10. The Angels Take Manhattan
'The Angels Take Manhattan' succeeds where many of its contemporary episodes fail in that it is a very exciting piece of drama. It's a claustrophobic work that puts each of its characters in immense danger and maintains throughout its running time a lingering sense of impending doom. It may not be the most fun episode of Doctor Who to watch - it is very dark - but there can't be many people out there who deny that it is a very well made piece of television. Even considering just the exceptional cinematography, you're blown away by the episode's cinematic ambition. The way New York is shot somehow feels fresh despite the innumerable number of times the city has appeared on film in past, and what's more, the episode has a story epic enough to match the look of the thing - this is the finale, the danger so great it will tear The Doctor and Amy apart forever. Arthur Darvill's Rory remains my favorite companion to this day and he gives a fantastic performance here dealing with the hideous implications of his inevitable death. He adds layer upon layer of hopelessness and misery to his performance that really drive home just how horrendous the Weeping Angels' plan is. The final scenes of the episode live up to the whole Amy Pond era. Amy's letter is poignantly worded and its impact is only made stronger by Matt Smith's distraught face. The final surprise when we see young Amy again one last time brings the Amy Pond story round full circle in a harrowing yet hopeful way.