Every Doctor from Worst to Best - Doctor Who Ranking
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- Опубликовано: 1 авг 2024
- It's been a while since I tackled this subject formally, partly because I wanted to wait for Jodie Whittaker to more or less wrap up her era. Well that time has arrived so let's add her to the ranking and see if anybody else has moved up or down in the meantime.
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Regarding the story of Jo Martin's Doctor...
There's a bit of her story revealed in the third episode of Flux. I just caught it on like my third watch. It's a very convoluted episode. Jodi plays the part in one of Jo Martin's memories so it's easy to miss.
But basically, Jo Martin's doctor used to work with Karvinista [sp?] for the Division, and she was the Commander during a previous battle on the planet time, at the temple of Atropos. The Ravagers (swarm & azure) were going to..... something, it's unclear. Pretty sure Jo Martin's doctor was who originally imprisoned the ravagers after the battle and put the mouri in place, probably at the behest of division.
It's not a lot more time with her, but I was kinda floored when I realised I was watching one of her memories.
Oh right, he was gonna reign in hell. forgot
It's really messed up to use phrases like "went native." It perpetuates the Indian savage trope and the belief that indigenous communities were/are lesser than those of their colonizers.
@@tayfay909 I thought the phrase "went native" referred to doing something as the locals would do rather than a tourist, such as use their language for instance. I can't remember what the context was though.
Just saw the context. Umm I don't see how you got the "savage trope" idea from it. Also calling them "Indians" is a lot more problematic.
I can't find a scrap of transphobia in a series that has no trans characters.
Christopher Eccelston is probably my fav. While everyone talks about how he's so angry and damaged but what I love about him is that there is such a kindness and warmth to him too. He is detached from his trauma and very blunt he also is someone you would feel comfortable talking to and would help you. Also he's very funny
Too bad about everything surrounding his tenure
An extra season or 2 would have cemented his place as the starting reboot doctor
Basically everyone started with Tennant or smith
He had one perfect season. Some of the stories were duff but Eccleston was consistently good and the perfect actor to revive the series. 👍🏻
The problem is: we know now, since Gallifrey *wasn’t* destroyed, that 9 was grumpy and moody for no reason. He could have just gone to the end of the universe and found it again. Remember? That’s why 12 didn’t find it - he went to the right place, but the wrong time.
So the same applies for nine - if he went to the right year at the end of the universe he’d find it and learn the truth.
@@Jamestopboy I don't like the gallifrey returning thing but his arc still works in the fact he just went through a war that lasted hundreds of years that would give anyone ptsd
I agree he's very funny and chirpy, and he has great banter with anyone he meets !
Capaldi's Doctor, to me, is everything the Doctor is personified to perfection, and I can't imagine someone doing it better than him (but I'd love to be proven wrong). The only thing I wish was that we got more of him before he went.
And some of the stories weren’t written well
He was always the highlight but that bar wasn’t always that hard to clear
@@FreeTheDonbas He did have the "scale model of war" speech though.
I still hope that he would appear in Big Finish
@@jmurray1110 Writing, writing, writing. Matters so much! Glad Vera made that differentiation, but it really matters so much.
@@jmurray1110 Personally I would say the quality of his era is underrated. Yes there are duds but overall I think it's a very strong era
Jodie’s last words “tag you’re it” was the moment I finally understood who her doctor was. She was about all optimism (sometimes to a fault) and childlike wonder. She was the happy go lucky doctor but she hid a darker side, hence her tendency to sometimes distance herself from her companions when dealing with real emotions
you just described the 11th doctor
@@QuackUp I feel like his doctor was more whacky and whimsical in my opinion, he was more the childish Doctor (not a negative opinion) whereas 13 more focuses on the wonder of that
But it took her ENTIRE RUN to understand that. :(
@@sabalomglitz6478 😭 hoping big finish can fill some gaps
@@QuackUp they are very similar
I don't know that anyone will ever knock Matt Smith from being number one in my eyes, but I love Capaldi and this is a great list! I love hearing people's different rankings and perspectives, it often makes me notice and appreciate new things about each doctor that hadn't really crossed my mind before.
McCoy was my first doctor and I love him above all others. The character of Ace and their relationship meant the world to me.
Rememberance of the Daleks is one of my favourite series. I just loved the relationship between Ace and Seven as well.
McCoy is definitely my favourite Classic Doctor.
Seven is my Doctor as well! 😊
The Tenth Doctor is mine, and probably always will be--but I thought your breakdown was spot on. I loved in 10 the moments that the alienness peeked through and you saw who he really was underneath the congenial veneer. His eyes would just go flat and there would be all of eternity in there. Matt is probably a close second and Peter third, I didn't connect with him until that last season, but his relationship with Missy and Bill was FANTASTIC.
It's funny, the only story wherein I liked the 10th's characterisation was Human Nature/Family of Blood. Which is quintessential 7th Doctor.
@@FreeTheDonbas Why gatekeep? Seems very unnecessary.
I hated Peter Capaldi's Doctor. He was insecure, misanthropic, sociopathic and a disgrace to the Doctor's core character. It was like if the Valeyard was an actual regeneration. However, Michael Jayston was INTENTIONALLY stomping all over the Doctor's core principles. Peter Capaldi did it through sheer incompetence.
If I didn't care so much about Clara Oswald, I would have never reached the end of Season 8. I only tuned in for Season 9 because she stayed to help Capaldi clean up his own mess. I never wanted Clara to leave but I couldn't wait to get rid of Capaldi. Hell, I probably would have cheered if she literally had slapped him into his next regeneration.
