Who is your favourite Doctor?

[BigBrotherCritic]

Seeing as writing novels is the norm around this thread, here is mine, titled:

"The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of Doctor Who by BigBrotherCritic"

Disclaimer
The following is my interpretation of the incarnations of the Time Lord Doctor. These are all my personal opinions. Any comments made are not meant to be racist, sexist, against religion or hateful to anybody. Please don't sue me.

My List

12th Favourite:
Colin Baker

Yes he had anger! He had POWER! But at the end of the day he was a cynical, negative mess. The mixture of the cynicism, the negativity and that AWFUL coat he probably picked up from an Op-Shop in Germany, made the thankfully short time of the 6th Doctor a terrible rollercoaster ride of disappointment.

11th Favourite:
Paul Mcgann

As much as I loved the romanticism of the 8th Doctor, his lack of appearances effects his rating. I would have loved to have him as the Doctor again but that would mean giving up Capaldi! First World Problems!

10th Favourite:
Tom Baker

NO I DON'T WANT A JELLY BABY!! As much as I love a Blustering Englishmen and Rainbow Scarf Smoothie, his time was too long. Over the eight or something years we needed a change and it was over when he finally kicked the bucket. He was a bit creepy and personally, watching him now, he was like an obsessive compulsive person who had to get his way, without any negotiation, much like a toddler but without the temper tantrum.

9th Favourite:
William Hartnell

I realize he is the first and the on that started it all but his "Old Cranky Man" act got on my nerves and I hated him complaining. He was like a mix of a soppy teenager and a cranky man. Enough Said.

Now comes the part of the list with the Time Lords I couldn't decide between. Think of it as a mosh pit of Actors at a Coldplay Concert, all with a chance of going back stage.

8th Favourite:
Sylvester Mccoy

They made him stop being quirky and that made it bad. The Darkness the had Sylvester have was okay but I prefer the "Amazing El Sylvestio!" style acting that he gave at the start of his time as the Doctor. His era brought Ace, a companion that I have always loved!

7th Favourite:
Jon Pertwee

I, unlike what appears to be many people, loved the definition of "British Feminism" when it came to the third Doctor. His action, his car and the overall Britishness of the Brigadier and UNIT was amazing! His opening episode saw him lovingly crushing his own shoes, Having a shower while singing deep opera and then making an excitable exit on a wheelchair with tape over his mouth! This made me truly love the Third Doctor!

6th Favourite:
Patrick Troughton

He was a brilliant actor and without him Matt Smith wouldn't have been the Doctor I loved. Very English and reminds me of my Dad a lot. He was a space Hobo and played the flute extremely well! Overall a great person to watch.

5th Favourite:
Peter Davison

I love him as the Philosophical "Fuck All" Lord! He didn't care if people hated his choice of celery, He loved cricket, he was smart and truly loved his companions. I just wish he would have stopped thinking about Adric and just get on with life but I guess that goes with the "Love"!

Now is the part of list where all actors have backstage passes, and they are all favourites, the king of Doctors!

4th Favourite:
Matt Smith

I, like many people, loved Smithy. His quirks and his emotional side was amazing and his ability to control every situation without basically having a Toddle Temper Tantrum (We look at you, Baker). He was in the 50th with Tennant and is a definite favourite.

3rd Favourite:
Peter Capaldi

I love the Scot! His Sass, His Directivity. His Sherlockian Blackboard Writings! He is Perfect for the Doctor! Even though his current time with us has been short, I have a real soft spot for him, ever since the first episode (Which doesn't usually happen to me!)

2nd Favourite:
David Tennant

The spot of 1st and 2nd has a margin so small that you wouldn't be able to fit the nucleus of an atom through it! Tennant was one of the best Doctors! His Quirkiness, His Anger, His Heartfelt stories, his companions! They were all great! I love Tennant like I love breathing!

And the final spot, the top placer, the number one Doctor Who Actor goes to.........

--CHRISTOPHER ECCLESTON!--

He was the Doctor that brought it back and jeez wasn't it a fireworks show! It is a shame he hated working at the BBC and left after only one season. He is basically the definition of my Father, and that is why I love him so much (I can't help when Dad and 9th both have a Northern Accent). His Old war time soldier / rock god get-up was far better than the (What @MrStickyfingers so put it) "foppish" uniform that previous Doctors had worn. Of course he was the sassiest Doctor ever to live in this Universe and his on liners like this.

