Doctor Who: 10 Reasons The Eleventh Doctor Actually Sucks

3. He Possesses No Gravitas

Picture those moments when the Doctor has been his most formidable. Perhaps you imagine Tom Baker confronting Sutekh or shouting at the survivors on Fang Rock. Maybe it's Hartnell facing down a War Machine, Doctor Chris looking on as Cassandra dries out or the Tenth Doctor throwing a Satsuma and muttering 'no second chances'. The Doctor should be witty, funny, courageous and clever but he should also be scary, too. Great an actor as he is, Smith was never quite able to bring that element to bear. Much is made of his speeches, especially those at the Pandorica or by the Byzantium but, though delivered well enough, they feel as much posturing as an elemental force. Even worse is when this Doctor loses his temper. While you can imagine anyone in reach hiding when Tom Baker bellowed, Smith comes across as petulant, throwing his toys out of his Time Lord crib. You only have to compare what the show feels like now with the Twelfth Doctor. Yes, he's scripted differently but when Capaldi let's rip, the whole universe runs for cover. He knows that the Doctor is a force of nature first and a funny fella second. While Smith condemning Solomon to death in Dinosaurs on a spaceship felt forced, Capaldi dealing with the Half-Face Man recalled the grit of the classic Doctors.