Doctor Who: Ranking all the regeneration stories
By James Aggas
Regeneration stories are always (well, nearly always) huge events in Doctor Who. To celebrate, we rank them from worst to best.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
Regeneration is a huge part of Doctor Who’s long history. We rank all thirteen regeneration stories from worst to best, and look at what makes the best ones truly special…
Regeneration stories are such a huge part of Doctor Who, for so many reasons. We either love them or hate them. Sometimes, at the same time. On the one hand, we’re sad to say goodbye to our favorite Doctors, but on the other hand, we love to see our heroes go out in a blaze of glory.
One of the reasons why regeneration stories are so special to Doctor Who is that there isn’t anything quite like them in any other series. Characters may get killed off, even the major ones. But there are very few shows where the same characters get killed over and over again. And even when that does happen, it rarely has the same impact as feeling like an actual death at the same time.
Of course, what also makes regeneration so special is that it isn’t like that, not quite. The hero still lives on, in some shape or form. The same memories, the same morals, even the same soul. So there’s that quiet reassurance that we often get when the new Doctor comes along.
But before then, the previous Doctor is given one last adventure. And that’s what we’re looking at: each of those final adventures for all the previous Doctors. The epic send-offs, the final battles and the emotional goodbyes: we’re ranking them all.
Of course, not every regeneration story is like that. Sometimes, they can be rather more intimate and work well for the story. Other times, though, it’s because of bad story decisions and just disappointing writing. And that’s exactly what the first item in our list gives us…
As a regeneration story, there’s no doubt that the TV movie is a poor exit for McCoy’s Doctor.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
13. The TV Movie
I’ll be honest: while it’s far from the most popular of Doctor Who stories out there, there’s a lot that I love about the TV movie. The gorgeous TARDIS set, the excellent costumes for the Doctor and of course, the introduction of my favorite Doctor, Paul McGann. There’s definitely a lot to enjoy about this story.
However, that doesn’t change the fact that, as a regeneration story for Sylvester McCoy’s Seventh Doctor, it’s awful. No epic goodbye, no final battle, not even a tragic choice.
Instead, while suddenly arriving on Earth, the Seventh Doctor steps outside and…steps into a hail of bullets. The most devious and careful planner of all the Doctors, and he simply gets shot down by a random gang because he forgot to check the scanner.
When the US medical system fails
Even worse, that isn’t what kills him. No, what kills him is the surgeon operating on him who gets confused due to the Doctor’s binary vascular system and says words that no one wants to hear during an operation:
"Let me try something!"
Suddenly, a piece of medical equipment gets stuck in the Doctor’s body and, despite everyone’s best efforts to revive him, the Doctor dies on the operating table.
Seriously, that’s how it happens. That’s how the Seventh Doctor dies. Because of a surgeon’s very poor judgment. And it’s not meant to feel tragic or ironic, but really, as a way of introducing regeneration to a brand new audience. It’s a huge disappointment, especially to McCoy fans, and while I’m grateful that this film gave me my favorite Doctor, even I think Seven’s weak regeneration was too high a price.
Oh, and the surgeon who killed Seven? That’s Dr. Grace Holloway, the closest thing the Eighth Doctor had to a companion on-screen. Yeah, the Doctor’s life is weird like that.
The Eleventh Doctor met his end in The Time of the Doctor. Is it the weakest regeneration story of the New Series?
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
12. The Time of the Doctor
As I’ve written before, I have a lot of respect for Steven Moffat for trying to make the Silence arc work. Even better, he actually got to wrap the whole arc up with Matt Smith’s final story as the Eleventh Doctor. It should be a fitting way for a Doctor to go.
Unfortunately, that isn’t what happened. The Time of the Doctor isn’t an awful final story, but it is, in many ways, a badly rushed one. This was a special that needed to wrap up a lot of major storylines – the Silence; who blew up the TARDIS; Madame Kovarian; the return of Gallifrey etc. The problem isn’t that the special didn’t touch on those things, but simply couldn’t give enough time to them. Certainly not in just one hour.
There’s one particular scene that highlights this. After centuries of war between the Doctor and the Silence on Trenzalore, the Doctor and Tasha Lem finally talk once more. During this conversation, explanations for major events in Series Five and Six are massively glossed over. This was particularly frustrating with Madame Kovarian’s story. She was a major antagonist during Matt Smith’s second series, but is only given a very brief mention in this scene.