Rose: Come over, my Mothers Cooking
9th: Good, Out her on a slow roast and let her simmer!

That is why I love the 9th Doctor!

The previous novel was written entirely on the opinions of @BigBrotherCritic, Please do not take offense to anything written. @BigBrotherCritic does not take any responsibilities for the damage this post may have caused. No animals or adipose were harmed in the making of this novel.

 

[BigBrotherCritic]

Oh we hit three pages!

 

[Mr Stickyfingers]

...hahahahaha!... I loved reading that BigBrotherCritic!... so funny in parts!...you've got to admit it... writing all your thoughts out in one big session in the form of my 'short novels' format is good therapy isn't it?... lol!... (it is for me anyway)...

...that line from Eccleston is brilliant... so funny!... when you said about Tom Baker...

..."watching him now, he was like an obsessive compulsive person who had to get his way, without any negotiation, much like a toddler but without the temper tantrum"...

...that describes him so well!... I couldn't have said it better!...Eccleston pipped Tennant at the post eh?... aw nuts!... but still... I still have my 'man crush' on Tennant so I can live with that lol!...

...I'm glad that you said that about Sylvester McCoy... as I mentioned in my take on him... I liked him in the role when he took over the gig but as I said... (to quote myself)...

..."he was always quite entertaining but it was as if he wasn't The Doctor at all on many occasions for me too... his version of The Doctor always had me bewildered"... my bewilderment part of it was when they made him reinvent the role that he was doing... I think that he lost his way with it because when he was quirky and strange I think that he was just being himself... but when they made him change it was probably a 'fish out of water' thing for him from then onwards... they're my thoughts on it anyway...

...as you said about Capaldi and his 'Shelockian' ways... at least he's not trying to be like Pertwee's Sherlockian/James Bond/Karate Kid (to borrow another's description) superhero... he is playing it straight down the line as The Doctor implementing Sherlock Holmes type of logic and knowledge of things... as with you... I'm really liking Capaldi in the role too...

...anyhow... a great post BigBrotherCritic... thanks for posting your thoughts my friend... cheers.

 

[Mr Stickyfingers]

Oh we hit three pages!

..you've hit upon a great idea for a thread so trust me... there will be many more pages to come lol!... cheers.

 

[kxk]

Should we do a favourite companion thread too
Then we can do writer, producer, outfit........I am serious, let's takeover this whole area
Conquer Rabbits Ears, then the world..............favourite monster, the Master.....I'm getting carried away, sorry, it is the weekend, and almost Doctor time.

Did you see Craig Ferguson the other night?
Talking with Simon Pegg, (Shaun of the Dead), both were drummers in a former life!

Craig of course was in a punk band with Capaldi, he said Peter was lead singer, and got all the girls as leads do.
Wonder if he might pop up in a guest role?

And this is fun - Craig Ferguson chats with Peter Capaldi, 2009, about taking LSD and being in a band together

The old band pics

 

[Mr Stickyfingers]

@Mr Stickyfingers Thanks for your comments on my reviews. I'll be sure to address your views on Pertwee when I get to him. I have never heard about that reaction from Colin Baker, I believe you though. All I recalled was that he was hurt by the sacking and hated Michael Grade, and possibly some aspects of fandom, but if I heard (or read) him saying the Doctor was beneath him then it would indeed be an arrogant ungrateful thing to say.

@nutmeg - Looking forward to your rankings too, and I totally agree about the life lessons.

...yeah getting back to this aspect Meglos... Michael Grade crucified him from this report on this website...

http://drwho.answers.wikia.com/wiki/Why_did_Colin_Baker_leave_Doctor_Who

...what it says is...

Michael Grade insisted that Colin Baker be fired from Doctor Who after Season 23. Grade cited a drop in ratings, the show being "too violent", and a cheap look as his reasons.

All of these are doubtful however. The "cheap look" was due to the shoestring budget that Doctor Who received from the BBC. Ironically, the one man with the power to increase the funding for Doctor Who at the time was Michael Grade. The "violence" issue had always existed, right from the William Hartnell days. In fact, the era deemed most violent by the self-proclaimed "public watchdogs" was the Tom Baker 'Horror' era, which routinely received the highest ratings in the show's history. Lastly, while the ratings had slipped slightly during Colin Baker's era, they were still significantly higher than they had been during the "Classic" eras of the first two Doctors, as well as remaining one of the BBC's highest rated shows in the UK, as well as having a worldwide viewership of over 100 million people.