The thing I hate most is the awareness that Seasons 8 and 9 had the potential to be incredible. They had so many aspects that should have easily put them among the greatest eras in Doctor Who's entire history but Peter Capaldi dragged them down. I'd actually be more forgiving if Seasons 8 and 9 had just been bad seasons. Instead, they were great seasons with a bad Doctor.
@@tomnorton4277You even watch the Fourth Doctor of the Gothic era?
I'm so happy nine made it so high up. Because nine has a special place in my heart, he was of course the first Doctor that I've watched. And he pulled me in. He was somewhat melancholic, I liked his roughness. I think he has just some really stong scenes and dialogues/ monologue. Like the one about the survival of mankind. Or everybody lives. Or the tough guy act he puts on for "I'm going to save Rose Tyler" where he legitimately has a break down afterwards
1. Peter Capaldi
2. Tom Baker
3. Matt Smith
4. Christopher Eccleston
5. Colin Baker
6. Jon Pertwee
7. Jo Martin
8. Paul McGann
9. John Hurt
10. Sylvester McCoy
11. David Tennant
12. Patrick Troughton
13. William Hartnell
14. Peter Davison
15. Jodie Whittaker
Ooh, very close to mine… few swaps, but nice one!
It's a pleasure to see the Seventh Doctor getting a little love. The dark, mischevious and manipulative chess master, perfectly contrasted by a familial teacher/student bond with Ace, the explosive teenage rebel. They're total opposites in almost every way, yet completely inseperable - from cute and caring moments to bitter arguments over their differences. They have such great chemistry, helped by being such close friends in real life. It was great to see them together one more time in Power of the Doctor.
Matt Smith's Doctor is still my #1. I admit I had a hard time warming up to Capaldi's Doctor because it was such a jarring change, but with time he has grown on me...
I felt liturally the same. After Matt Smith left i hated that the Doctor isnt wihmsy a young man who deliveres jokes perfectly but ages 1000 years. in a second if he is pushed to the edge, anymore. But now i see him ass a great Doctor for very different reasons why i loved 11. Also the fact that Moffat got really tired at this point didn't help.
I cut Peter Davison a lot of slack: he had to replace Tom Baker. That in itself was an intimidating task. And his Doctor is, by necessity, very different. The intention was to make him stand away from Baker, and I think that was correct. I liked his slightly unsure, fairly vulnerable character, prone to error, paying for them. I felt, at the time, that he had some very good stories (it's been decades and I no longer remember them, but I do remember how I felt watching him). I think it's hard for people not having lived through the actual transition, to appreciate what Davison had to do - figure Troughton multiplied. It was hard, He did well. I personally would place him higher than very bottom.
My top 3 I cant differentiate genuinely are 10,11&12.
I know 10 feels so human but I like to think that’s the guilt from the time war, he met rose after the time war and for the first time felt happiness again and purpose again and that was through a human and so wanted to connected with humanity even more and was jealous of humanities simplicity compared to time lords. I think family of blood really summed that up for me- when John Smith says how the thought of love didn’t even cross the doctors mind in the plan. The 10th doctor wants love, whether that be romantic with rose or platonically with Donna and he only seemed capable of it as a human so he acts human like.
11 was a fresh start for the doctor. He went through so much as 10 and so when the first person he met as 11 was a child he learnt to have fun again. He craves that naivety and just relaxing and that’s bc the first person he met was a kid. After all the loss 10 experienced, he wanted a family a stable family that was his and so met the ponds and was happy. But there was that darkness he carried with him, he kept the trauma with him but he’d finally learned how to not move on but have a clean start and keep the childlikeness he craved when he met a child for the first time at the front of his life but still had that old soul and darkness with him. Ugh perfection
12 was then just so special as a doctor. He realised towards of the end of 11 that he wasn’t human and so it felt like with 12, he accepted it and stopped trying to fit in. He had that old soul but the kindest soul, he stopped letting people have excuses for the way they acted and held them responsible for their actions. He didn’t hide his disgust and he didn’t want to fit in anymore. He just wanted to help who he could. Ugh capaldi NAILED it.
4th Doctor. Iconic FOUR a reason! Loved that!
Tom Baker's picture in the thumbnail reminds me of the popular game "Tom Baker or normal?" It requires: A minimumof two participants, each with their own phone with a working camera. You sit across from each other or in a circle, depending on the number of participants. At the command of the first participant, all the other participants close their eyes and cover them with their hands while the first participant snaps a selfie while making a face that is either "Tom Baker or normal". They then aske the other participants (who are now allowed to open/uncover their eyes) : "Tom Baker or normal?" and they have to guess what kind of face they made. The answers are noted, and the selfie is shown, and each participant who guessed correctly is awarded a point. Then it's the next participants turn to to take a selfie while the others close/cover their eyes and afterwards guess if their selfie is "Tom Baker or normal?"
I feel like I rank 11th Doctor - my favourite Doctor - and the 7th Doctor highly for the same reason - I really dig the slightly Machiavellian and dark side of the character. Where he conceals things or pushes things in a certain direction For example, The Curse of Fenric and God Complex both even go as far as them purposely breaking their companion's faith in him for a moment. It's emotional manipulation which of course can be skeevy but it saves the day. And how they have a darkness in them, a storm brewing, a mood sometimes, but ultimately are the friend and hero still. Smith's Doctor, to me, is a mix of Troughton's and McCoy's too, which helps.
