Doctor Who: Every 9th Doctor Episode Ranked Worst To Best

Only 13 episodes, but which ones were "fantastic"?

Doctor Who The Parting of the Ways Billie Piper Bad Wolf
BBC Studios

For many young Whovians, Christopher Eccleston was their first Doctor. While he may be known as the Doctor who only stayed for one series - a mere thirteen episodes - he managed to propel Doctor Who to the BBC juggernaut it is today.

Eccleston may have been an unlikely choice for the 900-year-old Time Lord, previously known as a serious actor from gritty independent dramas, but his presence gave Doctor Who some much-needed gravitas. With his Northern accent, leather jacket and buzz cut, he was a fresh and grounded reimagining of the previously pompously dressed (and pompously spoken) character.

Without his broody demeanour, sparkling chemistry with Billie Piper, and love for the word "fantastic", Doctor Who would have been a relic that remained firmly in the 1980s. Whereas Nu-Who typically celebrates David Tennant and Matt Smith, it is important to remember that they wouldn't be around if it wasn't for this Doctor.

While Eccleston is underrated, it is easy to forget that his series was a very mixed bag of classic episodes and extremely bland ones. This is natural, as the series was finding its feet in a new century, but it is worth taking a trip back to 2005 to separate the hits from the misses.

10. The Long Game

Doctor Who The Parting of the Ways Billie Piper Bad Wolf
BBC Studios

The Long Game brings up the bottom of the list as, quite simply, it's incredibly dull and forgettable.

In fact, the only memorable thing about this futuristic episode is the bizarre click-activated opening foreheads that the people of Satellite 5, and failed companion Adam, possess. This is a shame considering Simon Pegg actually gives a witty and sinister performance as the villain in an otherwise skippable episode of the first season.

Another annoyance of this episode is its setting on yet another space station, the second of Eccleston's series, which was an obvious sign that the series did not have the budget for an alien planet.

Ultimately, The Long Game suffers due to being an episode that serves entirely as a setup for the season one finale, which is also set on Satellite 5.

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An avid cinephile, love Trainspotting (the film, not the hobby), like watching bad films ironically (The Room, Cats) and hate my over-reliance on brackets (they’re handy for a quick aside though).