Every Modern-era Doctor Who Episode Ranked (Part 4 - 50-26)

We’re continuing our ranking of every ‘Doctor Who’ episode from the modern era. Into the top 50 now and there are some brilliant stories coming up! If you have any friends who have never seen ‘Doctor Who’, these are the kind of episodes you should be thinking about showing them.

50. Knock Knock

Agatha Christie’s Poirot is an evil landlord with a daughter made of wood and an army of bugs that crawl out of walls; what more do you want?! David Suchet is excellent in his guest appearance and seeing the Doctor’s interactions with Bill’s student friends is enormously enjoyable. Maybe my opinion of this episode was enhanced by the fact I watched it when I was at university, so could I sympathise with Bill and her housemate’s struggling to find decent accommodation. It’s not groundbreaking, but it does the job well.

49. The Angels Take Manhattan

OK, maybe this has a plot that’s all over the place, the Weeping Angels are at their least scary point and an evil Statue of Liberty is pretty silly. However, ‘The Angels Take Manhattan’ makes it into the top 50 purely because of that heartbreaking ending. The goodbye to Amy and Rory is incredibly emotional, made the more gut-wrenching by Matt Smith’s brilliant reaction, and hearing Amy’s goodbye to the Doctor in her novel is a very moving end to two of the most popular companions of the modern era.

48. Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel

The first appearance of the Cybermen to the modern series is handled really well in this double episode by giving them an alternate origin story. The parallel universe design of the infamous villain is the most terrifying version of the whole show and are well led by a fairly pantomime (but effective) performance from Roger Lloyd-Pack. The goodbye to Mickey is also well done (why did he not have a spin-off series??) in a story which is scary, exciting and at times quite emotional.

47. The Girl Who Waited

This is all about Karen Gillan who gives an outstanding performance as both the younger and older versions of Amy Pond. ‘The Girl Who Waited’ is one of the strongest portrayals of the Amy-Rory relationship and culminates in a sucker-punch ending where Rory has to let one die to save the other. The dialogue here is beautifully written, especially the moment where Rory states to an older Amy ‘I don’t care that you got old, I care that we didn’t grow old together.’ A big shout out as well to the stunning production design of this episode; those white sets look fantastic.

46. The End of the World

Although ‘Rose’ reintroduced us to the Doctor and started the new series, ‘The End of the World’ feels like the true start point of the reboot. For one thing, it has a much stronger plot with engaging characters like Jabe (the tree lady) and the evil Cassandra, but also provides a much clearer image to new viewers of the inventiveness and the imagination that this show has to offer. The building of the relationship between Rose and Ecclestone’s Doctor properly starts here and the first mentions of the Time War let us into more of what has been happening since the show has been off air.

45. The Haunting of Villa Diodati

The lone Cyberman is a great villain that was cleverly used in this episode and unfortunately mishandled in series 12’s finale. Jodie Whittaker gives one of her strongest outing's of the series here, especially in her interactions with Mary Shelley and the cocky Lord Byron. Director Emma Sullivan does a fabulous job of creating the chilling and tense atmosphere of the villa in a genuinely creepy episode.

44. The Shakespeare Code

I may be biased as a big Shakespeare fan, but the references and in-jokes to his plays and sonnets make ‘The Shakespeare Code’ a hugely entertaining watch. Dean Lennox Kelly gives a strong performance as the Bard himself and although the Carrionites may not be the most original villain, the plot is captivating enough to hook in audiences and start to paint a clearer picture of what the Doctor and Martha’s relationship will look like throughout series 3.

43. Cold War

The Ice Warriors make their first appearance in the show since 1974 and to great effect. Grand Master Skaldak is a compelling villain who is well explored in this exciting and claustrophobic episode set aboard a Russian submarine. A great cast including Liam Cunningham and Tobias Menzies of ‘Game of Thrones’ give solid performances in what is Mark Gatiss’ best Doctor Who episode.