Exactly! I just posted a similar comment. You can definitely see some 2 and 7 in the 11th! 11 is my second favorite modern Doctor. I thought Matt Smith did an excellent job portraying a very “old soul” in a young body!
@@rainbeau88 Indeed! He's also my favourite of the modern era!
as much as i love the attitude and charisma the 10th doctor and David Tennant have, the goofiness and rage, he feels like a human pretending to be an alien, rather than an alien pretending to be human. which isn't bad, he just isn't what i want in the doctor. that's why 11 is one of my favorites. he's goofy and whimsical but gets kinda manipulative and rageful and never feels quite human despite almost making you think he is.
I was previously in the same boat regarding not really getting the 5th Doctor. Like, he was **nice,** but that's about it. But I rewatched season 19 recently (his first season) and it dawned on me: He's an exasperated babysitter, who is absolutely sick and tired of everyone's horseshit, but is still desperately trying to keep it together. He's nice in spite of obviously wanting to knock heads, and occasionally lets that irritation through in drips and drabs in the form of sarcasm.
12 will probably always be my favourite Doctor. He's such a great actor and had the best character development. I'm upset I didn't realise how good he was at the time but I remember really loving series 10 so much from release to this day. It's such a refreshing series of who. People who dropped off before Capaldi were really missing out.
This ranking makes me feel so happy. Your top 3 are the same as mine. I've always been a 7th Doctor kid, growing up in the 1990's, watching old VHS videos. IMO, his 2 last seasons are the strongest of the whole classic era. They ended on a high note and I'm glad that the somewhat underrated 7th Doctor has gotten more love in latter years. Thank's for a great Channel! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I deeply appreciate the 9th Doctor recognition. He means so much to me, and Eccleston is so good.
1. Tom Baker/Peter Capaldi
2. Patrick Troughton
3. Jon Pertwee
4. William Hartnell
5. Paul McGann
6. Matt Smith
7. David Tennant
8. John Hurt
9. Christopher Eccleston
10. Sylvester McCoy
11. Jo Martin
12. Colin Baker
13. Jodie Whittaker
14. Peter Davison
You're the second person I've seen rank Peter Capaldi as number 1 and it really makes me feel better about myself wanting to have him at number 1...for me it's a toss up between 12 and 10.
7 is my all time favorite classic Doctor, for the record.
The 6th Doctor (my favourite Doctor) being so high in comparison to his usual place warms my heart. Colin is a fantastic actor and a wonderful choice for The Doctor and Big Finish get all my love for proving just how good he really is.
To me, Capaldi's speech to Missy and The Master in The Doctor Falls is the purest distillation of who The Doctor is we've ever gotten. Tennant will probably always be MY Doctor, but Capaldi is the truest expression of The Doctor as a character in my opinion.
Baker, McGann and Capaldi all be able to play the doctor in whatever way the writers want
This list is so chaotic and I love it but at the same time I’m emotionally scarred from having 5 so low on the list ahhh the conflict!
This 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
If you've not done so already I highly recommend the audio Afterlife. The relationship breakdown between Ace and 7 in part 1 and a certain speech he gives at the end of the story is enough for McCoy to be my favourite Doctor. It's wonderfully written and acted.
My list:
15. Jodie Whitaker
14. John Hurt
13. William Hartnell
12. Jon Pertwee
11. Jo Martin
10. Colin Baker
09. David Tennant
08. Peter Davison
07. Christopher Ecelston
06. Paul McGann
05. Matt Smith
04. Tom Baker
03. Patrick Troughton
02. Sylvester McCoy
And by a large margin
01. Peter Capaldi
I concur when you say Peter Davison is a lovely man. I have also met him. The same day I also met Colin Baker also a really lovely man. One of his daughters is also called Lucy so we bonded over that. Also same day I met Katy Manning. The woman is mad as a box of cats but also super lovely. The three of them just had the warmest and most comforting energies about them of anyone I have ever met. Beautiful people.
Thank you for articulating so well why I love Capaldi so much. His story ended eight days before my egg cracked, and I don't know if it would have without having watched and loved his journey first.
Christopher Eccleston is by far the most underrated doctor
I don't count War and Fugitive as they are side Doctors not series leads.
I really like all I watched/experienced and for the longest time I refused the notion of "this or that one is MY Doctor" but then 12 came along and it changed. And yes, you said it best: the platonic ideal. He is indeed.
Much love to you Vera!
Unfortunately, the war doctor feels like he was unnecessary version of the doctor. Even if they couldnt get Eccleston they could have gone with McGann. Id love to see Jo Martin come back to the show in future. I dont know if Russel would do so but it would be lovely to bring her back especially cause she is magnetic
War Doctor should have been McGann. The change to his characterisation, justified by the lengths he had to go through in the Time War.
In my opinion there should never had been a War Doctor or Fugitive to begin with not only have they messed up the numbers but it now treats us like idiots that we thought it was McGann's Doctor the fought in the war which would had make more sense John Hurt is a great actor but they shouldn't had retconned him in.
@@joshuaverran9443 It's writers/showrunners wanting to make a lasting impact on the show. Ultimately, neither are anything to get excited about. Since they both have just ended up being _another_ Valeyard. A plot device for that particular season. Without Big Finish, the War Doctor plotline ceased to be after Day of the Doctor. The Fugitive Doctor plotline didn't go anywhere before or after Flux.
You can stick to the numbered Doctors and it doesn't really impact the narrative.
