This two-parter also forced the Doctor to face to the classic trime travel quandy, "If you had a time machine, would you kill Hitler?" In this case, Davros is standing in for Hitler, but the same idea applies. Here is where the we finally got the Twelfth Doctor's distinct distilliation of punk rock style, optimism, and the experience and determination to back both of them up. In "The Magician's Apprentice," Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor truly arrives, riding a tank into a medieval arena for a duel while playing the electric guitar. Peter Capaldi struggle to give his Doctor and firm identity in his first season, instead either paying homage to past Doctors or simply aging his Doctor's behaviors and mannersims to differentiate him from the young Doctors who preceded. "The Magician's Apprentice"/"The Witch's Familiar" Prepare yourself to say goodbye by reading on to see our favorite Peter Capaldi episodes of Doctor Who.Ĩ. Tonight's Doctor Who Christmas Special 2017, "Twice Upon a Time," sees the Twelfth Doctor looking back not only on his own time, but on the Doctor's entire history as he confront his own regeneration and that of the First Doctor. But he came out on the other side, especially in his final season alongside new companion Bill Potts, and rediscovered the optimism and determination that never really left him but had developed just a bit of an edge.
#List of doctor who specials series#
Capaldi showed more and more confidence in his role as the Twelfth Doctor, infusing the character with more swagger and heart as the series went on.Īs the Twelfth Doctor, Capaldi dealt with some heavy themes, matters of life and death and the existential crisis of wondering what its all for. While season eight was met with a mixed reception, fans seemed to agree that Capladi was great in the role, and he was only getting started. Could a distinguished actor like Capaldi win over the hearts of young fans who had become accustomed to baby-faced Doctors like Smith and his predecessor, David Tennant? The choice of Capaldi, who was nearly 25 years older than Smith, was a matter of some debate at first.
#List of doctor who specials full#
Peter Capaldi was chosen to replace Matt Smith as the new Doctor and made his first appearance - in eyebrow cameo form - in the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special and made his first full appearance in the Doctor in the Doctor Who Season Eight premiere. What better way to see a Doctor off than to look back at his adventures and choose our favorites? Want up-to-the-minute entertainment news and features? Just hit 'Like' on our Digital Spy Facebook page and 'Follow' on our Instagram and Twitter account. Moffat and Smith are hungry and full of ideas - you can see it on screen, and most importantly, their enthusiasm is infectious. While 'Vincent and the Doctor' is a tearjerker of the highest order.īut even when the quality dips a little - the unsatisfying 'Victory of the Daleks', the sleepy Silurian two-parter - there's a charm and wit and an energy to series five that sets it above its rivals.
The return of the Weeping Angels in 'The Time of Angels' / 'Flesh and Stone' is another highlight - if 'Blink' was the darkly menacing Alien, then this was the action-fuelled Aliens. And the new leading man was a relative unknown, not even in his 30s.īut series five's premiere 'The Eleventh Hour' was a wonder - rebooting Doctor Who without losing any of its charm, and discovering in the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond the best lead pairing the show's had in the last decade. In one fell swoop, Doctor Who had lost the man who brought it back to life - Russell T Davies - and the man who arguably made the revival a mega-hit - David Tennant. infusing the character with an extra spark, vigour and bolshiness she'd previously lacked. Jenna Coleman's companion Clara also benefited from a revised approach, with Moffat and co. One that delivers fun capers (' Robot of Sherwood'), experimental winners (' Flatline') and good old-fashioned scare-fests (' Mummy on the Orient Express'). But by the time their first truly outstanding episode - the moody and magnificent ' Listen' - rolls around, there's no question that this is a gamble that's paid off.īar one real stinker - the juvenile and ill-conceived ' In the Forest of the Night' - series eight is a decent debut series for Capaldi. It was a bold move for Moffat to steer the Doctor away from the David Tennant / Matt Smith mould - sweet, young, a romantic lead - and more down the route of being not just a little older, but mad, bad and dangerous to know.īoth he and our new Doctor, Peter Capaldi, take a little while to nail it, and the series gets off to an uncertain start.