42. The Magician’s Apprentice/The Witch’s Familiar

Series 9’s opener gives us a very different portrayal of the classic enemy Davros to what we have seen before. The interactions he has here with Capaldi’s Doctor are some of the most interesting we’ve seen between the character’s since Davros’ introduction in the Tom Baker serial ‘Genesis of the Daleks.’ Michelle Gomez is also at her best here and her scenes with Clara are some of the most entertaining moments of the series. That twist introduction is also a brilliant episode opening which will certainly stick in the memory for a long time.

41. A Town Called Mercy

The strongest story of one of the weaker series in the show’s run, ‘A Town Called Mercy’ is a fantastic portrayal of the moral dilemmas that the Doctor must go through in his attempts to right the wrongs of the universe. The Gunslinger is an interesting concept for a villain and director Saul Metzstein makes the most of the wild west setting. The moral uncertainty of the Doctor allows for some great dialogue and some particularly tense moments involving the alien doctor Kahler-Jex.

40. Amy’s Choice

Toby Jones can do pretty much anything as an actor and completely steals the show here as the Dream Lord. ‘Amy’s Choice’ creates a really interesting drama around two timelines and the characters trying to figure out which is real and which is fake. It may be quite a surreal set-up, but the script is one of the strongest of Matt Smith’s run and the episode is one of the most satisfying watch’s of the generally pretty strong series 5.

39. Fugitive of the Judoon

There are so many twists and turns in this it’s hard to keep up! 'Fugitive of the Judoon' is complete and utter fun from beginning to end in quite a change of tone from the usual episodes of Chibnall’s run. The Judoon are really well handled here and the reveal of the ‘Ruth’ Doctor succeeds in having the big impact the producers would have wanted. Meanwhile, the return of Captain Jack is very welcome as John Barrowman is always brilliant, although his cameo is far too brief and I hope this is only a preview of more to come.

38. The God Complex

This is a great concept that is brilliantly executed. The eclectic characters are given life by a clever screenplay that dives into the themes of faith and belief which modern Who hasn’t really done before. The death of Rita is particularly emotional, but so is the eventual demise of the Creature, even if it is a Minotaur. Nick Hurran has proved himself to be a great Doctor Who director and this is a perfect example of that.

37. Demons of the Punjab

Love conquers all is the motif of the Doctor, and no more is it better demonstrated than in ‘Demons of the Punjab’. It’s also a beautiful depiction of family and the impact that the Partition of India had on everyday people and their loved ones. The episode is accompanied by a haunting and compelling score that reaches its most poignant moment when the Doctor must walk away from saving Prem. Yaz’s family are great and it’s a shame they aren’t used more often, so it feels right that this episode is able to shed a bit more light on them and Yaz’s heritage.

36. The Runaway Bride

What a beginning to Donna! Catherine Tate is excellent, showing she’s both a brilliant dramatic and comic actor. ‘The Runaway Bride’ started the trend of Christmas Specials being a bit more silly and comedic in tone than most Who episodes and this probably does it better than any other. How ironic then that the highlights of the episode are whenever the Doctor has to think or talk about Rose. David Tennant brilliantly portrays the pain and heartbreak that the Doctor is feeling, whilst also being genuinely terrifying as he threatens the Racnoss.

35. The Lodger

This has charm written all over it! James Corden and Matt Smith have great chemistry in this laugh-out-loud episode, and whilst it may be thin on plot, the comedy and character relationships could be straight out of a Richard Curtis romcom. Companion-lite episodes are generally quite hit and miss, and it’s a shame that the follow up to this story ‘Closing Time’ has nowhere near the wit or heart of ‘The Lodger’.

34. Father’s Day

As you’d expect, the issue of the dangers of time travel is one that is explored quite frequently in Doctor Who, but few episodes do this better than ‘Father’s Day’. This episode is full of heart and emotion, and Pete Tyler’s sacrifice in order to set the timeline straight is one of the most tear-jerking moments of Series 1. Shaun Dingwall is fantastic as Pete and completely wins you over as he slowly comes to realise what he must do. The conflicting opinions of the Doctor and Rose on her decision to save her dad in the first place make for great drama by writer Paul Cornell, and praise should also be given to the production team for their realistic portrayal of the 1980s.

