Doctor Who Watch Madness spotlight: the popularity of the Tenth Doctor

After winning the first Doctor Who Watch Madness tournament by a landslide, we take a look at the Tenth Doctor, and why he’s still so incredibly popular.

Our first Doctor Who Watch Madness had many contestants, including Doctors, companions, and villains, but only one winner. And it was perhaps unsurprising that the eventual winner was David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor.

But why is he such a popular choice among fans? What makes him, years after he left the show, still a huge favorite for a great deal of the fandom?

David Tennant

Let’s get the obvious out of the way: David Tennant is, quite simply, a phenomenal actor. Since leaving Doctor Who, he has gone on to star in numerous other memorable roles, including detective Alec Hardy in Broadchurch, Kilgrave in Jessica Jones, and Hamlet.

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His performance as the Doctor shares a great deal with his other performances. He always fully throws himself into each and every role, committing an enormous amount of energy to it. He rises and excels to every challenge that he’s given as an actor.

The role of the Doctor in particular is a massive role for any actor to play, in every sense of the word. It always needs someone who has the talent of David Tennant to truly make it work. And, as brilliant as Tennant himself is, there have arguably been other actors who have been equally capable. So what else makes the Tenth Doctor so popular, specifically?

The writing

From 2005 to 2010, the Russell T Davies era of Doctor Who was huge. It revived the show in a big way, and the show won many awards. In the UK, at least, it was a massive success.

A key reason for this was the strength of Davies’s writing and showrunning. It wasn’t just that he wrote strong scripts like Doomsday, Utopia and Midnight.

He also knew how to get the best episodes from other writers, too. Human Nature, Blink and Silence in the Library are all brilliant stories. The consistency of this era helped to make the Tenth Doctor even more memorable for all the right reasons.

But of course, it’s not just the stories themselves that are important. It’s also how the characters are written. An actor can be brilliant, but if they’re not given the right script and their character is badly handled, audiences won’t be forgiving for it.

This is even more important when writing the Doctor. Every Doctor is essentially the same, but they’re also different in key ways. Especially when it comes to their personalities. Some can be very sympathetic towards humans, while others are distinctly more alien.

Alien Doctors who don’t do too well with humans can be fascinating to watch, so long as they’re handled exactly right. (For an example of the alien side done right, see the First Doctor. For an example of how it can go wrong, at least on TV, see the Sixth Doctor.)

Photo credit: BBC

The Tenth Doctor’s character

The Tenth Doctor, however, is undeniably more emotional and relatable compared to most other incarnations. He’s shown to be engaging with families more, such as having Christmas dinner with Rose’s family in The Christmas Invasion. He’s cheerful, nice and happy to meet virtually anyone. And he’s eager to explore the universe and meet new faces. It’s hard not to like a personality like that.

But that’s only one side to him. Beneath that outward friendliness, there’s a darkness to his Doctor, too. He’s less forgiving towards his enemies than with some other incarnations, and there are times when his confidence becomes arrogance (most notably in The Waters of Mars). Beneath all of the outward cheer, he’s a man hiding a lot of pain.

These two extremes are a key reason of why the Tenth Doctor is so compelling to watch as a character. Seeing a man go from light to dark so easily is always fantastic to watch. Especially when the performance is as incredibly strong as David Tennant’s.

The Tenth Doctor was incredibly popular during his initial run on television, and, as Doctor Who Watch Madness proved, he’s still incredibly popular now. More than that: for the reasons listed, it’s very likely he’ll remain a popular Doctor for a long time to come.

Next: Retro review: Partners in Crime

Do you agree with the reasons listed in this article for why Tennant’s Doctor is so popular? Are there additional reasons why you love his Doctor?  Do you think he deserves to be the winner of Doctor Who Watch Madness? Please give us your thoughts in the comments below.