The real reason was personal. Colin Baker had been married to the actress Liza Goddard. They had an acrimonious divorce. Grade and Goddard were old friends, and he sided with her in the divorce. They moved in together, and later became lovers. Grade was determined to "punish" Baker. Doctor Who production manager Gary Downie stated in an interview with Doctor Who Magazine;

There's a history between Michael Grade and Colin. Liza Goddard was Colin's wife. And she was Michael Grade's best friend. The divorce was acrimonious and she moved into Michael Grade's house while she was getting over the divorce. And I'll say no more. Michael Grade was determined. He did not want Colin working for the BBC.

Producer John Nathan Turner wanted Colin Baker to stay on. Colin Baker wanted to stay on. The fans wanted Colin Baker to stay on. But Michael Grade demanded that Baker be fired. While the Controller of BBC1 (Grade's job) did have the power to make such a decision, no Controller had ever done anything like that before, and it was viewed as an abuse of his position.

...Michael Grade was a viscious vindictive prick towards Colin Baker and it looks like Colin Baker got the wrong end of the stick in regards to his final days on Doctor Who... fair enough... but I don't believe that what happened there was anything to do with his take on the role of The Doctor which in effect turned me off him as The Doctor... I just didn't like what he did for Doctor Who... but anyway... I digress...

...that interview that I was talking about where he said that the role of Doctor Who was 'beneath him' was made soon after his dismissal from the show... a year or so after from memory... (it was probably a rival network like ITV or something at the time... I've tried to find the interview but there are heaps of them... it's not worth the time to find it lol)... it was probably one of those... "I was faking my orgasms too!"... type of situations that made him say it I imagine... a classic case of sour grapes to the nth degree... I don't blame him for lashing out like that after Michael Grade ended up being his ex-wife's lover soon after his dismissal to be honest!... (what a kick in the love spuds that would've been eh?)...

...anyhow... enough of Colin Baker...

...I'm seeing little doses of each Doctor in Capaldi's take on this... he is so multi-layered in this role... being that he was brought up on Doctor Who I do understand as to why I'm seeing it... I would so love to know who Peter Capaldi's favourite Doctor was!... being that he is so old and gnarly in his delivery of the role... I'm putting my money on William Hartnell as being his favourite in my opinion lol!... cheers.

 

[BigBrotherCritic]

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[Meglos]

Colin Baker is one of my least favourite doctors, but I don't let my impressions of whether or not the actor is a nice person influence that. A lot of leading actors are a bit "difficult", and DW has more of its fair share, from Hartnell to Pertwee to the Bakers. In most cases they still managed to turn in a brilliant performance. Colin Baker... not so much, but I don't think he's entirely to blame, the scripts were too violent, the costumes were too colourful, the production team were at each other's throats, and so on.

Colin was one of the Doctors I met at a signing a few (or maybe ten, time flies) years back, along with Sylvester, and Katy Manning, so I have a bit of a soft spot for them.

 

[BigBrotherCritic]

Colin Baker is one of my least favourite doctors, but I don't let my impressions of whether or not the actor is a nice person influence that. A lot of leading actors are a bit "difficult", and DW has more of its fair share, from Hartnell to Pertwee to the Bakers. In most cases they still managed to turn in a brilliant performance. Colin Baker... not so much, but I don't think he's entirely to blame, the scripts were too violent, the costumes were too colourful, the production team were at each other's throats, and so on.

Colin was one of the Doctors I met at a signing a few (or maybe ten, time flies) years back, along with Sylvester, and Katy Manning, so I have a bit of a soft spot for them.

It was the definition of the 80's though, what with the "smoothie" (Yes that analogy again) of Rainbow, Action Fun Fare Extreme! And when Mel came along with him, with her Puffy Hair and High White Trousers etc. the 80's powers were sickening.

 

[Mr Stickyfingers]

Colin Baker is one of my least favourite doctors, but I don't let my impressions of whether or not the actor is a nice person influence that. A lot of leading actors are a bit "difficult", and DW has more of its fair share, from Hartnell to Pertwee to the Bakers. In most cases they still managed to turn in a brilliant performance. Colin Baker... not so much, but I don't think he's entirely to blame, the scripts were too violent, the costumes were too colourful, the production team were at each other's throats, and so on.

Colin was one of the Doctors I met at a signing a few (or maybe ten, time flies) years back, along with Sylvester, and Katy Manning, so I have a bit of a soft spot for them.