The Time of the Doctor isn’t without its good points. Matt’s final speech is a particularly moving one, and a perfect way for him to exit the show. But even that is undermined by a way too fast regeneration into Capaldi. Overall, The Time of the Doctor is a very frustrating final story to watch.
Jon Pertwee’s Doctor was greatly loved, but was his final story a worthy send-off?
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
11. Planet of the Spiders
I recently re-watched Planet of the Spiders last year. On the whole, I wasn’t too impressed. There are a lot of great ideas in this one, particularly in how religion and Buddhism are explored. But it’s a little let down by a dragged out story and a production that, frankly, isn’t quite as polished as it should be.
It’s a shame really, as I absolutely love Jon Pertwee’s Third Doctor. He was classy, sarcastic and pretty darn kick-ass, at times. He was a very distinctive and memorable Doctor, and he lasted for five seasons with very good reason.
But, even with a story that’s written by the same writers as The Daemons, one of Pertwee’s very best stories, Planet of the Spiders just doesn’t come to scratch. Particularly during part two, which features one of the most boring and unnecessary car chases in Doctor Who history. (How you make a scene that involves a flying car boring, I don’t know, but Spiders achieved it!)
Resolving key threads
There is still a lot to enjoy in this one, I must admit. Not only does it really explore regeneration in a much deeper way than before, to the point where it’s even given that name for the very first time.
It also does a similar job of what The Time of the Doctor did, but admittedly in a far more satisfying way. And that’s taking many key threads from the Third Doctor’s era and bringing them together. Long-running elements like Metebelis Three, the Doctor’s old mentor and even the redemption of Mike Yates are explored and resolved. So there’s certainly a good story here.
It’s just let down by key production elements, both in the execution of the Spiders themselves and even some of the editing. (There are a couple of fluffs that crop up in this one, which is virtually unforgivable after the Sixties.)
The Third Doctor’s final scene is a very moving one, perhaps one of the very best. It’s just let down by a story that’s just a little too weak in some key areas.
The Day of the Doctor wasn’t just a multi-Doctor story – for John Hurt’s incarnation, it turned out to be a regeneration story, too.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
10. The Day of the Doctor
Aside from a couple of brief cameo appearances (one of which features in this list), The Day of the Doctor is John Hurt’s only on-screen appearance as the War Doctor. So it’s kind of funny that this also counts as a regeneration story, as we’re essentially introduced to this particular incarnation in this episode, too.
I don’t think there’s anything necessarily wrong with The Day of the Doctor, even as a regeneration story. In fact, there are a few interesting themes that make it perfect as a final episode for a Doctor.
The War Doctor’s clearly fought for a long time in the Time War, consciously giving up his old name of “the Doctor”. The Day of the Doctor tells the last day of it, so it’s a logical choice to make this story his final adventure, too. The fact that he ends up saving Gallifrey rather than destroying it also adds to the theme of redemption, even if he won’t remember it afterwards. And redemption is always a great theme for a final story.
A brilliant (but brief) Doctor
John Hurt is also great in the role of the War Doctor. While in some ways, his role could’ve easily been filled by the Eighth Doctor, Hurt makes the part his own, and the incarnation stands out on its own terms.
A key reason why this story isn’t higher in our list is simply because of the fact that the War Doctor hadn’t been around on-screen or even the expanded universe for long at all, so when he regenerates, there’s less of an emotional connection compared to other Doctors.
And while we’ve had many audio dramas featuring the War Doctor since then, and despite the interesting themes of Day, the regeneration still feels like it comes out of nowhere. He’s practically ready for it when he comments that he’s “wearing a bit thin”. So the regeneration itself is a little less emotional than others on this list. Still, The Day of the Doctor is an excellent story in its own right, at least.
We admit it: we’ve gone for something a little different with this one. But The Brink of Death is still a valid regeneration story for Colin Baker’s Doctor.
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.
Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)
9. The Brink of Death
If it wasn’t for The Sixth Doctor: The Last Adventure, then there’s a good chance that the bottom entry in our list would’ve been Six’s regeneration at the very start of Time and the Rani. Especially since Colin Baker wasn’t properly brought back for McCoy’s opening story, and the pivotal scene was done with Sylvester McCoy in his predecessor’s coat and a curly blond wig!
If that wasn’t bad enough, there wasn’t even much of an explanation for why the Doctor regenerated at all. The TARDIS is attacked, and we see the Doctor and Mel lying on the floor, but while Mel walks away from it without a scratch, the Doctor was somehow injured so badly that he had to regenerate!
