Friday, August 16, 2013

Doctor Who - Top 50 Companions: Part 8

Well, I'm two blogs from revealing my Top 10 Companions of Doctor Who and it was a toughie but until then, here is the eighth part of this list.

Warning: Contains a spoiler for a future Big Finish release.

11: Romana (Mary Tamm/Lalla Ward/Juliet Landau)


If ever there was a companion who needed to return to the actual show itself right about now, then surely it's Romana? Not only does the show desperately need to scrap the last of the Time Lord thing with the Doctor altogether, but Romana like Sarah Jane is another Classic Series companion I could easily envision going down a storm with a whole generation of new viewers, especially after the sterling work both Mary Tamm and Lalla Ward did with the character during the Fourth Doctor's era. In 2014, Juliet Landau (Drusilla from Buffy The Vampire Slayer/Angel) will be playing a future version of the character for the audio, Luna Romana and for me, that's brilliant but it only makes me want to see the character on screen that tiny bit more. Make it happen, Moffat.

12: Jo Grant (Katy Manning)


Or more to the point, Jo Jones as her appearance in The Sarah Jane Adventures classic, Death Of The Doctor informed her. Jo might have her moments of dippiness here and there but she was a lot clever than people gave her credit for. One of her glorious moments was stopping the Master from hypnotizing her and her onscreen dynamic with the Third Doctor remains one of the strongest we've had in the show's fifty year history.

13: Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman)


Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you. I have actually ranked Martha higher than both Rose Tyler and Donna Noble and yes, I am being serious. Out of all of RTD's companions in the Tenth Doctor era, I felt that sometimes Martha got a bit of a rough deal from fans. The unrequited crush might not have worked in her favour (or the off screen marriage to Mickey) but Martha was a kind, capable, resourceful Doctor who managed to defeat the Master and leave the Doctor before things got too complicated. She might not be everyone's cup of tea but no way is this woman anywhere near as unpopular as some fans like to insist she is.

14: Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill)


Mr Pond. The Boy Who Waited. The Last Centurion. Rory has had a few nicknames and a good share of deaths over his two and a half year run with the Eleventh Doctor and while it might have been the Weeping Angels that took both him and Amy out last year, there's no denying his brilliance as a companion. Some might feel he was overshadowed by his own wife and daughter during his time in the TARDIS but honestly, I don't feel Rory was. He held his own in many ways and his spiky banter with the Eleventh Doctor never failed to be entertaining to watch. Don't we all want a Rory, folks?

15: Rose Tyler (Billie Piper)


Oh Rose - if ever there was a companion where fandom's obsession was ever evident, it would be with her. You've got fans incapable of moving on from her and others who view her as the worst thing to ever happen to the show (possibly). My own stance - I like her of course. Personally I think she's a good companion and deserves some of the acclaim she gets but at the same time, she's also a companion who in my own opinion worked better with the Ninth Doctor than the Tenth Doctor (Donna really was his companion). Still, I am looking forward to seeing her in the 50th anniversary episode in November though.

Parts 9 and 10 of this will be up next week.

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