Who's is your favorite and least favorite doctors?

What is your favorite and least favorite doctors?

Favourite: Tom Baker, Paul McGann (mainly on strength of the audios)
Least favourite: Peter Davison (a good actor stuck with an unfit for purpose character)

Jon.
Although if Tom had stopped at S15, it could well’ve been him. I bet he’s gutted.
Worst would be McCoy, assuming we’re sticking to the classic series. Otherwise, Tennant.

Favourite: Tom Baker/ Patrick Troughton (The former goes without saying, whilst the latter was my introduction into Classic Who, and I hold a very personal soft spot towards him and his era- that, and my utter adoration of The War Games certainly plays a part in that choice. Pertwee and Hartnell are very close behind).

Least Favorite: Outside of the obvious choice of Whittaker, it’s probably Eccleston. I would have gravitated towards Tennant two months ago, but I’ve since realised upon re-watching a lot of series 1 just how uncomfortable and lacking in Doctorly qualities Eccleston truly is in the role. There’s nothing remotely resembling the original character in Eccleston’s working class archetype Doctor persona whatsoever. Tennant at least resembles the character at the best of times, even if his character and era is generally appallingly written.

Favourite: Tom, then Sylv (I'll admit nostalgia plays a role there!), then Pat/Bill tied in third place.

Least favourite: Not counting Nurse Poo, it's Tennant by a long way. Nails on a blackboard irritating, and the whole desperately-pandering-to-the-mainstream nature of his era is also irksome as hell.
In terms of just classic, it would probably be Davison. But I still don't really dislike him at all. Which shows the awesomeness of classic!

iank wrote:Favourite: Tom, then Sylv (I'll admit nostalgia plays a role there!), then Pat/Bill tied in third place.

Least favourite: Not counting Nurse Poo, it's Tennant by a long way. Nails on a blackboard irritating, and the whole desperately-pandering-to-the-mainstream nature of his era is also irksome as hell.
In terms of just classic, it would probably be Davison. But I still don't really dislike him at all. Which shows the awesomeness of classic!

The mainstream pandering template of RTD’s era is indeed painfully patronising, and it’s subsequent popularity is equally so. It’s also a sad thing that general audiences seem to perceive said template as the way to go for Who since Tennant’s era, when the programme shouldn’t ever be as conformist as that.

And I concur with you on Davison, though he’s admittedly grown on me quite a bit of late anyway, which does indeed showcase how good Classic Who is.

Jon Pertwee is the best IMO. He had the most authority, captured the Doctors intelligence the best, his eccentric, awkward nature was completely natural and understated, he had among the best stories, I loved his fighting skills too.

Tom would be second place. He was definitely the most alien and over the top verson. His personality was almost too big for the screen!

William Hartnell would be next after Tom. Hartnell laid down the foundations for the role, and he had arguably the most complex personality out of the Doctors, and the most interesting story arc.

The remaining 4 classic era Doctors I'd rank equally after Hartnell. All were great, none of them ever phoned it in, and all stayed true to the character.

Out of the New lot, Matt Smith is unquestionably the best in every way. Best stories, best companions, the most effective at saving the day (though he did get undermined for Clara a bit at the end.) Matt was also the most naturally eccentric, did the old man in a young man's body really well, had the most consistent morality, and was just more fun overall.

There was more of the eager adventurer in his Doctor, than the big mopey bastard of the Davies era.

That said however Matt only ranks below the classics because of the sometimes appalling way he was written by Moffat. The lothario crap certainly lets him down, and sometimes Matt overdid his wacky persona.

After Matt Id rank Paul McGann. Sorry, he's not a bad actor, but I don't think he was ever that good a fit for the role. Like Tennant and Davison, he is just too conventional, but unlike Tennant he at least did resemble the character in some way.

After Paul its probably Peter who was a good choice, but so criminally wasted.

Following that it would be the Davies era Doctors. Eccelston I have to say would be below Tennant. Having much like Bernard Marx done a rewatch recently, I can safely say that Eccelston's Doctor was appalling all around.

Dear god there really is nothing in the character, added to that he is fucking useless and never saves the day, is undermined for Rose, and worst of all, Eccelston is so self conscious and awkward in the role.

"ROSE, ROSE, ROSE I CAN DANCE AGAIN, I CAN DANCE AGAIN." ugh fuck off with that shit Moffat.

Not even going to count Jodie Pisstaker.

Best: Tom

Worst: McCrud/Tennant.

Bit harsh toward Paul there, Cuntus.