There were a lot of jokes made about how the Sixth Doctor died as a result. Whether it was a “bang on the head”, falling off his exerciser, or even just drinking too much carrot juice, the Sixth Doctor’s death was, for a long time, one that fans would laugh at instead of cry over.
However, the box set The Sixth Doctor: The Last Adventure went some way towards fixing that. Particularly with the final episode, The Brink of Death. While all the stories are connected, it’s only the last one that focuses on telling Six’s regeneration story. And while the events leading up to Six’s regeneration have been covered elsewhere (most notably the novels Spiral Scratch and Time’s Champion), with Colin Baker involved in The Brink of Death, this feels the most authentic take on it.
A satisfying exit story
So how is The Brink of Death as a regeneration story? It’s not bad. It takes a while to get going though, as the Doctor essentially finds out that’s he already dead at the very start of the story. He just needs to find out how and why. Along the way, there’s a lot of technobabble, which does slow the story down, at points.
However, it really does pick up in the second half, when the Sixth Doctor realizes exactly just how high the stakes are this time. He’s put in a desperate situation, and his final confrontation with the Valeyard – the manifestation of his darker side first seen in The Trial of a Time Lord – is fantastic to hear.
In fact, Colin’s performance in general is great to listen to in this one. He captures a lot of sides of the Sixth Doctor, including the vulnerable, the confident and the heroic. The Brink of Death might not be my favorite regeneration story, but it’s still an absolutely essential listen.
The Fourth Doctor’s final adventure saw him both fight and even team up with the Master, as played by Anthony Ainley.
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: BBC.)
8. Logopolis
Logopolis is, in some ways, quite the epic story for Tom Baker’s Doctor. Continuing directly from his previous story, The Keeper of Traken, the Fourth Doctor’s final adventure has him battling the Master once more. And there are devastating consequences, particularly when a highly destructive force is unleashed on the universe.
Like The Brink of Death, Logopolis takes a while to get to the real heart of the story. In the first two episodes, the Master doesn’t even show up, as Anthony Ainley’s new incarnation is mostly heard off-camera.
While the first episode gets the story off to an intriguing start, like Planet of the Spiders, Logopolis noticeably drags during its second episode, as the Doctor and Adric try to track the Master down.
However, the final two episodes really get the story going. There are a lot of interesting ideas included, some of which had been touched on before in earlier stories, but are only deeply explored here. So we get the feeling of a satisfying resolution with this serial.
An epic conclusion
And of course, the final episode brings the whole thing to a close in a satisfyingly epic way. The universe is on the brink of total collapse, and the Doctor and the Master are the only ones who can save it.
As a result, we get an incredibly rare glimpse of the Doctor and the Master working together, and how easily they would have been friends, once upon a time. Of course, it all ends with the Master’s inevitable betrayal, and the Doctor sacrificing his life to save the universe. Naturally.
While the way the Fourth Doctor dies is a little disappointing, there’s no question that his final moments are certainly emotional, particularly when he thinks of all of his old companions. Overall, Logopolis is flawed, but it still hits hard when it needs to.
Twice Upon a Time was essentially a regeneration for two Doctors. But how well did it serve Capaldi’s Doctor in particular?
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Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
7. Twice Upon a Time
I’ll be honest: if Twelve had regenerated into Whittaker in The Doctor Falls, then his regeneration story would be way higher in this list. It’s big, it’s epic, and it’s a great goodbye to a great Doctor. The moment that hits hardest is:
"Pity. No stars. I’d hoped there be stars."
If he had truly regenerated during such a brilliant story, this would have been much nearer the top of the list. As it is, he only begins to regenerate in these two episodes, and his final adventure Twice Upon a Time, while enjoyable, isn’t quite as strong.
Let’s get the worst out of the way first: the First Doctor, or rather, Steven Moffat’s handling of the character. While William Hartnell’s Doctor wasn’t perfect, his sexism wasn’t nearly as much of a huge character trait as Moffat made it out to be.
Even the use of an actual quote is taken out of context. Yes, by today’s standards, saying that you’ll give a grandchild a “smacked bottom” is absolutely terrible. But even back in the Sixties, saying it to a complete stranger was far worse. Honestly, considering these elements hardly crept up at all during his era, playing them for a joke really wasn’t needed.
