8. Silence in the Library/ Forest of the Dead
Written by Steven Moffat Series 4 Episodes 8 & 9 Silence in the Library and The Forest of the Dead are perhaps two of the most interesting episodes of modern Doctor Who. They're written by Steven Moffat at the time when he knew he was going to take over the job of showrunner. They feature River Song for the first and last time, so essentially play like a two-part Matt Smith story but featuring David Tennant as The Doctor. If anything, however, this just goes to show that David Tennant is incredibly versatile. He could always lead any episode with the utmost confidence and proved time and time again that he was the right person for his job. Moffat is usually celebrated for a few things his episodes are dark, scary and Gothic, and while there is a big element of this in Silence in the Library I always find that the Donna story-line in Forest of the Dead is some of the most powerful storytelling to come out of Doctor Who's fourth series. The idea of watching Donna's life pass by like a dream is so sinister yet brilliant. The simplest ideas are the hardest to come up with, and the idea of a character on television living their life like a character on television through cuts and editing is just as unnerving as the piranha-shadows. The climax of the two episodes is immensely emotional too from Donna losing her husband to The Doctor 'saving' his wife all punctuated with the monologue from River about the Doctor's existence. It's audio-visual poetry and a testament to love and loss, which isn't bad for a cheesy Saturday night Sci-Fi-Soap-Box drama.