The Zygon Inversion (#260/ #261)
Why it’s the best:
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NUMBER #14
Under the Lake/ Before the Flood (#256/ #257)
Why it’s the best:
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NUMBER #15
Twice Upon a Time (#277)
Why it’s the best:
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WORST EPISODE (STORY ARC):
Kill the Moon (#248)
Why it’s the worst: Doctor Who has lately started thinly veiling its political leanings behind sci-fi plots and stories that support its point. Kill the Moon is an example of this as an abortion metaphor. The story further frustrates the audience when the Doctor decides he will not interfere with the decision of the women in the story and instead says that he has no right to interfere and leaves them to make their own decision, which is contrary to every other instance of the Doctor meddling, to which Clara gets rightfully angry about. Overall, it is thinly veiled propaganda and has no place in Doctor Who.
Kill the Moon
The Best of Doctor Who 