Sadly, have only watched new who. So,
1. Matt Smith
2. Peter Capaldi
3. Christopher Eccleston
5. David Tennat
6. War Doctor John Hurt & Fugitive Doctor - Jo Martin .... would have loved to see more from them to decide better
7. sorry Jodie Whittaker .... but I just didnt feel as much
god i love capaldi i need more series 10
[about the 11th doctor]: *"I can, at times, be prisoner of the moment"*
So would you say... Prisoner of the Moment has escaped? Thank you, thank you, I'm here all day
Edit - Also, re:"acting like a buffoon so the enemies underestimate" made me think of Uncle Iroh from Avatar.
my favourite Doctor ping pongs a between Eccleston, Tennant, Smith, and Capaldi on a whim. I adore all of them for very different reasons. but I will say that Capaldi's portrayal feels like the most genuine and pure distillation of who The Doctor is, that we've ever seen. to the point where after Capaldi's era, all of the other incarnations feel like a mask.
Probably likely to change but for now:
Turns out I actually agree with most of your rankings
15)The War Doctor-John Hurt
14)The 5th Doctor-Peter Davison
13)The 13th Doctor-Jodie Whittaker
12)The Fugitive Doctor-Jo Martin
11)The 1st Doctor-William Hartnell
10)The 3rd Doctor-John Pertwee
9)The 8th Doctor-Paul McGann
8)The 6th Doctor-Colin Baker
7)The 11th Doctor-Matt Smith
6)The 9th Doctor-Christopher Eccleston
5)The 7th Doctor-Sylvester McCoy
4)The 10th Doctor-David Tennant
3)The 2nd Doctor-Patrick Troughton
2)The 4th Doctor-Tom Baker
1)The 12th Doctor-Peter Capaldi
It's so tough, but I agree in a lot of ways. I've not seen as much Classic Who as I'd have liked, but I've seen at least one story of each doctor. My personal ranking would be:
15. Five
14. War
13. Thirteen
12. One
11. Fugitive
10. Three
9. Six
8. Four
7. Seven
6. Eight
5. Ten
4. Nine
3. Two
2. Eleven
1. Twelve
I really hope that Classic Who is also moved to Disney+ next year. I would love to experience more of the Doctors that I haven't seen much of. At the end of the day, I still think it's remarkable how over nearly 60 years, all of these performances still rink so true as being the Doctor. Every single Doctor still feels like the Doctor. I think by the very nature of how actors are put into the role, they take little aspects of each past incarnation, and that amalgamation makes them all feel like one and the same, in a deeper more meta way.
Also, I love seeing Twelve at the top of your list. I would go as far as to say Capaldi is the most underrated.
1. Tenth Doctor
2. Eighth Doctor
3. Sixth Doctor
4. Ninth Doctor
5. Seventh Doctor
6. Twelfth Doctor
7. Eleventh Doctor
8. Third Doctor
9. Fourth Doctor
10. Second Doctor
11. First Doctor
12. Fugitive Doctor
13. War Doctor
14. Fifth Doctor
15. Thirteenth Doctor
David Tennant’s at the top for me, because of that human element/dark streak
Capaldi is the best doctor. As we grow up and change we relate to him more and more.
Matt smith and Peter Capaldi are my top two, i highly approve of your list, i loved your respect for number 7 and 2
Capaldi is my #1 as well, I love him and his journey. Him and Bill are perfect together and they probably won't fall down my list for a long time either.
Eight is my second favorite. I love his exceptional stubbornness. I remember several times in the audios where he's give a terrible choice and he's just say no, I'm not playing this game. That's why is glad he didn't come back to be the one who fought, because I love that he's The Doctor that refused to fight. Though I would have loved to see him back.
I have the same issue as you with Five, but in the audios Nyssa became his definitive companion for me. I didn't even like her in the show originally, but she shines in the audios. I've rewatched her episodes afterwards, and the personality was all there, but she doesn't get enough time with the Tardis being so crowded. This experience helped me like Yaz in her first season.
Thirteen ranks higher for me than you. I feel like I kind of know who she is. She's very direct, I think one of her most defining lines is "You weren't at Grace's funeral". She doesn't play the fool as much as others, instead she tries to stay focus on figuring out how she's going to win. That's why she's always repeating what's going on, to try to sum it up in the hopes of sparking that solution. Then there's the whole keeping secrets from the companions thing, which I wasn't really a fan of. I feel like it worked better want Seven did that. I would have liked it that was something she overcame by or during Flux, but I didn't see that.
This list is heresy! And thats what I love about Doctor Who! How everyone has personal reasons for ranking their favorite Doctors. With me I came into the show at the end of Tom Bakers era at an age where I was too young to really understand what was going on and also with the idea that he had been the Doctor forever, but then really grew up with the fifth Doctor so while he may not be so high on my list of favorites I have a real love for a lot of the stories of that era. Then of course as I got a little older I was able to really appreciate the seventh Doctor who was my favorite for years, having experienced the hearbreaking 'end' of the series with him. Have to say as in OG fan David Tennant actually replaced him though as my overall favorite, to the point that I am sort of biased against Matt Smith simply for replacing him. Anyway, fun list and I love the fact that I vehemently disagree with so much of it lol!
Ok I am going to have to listen to Big Finish with #6. I HATE him. Would like to have that change.
Start with the Marion conspiracy, then if you enjoy that go to jubilee.
Doctor Who and the Pirates is a great place to get an idea of how good 6th Doctor can be
@@maxhurst3423 love it!
The 11th doctor is, and will always be my favourite Doctor.