As a general ranking:
1. Paul McGann
2. William Hartnell
3. Jon Pertwee/Patrick Troughton
4. Colin Baker
5. Sylvester McCoy
6. David Tennant/Matt Smith
7. Tom Baker
8. Christopher Eccleston
9. Peter Capaldi
10. John Hurt
11. Peter Davison
Not even going to count Shittiker, but she'd easily be the fucking worst.

Here's why McGann (and I'll talk about Hartnell in some extent) is my favourite:
He's easily the most complex Doctor since Hartnell. He's full of emotions and erratic behaviour, more than Troughton or Tom, but it is played with enough subtlety without him being a caricature. He's also the darkest and mysterious Doctor, with him doing very questionable things to enemies and even his companions so that the day can be saved, in one fashion or another, as well as his absurdly dark humour. And yet, he has as much of a compassionate side to him as well as his dark personality. I love his childlike personality as well, it's always written with such innocence and wonder. Whatever annoyance that I had with 8's romance in the TV Movie (which even then, it's nowhere near as egregious as NewWho Docs, and I can at least see it as a post-regeneration effect), it's barely in his stories in the books, comics or audios, if at all. What is instead replaced is his aristocratic personality and love for poetry, which feels so fresh and yet completely Doctor-y for me, especially with his expansive vocabulary, which has inspired me to increase my English language. I also love McGann's voice whenever I listen to an audio, it feels so Shakespearean and grand. There's many factors to why I love the 8th Doctor, but these are some of my biggest reasons as to why he's my favourite.

SomeCallMeEnglishGiraffe wrote:Here's why McGann (and I'll talk about Hartnell in some extent) is my favourite:
He's easily the most complex Doctor since Hartnell. He's full of emotions and erratic behaviour, more than Troughton or Tom, but it is played with enough subtlety without him being a caricature. He's also the darkest and mysterious Doctor, with him doing very questionable things to enemies and even his companions so that the day can be saved, in one fashion or another, as well as his absurdly dark humour. And yet, he has as much of a compassionate side to him as well as his dark personality. I love his childlike personality as well, it's always written with such innocence and wonder. Whatever annoyance that I had with 8's romance in the TV Movie (which even then, it's nowhere near as egregious as NewWho Docs, and I can at least see it as a post-regeneration effect), it's barely in his stories in the books, comics or audios, if at all. What is instead replaced is his aristocratic personality and love for poetry, which feels so fresh and yet completely Doctor-y for me, especially with his expansive vocabulary, which has inspired me to increase my English language. I also love McGann's voice whenever I listen to an audio, it feels so Shakespearean and grand. There's many factors to why I love the 8th Doctor, but these are some of my biggest reasons as to why he's my favourite.

I’m not as familiar with McGann’s material as you are (I’ve only listened to a certain number of BF audios), but based on what I’ve experienced of him, I’ll assume you’re correct given how good what I’ve experienced is. There is indeed a Shakespearean and literary quality to McGann’s Doctor which harkens back to the more verbose and distinctive qualities of Tom and Colin’s Doctors, only with a more Byronesque exterior and persona.

I certainly wish he got his own TV series in the vein of his BF content, as it could have matched the quality of much of the classic series and shown NuWho up to be as crap and unchallenging as so much of it sadly is. I think you’ve mentioned before on another thread that the early Smith era (incidentally the one era of NuWho that has aged remotely well to me) shared much in common with the McGann audios, and I’m wondering how much better the state of the programme might have been with the majority of Classic fandom if NuWho was substituted for a more intelligent McGann led series  It would have probably become increasingly dumbed down eventually, but I’d have personally taken it over the RTD and Moffat eras either way. Bar perhaps Smith, he’s aeons better than all of the NuWho Doctors from my experience.

And yes- though the TV Movie is crap, and essentially the stylistic template for NuWho, the mawkish and dumbed down elements are generally nowhere near as bad as they are in NuWho.

I didn't like the books, I've never been a comics guy and I just can't get into the audio format, so McGann remains very much a one-shot Doctor that I barely even count, to be honest. Not his fault, but I lump him more with "sort of" Doctors like Hurndall and Hurt than the classic or even New Poo ones as it's more or less impossible to rank him via one half-assed telemovie.
Maybe if they start animating his BF run...

In order of current preference...

First the Fab Four

Jon
Tom
Pat
Bill

then the worthy though never quite fulfilled potential of...

Colin
Peter
Sylvester
Paul

Can't really rate the New Who Docs but will give an honourable mention to Matt who I think at least showed promise albeit thwarted by the material he had to work with.

Well if we're doing rankings....