...even though I didn't like Colin I would've loved to have met him as you did Meglos... McCoy and Katy too!... oh wow!... you lucky devil!... that would've been awesome!... cheers.

 

[kxk]

Colin Baker is one of my least favourite doctors, but I don't let my impressions of whether or not the actor is a nice person influence that. .......

But strange how often it turns out an actor I don't like on screen I don't like off screen too.
Pure coincidence though that some of the doctors I don't like are rather nasty people.

Eccelston I don't know what sort of person he is, other than pissing off so quickly and being so adverse to having anything to do with DW.

I actually find his acting kind of clunky.
I quite liked his Doctor persona in general, just his execution lacked for me. He often seemed corny, and the head/neck gesture thing he did when he was trying to be quirky was bad, his attempts at quirky I found just bad in general.

He to me was just OK setting Nuwho up.

I was glad he left, and delighted in David

 

[nutmeg]

I must be one of the few people who really liked Colin Baker. He's not my favourite, but I really enjoyed his Doctor. Ok, he definitely had the worst costume: production’s fault, not his (in the show he toured with Sylvester McCoy and Katy Manning he said that he wanted the costume that Eccleston got, but no one would listen to him). And trying to strangle Peri after regenerating was just peculiar, but again, production’s fault, not his. He and Peri also took some time to find their groove together, until they did there was a lot of Peri rolling her eyes while Colin marched off as a man on a mission, it was like he had to put up with a squatter in the TARDIS, i.e. someone he wished would go away.

But I liked his arrogance, and he could back it up after all. And I liked his quips, he was always throwing in sarcastic one liners. And he was wonderfully wordy, which backed up his pomposity, which I also liked.

Some of the episodes were not the best, though without refreshing my memory, I can’t remember a lot of them. But Trial of a Time Lord is one of my favourite classic episodes, where Colin was not only the anti-authoritarian moral-crusader underdog that we expect the Doctor to be, but he was also compassionate and caring (although Peri marrying that barbarian King was just weird … if Peri and the sixth Doctor seemed mismatched at times, that is nothing compared to her new husband). Mel was a better match for Colin, I thought they were a good team.

Colin’s Big Finish audios are just brilliant, which goes to show that given good material to work with he can be great. He is also very very good to fans, and is a marvellous custodian of the DW legacy, plus his website always has lots of DW news. Sure, a lot of it is about him (it is his website after all), but he plugs other DW stuff too, including some of the stuff that other companions get up to ... which like himself is usually theatre.

Because he is so good to DW, I was surprised to read here that he was ungrateful of the opportunity, which is understandably disappointing for fans. That’s how I felt about Eccleston for staying only one year to avoid being typecast, but then it turns out that it was all about office politics, where he was probably the good guy, and reading here about Michael Grade it sounds like Colin's era also suffered from office politics (stemmed from personal issues), so I assume Colin was having a bad day when he said that stuff.

Sometimes when I see online favourite Doctor polls I vote for Colin, even though I can’t actually pick a favourite. I just feel like his Doctor is too maligned and it’s my way of thanking him for his contribution.

 

[Meglos]

I've decided to commit to a list. This is what I'm feeling right now, who knows if anything changes after I've rewatched every episode.

12 Christopher Eccleston - there has to be a wooden spooner and sadly this is it. That he was FANTASTIC, turning in a very funny and cool incarnation says a lot about the quality of actors to have played the part.
Best stories : The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances. The Parting Of The Ways, Father's Day
Worst story : The Long Game

11 Colin Baker - weak production values, shocking characterisation (the violence & arrogance, the forced pomposity and especially the bickering with poor Peri). Redeemed somewhat by his commitment to Big Finish.
Best stories : The Mark Of The Rani, The Two Doctors, Vengeance On Varos
Worst story : The Twin Dilemma

10 Paul McGann - one TV movie and a new series prelude are pretty slim pickings, but I found both allowed for an excellent performance. I've read two thirds of the 8th Doctor novels, and I don't know if it counts as actual McGann, but it certainly expands his era in dramatic and awesome ways.
Best stories : TV movie, The Ancestor Cell, Interference
Worst story : The Slow Empire

9 Jon Pertwee - lots of childhood memories, as the ABC repeated these episodes constantly
Best stories : The Green Death, The Silurians, Planet Of The Spiders
Worst story : The Mutants

8 Sylvester McCoy
Best stories : The Curse Of Fenric, Remembrance Of The Daleks, Ghost Light
Worst story : Delta & The Bannermen

