Next month will bring a new series of Doctor Who to our screens, but what are we supposed to do with ourselves during the five intervening Saturdays between now and then? Watching more Doctor Who always seems like a good plan, so I propose a five-week regimen of episodes from each of the extant eight series of modern/post-Hiatus Who to tide you over.
I’ve put together a curated list of episodes that I recommend for this exercise. When I outline the plan below, I’ll also explain why I’ve made these particular selections. As always, take my list with a grain of salt, as YMMV regarding what is representative of any given Doctor/Companion/series, and what is worth repeated viewings.
As I put together my list, I went through several iterations of how to structure the schedule, and eventually settled on two episodes per session: one story from each of the eight series (including a single two-parter) and a special. Some that I’ve chosen are longer than the standard 45-minute run time, but each weekly installment still clocks in at between an hour and a half and two hours.
So without further ado, I present to you my five-part plan for ramping back up to Series Nine.
We begin with the Ninth Doctor and Rose in what is unquestionably my favorite episode of Series One: Dalek. While Rose, the opening story of the modern era, sets the stage well for new and veteran viewers alike, Dalek really gets to the heart of the program. We get a sense of the history between the Doctor and the Daleks, see how damaged he is, and begin to feel how very much he needs his friends.
Then we move on to Series Two and School Reunion, in which the Tenth Doctor not only has Rose to back him up, but one of the greatest Companions of all time: Sarah Jane. It’s one of our first real callbacks to the classic/pre-Hiatus series (the introduction of Daleks being the only prior one), and serves to preserve overall continuity of the show—as well as being a good yarn in which we get to remember what’s so awesome about Sarah Jane.
For Series Three, I wanted a single-episode story that wasn’t also Doctor-lite, which left five of thirteen episodes from which to make my selection. I chose The Shakespeare Code as the most palatable, since Martha’s still experiencing the early thrill of traveling with the Doctor, and is neither traumatically separated from him nor dealing with her family.
Donna is my favorite modern Companion, so deciding what to include from Series Four was tricky. Once I decided that a two-parter didn’t have to be off limits, though, it felt natural to include Silence in the Library. Not only does it introduce another iconic character/Companion, but we get to see some of Donna’s strengths, including just being a straight-up decent human being when others around are poking fun.
Oh, you thought I was going to do the two-parter in a single sitting, did you? Surprise!
Part of the reason I decided to wait for Forest of the Dead until a week after Silence in the Library (aside from keeping the stories chronological) is to give you, the viewer, a more accurate sense of the anticipation—the how-will-they-get-out-of-this-horrific-situation-ness—that fans originally had when the episodes first aired. And now that we have so much more of River’s story, it’s fun to go back and see how it ends for her and begins for the Doctor.
Series Five offered a few decent possibilities, but in the end it had to be The Eleventh Hour. Not only does it begin the fairytale story of Amy Pond, but also introduces us to the Eleventh Doctor, and opens the entire Moffat era. Many a recent fan came on board at this stage, and it’s worth remembering why it worked so well for so many.
By the time Series Six rolled around, Amy had become the longest-running Companion since Rose (and would eventually surpass her). Exploring her relationship to the Doctor (and Rory) and the way she had learned to take care of herself in the midst of adversity in The Girl Who Waited reminds us of both the dangers of traveling with the Doctor and how those who do learn to approach life differently (as well as foreshadowing Rory’s need to face the difference between two versions of his wife at the end of the series).
I decided that it made more sense to focus on Clara’s half of Series Seven than on Amy’s, since we’d already had two of Amy’s episodes, so I chose an episode that I liked fairly well and seemed to have an overall more-positive-than-negative reaction from fandom in general. Part of why Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS is so fun is that we get to see more of the TARDIS’s interior, including the oft-mentioned swimming pool and a library to die for.
Because The Time of the Doctor played such a major role in the overall mythos of the show, I decided it would be the most logical special to include in the viewing schedule. It (half-assedly) ties up the various loose ends of plot from the Matt Smith era of the show, but more importantly it serves to transition into the current epoch, leaving the Doctor with a crapload of new regenerations to burn. Further, it’s the debut of The Eyebrows—a moment that (rumor has it—potential spoiler) will be revisited in Series Nine.
[*EDIT: Obviously I was actually thinking of The Day of the Doctor for the debut of The Eyebrows. The story is also a better one overall, as far as I’m concerned, though it adds more screen time for the Tenth Doctor to the list. Given that I didn’t include any of the Specials from 2009, perhaps that’s not a bad thing. Substituting Day for Time changes the total run time for this week to 120 minutes. Do with that what you will.]
Finally, we wrap up with a story from Capaldi’s first series. This one was my personal favorite, and tied for second in the Series Eight reader polls. Mummy on the Orient Express includes some classic Who elements, including historical/literary monsters with a space-based and/or timey-wimey twist, the Doctor saving the day at the last moment just by being clever, and a high body count. Combine that with fantastic set decoration and costuming, and it’s a delight to watch.
