Doctor Whois a show known for its many imaginative villains and antagonists. Fans love to cite how the Daleks look like kitchen gadgets, or the Slitheen reminds them of a certainSpielbergalien. However, for every whimsical design, another, more sinister design is waiting for the next episode. For every Sontaran, there is a Flood.The modern era ofDoctor Whohas excelled in achieving that perfect balance between childlike charm and chilling moments.
While monsters and horror are always fun, nothing stands the hairs on end like seeing the Doctor face a real challenge. A flash of doubt or saddened acceptance across their faces signals to the audience that things just hit another level. Nothing ups the ante like seeing them face their most personal beliefs or having to delegate a sacrifice.In the latest episode, “Boom,“Steven Moffatmade us anxious about ambulances. Add them to the list of statues, shadows, and snow. It’s no surprise he’s responsible for the majority of modern Who’s best villains.
Doctor Who
10The Minotaur’s Labyrinth
“The God Complex” (Series 6, Episode 11)
“The God Complex” was a captivating episode that put the Doctor (Matt Smith), his companions Amy (Karen Gillan) and Rory (Arthur Darvill), and a whole team of guests through a hotel-stye mystery.It transported the ancient myth of the Minotaur into a modern setting, resembling a hotel straight out ofThe Shining. The Doctor and the team are trapped in a wicked hotel, where each room presents dreadful fears and tests of faith that can leave them in a state of mental disarray. Trying to avoid those rooms increases the risk of encountering the Minotaur that wanders through its twisting halls.
Doctor Who is always at its best when it brings the fantasy close to home, so the fans can relate to their favorite characters.Toby Whithouse, the writer of “The God Complex,“does that by forcing the Doctor to break Amy’s faith in him. “I took you with me because I was vain. Because I wanted to be adored. I really am just a madman in a box.” Allowing your loved ones to see your flaws can be more terrifying than an encounter with the Weeping Angels.
9The Empty Child
“The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances” (Season 1, Episodes 9 & 10)
This two-parter is known forintroducing Captain Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman,and the chilling presence of a small child wearing a gas mask.It doesn’t help that the child unrelentingly repeats, “Are you my mummy?” while stalking its prey through radios and other sonic devices. The transition of the war-torn patient to gas-masked horror could only have been more off-putting had they includedthe original intended sound effects to accompany it.The Doctor, surrounded by shrouded figures moving in unsettling unity, was himself shaken.
Penned by Stephen Moffat, this award-winning storyheld a strong performance by the new Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and his companion Rose (Billie Piper). Their dynamic was still being established, and the introduction of the new character, Captain Jack, lent a certain energy to the pair.Florence Hoathgave the audience an earnest portrayal of young Nancy, the wise child caring for the other orphans and terrified of being pursued by this Empty Child.
8The Vashta Nerada
Libraries are often considered comforting and cozy places, designed to invite readers to pull up a chair and stay a while.For readers and lovers of libraries, a villain that hides in the shadows of the bookshelves and can shred your flesh to nothing in an instantwas completely terrifying to imagine.Another two-parter penned by Moffat, this one was responsible for the introduction of fan-favorite River Song (Alex Kingston). Fans were immediately charmed and perplexed by the mystery Kingston presented.
This story splits up the Doctor (David Tennant) and Donna (Catherine Tate) and threatens the loss of a companion, the Doctor’s greatest fear and yet the most common outcome for his adventuring allies.Tate’s stricken Donna, witnessing Miss Evangelista’s tragic demise, kept the stakes grounded for the audience.Moffat proved once again he could turn your stomach with a simple phrase like, “Hey, who turned out the lights?”.
7The Flood
“The Waters of Mars” (Season 4 Special, Dec. 2009)
In the penultimate story of Tennant’s Doctor Who run, the Doctor lands on Mars and encounters Adelaide Brooke (Lindsey Duncan) and her team, includingGemma Chanas Mia Bennett.Traveling alone, as he’s been warned not to do, he encounters a doomed mission.Who has done the Kobayashi Maru test before, but this time Donna isn’t there to help him press the button. Despite his best efforts, the universe demands that today, no one lives.
Coupled with the pressure of fate, the Doctor encounters The Flood, an alien virus that uses the waters of its host body to spread its infection. The cracked lips and continuously flowing waters give the host bodies a peculiar brand of eeriness. Written byRussel T. Daviesand Phil Ford,this special is sometimes underratedbut deserves its flowers for giving us these delightfully disturbing villains.
6The Creature of Midnight
“Midnight” (Season 4, Episode 10)
While this villain has no official title, it deliveredone of the most frightening episodes in Doctor Whohistory.Part of the scare is in the mystery, as this creature is never seendirectly nor named itself. Starting with a knocking at the outside of the ship, this episode exemplifies suspense, continuously building tension. After seeding discord and fear among the passengers, it decides to play a game of copycat. It takes possession of Sky Silvestri, played byLesley Sharpin a performance for the ages. This is revealed by one of the creepiest and most unexpected tactics ever utilized by a villain inDoctor Who.
