Top 5 'Doctor Who' Episodes: The Fifteenth Doctor's Era

I don’t think I can explain the excitement I went through when Ncuti Gatwa was announced as the next Doctor. The mini David Tennant interlude was a shock and a nice little edition (with excellent episodes that I do highly recommend checking out!) but it also worked so well to get me even more hyped for Ncuti’s run. I adored watching him in Sex Education and the energy and emotion he brought to that role.

Now, with that being said, these are my top 5 episodes of the Fifteenth Doctor's era and be warned, this post may contain spoilers.

This list (like the others) doesn't include special episodes and two-parters are put together and will share a spot.

5. "Rogue " [14x06] — 8/10

This. Was. Fun. I really don’t care. Everything about this simply drew me in. From the visuals, to the characters (and dynamics), to the setting, to the plot, and everything in between. This truly did an excellent job at pulling me in so tightly that it wasn’t hard to get a little bit emotional. Having finished the Fifteenth Doctor’s run, I do wish there had been a lot more to this episode (or more connecting to it) but honestly, I’m probably just a little greedy and I can’t deny that this was one of my absolute favourite episodes to watch this season.

4. "Boom" [14x03] — 8/10

The Doctor is constantly getting himself into predicaments throughout his many eras and this was a great example of that. Despite the restrictions faced in this episode, it still made for an entertaining watch. The tension throughout and the intrigue was all elevated by the fact that he was facing such specific restrictions. For so early on in the Fifteenth Doctor’s era, this really went hard on the intensity. Despite being relatively stripped back and simple, it does enough to keep us, the audience, invested.

3. "The Legend of Ruby Sunday + Empire of Death" [14x07/14x08] — 8/10

I love following the companions and going solo with them and this two-parter focuses on Ruby. Having a whole team of people coming together to solve the mystery of these episodes was wonderful. I love one-one-one Doctor/companion dynamics but it’s always extra delightful when there’s multiple people involved. I have to admit, I am yet to watch any of Classic Who but I do love seeing people enjoy and discuss whenever a familiar face reappears. These episodes felt familiar but also completely new at the same time (but again bare in mind, my knowledge only expands back to the start of the Ninth Doctor). Regardless, these two were an absolute blast. They had an intense and darker feel to it with some pretty high stakes that had me captivated from beginning to end.

2. "73 Yards" [14x04] — 8/10

As I said, I love companion focused episodes, only this time, Ruby is completely alone. I really enjoyed following her and I was not expecting the vibes this episodes progressed into. It manages to have this slow, eerie feel to it that is genuinely quite creepy and intense. With the situation Ruby finds herself, there are some highs takes involved and because this is early on in this new period of Doctor Who and the Fifteenth Doctor’s era, I genuinely wasn’t sure how this might unfold and how much of a happy, sad, or even bittersweet ending we may have gotten. In the end, despite all of the emotions, I remained intrigued throughout and came out satisfied.

Some Honourary Moments

15x02 Lux — Loved the use of animation in this. It was not at all what I expected from this episode and in general, every second of this was just pulling me in further because I really wanted to know where this was going and what it was all about.

15x05 The Story & the Engine — I don’t know how to fully explain that this was cosy in a dark and emotional way but that was just the feeling I was left with.

15x07 Wish World + 2x08 The Reality War — I have to admit, I enjoyed part two the most but this was a really enjoyable two-parter and finale as well. The reason this is an honourary mention is mostly because there’s so many things left open, including that ending!? My feelings on this episode may change and it could become a top 5 once more Doctor Who episodes come.

1. "The Well" [15x03] — 8/10

Like with a lot of episodes from these seasons, I didn't watch the teaser or look at the episode description so I had no expectations going in. However, things built up so well as the episode progressed and by the end, I absolutely loved it. It’s got this dark, creepy vibe to it and the fact the villain of this episode was something we couldn’t see made it all the more eerie. Also, I love when Doctor Who does call backs to past characters and events from the show. Midnight is an old favourite of mine (it actually made it onto my top episodes of the Tenth Doctor’s era!) so it was a welcomed surprise for me.

So that is my top 5 Doctor Who episodes of the Fifteenth Doctor’s era!

I truly loved the Fifteenth Doctor’s run but I have to admit, I’m sad there wasn’t more of him. Going into this, I was excited for Ncuti Gatwa to take on this role and he did not disappoint. He’s got some of that captivating, energetic feel he had when starring in Sex Education but there was also variant here. He pulled me into his version of the Doctor so easily. This run was fun and felt experimental in so many ways. I do feel like things never fully settled and more episodes would have been more ideal but I can’t deny I had a great time with this and I’m excited to see where the show goes next.

Prior to this list I also wrote…

• my top 5 episodes of the Ninth Doctor's era
• my top 10 episodes of the Tenth Doctor's era
• my top 10 episodes of the Eleventh Doctor's era
• my top 10 episodes of the Twelfth Doctor’s era
• my top 5 episodes of the Thirteenth Doctor’s era