Update of things.

[elisi]

All hail the Moff and Twelve. DW magazine did a poll of best Doctor Who episodes, and well... go look!

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I posted Chapter 3 of All Breakages Must Be Paid For. <3

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The Netflix series of Avatar: The Last Airbender has an Official Teaser, and it looks incredible!

Watch on YouTube

(If writing/acting etc lives up to the visuals, it will be stunning.)

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I updated my Good Omens S2: The Big Tumblr Meta Post with yet more links! ^_^

Comments

[greensword]

Huh! I actually had to look up which episode Heaven Sent was. It's funny that so many people like an episode I barely remember, but I bet some of my favorites are less memorable to others.

What would your 10 be? I think mine would be something like (in chronological order, I can't order by favorites, that's too hard):

Inferno
Genesis of the Daleks
The Five Doctors
Curse of Fenric
Empty Child/The Doctor Dances
Blink
Midnight
The Waters of Mars
Eleventh Hour
Asylum of the Daleks

[promethia_tenk]

I'm tempted to undertake this exercise as I enjoy being judgmental and disagreeing with people on the internet *g*, but I have to admit that, despite my deep and abiding love of the Classic series and begrudging affection for Rusty's first run, it would just be a bunch of Moff-written or Moff-overseen episodes, and I don't know how interesting that would be . . . I can't help it. Moff just does things to my brain.

(Thirteen . . . uhhhhh, sometimes I remember that era happened.)

You've got a solid list. Bit dark, on average, for my tastes, but good picks, all. Can I ask what you like so much about Asylum of the Daleks? I enjoy that episode a whole lot, but I don't think I've ever seen it on a best of list . . . . ever?

[greensword]

Caveat that I haven't watched most of these episodes in a decade or so.

Can I ask what you like so much about Asylum of the Daleks? I enjoy that episode a whole lot, but I don't think I've ever seen it on a best of list . . . . ever?

I think I put it there because I really like Clara, and wanted an episode of hers, and I thought she had a really good introduction episode. I actually only remember the Clara/Owin bits of Asylum of the Daleks, but I remember being so excited to find out she wasn't a one-off character and was coming back. But then in the longer run, there were a lot of things I disliked about Clara's arc, so her intro episode became a bit of wistful "what might have been". And I liked the idea of a dalek who didn't know they were a dalek. Also the episode has some good body horror.

Bit dark, on average, for my tastes, but good picks, all.

I find it hard to pick favorites from among the less dark ones, because there are so many good, fun romps (I picked Eleventh Hour! and the Five Doctors!) but not many that I remember as being especially good compared to the other fun romps. What are your favorite "lighter" episodes?

[promethia_tenk]

Caveat that I haven't watched most of these episodes in a decade or so.
Yeah . . . Well, I've watched everything more recently than that (literally everything), but I know my judgement could be swayed if I watched this or that again right now. For example: I know that Evil of the Daleks rocked my world when I 'watched' it. Can I remember what happened in it? Ummmm . . . no. So where do I put it on a list?

I think I put it there because I really like Clara, and wanted an episode of hers, and I thought she had a really good introduction episode. I actually only remember the Clara/Owin bits of Asylum of the Daleks, but I remember being so excited to find out she wasn't a one-off character and was coming back.
It's strange how you forget how these things hit back when they first happened, but her reappearance really was fire.

But then in the longer run, there were a lot of things I disliked about Clara's arc, so her intro episode became a bit of wistful "what might have been".
*nods* I really appreciate the later parts of her run, but I admit that it's a bit of an academic appreciation, and that I enjoy watching her far more with Eleven . . .

I find it hard to pick favorites from among the less dark ones, because there are so many good, fun romps (I picked Eleventh Hour! and the Five Doctors!
Yeah, I'm working on my list now, and I can pretty immediately pick out my true favorites, and they're all really weighty. Not outright dark, but it's a pretty comprehensive list of what I think are the most important episodes for the Doctor's character development. When it comes to the fun ones, though . . . why can't I have all of them?

What are your favorite "lighter" episodes?
Eleventh Hour is probably #1. I think it's the perfect introduction to the show. Otherwise, I admit a deep love for anytime they go super camp with it: Robot of Sherwood, The Lodger, Unicorn and the Wasp, The Time Monster . . . basically the entirety of the Three/UNIT years, The Romans, the Gunslingers, Partners in Crime, Spyfall. ETA: Spearhead from Space!

[greensword]

Oh I forgot about The Lodger, I do like that one a lot although maybe not enough to make the top ten. Partners In Crime <3 <3 (I love Donna so much)

"basically the entirety of the Three/UNIT years" - one of those was on my list but it's probably the darkest of the whole Three/Unit run. it is mostly fun, especially once they swapped from Liz to Jo & Sarah Jane as companions

[promethia_tenk]

Alright, here is my list. I have arbitrarily limited myself to five Moffat stories. Realizing that my true criteria for choosing anything for this list is how important I find it to my conception of the Doctor's character, I have attempted to list them in order of 'amount of Doctor feels they give me,' with the understanding that I have completely changed my mind as soon as I hit post:

1) World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls
2) The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang
3) Enlightenment
4) Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon
5) Day of the Doctor
6) End of Time
7) Human Nature/Family of Blood
8) Magician's Apprentice/Witch's Familiar
9) War Games
10) Kinda

A list in quality order would basically have all the Moff ones first, then Human Nature, the Classic ones, then End of Time.