The First Doctor – when he worked well
This is especially disappointing as David Bradley is absolutely fantastic in the role. He gets a lot of Hartnell’s mannerisms perfectly, and he’s fantastic opposite Capaldi. He really is a joy to watch throughout the episode.
Also, it has to be said, the moments when Moffat gets the First Doctor right are spot on. Moments like him telling Bill why he left Gallifrey give us huge insight into the Doctor in general, and his fear of his first regeneration is fascinating to watch.
It’s also excellent at exploring the parallels between both One and Twelve, and how each of them are finding it difficult to move on with their lives, for very different reasons. It’s a really fascinating story, and the addition of One almost adds to Twelve’s story, rather than subtracts from it.
With a beautiful tribute to a real-life Christmas miracle, plus one great final speech from Capaldi, Twice Upon a Time gets so much right. It’s just a real shame that Moffat’s mishandling of the First Doctor really lets it down.
The Tenth Doctor faced an epic and emotional exit in The End of Time.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
6. The End of Time
It’s funny how much time can change your opinion of a story. For quite a while, I wasn’t too keen on The End of Time. Don’t get me wrong, David Tennant gives a magnificent performance in the role, and it was cool to see the Master and the Time Lords return (well, more or less).
But if there was one problem I had with the story, it was how much it overplayed “regeneration” as a “death”. True, I’ve made comparisons myself throughout this article. But The End of Time seemed especially focused on it, to the point where it overplayed it. Considering no other Doctor had reacted to their regeneration as badly as Ten did, it seemed, frankly, out of character.
The most unforgivable moment for me? His rant at Wilf. Wilf, who had been loyal to him for so long and stuck by him, and only ended up in a container about to flood with radiation completely by accident, and that’s who the Tenth Doctor rants at. His line of Wilf being “not remotely important” was especially cruel. Especially since the Doctor would live on in some shape or form, whereas Wilf would completely die if the Doctor didn’t save him. So I wasn’t too keen on Ten’s portrayal in this one.
How the story improved with time
However, one retcon by Moffat significantly improved the story. On broadcast, it seemed that the Doctor at this point still had a couple of regenerations left. But The Time of the Doctor revealed that, thanks to both the War Doctor and Ten’s cancelled regeneration in Journey’s End, the Doctor really was facing the last roll of the dice in The End of Time.
No more chances after this one. No more regeneration possible. Worse, he might have even been facing the Valeyard, who was destined to appear somewhere between his twelfth and final incarnations. This time, regeneration was far more uncertain than ever.
So Ten’s fear in this story makes a lot more sense. It doesn’t mean that The End of Time is perfect. The Master’s handling in this story is rather weak at times, and the goodbye sequence he gets is far too long. So there are certainly times when this story is just a little too self-indulgent, to the point when I was more than ready to say goodbye to Ten by the end.
But it does give us a different kind of regeneration story, one that’s actually now perfectly placed. And there’s no doubt that Tennant’s performance in this is, regardless of how his character is handled, absolutely amazing. As a result, it’s gone from a rather weak and even exaggerated take on regeneration to a very strong and complex one, thanks to its new context.
The Eighth Doctor’s exit story may have been short, but it also had a huge impact.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
5. The Night of the Doctor
It’s kind of funny. The best regeneration story during Doctor Who‘s fiftieth anniversary year, and it wasn’t a huge epic or multi-Doctor special. In fact, at just six and a half minutes long, it was barely a tenth of the length of either The Day of the Doctor or The Time of the Doctor.
But despite that, The Night of the Doctor was a fantastic minisode, and indeed, a decent regeneration story in its own right. It also achieved so much, which really shows exactly just how brilliant Steven Moffat can be when the resources he’s been given are so limited.
We have the long overdue return of the Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann. After seventeen years, he’s finally given an exit story. And what an exit story it is. True, he doesn’t save the universe or have a major battle with one of his enemies.
Instead, he tries to save just one single life. One he hardly knows, in fact. And one who in fact hates him the moment she finds out he’s a Time Lord. The worst part is that he doesn’t save her at all, and ends up dying in vain.
Giving up being the Doctor
It’s a small moment, but it represents Eight’s more heroic and moral Doctor perfectly. Even in the TV movie, he threatened a police officer by pointing a gun at himself. In Dark Eyes, during a particularly desperate and suicidal moment, he was ready to be exterminated by the Daleks. In both cases, he was primarily held back because of his companions. When trying to save the life of Cass, however, there was no one to save him from himself.