I love all your reasons for your order! You helped me put into words what I love about certain doctors and helped me see a new perspective with some of them too. Was surprised at how high the 7th doctor was on your list! He used to be a really big favourite of mine too. The 12th doctor is my favourite too for similar reasons. If the BBC didn’t force him to leave I wouldn’t be surprised if he would have stayed as long as Tom Baker in the role. That’s such a great tragedy to me that that didn’t happen, he really was perfect for the role and you could tell he enjoyed every minute of it. I’ve been reading 12th doctor comics to keep myself satisfied at the moment, I hope big finish will do him justice some day too.
P.S. Thanks for the 6th doctor big finish recs!
I have so much trouble ranking the Doctors. I love them in all their forms and there's something about every Doctor that I think they do better than anyone else. Having said that, I do think that the First, Second, Fourth, Sixth in the audios, Seventh, Ninth and Twelfth are consistently at the higher end of my list! I should state as well that the first Doctor I saw was the First on reruns on the ABC here in Australia (still very sad we're losing broadcasting rights to Disney), but that the Ninth Doctor is properly 'my Doctor'.
Glad to see 7 above 4. Definitely my favourite classic Doctor 👍
Interesting rankings. For me, Tom will always be my first place, but I'm incredibly happy to see Sylvester and Peter ranked so high. Sylvester was always my second place, and then David and Matt were sort of tied for third. But Peter deserves so much love and praise because he was amazing. And maybe it's because I was so young and impressionable at the time (I was 5 or 6 when Davison took the role) but I always enjoyed the Fifth, even if his stories were often times terrible.
As a funny aside, when I typed in Peter my phone suggested Cushing as the next word, so apparently my phone wishes that the Cushing films were canon. 🤣🤣🤣
My favourite doctor has changed so much throughout the years. As a kid at the height of the tennant era, 10 was my favourite (he's now towards the lower end). As a teenager binging classic who, 3 was my favourite (he's now middling for me). And now as an adult having experienced a heck of a lot of big finish, 6 is my favourite and will likely remain so. Honestly, I really adore all the doctors apart from 13 who I could never get on board with, and 5 who very rarely clicks with me (aside from some hyperspecific cases such as Caves of Androzani).
This might be an impossible task but I'd love if you'd think of doing a tardis team rating
I’ve got a lot of classic stories to catch up on before I do that. Same reason I’ve only covered modern era companions.
@@CouncilofGeeks Yeah its a big task, but I hope you manage to get there
After a recent rewatch of Classic and New Who, mine would have to be:
1. Paul McGann
2. Peter Capaldi
3. Matt Smith
4. Patrick Troughton
5. Peter Davison
6. Tom Baker
7. Sylvester McCoy
8. John Pertwee
9. William Hartnell
10. Colin Baker
11. John Hurt
12. Christopher Eccleston
13. Jo Martin
14. Jodie Whittaker
15. David Tennant
Tennant last? How come? (disclaimer: he isnt in my top 3 either)
@@monteepython84 I just really can’t bring myself to like him. He gets all of the worst moments of RTD’s writing and self-indulgence in a way that I think Eccleston avoided. I personally don’t like RTD’s writing or characters generally (I’m more of a Moffat enjoyer) and series 2-4 just aren’t my thing. I know they’re very popular though and it’s great that so many people enjoy them, I just haven’t quite got there yet.
@@nocturne8333 Gotcha. Me too, I love the Moffat era. And I like the mystery box arcs, respectfully disagreeing with out host here ;)
putting jo martin directly after jodie is foul
I resonated a lot with this ranking. It's all a bit sad that Jodie never quite worked, but the 7th and 11th are my own platonic ideals for what the Doctor should be (for what that's worth).
My favorite is currently Troughton. I have previously said McGann, and truthfully he might shoot right on up to the top again as I make my way through his impressively long BF career.
But Capaldi has never ever loved from my second favorite. Plenty of people have played a Doctor; he played The Doctor’s Doctor.
the scot docs are my 2 favs as well! (though the list is constantly shifting based on what i want to watch/read/listen to). Series ten encapsulates everything I love and understand about the Doctor perfectly, and it's a real shame people dropped off from the show after smith left. I really like hearing your assessments, though I try to stay away from these kinds of lists generally, because they tend to be exactly the same: in bottom place colin baker and in top place david tennant. Everyone's entitled to their opinions, but for me those rankings are so predictable and the takes are lukewarm at best.
Oh, you should definitely do a list of best eras. 😊
Bottom three would have to be War Doctor, Fugitive Doctor, and 8th Doctor, all for the same reason, not enough time to have done much.
Next lower three would be 5th, 6th, and 13th. I haven’t seen Big Finish, so 6th is not great. I never really connected to Davidson much, (Adric, Kamelion and Vislor are arguably the worst of all the companions) and the whole John Nathan-Turner run was bad. Whittaker for me showed signs of promise in her second season, but it seems like someone (JW? CC?) was capable of better but simple chose not to be, I wanted to like Flux because I think they tried really hard to make it good, but things outside their control prevented that. At least her specials were all really good.
Middle three I would have 7th, who had nothing to work with by this point and was better than could have been expected given the circumstances. But if you remove the context of all the behind the scenes issues and just look at it on it’s own, it would be generous to say B-. Also in the middle group, for the same reason on both, are 1st and 9th. Basically the show didn’t know what it was doing, they tried some stuff, some worked and some didn’t. There are certainly highlights on both (Empty Child/Doctor Dances is #1 story of whole 60 year run, likewise from Dalek Invasion of Earth until the end of season 2 is really good before constant casting changes started to ruin things)
At #6 I would have 10th, I know a lot of people love him, but I just never really connected with him and he seem to stick around too long (more on that later).
