3. The Eleventh Hour (2010)
It ends where it began- Matt has said that The Angels Take Manhattan will reference a key element from his debut episode The Eleventh Hour regarding the Ponds' departure. We couldn't remember the Ponds, of course, without their brilliant premiere story, where young Amelia was introduced to us swiftly before the Doctor accidentally zapped twelve years into her future. It was an innovative and surprising twist on the companion introduction tale at the time, and the novelty still hasn't worn off to this day. Between balancing arcs like the Cracks In Time, Prisoner Zero and memories being erased, the Moff had a tough time of it, yet he fully pulled it off in terms of bringing the Ponds to the screen for the first time. Arthur Darvill gave a quirky, humorous edge to his character in a story that the actor didn't know would lead to future appearances, ironically so given Rory's now-immense popularity. Karen of course rocked the world of just about every male Who fan at the time, yet also showed off her performing abilities pretty well as a companion character who would develop considerably in the seasons to come. When we look back on the days of the Ponds, I'm sure the Angels' twist will have us fondly recalling The Eleventh Hour, but on top of that it was a cracking introduction to the characters that we shouldn't ever forget anyway!