Eerily echoing everything the others say the creature creates a spooky symphony. At first, it copies everyone, but soon, it zeroes in on the Doctor.The most nerve-wracking moment occurs when you realize that the sound you’re hearing is the creature mimicking the Doctor ahead of him.Not many creatures render the Doctor helpless. Add in the lessons in humanity we get from the passengers' varied dispositions and the sacrifice of a nameless service worker, and it’s a recipe for an instant classic.
5The Silence
“The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon” (Season 6, Episodes 1 & 2)
In an interesting “hats off” to America and another two-parter from Moffat, Smith’s Doctor and Amy and Rory end up in the United States, helping President Nixon (Stuart Milligan) and Canton Everett Delaware III (Mark Sheppard) find a lost little girl.The story introduces The Silence, a species that can make you forget they exist every time you look away.Similar to the looks of stereotypical aliens drawn and imagined in the States, a clever explanation could be that imagery is some echo of their memory held in the subconscious mind.
The idea that another being can erase a person’s memories at range is unsettling enough on its own. Give them an energy-absorbing power like Bishop’s fromX-Men ‘97, and it’s enough to unnerve even River Song. The Weeping Angels may be more widely known and come with untimely consequences;The Silence has to be their biggest competitionfor the best villain created by Moffat.
4The Weeping Angels
“Blink” (Season 3, Episode 10)
As terrifying as The Silence are, The Weeping Angels deserve every bit of their duefor consistently delivering high stakes for the Doctor and his companions.In “The Time of Angels” and “Flesh and Stone” (Season 5, Episodes 4 & 5), Moffat added to their lore with a new rule: Any image of a Weeping Angel can become a live Weeping Angel. When Amy stares at one for too long, it inhabits the reflection in her eyes. Stuck walking blind in a forest, the world becomes small around her as the sounds become louder.
In “The Angels Take Manhatten,” River is left stuck with her wrist in the grasp of an Angel while Rory is thrown in a dark basement that looks to be filled with cherub versions of our frightening villains.Many a spine was chilled as the flame on his matches each flickered one by one, displayingthe disturbing staccato movement of the Weeping Angels.
3Missy a.k.a. The Mistress
“Dark Water/Death in Heaven” (Season 8, Episodes 11 & 12)
John Simmis considered by many to bethe best version of the character. And yet, the introduction ofMichelle Gomezas Missy, a.k.a. The Mistress a.k.a. The Master, gender-bent,was a much-needed ignition for Peter Capaldi’s Doctor.Gomez was incredible in all of her performances as Missy,even inspiring futureDoctor Whovillains.
Missy brought something to the Doctor that no other version of The Master had thought of yet; a proposal. Like the Joker trying to makeBatmanlaugh, Missy wanted to prove that she and the Doctor were not so very different after all. Even though the Doctor was too noble to take up the Cybermen army she offered,the viewers saw his temptation.Having to turn down the chance to rule, no matter how peaceably he might have tried, looked to be more challenging for the Doctor than facing down all the universe at Pandorica.
2The Toymaker
“The Giggle” (60th Anniversary Special, Dec 2023)
Whovians have seen villains with reality-warping powers in Doctor Who before, such as the Trickster from the classic series, but never quite like this.Neil Patrick Harris’ turn as the Toymaker wasequal parts cheesy and chaotic.Never having seenDoctor Whobefore, Davies instructed Harris to go all out. He encouraged playing with accents and hamming it up, flaunting all of his impressive card-handling skills, knowing that was Harris' sweet spot.
Harris did not disappoint. From the creepy ventriloquist dolls to the utter abandon with which he murders members of UNIT, Harris gave the Toymaker a special kind of delirium. It is the carefree psychopath that should be the most feared, and none have been so carefree as the Toymaker.This is another instance in which we see the Doctor shaken, sure only of his inability to keep his companions safe.No other villain has forced the Doctor to bisect himself as he does here, giving the fans their first taste ofNcuti Gatwa’s 15th Doctor.
“The Devil’s Chord” (Season 1 on Disney +, Episode 3)
Just like the Trickster and Toymaker, Maestro’s power level is off the charts.She can rip the music right from your heart.Ncuti’s Doctor calls them The Pantheon, and once again looks scared, even running from his foe.Jinkx Monsoonplays Maestro with all the scene-chewing camp and class of a lady of the runway. Davies made a smart move whenhe cast her off her performance in “Together Again, Again.“
For a moment, it seems as if the team has just what the Doctor ordered when he pulls out his sonic screwdriver and envelopes himself and Ruby (Millie Gibson) in a surprisingly large bubble of silence. The next few moments are of Maestro eating up the silence, smirking as if delightfully surprised, until she uses the sonic resonance of water to break the special spell. One thing is evident,these Pantheon villains are powerful enough to make the Doctor doubt himself, which may be the most frightening aspect of all.
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