#5 I have 3rd, mainly because I’ve been re-watching the classic era and he’s really, really good, other than season 11 which is absolute garbage. Seasons 7, 8, 9, and 10 are great.
#4 I have 12th, another great Doctor that had some amazing episodes but fizzled out in their last season. Series 8 has Mummy on Orient Express, Series 9 has the stuff with Ashildr, and The Husbands of River Song. Then series 10 he was just kind of lost without Clara.
#3 I have 4th, Tom Baker is great. From his first episode in Robot all the way up to a Key to Time is amazing (honestly the whole run of seasons 12-15 is even better than Pertwee’s 7-10). However, there are also seasons 16-18 and you can see the quality start to drop going into the nosedive that lead up to Trial of a Time Lord.
#2 is my favourite 11th. I love Matt Smith, plus we get Amy and Rory and River. There is another 8 episodes after Angels Take Manhatten. Jenna Coleman as Clara has as little chemistry with Matt Smith as Elizabeth Sladen’s Sarah Jane Smith had with Jon Pertwee.
Which is why #1 is Patrick Troughton’s 2nd Doctor. He has the best companion in Jamie. Once they figure things out by the Evil of the Daleks it’s strong the whole rest of the time right up to the War Games. He is the only Doctor that didn’t have a decline in his last season and he alone left at the top of his game.
Hartnell definitely had a story arc. His important arc is why the timeless child retcon doesn't work for me. In my humble opinion, it could work it it were revealed that the timeless child was SUSAN. The Doctor might never have known that she was adopted by her parents. It even gives a reason why he (Hartnell-Doctor) would have left Galifrey. He wouldn't need to know of an existence of a timeless child, he would only need to know that Susan was in some way endangered on Galifrey.
In the very early shows, if I recall correctly, he didn't tend to get involved with other planets happenings. He was protective of Susan, and to a lesser extent, he was a bit protective of Ian and Barbra. Beyond that, he wasn't someone who did things for the universe until the Dalek invasion of earth. He left Susan on earth where she could be relatively safe while he was out making a target of himself.
Twelve is definitely one of my favourites. But another favourite of mine is Thirteen. Ik a lot of ppl don't like her and I get their issues (the reasonable ones, not the bigoted ones) there has always been something incredibly special about her to me. Idk, maybe I'm just biased bcus she was my first proper Doctor but I love her.
My ranking of the doctors I've actually seen.
10
11
12
9
Fugitive
13
War
Eight has grown on me a lot since I started reading the books. To be honest, he never really clicked for me on audio, be it Breathless Eight from the Charley/Lucie stuff or Leather Eight from Dark Eyes on. In the books, though, he benefits hugely from the introduction of Fitz, a companion who compliments him perfectly and brings out the best in him.
I was SO happy to see Ace and #7 come back together in POTD!
POTD sounds like Pot D
Read it as planet of the dead ima die
Best part of that episode for me.
I find it hard to rank them. I love them all. My favourite is Matt Smith, but that’s only really sentimental reasons rather than anything that genuinely makes him better than the others. I’m also very partial to the earliest Doctors, Hartnell, Troughton, Pertwee and Baker #1 (what can I say, I love the classics, I love that era of the show). I love the crotchety old First Doctor, the impish, Chaplin-like personality of the Second Doctor (something I like in particular about him, while with other Doctors I realise that they are putting on a front to pretend they’re just silly and weird, but are really incredibly powerful beings, Troughton’s the opposite, the power is the front with him), Pertwee’s absolute charisma, and Baker’s brilliant eccentricity. Also, Sylvester McCoy is a favourite.
6 in big finish is everything I want the Doctor to be and more. He's sharp, he's capable, he's witty, hell he's even sweet when he wants to be. He's still got a bit of an ego, but not so much that he becomes unlikable (very reminiscent of late era 1st doctor in that way). But at the same time he's really compassionate, arguably one of the most compassionate incarnations there has ever been. And what goes hand in hand with that is his sheer passion. I think that's the word that really defines 6, passionate. Passionate about the universe, about knowledge, about life, and above all, passionate about doing the right thing. It is this, this technicolor fire that burns at the very centre of his being that puts the 6th Doctor over and above all rest for me.
As someone whose favourite classic is the first doctor I think the fact you haven’t seen his era in order hinders your ranking. You rightly love Capaldi due to his arc but Hartnell’s arc is just as great but I don’t think you’ve really seen how you’ve developed.
It tough to me to choose who I prefer between 10th and 12th since I got a different relationship with those two.
10th is like, MY Doctor, the Doctor I would want to follow, the Doctor whose I would be a companion of.
12th, is the Doctor, the person even, that I would want to be.
You make a very good point about how our views change over time. Within the context of Doctor Who, I think many people move away from then-favouties to now-favourites.
My personal favourite is Peter Capaldi, but I acknowledge other Doctors had some amazing stories.
Variety is the spice of life. Peace.
Out of curiosity, where would you rank David Bradley's portrayal of the 1st doctor? Did his portrayal factor into your opinion when making this list or was your opinion purely on Hartnell's portrayal?🙂
I thought that his portrayal of the Doctor in... what was that episode... Capaldi's last episode.... was kind of off putting. From what I remember of the First Doctor he was never quite so blatantly stodgy and old fashioned as far as male and female roles and such. It seemed as a commentary more than a true characterization. Granted my memory of the First Doctor was maybe 3 or 4 stories but I think I'm right.