[sea_thoughts]

*gives you the look that only people who appreciate the S6 opening two-parter understand*

[promethia_tenk]

I think they might actually be perfect television? Other episodes on that list have scenes that hit me harder, but TIA/DotM is just such ridiculous quality from start to finish. It does literally everything? If what you want from television can't be found in TIA/DotM, television is not for you. I can't even process how much happens in those two episodes. It's hysterical. It's massively creepy. It's got more genius ideas than Rusty had in four seasons. It has all the Pond feels, all the Doctor feels, all the shippy feels. It's gorgeous. It never lets up. It left us all dizzy and breathless. The only thing wrong with it is how much the rest of the season completely failed to live up to it.

If I was going to list things in order of what would I drop everything, right now, to watch, it would be #1.

[elisi]

Did you ever read The Doctor, the Eye Doctor and Me?

[sea_thoughts]

I made a fanvid to The Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel about it.

[maia]

My list:

1) Heaven Sent
2) The Beast Below
3) The Day of the Doctor
4) World Enough and Time / The Doctor Falls
5) The Waters of Mars
6) The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang
7) Midnight
8) Listen
9) The End of the World
10) Vincent and the Doctor

[promethia_tenk]

I do love The Beast Below. As a piece of television I think it suffers from season five, not having their feet fully under them yet, but as poetry it's impeccable.

End of the World is a distinctive choice. I'm gonna hazard that you've not put it on the list for its use of Britney Spears ; ) Quite similar to The Beast Below, really: the 'here's what this Doctor is about' episodes.

ETA: there's a part of my brain that thinks I should want Waters of Mars on my list rather than End of Time. It is objectively the far superior episode, and I have to salute Rusty for finally doing what he'd been flirting with for three full seasons. But Ten's run is ultimately meaningless to me without those couple of teary kitchen table conversations with Wilf and then Ten sacrificing himself to save him. Without that it's just the story of the slow and inexorable decline of somebody with massive PTSD who is, actually, quite a bit of a dick. The two episodes work together, of course, but I prefer the course-correct at the end. And thus I must choose EoT despite the cactus people and the Master making everybody into himself and despite the flawlessness that is Adelaide Brooke.

[elisi]

And thus I must choose EoT despite the cactus people and the Master making everybody into himself and despite the flawlessness that is Adelaide Brooke.
There is no 'despite' the Master. I mean, the plan is stupid, but the Doctor/Master in the episode is outstanding. The Master would be firmly in the plus column for me.

[elisi]

I am loving all the lists, they're brilliant. And ALL THE LOVE for The Beast Below, it's practically Moffat's missions statement. <3

[elisi]

Huh! I actually had to look up which episode Heaven Sent was. It's funny that so many people like an episode I barely remember, but I bet some of my favorites are less memorable to others.
Personal taste is such a funny thing! Looking at your list, then I never liked Midnight - I remember watching it and thinking 'Well, there's a dud in every season', and then woke up the next morning to see all of fandom raving and going 'Wait... what?' *g*

As for my own 10 'favourites' then, hmm... In chronological order:

The Ultimate Foe
The Silver Nemesis
Library Episodes
S5 Finale
A Christmas Carol
A Good Man Goes to War
Day of the Doctor
S10 finale
The Power of the Doctor

Now that is 9. The 10th slot could be... The Beast Below or the S1 finale or Enlightenment or TWoRS or the S5 Angel episodes or The Pilot or Thin Ice or the S6 opening two parter or something else again. ^_^

[promethia_tenk]

I had to look up what The Ultimate Foe was to remember. Oh you . . .

[elisi]

Moffat Who 30 years early. <3

[promethia_tenk]

There is something to be said for A Christmas Carol on these lists. Like, if you had to choose a single Moff episode . . . that might be it.

[greensword]

I forgot about Christmas Carol's existence and I might have to bump something from my top ten list for it. My lj/dw profile title has been a quote from that episode since like 2010.

[elisi]

IKR? It's basically perfect.

[greensword]

the S5 Angel episodes or

I read this and for a second I thought I'd forgotten a Doctor Who/Angel (the series) crossover.

[elisi]

LOL

I was just too lazy to look up the specific titles. :)

However, I once wrote a Angel/Doctor Who crossover, featuring Spike, Angel and Nine.

[sea_thoughts]

My Top 10 (but subject to change)

The Curse of Fenric
Dalek
Blink
Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead
Amy's Choice
The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon
The Power of Three
Flatline
The Girl Who Died/The Woman Who Lived
World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls

[elisi]

I am loving all the lists, they're fascinating.

I don't think I've seen anyone else list Flatline as a favourite, or The Power of Three.

And it's funny, because Dalek is SUCH a good episode, but there are just so many other episodes that I prefer that it'd be... way down my own list, through no fault of its own.

[sea_thoughts]

Dalek - one of S1's most powerful episodes. Chris and Billie killing it: "That thing killed hundreds of people!" "It's not the one pointing a gun at me." And on a shallow level, Nine gets strapped half-naked to a rack for possible torture. Hey, I'm only human.

The Power of Three - Kate Lethbridge-Stewart! The return of Brian Williams! The Doctor telling Amy and Rory (the Girl Who Waited and the Last Centurion) that "patience is for wimps"! "Through the looking glass, Amelia!" So. Much. Fun.

Flatline - Moffat clearly showing his hand when it came to where Clara was heading:
"Come on, why can't you say it? I was the Doctor and I was good!"
"You were an exceptional Doctor, Clara."
"Thank you-"
"Goodness had nothing to do with it."