Jon Pertwee
Tom Baker
William Hartnell
Patrick Troughton
David Bradley
Richard Hurdnall
Peter Cushing
Colin Baker
Paul McGann
Peter Davison
Sylvester McCoy
Matt Smith
Peter Capaldi
Christopher Eccleston
David Tennant

Never seen Jodie Whitaker. (yet)

Ronnie wrote:Well if we're doing rankings....

Jon Pertwee
Tom Baker
William Hartnell
Patrick Troughton
David Bradley
Richard Hurdnall
Peter Cushing
Colin Baker
Paul McGann
Peter Davison
Sylvester McCoy
Matt Smith
Peter Capaldi
Christopher Eccleston
David Tennant

Never seen Jodie Whitaker. (yet)

Your top 3 are exactly like mine.

Though is it not a bit harsh to rate Hurndall and Bradley above Colin, Davison and McCoy? I know opinions and all that, but Remembrance, Androzani, and Varos are surely better performances than Bradley's insulting portrayal in Twice Upon A Time.

Also Tennant should be above Eccelston.



UGH the only thing I'll give Eccelston is he looks embarassed doing that, as anyone would LOL.

I shall also do a ranking:
1. Tom Baker
2. Patrick Troughton
3. William Hartnell
4. Jon Pertwee
5. Sylvester McCoy
6. Colin Baker
7. Peter Davison/ Matt Smith
8. Paul McGann

9. Richard Hurndall
10. David Bradley (He’s crap in Twice Upon a Time, but the brilliance of An Adventure in Space and Time elevates him over the next few picks).
11. Peter Cushing (Not the biggest fan of the Cushing films, but when compared to the material given to the following Doctors, they’re Oscar worthy).
12. Peter Capaldi (A fine Doctor in his first season prior to Death In Heaven, completely undermined by Moffat’s moronic characterisation later on and the truly appalling scripts his era was provided with).
13. David Tennant (Inherently unlike the Doctor in most ways, and with an incredibly irritating persona and era which dumbed the series down beyond recognition, though I find him more believable than the following two).
14. Christopher Eccleston (unlike the character in every conceivable way, and series 1 was RTD’s stepping stone
for the eventual failures of the Tennant era, not to mention utter shite bar the occasional moment in a few individual episodes).



15. Pisstaker (No words are required).

burrunjor wrote:

Though is it not a bit harsh to rate Hurndall and Bradley above Colin, Davison and McCoy? I know opinions and all that, but Remembrance, Androzani, and Varos are surely better performances than Bradley's insulting portrayal in Twice Upon A Time.

I’ve never seen Twice Upon a Time (yet), but Bradley is very good as the first Doctor in the Big Finish spin-offs. This thread isn’t about individual stories so much as it’s about the actual Doctors. It’s the characterisation that matters, and he gets it pretty spot on, as does Hurdnall. And I’m a big fan of the first doctor. I prefer him as a character, over and above any of the 80s Doctors.
Ok, Cushing is a different matter. His portrayal doesn’t really resemble the first Doctor. He’s far too fluffy. But I’m a big fan of those two movies, and frankly would rather watch them than much of substandard 80s output. Not all of it, by any means, but a fair portion. So yeah, it may seem harsh but those are my preferences. I’d rather read one of the Hartnell era Who annuals than watch anything from S23 or 24, for example.

burrunjor wrote:
Also Tennant should be above Eccleston

Well like you say.... opinions.
I’m well aware of Eccleston’s shortcomings in the role, but i find him easier to watch than Tennant. (who incidentally I could find loads of tragically naff clips of on YouTube if I could be bothered) And he does have some great moments too, even if they are only moments. Tennant however, is just a massive cliche. A parody of late Tom Baker when he subsumed the character of the doctor under the weight of his own ego, during the time when Douglas Adam’s influence on the show veered it further away from its previous more serious and ultimately superior tone.

the brilliance of An Adventure in Space and Time elevates him over the,,,,

And this too.

Favourite: Tom Baker, of course.

Least liked: Peter Davison (though I do like an awful lot of 5th Doctor stuff).

NuWho actors don't count (but if they did, the lowest position would absolutely, definitely be occupied by Jodie Whitaker).

My favorites are Sylvester,tom,pat ,jon peter D least favorite Whitaker

Can't say I'm a fan of Bradley. Nothing like Hartnell whatsoever, even despite trying to do an impersonation that makes him look like a cosplaying caricature, and his willing participation in the destruction of the 1st Doctor in TUAT makes him an honorary CUNT in my book.

I like Hurndall a lot though.