8. His Expanded Adventures
We know that the Doctor is an alien traveling through all of time and space to have...well, fun! In the TV series, we rarely see him traveling alone, usually having a companion from Earth in tow with him. We've learned over time that it's better for the Doctor to travel with someone because they keep him in check and make sure he doesn't go overboard. Still, with many of the episodes, classic or revived, we've only seen him travel with established companions who have appeared in multiple episodes, although there were a few exceptions like the David Tennant specials. With the Eleventh Doctor, we got multiple tastes of what he was up to when his regular companions weren't with him. True, previous Doctors have made quick comments about adventures and interactions they've had, but with Eleven, we knew for a fact that he was off galavanting who knows where even if his regular companions weren't with him. Whether it was hanging out with River while the Ponds were asleep in the TARDIS or waving across history to them while they were enjoying daily suburban life, the Doctor needed in adventure in his life, and he kept going whenever he felt the need for action. Not only that, but it allowed us to see some new companions outside of the characters we saw on a regular basis. There was Craig Owens from The Lodger and Closing Time, the Paternoster Gang consisting of Vastra, Jenny and Strax, and Brian, and Nefertiti and Ridell from Dinosaurs on a Spaceship. I don't think that any of these characters should be held to the same level of importance as the Ponds or Clara, but it's nice to know that the Doctor is expanding his social circle. I hope that with the Twelfth Doctor we'll get to see more of the acquaintances he's met in his travels, as well as the return of some old ones like the Paternoster Gang.