Doctor Who has always been a very scary show.
Now I know that might seem silly, considering the Time Lord’s most infamous enemies are some racist salt and pepper pots, but it’s true.
In fact, here in the UK, the series is synonymous with kids hiding behind the sofa to avoid seeing whatever malicious monstrosity is menacing the Doctor and his mates.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, this has led to a lot of debate about ‘what’s the scariest episode of Doctor Who?’
Is it The Caves of Androzani? Could it be Midnight? Is the answer obviously Blink?
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Well, that will depend on the viewer – horror, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder – yet when it comes to David Tennant’s era, there’s one episode that definitely needs consideration.
The Impossible Planet – which premiered 20 years ago today on June 3, 2006 – is one of the eeriest episodes of the Tenth Doctor’s run.
Set in the far-flung future, this chilling tale sees the Doctor (Tennant) and Rose (Billie Piper) land on an asteroid orbiting a black hole.
What starts as a fun scientific mystery quickly becomes a nightmare, though, as the inhabitants of the asteroid find themselves menaced by an evil supernatural presence that claims to predate time itself.
What does Metro think of The Impossible Planet?
Senior TV Reporter and Doctor Who expert Asyia Iftikhar weighs in….
The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit two-parter has to be some of the best Doctor Who out there (and certainly the best in series two if I have anything to say about it).
The body horror truly sent my skin crawling as a child, but I couldn’t look away out of morbid fascination.
The image of one woman’s body flying beneath a black hole, another sadistically smiling from outside the spaceship without an air helmet, the red eyes, the writing on the skin.
Chills, literal chills. I also love that it leaned fully into the spiritual, religious connotations. What is God, the universe, the devil and what came before? We make our own devils and give them a name.
It’s some stellar philosophical musings to introduce to young viewers, if not slightly traumatic, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Essentially a haunted-house story in space, The Impossible Planet is both a brilliantly atmospheric, borderline Lovecraftian tale and an intriguing mystery.
I can still remember a chill running down my spine as the unseen monster whispers to the tortured Toby Zed that it’s ‘right behind him’ before possessing him.
Even better, it introduced the fan favourite aliens, The Ood, who are one of the most visually impressive creatures from the revived series.
I’m not the only one who remembers the episode as one of Tennant’s scariest stories.
‘Nearly as terrifying as something like Alien,’ wrote Theo Robertson on IMDb. ‘This truly has to be the first Dr Who episode that is not suitable for children.’
‘The story is among my favourite all-time classics, agreed A_Kind_Of_CineMagic. ‘It is a creepy, unnerving episode with some great scares but also great characterisation, great script, great acting and great production values.’
On Reddit, meanwhile, one user wrote: ‘Honestly, it might be my favourite Doctor Who episode(s) of all-time. It’s bleak, high concept and pretty nostalgic.
‘It’s between this and Midnight for me, there’s just something about the dread in the episode that not many episodes can achieve.’
Of course, not everyone’s a fan. Back on IMDb, Wetmars gave it a rather pitiful 3/10 in his review, writing: ‘I am sorry, I just don’t like this episode. It’s all boring and uninteresting.’
Each to their own, I guess…
Doctor Who is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
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