@@MarkEdwarMurphy you are right. though I will say, I don't blame Bradley at all for it. I think he did as good a job as he could with the material he was given. I'm really angry at Moffat for writing the first Doctor as blantantly sexist when he wasn't in the original run. Like, the REAL first Doctor literally had his view of humanity changed for the better by a woman for freaks sake!
Even the smack bottom line was not sexist in it's original context. The Doctor feeling like he could threaten Susan with that has nothing to do with her gender, and everything to do with her being his grandchild. He's disciplining a younger family member that he feels responsible for, after she caused some genuine trouble. Not to say it's not problematic still. Spanking, while perhaps seen as acceptable at the time, has since been proven a bad means of discipline. But if they were going to call it out, they should have made it clear what the actual problem with it is.
The way they did it in Twice Upon a Time makes it easy for it to be dismissed as just another sexist line, due to the Doctor being portraid as sexist before and it's not made clear why he feels he has the authority to discipline Bill, which makes it seem like it's because she's a woman. I wouldn't even be surprised if that was the intended reading of the Moffat penned version of the line, since he seems to think the First Doctor was Sexist. His reason for threating Bill with a 'smack bottom' is also ridiculous. Him thinking a grown woman should get spanked for using slightly bad language is insane.
It's especially annoying when they could have made that line work in a way that was actually true to the character. make Bill's offense worse and make him feel like he has the authority to discipline her due to her being the 12th Doctor's student (and make it clear that's the reason. nothing to do with gender) and then it you can call it out for what it actually is. Not sexist, but a problematic idea of what's an acceptable way to discipline younger family members and students.
Sorry of the rant, but I'm a massive First Doctor fan and Moffat's writing of him just pisses me off so much.
I was happy to see someone ranked Sylvester as highly as I do. I put Ace/7 as the number 2 combo ever right behind Jamie and Patrick but the difference is very slim. Capaldi is my favorite new era Doctor by far but 4th on my list right behind Tom Baker. I agree with your comparison of Davidson and Whitaker also. Jodi to me seemed very much like a female Peter Davidson. I do think had Jo Martin been given a longer run though she might have cracked my to 5. Thanks for the great Video!
With the definitive companion I started thinking about the 10th doctor who has a different companion ever season for me it would be rose but I have a feeling a lot of people would consider it to be Donna which I do also get
Honestly, I'm glad to see someone who appreciates the Ninth Doctor as much as you do. Even though I started watching Doctor Who long after his run, I did start from the beginning of the reboot, so he was my first Doctor. Very quickly, he became my Doctor, and to this day, he's still one of my favorites. He stands out so much from the other Doctors, and I think that's to his benefit. There's no flashy outfit, no special hairdo, just... a strange, alien man and his box.
While I would argue that certain Doctors, the Thirteenth in particular, deserve some higher spots, I can see where you're coming from with all of them. I can understand every reason you've given for where you placed them, and I can certainly get why it might be hard to relate to the Thirteenth Doctor. If you don't get invested in her early on, it's hard to do so until near the very end. It's possible Power of the Doctor might actually affect your opinion of her, though, so I'm interested to see where she would rank after that. :)
Loved the video and all the descriptions of why you like each Doctor!
Something I have come to appreciate is that how old I was when I first met each doctor played a bigger role in how I connected to the character. Thus with my all time favourite has a lot to do with being a teenager during his time Jon Pertwee has always been my favourite. I don't have any logical reason for it just pure emotion. Anyway I appreciate the listing and your reasoning.
I always interpreted Tegan as the fifth Doctor’s main companion, at least through season 19. There’s a steady arc to their relationship as the Doctor continuously tries and fails to bring her back home in time to start her new job. Throughout the season we watch her lose all hope and then come around to her new life traveling in the TARDIS, giving her a nice inner conflict when the finale sees them chase the Master right to the time and place she’d been so determined to get back to. I won’t spoil how it pans out, but it’s in my top five Doctor Who finales of all time.
Video idea: recommended material for each doctor. I.e. episodes you recommend, audio stories, and even print ones (if it's easily discernable which Doctor it stars)
So glad to see you’ve gone up a lot on McCoy. He’s def become my favorite doctor and his relationship with Ace is prob the best in the whole series
So glad that my favorite doctor (7th) has risen in your ranks.
I realize it will be years until your next version of this, and I expect none of appearances in Power of the Doctor were enough to shift any placements on your list, but I am curious if you found any to be noticeably above or below expectations based upon your rankings?
My favorite is Smith because he really is "Just a madman with a box", and I love that The Doctor is just a time Lord who ran away with a box.
TLDW: You like your Doctors with Scottish accents 🤪
(Capaldi's still my favorite too! But when I was missing Capaldi I watched Pertwee and his red velvet coat.)
As a Scot, I prefer my Doctors with Scottish accents. Which is why will never forgive RTD for making David Tennant do his Doctor with that awful English accent. Makes no sense.