7 Peter Capaldi
Best stories : Deep Breath, Kill The Moon, Listen
Worst story : None so far!

6 Patrick Troughton
Best stories : Evil Of The Daleks, Power Of The Daleks, The Web Of Fear
Worst story : The Underwater Menace

5 William Hartnell
Best stories : The Aztecs, An Unearthly Child, The Dalek's Master Plan
Worst story : The Web Planet

4 David Tennant
Best stories : The Girl In The Fireplace, The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, Human Nature/Family Of Blood
Worst story : Fear Her

3 Peter Davison
Best stories : Earthshock, Caves Of Androzani, Resurrection Of The Daleks
Worst story : Four To Doomsday

2 Matt Smith
Best stories : The Impossible Astronaut/Day Of The Moon, The Wedding Of River Song, The Big Bang/The Pandorica Opens
Worst story : The Beast Below

1 Tom Baker
Best stories : Genesis Of The Daleks, City Of Death, Talons Of Weng-Chiang
Worst story : Underworld

 

[pornstache]

Dr Chris Brown tho

 

[Mr Stickyfingers]

...hahaha!... just saw this again... simply brilliant lol!... cheers

 

[BigBrotherCritic]

...hahaha!... just saw this again... simply brilliant lol!... cheers

It repeats so much that the word "brilliant" doesn't even sound like a word!

Brilliant!

 

[nutmeg]

I'm a bit late, but it has taken me a while to decide on my favourite Doctor, I feel so disloyal to the others for picking a definitive one, l’ve loved them all for the different things they brought to the role.
So I’ve picked a new series and classic series favourite, while the rest get honourable mentions, lol.

CLASSIC WHO
Peter Davison is my favourite classic Doctor. He was blessed by some great storylines and having an interesting team of companions who he could play off. And I liked his style … dashing yet modest, bold yet considerate. He is also the only Doctor I had a crush on, but that has nothing to do with picking him, I got over that 25-ish years ago.

Tom Baker is obviously a favourite too, he was boisterous and brash, and his anger outbursts were so much fun and so well acted.

And unlike some here, I loved Jon Pertwee. I loved his flamboyance, and his intellectual snobbery. And his love of interesting vehicles, like Bessie and the hovercraft. He was the James Bond of Doctors. Purely because he was Doctor Who, I watched him in Worzel Gummidge, and then read the books, I dressed as Worzel for a primary school ‘dress as your favourite book character’ day … I’m sure I looked beautiful, lol.

In the negatives, Pertwee couldn’t karate chop his way out of a paper bag, and yet he persisted.

I’ve already mentioned how much I liked Colin Baker. But Sylvester McCoy had to follow Baker's confused era, and he was great fun. Frivolous and cranky, and oddly dark. Plus he had Ace with him, and they were such a good team. In fact, I think that they were one of the best Doctor/companion pairs of all time. Sad for him to have presided over the end of the classic series, his Doctor deserved better. Great fun.

Troughton was jolly and dithering in that brilliant kind of way, and Hartnell was grand and authorative, but I haven’t seen all of their episodes to properly judge them. Same goes for Paul McGann, but I’d bet that he would have been amazing. Although I’m not sure I liked his romanticised character, but he was awesome in the 50th anniversary’s The Night of the Doctor.

NEW WHO
I pick Matt Smith, mostly because I like his brand of goofiness, obviously blended with genius. Some of his storylines got a bit convoluted, but there were so many good ones that his era was awesome. But I mainly pick him because I like how he acted the light-hearted moments … he was funny. (BTW, there is no Smith in the poll)

David Tennant will and should go down in history as a brilliant Doctor. Fun loving and hard arse at the same time. I enjoyed him so much he almost made my favourite. He deserves every praise and accolade that he receives. Although while I enjoyed the Doctor/Rose love story, oddly, I wasn’t a fan. I don’t watch DW for romance.

I loved Christopher Eccleston, he kicked things off with a bang, and I liked his determinedness. But I didn’t enjoy his detached weariness, which was not him but the way he was written, but I wanted to celebrate getting DW back after all these years, and his self-loathing was taking the fun out of it a little bit.

Of course, Capaldi might change my favourite list, he is so fun to watch, and is gifted with great scripts so far. In fact, he might be perfect.

 

[Meglos]

Great list nutmeg.

So, in summary, they were all great! I think we're spoiled as DW fans, there's never been a bad actor in the role, nor one who has disgraced himself in real life.