This week, we honour the man who brought back Doctor Who- but just which stories were his very best efforts?Fans such as myself often find it all too easy these days to speculate on what Doctor Who's 50th Anniversary Special, 2013 Christmas Special and Season Eight have in store for us in the near future. To do so is to frequently forget that we are in fact rather lucky to be here, and the reason behind the show's renewed success is none other than Mr Russell T Davies.
Although Russell has moved onto other works and walks of life, we can nevertheless be thankful that he left such strong foundations during his five-year term on Doctor Who for Steven Moffat to build upon in the next half decade. During his time with the show, Russell wrote a fair-share of his own TARDIS adventures, and so what with our 'Best of Who' awards celebrating the show's greatest moments, we thought it only fair to honour Russell with his finest hours. Here, then, is my personal take on the Welsh executive producer's Top 5 Best Doctor Who stories...
5. BAD WOLF/THE PARTING OF THE WAYS (2005)- I have no doubt that to some, that this sensational Season One final two-parter is at the bottom of this list may seem criminal. My justification here is that Bad Wolf is a quintessential example of an episode of Doctor Who literally dedicated to building suspense towards its major reveal, and as such isn't necessarily Russell's finest hour dramatically. However, The Parting of the Ways in particular serves as a spectacular conclusion to the Christopher Eccleston era, providing us an almighty battle with the Daleks, the resolution to the cunningly woven 'Bad Wolf' arc and a brilliantly uplifting regeneration for the Ninth Doctor to boot. Even in the subtler moments such as Jack's supposed farewell to the Doctor and Rose, or the cafe exchange between Rose, Jackie and Mickey about the dangers of the Time Lord's adventures, Russell masters the pure emotion that Doctor Who can and does elicit on a regular basis from its audience. This two-part finale could well be looked back on as a bonafida Who classic come the 100th Anniversary celebrations in 2063.
4. MIDNIGHT (2008)- What with Russell having discovered his need to write an extra story for Season Four after a sudden change of plans with writers for the run, few would have derided the showrunner for giving us a standard base-under-siege tale or something of that ike to fill the space. Instead, this talented scribe gave fans the greatest scare of their lives since Blink, taking Lesley Sharp's Sky Silvestry and turning an isolated human into the most terrifying creature in existence in a matter of seconds and words. The tangible chemistry between David Tennant and Sharp here puts this horrifying bus-romp into a true league of its own, arguably only topped for sheer scare factor by one other RTD tale present on this list...
3. UTOPIA (2007)- Defining the structure of the final three episodes of Season Three has always been a subject of debate for fans- do we class them as the Master trilogy, or is Utopia a standalone tale? For me, the latter assertion rings true, given that the excursion to the end of the Universe prompts some tonal beats altogether different to the political, familial thriller found once John Simm's Master emerges for the final two-parter. What makes this stunning adventure stand out most is its supporting cast, as is so often the case on Who- John Barrowman's Captain Jack clearly has new layers of emotional resonance for the audience since his Torchwood cases, but most of all it's Derek Jacobi who steals the show, rendering a character so deeply sympathetic and lovable that his ultimate 'downfall' is a true tragedy in every sense of the word. If ever you need to justify Utopia's inclusion on the list, simply watch the last fifteen minutes, as the truth of the Face of Boe's words in Gridlock comes to light, and you'll see one of the most intelligent Who tales ever created!
2. THE STOLEN EARTH/JOURNEY'S END (2008)- To many, the idea of bringing back the Daleks for their third finale seemed a risky venture on Russell's part. To many, the idea of bringing back every companion from the David Tennant era so far was even more of a risky move. How could Russell tread on ice any more thin than it already was? Why, by placing a supposed regeneration in the middle of proceedings of course! Despite taking ever-so-slight issue with the manner in which Rose is written out of Who for a second time, I cannot deny the incredibly high quality of this blockbuster adventure. Julian Bleach's Davros is electrifying, his exchange with Sarah-Jane brilliantly nostalgic, and it feels as if these episodes are a love letter to fans from the last fourty-five years of the show, all the while brought to a crescendo by a beautiful yet heartbreaking 'demise' for Donna Noble. The End of Time took its nostalgia-ometer a little too far arguably, but in The Stolen Earth/Journey's End we have the perfect example of how Russell could channel emotion, action and exhilaration into his stories simultaneously with ease.
1. THE WATERS OF MARS (2009)- Providing David Tennant with a year-long send-off was one thing- providing him with the best material he had yet recieved on Doctor Who was something else altogether. The Waters of Mars is admittedly a collaboration between Russell and Phil Ford, but you can tell who had the greater hand in proceedings here, as the tale of Adelaide Brooke is steeped in raw emotion and pathos right from the very start. Only Russell and David could together bring a true sense of fear to their rendition of everyone's favourite Time Lord in the eyes of the viewer, forcing us literally to stumble back in silence as we saw the cracks begin to show and the Tenth Doctor's Time War memories begin to control his persona. Perhaps this underlying darkness will fuel the emergence of John Hurt's Doctor in the 50th Anniversary Special- no matter what, though, here we have a terrifying and thus incredibly effective Doctor Who adventure that cements in strong fashion why the show remains so popular half a century after its debut. Bravo, Russell!
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