Just a year ago, the idea that David Tennant would return as the Doctor would have been madness. Doctor Who is always moving forward and, while previous inhabitants of the TARDIS have returned for multi-Doctor specials, the character has never regenerated (degenerated?) into an earlier incarnation of himself.
But returning showrunner Russell T. Davies has torn up the rule book to give the fans what they want: Tennant back in a stylish suit and Converse sneakers, the return of Catherine Tate’s Donna Noble, and three special episodes to celebrate the show’s 60th anniversary. The first of these, “The Star Beast,” will air in November, so what better time than now to look back at the Tenth Doctor’s 10 best adventures?
10. “The Impossible Planet” / “The Satan Pit”
Notable for the debut of the Ood, this Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler adventure focuses on a malevolent and mysterious creature known as “The Beast.” As the two-part story unfolds we learn that the monster is “the truth behind the myth” of the Devil, with his monstrous horned visage being incorporated into human culture. When we finally get a look at him the Beast lives up to the billing, looking like a refugee from DOOM. Sure, the CGI may look a teeny bit wonky, but we respect the ambition. Also, the Ood are very cool aliens.
9. “Midnight”
I always love it when Doctor Who gets experimental with its storytelling, with “Midnight” a script that would work as well on stage as on TV. The story sees the Doctor trapped alongside random passengers aboard a bus on an alien planet, with some kind of evil force attempting to crowbar its way inside their minds. Tennant gets to flex his performance skills throughout, it’s got a great supporting cast, and it has some of the most genuinely unnerving moments in the Tenth Doctor’s run.
8. “Death and the Queen”
It’s always worth remembering that Doctor Who isn’t simply a TV show and that there’s a vast array of novels, comics, and audio adventures out there. 2016 saw David Tennant’s first return to the show, with he and Catherine Tate returning for a series of Big Finish Adventures. “Death and the Queen” is the best of these, telling a fantasy-tinged story that would require too high a budget to depict in live-action. This doesn’t require any prior Big Finish knowledge to enjoy and, if you’re curious about the audio adventures, it’s a great place to begin.
7. “The End of Time Parts One & Two”
The Tenth Doctor era is often criticized for being too soppy and there being many episodes in which love saves the day, but even those critics could be seen wiping away a tear at the Tenth Doctor’s two-part regeneration story. Few Doctors have ever tugged at the heartstrings this hard, with the Doctor taking a tour through his former companions to say goodbye and admitting “I don’t want to go…,” which seems to come equally from the Doctor and Tennant himself.
6. “The Waters of Mars”
All is not well on Bowie Base One. “The Waters of Mars” is the second of the 2009 specials and sees the Doctor processing the revelation that death is just around the corner for him. The result is a peek at a darker path for the Tenth Doctor, as he believes that, as the last surviving Time Lord, the Laws of Time no longer apply to him and he can alter history as he sees fit. On top of some great character work is a creepy villain in The Flood and a whole bunch of very cool near-future sci-fi visuals.
5. “The Day of the Doctor”
Tennant wouldn’t be gone for too long after his regeneration, returning for 2013’s “The Day of the Doctor” alongside Matt Smith’s Eleventh and John Hurt’s War Doctor. But even when sharing the limelight in a multi-Doctor episode Tennant impresses, and we can’t get enough of his spiky interactions with Smith. We also got a whole bunch of fun nods to Tenth Doctor episodes and the return of Billie Piper, though as “The Moment” rather than Rose Tyler. The show has a long history of multi-Doctor episodes, so we suspect Tennant will be back for more of them even when his time as the Fourteenth is over.
4. “Silence in the Library” / “Forest of the Dead”
Stephen Moffat was on a serious hot streak throughout the Tennant years and it was unsurprising that he was tapped as showrunner for the Eleventh Doctor. This two-parter shows him at his best with a high-concept villain in the Vashta Nerada (spooky astronauts would go on to be something of a Moffat motif), the killer setting of a planet-sized library, and the debut of Alex Kingston as River Song. River Song would go on to become a key element of recurring seasons, with the very clever twist that this first appearance is also technically her last. River dies in this episode, though as she’s a time traveler the majority of her time with the Doctor takes place in upcoming episodes. A true highlight of the show’s sixty-year tenure.
3. “Army of Ghosts” / “Doomsday”
Russell T. Davies decided to go big with the first season finale for the Tenth Doctor, tossing him into a three-way war between humanity, the Cybermen, and the Daleks. The stakes – the possible extinction of humanity – couldn’t be higher and all the character development arcs and plot threads culminate in a solid wodge of blockbuster action (on a BBC budget). But for fans the most memorable moment isn’t an action scene but the Tenth Doctor’s emotional goodbye to Billie Piper’s Rose Tyler. She ends the episode trapped in a separate universe, with the Doctor “burning up a sun just to say goodbye”. And when their last words to one another are cruelly cut off? Excuse me, there… must be a little dust in the air *sniffle*.
2. “Blink”
It’s perverse that one of the best Tenth Doctor episodes barely features Tennant. “Blink” introduces the best Doctor Who monsters in decades in the Weeping Angels, who have the simple yet killer gimmick of only moving when you’re not looking at them. Carey Mulligan is excellent in what’s essentially the lead role in the episode and there’s an argument that this is the single scariest episode in the show’s entire run. “Blink” would go on to win a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation and be voted the second-best Doctor Who story ever by Doctor Who Magazine (“The Day of the Doctor” was number one). It’s worthy of every accolade tossed its way.
1. “The Girl in the Fireplace”
It’s easy to forget that the early Tennant years saw Doctor Who in turmoil. The revival had been a critical success, but Christopher Eccleston’s departure after a single season (and the resulting negative publicity) left Tennant with some big shoes to fill. Early indications were positive, but it wasn’t until this all-timer that audiences realized the Tenth was the real deal. “The Girl in the Fireplace” is also the kind of story that few shows other than Doctor Who could pull off, combining a derelict 51st-century spaceship with 18th-century Paris, a host of killer clockwork androids, and a touching plot that smartly leverages time travel. this would also go on to win multiple awards and, for us at least, remains the single best Tenth Doctor story.