What’s also major about this is that this is the moment when the Doctor realizes that he can’t keep making these kinds of gestures. Certainly not during something as insane as the Time War. Worse, he can’t keep being the Doctor. With this minisode, the Doctor makes a conscious choice to give up everything that he is, including his very name.
It’s a perfect ending to McGann’s Doctor, one that introduces him to a new audience while also providing an emotional send-off to fans of his audio stories. Speaking of which, the real icing on the cake has to be Eight mentioning his audio companions, thus making Big Finish canon to the TV series. It’s a hugely satisfying moment, and cements The Night of the Doctor as a brilliant regeneration story. Short it may be, but it’s also a fantastic story on its own terms.
The First Doctor’s final story was also the first story to feature the Cybermen.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
4. The Tenth Planet
William Hartnell’s final story is perhaps one of, if not the most important story in this entire list. Because The Tenth Planet was the first time a regeneration had ever happened in Doctor Who. And I’m not sure it’s even possible to understate how important, let alone risky that was.
Up until this point, Doctor Who was a series with a definite lifespan. That’s how it had always looked. While the show could go anywhere in time and space, and thus allowed for infinite possibilities in terms of storytelling, the show was rather dependent on the main character. You couldn’t have Doctor Who without Doctor Who. And there was no question that anyone else would or even should take over the role. Not in the audience’s eyes, anyway.
But behind the scenes, due to Hartnell’s ill health, it became clear that something needed to be done. (This is especially clear during the third episode of The Tenth Planet, where the First Doctor faints and doesn’t appear until episode four.)
A huge risk
Now, a re-cast is an incredibly bold choice anyway, especially when it’s the lead character. But a re-cast with someone who looks and acts nothing like the previous actor is even bolder. We might accept the idea of regeneration easily now, but back when it was first thought of, it was a huge risk. And can you think of any other series where a re-cast has not only been embraced, but even expected? (Well, other than James Bond movies and soaps, especially British ones. Seriously, how many actors have played Ben Mitchell already?!)
So The Tenth Planet is incredibly important already. And then of course, we have the introduction of one of the show’s most iconic monsters, the Cybermen! For the introduction of two incredibly important concepts in Doctor Who, it’s definitely essential viewing.
It’s also a rather strong story, too. While the foreshadowing of the First Doctor’s demise is pretty low-key compared to what comes later, the regeneration is still set up well. Particularly during the final episode, which gives us an absolutely iconic line:
"It’s far from being all over!"
Over five decades since this story was broadcast, and that line remains true to this day. And that’s all thanks to what The Tenth Planet achieved.
The Parting of the Ways was the first regeneration story of the New Series and, in our opinion, the best.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
3. Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways
It’s funny to think of how relatively short Christopher Eccleston’s era was in Doctor Who. With just one series at thirteen episodes, his run on television was just a few months. But that doesn’t stop his Doctor from being greatly loved by fans to this day. Or the fact that his regeneration story is, frankly, the best of the New Series.
There are a lot of reasons why Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways is so special. While in some ways, it is a little dated, particularly due to the real life game shows and reality TV series it parodied at the time, there’s a lot that still holds up brilliantly.
For one thing, the stakes aren’t just high story-wise, they feel high. And that’s because there are a lot of likable characters that Russell T Davies kills off in this story. Whether it’s the adorably sweet “Lynda with a Y”, or even the two very close friends working on the TV station, there are a lot of characters we grow attached to that get killed off, and rather easily, too. And, unlike in later series, hardly any of them come back to life. (We all know the obvious exception, here.)
There’s a rather dark tone to this story, darker than perhaps any finale that comes later, and the battle against the Daleks feels grittier than what we got in later stories.
The Doctor and Rose
Lastly, there’s how the story explores the relationship between the Doctor and Rose. The Doctor is willing to do anything to keep Rose safe. Rose, on the other hand, is willing to do anything to stay with the Doctor, no matter what.
It all ends with some very dangerous choices being made, and the Doctor sacrificing his current life to save Rose’s. It’s a perfect end to this Doctor’s story, and while it doesn’t completely wipe away his survivor’s guilt from the Time War, it does help him to truly start to move on.
It all ends with an absolutely beautiful speech by Nine. While Ten got a strong exit, nothing outdoes Nine’s final words:
"Before I go, I just want to tell you, you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. And you know what? So was I!"
A fantastic ending to a fantastic Doctor, and overall the best regeneration story of the New Series.
Big, bold and epic, The War Games is a brilliant send-off for Troughton’s brilliant Doctor.
