Goddamn I'm posting a lot today

[anagramofbrat]

On a much more positive note, after much kicking, screaming and haterade, masteradept has finally decided to give Doctor Who a try, and so far (he's starting with last season, so the 11th Doctor, same place I did) he doesn't hate it. (This is high praise. Trust me.)

Grannies in Hell suddenly having the urge to knit sweaters aside, he has asked on Twitter for everyone's top ten DW eps. Since my answer likely will not fit on twitter, I decided to answer here, but I'm curious as to what the far-more-hardcore-than-I fans on my flist think as well. Timely post is also timely seing as the new series is set to debut in a couple weekends.

I will note that I don't recommend bouncing about through the series willy nilly. To quote River Song: "shh... Spoilers."

That said, and also with the note that I've only seen Doctors 9-11 and one set of eps from 4, my favorite overall episodes are (from most to least):

The Girl in the Fireplace (2.4)
Vincent and the Doctor (5.11)
Fathers Day (1.08)
Blink (3.10)
Turn Left (4.11)
The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances (1.09-1.10)
The Eleventh Hour (5.1)
Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords (3.11-3.13)
School Reunion (2.3)
The Runaway Bride (Christmas special between series 2 and 3)

It's kinda tough to pick ten out of the series, especially since the entire thing is riddled with moments and exchanges that stick with you. I tried to go with eps/story arcs that stood by themselves overall, but interestingly enough the majority of my favorite bits of the show (*cough* river song *cough* dalek/cybermen catfight *cough* most of Donna's finer moments *cough*) lie outside of this list.

But anyway. Your turn.

Comments

[billies-blues.livejournal.com]

How the fuck did I mis "The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances?" I quote that episode and it's when we first meet my husband. We have about the same episodes. Girl in the Fireplace was awesome for me as well.

My favorite is still the 9th Doctor.

I mentioned River Song too. I love her sooo much.

[billies-blues.livejournal.com]

Actually, my favorite is Donna. could say more but *spoilers*.

[breakableheart.livejournal.com]

I have only seen 9-11 as well. I started with 9 and I love love love Christopher Eccleston. So sad he left the show! Have only seen a few episodes of Matt Smith, hope he will grow on me.

Blink is an awesome episode!

Girl in the Fireplace too!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_kyri/]

This was much more difficult than I expected it to be.

I scanned a list of episode titles, then tried to prune it down to ten. So here's those- and the ones I cut from the final list, just for fun.

Top Ten--
"Rose"
"The Empty Child" "The Doctor Dances" 1.9-10
"Army of Ghosts" "Doomsday" 2.12-13
"Blink" 3.10
"Partners in Crime" 4.1
"The Stolen Earth" "Journey's End" 4.12-13
"The Eleventh Hour" 5.1
"The Time of Angels" "Flesh and Stone" 5.4-5
"Vincent and the Doctor" 5.10
"The Pandorica Opens" "The Big Bang" 5.12-13


Others:
"Bad Wolf" "The Parting of the Ways" 1.12-13
"Tooth and Claw" 2.2
"School Reunion" 2.3
"The Girl in the Fireplace" 2.4
"The Idiot's Lantern" 2.7
"The Shakespeare Code" 3.2
"Utopia" "The Sound of Drums" "Last of the Time Lords" 3.11-12-13
"The Unicorn and the Wasp" 4.7
"Silence in the Library" "Forest of the Dead" 4.9-10

[retsuko.livejournal.com]

Ooo, just ten? This is tricky! :(

Blink
Vincent and the Doctor
School Reunion
The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances (are we counting these as two or one?)
The Unicorn & the Wasp
The Shakespeare Code
Family of Blood and the one that precedes it (the ones where Martha and the Doctor are hiding out in pre-WWI England)
The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone

Can't wait for the new season! XD

[kadharonon.livejournal.com]

Hrm. I'm sort of in an odd position, where I have seen a decent chunk of the old stuff (and can readily admit that a large chunk of it features low production values and poor script-writing) and love it despite its flaws, but started with (and am most familiar with) the new stuff. Except for maybe the 7th Doctor, because his companion Ace is awesome and ties for favorite with Donna. (Ace blows things up.)

This is going to be... not really a list.

I'd say watch all of season 4, because, well, Donna's finer points.
Blink is an amazing episode. (But I hate the two-part Angel episode in the latest season - they stop being scary when they start moving on-screen.)
The Hand of Fear is Sarah Jane Smith's last episode with the 4th Doctor, and might make a nice lead-up to School Reunion from the new series.
Vincent and the Doctor hits HARD, but in a good way.
I like the Slitheen episodes from the first season of the new stuff, but mainly because I love Harriet Jones and Blon the Slitheen.

I have an unnatural love for the 7th Doctor. So that doesn't really count as a recommendation unless you want to watch, say, an episode where The Happiness Patrol goes around arresting people for not being happy and the three main villains are a Margaret Thatcher expy, a rat-like dog puppet, and a candy-based golem. Or an episode taking place in a high-rise futuristic apartment complex where the little old ladies are cannibals, there are gangs of girls running around with names like "Dustbin" in constant warfare with the security force and each other, and the apartment complex keeps eating people. Or a Victorian era episode about evolution, with aliens in and a pastor who loudly denounces "evilution" and then devolves into a monkey.

...yeah.