Doctor Who: Every River Song Episode Ranked Worst To Best

This five-part miniseries is worth a mention because in its own micro-cosmos of storytelling, it encapsulated most of what was good about the Matt Smith era. Hilarious in bits and poignant in others, the individually-titled Night and The Doctor story grew gradually more dramatic with each segment.

The First Night and Last Night episodes featured a neat little appearance from River Song. It was fun having the Doctor traverse the temperaments of three separate Rivers, but the story took a turn for the more serious when the singing towers of Darillium are referenced. As seasoned viewers know, this is River song's last port of call with the Doctor before her inevitable demise in The Library.

It sought to clarify the 'new haircut and suit' reference from Forest of the Dead. Though as you eventually find out in The Husbands of River Song, this particular event was a red herring, and the real goodbye would not come until Capaldi's one-off encounter with River a fair few years later. Still, this mini two-parter packs a punch, especially due to Matt Smith's concealed expression of anguish at the end.