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: BBC Press.)
2. The War Games
I absolutely adore The War Games. It’s not just one of my favorite regeneration stories, but one of my favorite stories ever. Yes, at ten episodes, it’s too long for the story it’s telling. (It also makes finding the time to re-watch it admittedly difficult.) But honestly, that’s a very small flaw in an absolutely brilliant story.
One thing that leaps out about The War Games is how epic it is. Not simply in terms of its length, but also in terms of scale. We have numerous wars fought across so many different time zones, including the First World War and the American Civil War. Throw in both a mysterious sci-fi base at the center of it and even some Romans, and you’ve got the makings of a thrilling story. And that’s before the Time Lords show up for the first time ever!
A strong team of villains
On top of that, we also get some incredibly strong villains. Noel Coleman is particularly vile as General Smythe. Within just one episode, you want to see his character dead.
Edward Brayshaw also works well as the War Chief. Another Time Lord, he’s helping the unnamed aliens with their plans of universal conquest. There’s a fan theory that this character might be an earlier incarnation of the Master, and when you watch the story, it’s really not hard to see why.
However, who really stands out is Philip Madoc as the War Lord. He only shows up in the last few episodes of the story, but he brings such subtlety, class and restrained menace that he instantly stands out as the best villain of the piece.
A brilliant final performance
And if that story wasn’t exciting enough, we also have the first ever appearance of the Time Lords at the end. And they have never felt more powerful than in their debut story, to the point where they almost seem omnipotent. You actually feel so sorry for the Doctor when he tries to escape them and fails, and he never seems more vulnerable.
Throughout The War Games, Patrick Troughton gives an absolutely brilliant performance as the Second Doctor, particularly during the final episode. His Doctor is vulnerable, but defiant until the end. When he’s sent off to Earth and punished for his travels with a forced regeneration, it’s a tragic ending to his Doctor, especially as he was essentially punished for doing the right thing. But it’s also a brilliant ending, too. One of the very best.
But what is the best ending for any Doctor?
Not just the very best regeneration story, but also one of the greatest Doctor Who stories of all time, The Caves of Androzani deserves the top spot.
(Photo credit: Doctor Who/BBC.
Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)
1. The Caves of Androzani
Like it could be anything else. The Caves of Androzani is fondly thought of by fans to this day, and with very good reason. On almost every level, it’s an absolutely brilliant production.
The Fifth Doctor’s final story combines so many genres into one. Drama, space opera, tragedy, action, thriller, horror – this story has them all.
Like The War Games, it also has an incredibly strong collection of villains, too. We have Sharaz Jek, essentially a huge tribute to The Phantom of the Opera. He makes a lot nasty and ruthless choices, but he’s not completely unsympathetic, especially when you hear his backstory.
Which is more than can be said for Morgus. There’s no question that he’s the real villain of the story. He’s vile, ruthless and has no sense of morality. He’s also a highly effective businessman, so I get the feeling that there was some slight commentary from writer Robert Holmes there.
Fairwell, Five
But more than that, The Caves of Androzani shows Five at his most vulnerable and, therefore, at his most heroic. Whether he’s running away from bullets as gunrunners fire at him, or pushing himself into the claustrophobic depths of the cave, Peter Davison’s Doctor is absolutely magnificent in this story. He’s not saving the universe, he’s not fighting an old enemy. He’s just struggling to survive a small war while he does everything he can to save his friend’s Peri’s life. A friend that he hardly knows at this point, and isn’t even sure that he likes.
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There’s a particularly brilliant moment that stands out. Towards the end of part three, as he’s crashing a ship heading for Androzani Minor, there’s a brief moment where the regeneration effect in this story is clearly seen. But he holds it back, not wanting to change until his work is done and he saves his friend’s life. It’s a fantastic moment, one that leads into one of the greatest cliffhangers in Doctor Who history.
The Caves of Androzani is unlike so much of Doctor Who. It has an epic, almost Shakespearean feel to it, whether it’s with Morgus’s monologues to the camera, or the Doctor’s brilliant line:
"Is this death?"
From start to finish, The Caves of Androzani is a fantastic piece of television, and definitely deserves the top place for being the greatest regeneration story, as well as one of the greatest Doctor Who stories of all time.
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Do you agree with this list? Which regeneration story is your favorite? Is the Doctor who appears in your favorite regeneration story the same as your favorite Doctor? Let us know in the comments below.