33. Listen

‘Listen’ is a lot of things: further development of the relationship between Danny and Clara, a new look into the Doctor’s character that we haven’t seen before, but most of all, it’s a thrilling piece of TV drama that is terrifying, intelligent and thought-provoking. The strong script from Steven Moffat keeps us constantly thinking about what is happening; are we just seeing another generic Who monster or are we seeing a really clever portrayal of how our minds can trick us. My money is on the latter, and as with most episodes in this series, watching Peter Capaldi at work here is delightful.

32. A Christmas Carol

Matt Smith plays the ghost of Christmas past, present and future as Steven Moffat creates a superb sci-fi take on Dickens’ classic tale. Whilst the production design is beautiful and the plot is arguably the strongest of any Christmas special so far, a lot of the praise for this episode should go to the wonderful cast. Michael Gambon is perfect for the Scrooge-like Kazran and Katherine Jenkins, along with Danny Horn and Laurence Belcher as the younger Kazran’s, drive the story on well. Of course, the star of the show though is Matt Smith who fully evokes this mad, but also moving episode.

31. Time Heist

It’s about time that Doctor Who meets the heist genre, and thankfully they do it in style. The idea of the memory wipe constantly clouding the character's judgement as to why they are partaking in this bank robbery is a great plot device that’s well utilised by writers Moffat and Stephen Thompson. Each character is well developed and I doubt there are many viewers who wouldn’t want to see more of Psi and Salibra as future companions.

30. The Woman Who Fell to Earth

We needed Chris Chibnall and Jodie Whittaker’s first series to start off with a bang, and ‘The Woman Who Fell to Earth’ doesn’t disappoint. It’s just a shame that the rest of the series isn’t quite at the same level. Each character is given a smart introduction and Whittaker’s performance is enough to reassure viewers that the Doctor is in good hands. Tzim-Sha is also a great demonstration of the newly updated production budget the show has been given and the whole of the show is beautifully shot.

29. The Christmas invasion

What an introduction to the most popular and iconic Doctor this side of the century! David Tennant gives an outstanding performance in his first full episode, where we get to see every side of his Doctor: the comic, the adventurer, the lover and the warrior. It’s also a welcome return to Penelope Wilton’s ‘Harriet Jones’ who is at her finest here as we see her Prime Minister going from a heroic figure to a villain.

28. The Beast Below

I admit that I’m a sucker for the Doctor saving large CGI animals, but ‘The Beast Below’ really hit me. Whereas ‘The Eleventh Hour’ was Matt Smith’s time to shine, this is where we see Amy come into her own as she shows herself to be worthy of the TARDIS by going above and beyond anyone else to save the Star Whale. The Smilers are also a genuinely creepy villain and Sophie Okonedo puts in a great quest performance as the Queen.

27. School Reunion

Although the plot focusing on trying to figure out the Skasis Paradigm (the god equation) is a bit silly, it doesn’t really matter when compared to how much fun and nostalgia there is packed in here. ‘School Reunion’ takes the plunge to mesh the new and classic series together with the comeback of Sarah Jane Smith and K9, allowing the characters to start exploring what it means to be a companion of the Doctor. Seeing Elizabeth Sladen again is enough alone to make this one of the strongest episodes of Series 2 and Anthony Head’s chilling turn as Mr Finch is a stand-out villain. This is also one of Noel Clarke’s best episodes as he provides plenty of laughs as the ever-loveable and supremely underrated Mickey.

26. Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead

I realise I may be torn apart by the online fandom for not placing this even higher or even in the top 10, all I can say is that I think the episodes yet to come on this ranking are stronger. However, this is another incredibly impressive concept by writer Steven Moffat. The introduction of River Song is intriguing and cleverly sets up her complex storyline yet to come. The Vashta Nerada are potentially the best one-off villains of the whole of Doctor Who and its shocking that we haven’t seen them back since. Rotten Tomatoes rate both these parts in the top 5 best episodes of Modern Who and, although I disagree, it’s not hard to see why.

I hope you’ve enjoyed part 4 of this list. Do come back soon for part 5 of my ranking of every Doctor Who episode of the modern era.