So there you have it: my formula for dipping your toes back into the entire modern era to whet your appetite for the upcoming series. If there are other episodes you’d prefer to substitute for those I’ve chosen, nothing will be lost from the exercise; everyone’s tastes are different, and you should certainly watch what’s enjoyable for you.
If you do decide to try this five-week re-watch, whether with these exact stories or others of your own choice, I’d love to hear about it in the comments. What’s the best (and worst) part of doing such a survey? Is it proving a fun way to lead up to Series Nine? What changes, if any, have you made?
I look forward to hearing some feedback!
substitions
I’d get rid of The Shakespear Code. I never much liked it. Since we need Martha in there somewhere I’d substitute The Doctor’s Daughter. Yeah, it’s a Donna Noble episode but Martha’s in it too and I like it much better. The two parter about the Family of Blood was good too but a two parter wouldn’t fit.
And I’d jettison Journey to the Center of the Tardis. Let’s watch The Doctor’s Wife instead. It’s a MUCH better episode.
We could stick The Waters of Mars in there somewhere. And the one with the Flatliners. I think we need more than two a week…
Longer viewing sessions
If we assume folks will watch on more than one day during a week, or watch for longer in a single sitting, then adding in more episodes each week is not a bad plan. 🙂
The Shakespeare Code isn’t the best ever, but it was (for me) the best of the episodes that fit my criteria for Series Three. Expanding the criteria to include a two-parter would allow us to chuck it in favor of Human Nature / The Family of Blood, which I agree is a better story all around.
Subbing The Doctor’s Wife for Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS adds an Amy episode at the expense of a Clara one. I do really like TDW, but thought it focused too much on the Doctor’s relationship with the TARDIS (rather than with his human Companion) for the purpose of this particular exercise, at least with only two eps per week. I’d certainly vote for adding it in an expanded version.
I didn’t include anything from The Specials (between Series Four and Five), as I wanted to keep it to ten total, though I almost put in Flatline as a second Twelfth Doctor selection (with the idea that we’re ramping up to his new series, so he should have greater representation). I think your plan to expand the overall number of episodes would solve many of the problems I had in deciding what to include! 🙂
Clara Oswald
To be honest I didn’t much care for ANY of the Matt Smith/Clara episodes. I hated the Impossible Girl story line and I didn’t think they had good chemistry. The Doctor seemed to see her more as a problem to be solved than as a Companion. If you have to have one with them together, perhaps the Christmas one where she was a Victorian nanny? That one also had the Paternoster crew and they are always entertaining.
😀
I completely agree on the Impossible Girl bit. The Snowmen doesn’t fit my own mental criteria because that Clara wasn’t the “original” one, and that was who I’d envisioned for the exercise. But of course, there’s no reason you have to use my selections! 🙂
Few Complaints (well one actually!)
Loved Dalek, loved School Reunion with one of my all-time favourite lines from Mickey (“Every man’s nightmare, the Mrs and the ex”).
I am with the apparent minority who enjoyed Martha’s time on board and one of the scenes I enjoyed in the Shakespeare Code was the bed scene – Martha’s disappointment makes me laugh every time I see it.
No issues with most of the other stories chosen, all good solid stories apart from Time of The Doctor. I am still not sure what I didn’t like about it. Was it the inevitable hangover after what I thought was a brilliant anniversary story? Did it have to have so many things shoe horned in? Why does confessing a sin to someone whom you forget when you stop seeing them help absolution?
Perhaps it was what I saw as a conceit from the Grand Moff of creating the chance of addressing what happens at the end of the Doctor’s regeneration cycle with him having created the War Doctor and retconning the 10.2 regeneration? I came away from that story with a profound sense of disappointment, I would/will have preferred Day of the Doctor.
However, it’s not an exercise in what’s best so it’s probably a moot point. Roll on 19th Sept (or 20th at some forsaken hour of the morning as it will be here!)
Valid
Your point is valid. The biggest reason I included Time of the Doctor was the Eyebrow Scene, honestly. There were lots of problems with it, not least Moffat’s megalomania (my opinion), and there are solid reasons to forget most of it ever happened. But as you say, not necessarily a “best of” so much as a refresher course. 🙂
The Eyebrows Have It
Surely the eyebrow scene in Day of the Doctor was better? ^^
I may have to rein in my enthusiasm for Day of the Doctor somewhat, it seems to be bordering on the obsessional!
I think we have previously agreed elsewhere on why the Regeneration Cycle was restarted by the Grand Moff rather than 1-2 incarnations down the line!
The memory cheats
Argh! Obviously, my brain has failed me! That is precisely what I had in mind. ~sigh~
At some point I also thought I didn’t want to give more screen time to the Tenth Doctor (more than his due), but perhaps that’s just silly. I’ll go correct that in the post right now.