13 Darkest Doctor Who Endings Ever

In what is possibly David Tennant’s shining story as the Doctor, we see Ten hiding from the titular Family of Blood by transforming himself into the very human (and very charming) schoolteacher, John Smith.

We spend almost two entire episodes with John, who is a good and honest man. We come to care about this character, watch him fall in love, and then, when we’re fully attached to him, he’s faced with a horrible choice: sacrifice himself and his blossoming relationship to bring the Doctor back and save the town, or sacrifice many lives to remain John Smith, with his love by his side.

Spoiler alert: he chooses heartbreak.

John Smith might be gone, but the Doctor feels his loss immensely, and it pushes him down a cold path by way of revenge. The punishments that Ten devises for these villains are cold and cruel, essentially damning them to an eternity of suffering – there are few scenes in over sixty years in which the Doctor is seen to be quite so malicious as this.

But the real gut punch? Joan. The Doctor offers her a place in the TARDIS, but she sees through the cheerful façade. She wants John Smith – and he’s gone. The Doctor is thoroughly roasted by Joan and coldly dismissed, having stolen her chance of happiness away from her.

It's a story and an ending unlike any in the show. It shakes you to your core, one of those rare Doctor Who adventures that refuses to pull a single punch – and is all the more memorable for it.