Doctor Who: William Hartnell’s 10 Best Episodes

By Max Beeman / November 14, 2013

Many fans new to Who tend to overlook some of the classic Doctors. Chief among the overlooked is William Hartnell since not only are his episodes are not only in black and white, but a good chunk of them are 'lost.' However, the William Hartnell episodes were trailblazers €“ they created the guidelines of how the show should be, and they created who the Doctor is and what he stood for. Though the Doctor has changed through his 11 generations (or 12 if you count John Hurt), his moral code was created in the first four seasons, and he always abides by it. Being 50 years old, some episodes are slightly worse for wear than today €“ for example, they've really taken a hit on acting, and effects €“ but it is worth the watch. And what better way to celebrate 50 years than to to go back to the start? So join me now as I go through William Hartnell's 10 Best Episodes. WARNING! This may contain spoilers. Decades-old spoilers,but spoilers nonetheless.

10. An Unearthly Child

Episode: Season 1, Episode 1

Companions: Barbara Wright, Ian Chesterton, Susan Foreman

The show starts out with the Doctor and his Granddaughter, Susan Foreman. Susan is trying to live a normal life by going to school in England. Her teachers Ian Chesterfield €“ sorry I mean Chesterton €“ and Barbara Wright notice how peculiarly Susan has been acting in school, and decide to check up on her after hours. They find that Susan lives in a garbage dump, along with an old man living a police box. Thinking that he locked Susan away inside they barge in and find that it is "bigger on the inside!" The old man, the Doctor, tells them that they cannot go back to their homes anymore, and he dematerializes the TARDIS. Since the TARDIS had a faulty directional circuit when the Doctor stole it, he cannot control where or when he lands, so he must wander through eternity aimlessly, gaining and losing companions along the way. Within the first episode the show has established not only who the Doctor is, but also the grand theme of the "lonely wanderer." Even though the Doctor essentially kidnapped Ian and Susan, he later finds that he needs a companion on his journeys. What makes this episode great is not the story-line, but the establishment it brought. Any episode today directly ties back in with "Unearthly Child" for the sense of adventure that it created. In all honesty the story with the cavemen is one of the most boring episodes in the series, but it is definitely worth the watch to find out what the first Doctor was like.