Literally just made up my own version of this ranking the other day, so I thought I'd share. Now, I'm admittedly terrible at faves, so some of the rankings (especially in the 'muddy middle' where things get a bit difficult) could change at any point. But I still thought it was a fun exercise, especially after we just had a new regeneration:
DOCTORS RANKED (as of October 2022):
1. Seventh Doctor
2. Twelfth Doctor
3. TIED: Second Doctor and Eleventh Doctor
4. Fourth Doctor (heh, he's number four, I just noticed -- LOL)
5. TIED: Eighth Doctor and Tenth Doctor
6. Fifth Doctor
7. Sixth Doctor
8. First Doctor
9. Third Doctor
10. Ninth Doctor
11. Thirteenth Doctor
NOTES: Yes, I left out the War Doctor and the Jo Martin Doctor (and Handy, etc) just to make things easier. And yes, I had two ties, but I kept switching them back and forth in the ranking and I just eventually gave up because I couldn't decide which one I liked more in the spot (again, I'm terrible at faves).
I have to admit I have 2 - Baker because he was my introduction to Doctor Who, and Tennant because I enjoyed his run the most. They're both important portrayals to me
Here's how I would rank them. For similar reasons.
1. 6
2. 11
3. 8
4. 12
5. 10
6. 4
7. 7
8. 1
9. 9
10. 3
11. 2
12. Fugitive
13. War
14. 5
15. 13
13 really only goes at the bottom because her character does quite a few morally reprehensible things. Otherwise she'd probably be above War.
The Marian Conspiracy was the first thing I listened to/watched with the Sixth Doctor and from the moment when he walked into Evelyn Smythe's classroom all bluster and self-importance I fell in love. I knew he was something special, above and beyond any other Doctor I'd seen up until that point. And he did not disappoint. Every single time I listen to a Sixth Doctor audio I feel like I'm at home. Especially, as the video said, with Evelyn, but he's got a fantastic relationship with his other companions. Mel, Flip, Constance, Charley, even Peri. The relationship with Peri is actually a fantastic one because of what she's gone through with him and how he's tried to make amends.
Classic Doctors:
1. Colin Baker (with or without Big Finish)
2. Patrick Troughton
3. William Hartnell
4. Sylvester McCoy
5. Paul McGann (with Big Finish)
6. Tom Baker
7. Jon Pertwee
8. Peter Davison
Revival:
1. Peter Capaldi
2. Christopher Eccleston
3. Matt Smith
4. John Hurt (With Big Finish)
5. Jodie Whittaker
6. David Tennant
7. Jo Martin (May change when BF expands on her character)
You are wrong about Davison.... but you're so right about Capaldi that I'll let it slide 😄
Hell yeah my favorite is at #7 instead of being at the bottom like most lists put him at. Also yes both of those big finish stories are amazing
The biggest problem Jodie had was she sticks too closely to the scripts without injecting herself into them, something which is basically required from actors for this role, so we never get who her Doctor is!
Still not sure I would include Jo Martin, just because it's not at all clear where she comes in the line. They say she was before Hartnell but we know that can't be true because of the Tardis.
Oooohohohoh, poking the bear with War. A very niche bear, not many are acquainted with him.
Jodi's doctor to me was a character with so much darkness they tried to hide it was humor, leaning into the confusion and her happy for lucky nature was trying to hide something so much darker. She had a fear of the timeless child from the time it was first mentioned in ghost monument. She hid it. She hid it behind a wounderlust that was very much real but also there's a hint of severe depression.
I absolutely agree. There was something definitely hiding, but her wonder of the universe was a refreshing change from some stuff before hand. I just wish they leaned into it more, as it often came across as very surface. Fingers crossed for Big Finish 🤞
Capaldi's Twelve is my no.1 fave as well, with him it was love at first sight for me. ❤️ Such a striking, layered, charismatic performance.
Eccleston is my favorite. He was my first, and there's just something about him. Haven't really seen anything other than 1st, 9th and 10th doctor, so I can't really say much about any of them. I'm slowly making my way through watching all of the entire show, and then maybe getting around to Big Finish later as well. All this being said though, if someone asks me to think of Dr. Who, the one that immediatly pops up in my mind is Tom Baker. SCARF, YO.
1. Smith.
2. Troughton.
3. Eccleston.
4. McCoy.
5. Hartnell.
6. Martin.
7. C. Baker.
8. Capaldi.
9. Whittaker.
10. Davison.
11. McGann.
12. T. Baker.
13. Hurt.
14. Pertwee.
15. Tennant.
For me this is my list based on the Doctor himself, the way that he is, his personality and the way that he carry’s himself, amount of time onscreen and stories are irrelevant to the list:
15. Thirteenth Doctor
14. Fugitive Doctor
13. War Doctor
12. Seventh Doctor
11. Fifth Doctor
10. First Doctor
9. Third Doctor
8. Sixth Doctor
7. Eighth Doctor
6. Twelfth Doctor
5. Second Doctor
4. Fourth Doctor
3. Eleventh Doctor
2. Ninth Doctor
1. Tenth Doctor
7, 2 and 12 are my favourites. And for bottom 10, 13 and War. The middle ones swap around.
Like anyone I have MY Doctor and despite being in high school when Eccleston was The Doctor and Tennant was The Doctor and growing up in England where everyone who watched the original had THEIR Doctor, MY Doctor is always going to be Matt Smith and yeah not all his stories were great but you never get over your first.
I have to say, your placement of McCoy shocked me!
My list:
1) 11
2) 12
3) 8
4) 6
5) 2
6) 4
7) 7
8) War (Yea)
9/10) 9/10 (Very interchangeable for me)
11) 3
12) 1
13) 5
14) 13 (It's a shame, I want her higher but here we are)
Don't feel there's enough of Fugitive to rank her yet
We love to see Eighth Doctor and Moffat Doctors appreciation.