The Evolution of Matt Smith's Doctor Who Tenure
A deep dive into the highs and lows of Matt Smith's time as the Eleventh Doctor in Doctor Who, and how his tenure evolved over the years.
The Early Challenges
Matt Smith had a bumpy start to his run on Doctor Who, with three episodes in particular coming close to spoiling his spell as the Eleventh Doctor. Although Smith's stint as the Time Lord leveled out into a more consistent era, the early scripts the actor had to work with weren't always of the highest quality. Regardless, Smith became one of the favorites of all the actors to play the Doctor. While some of his episodes are remembered as some of the best in Doctor Who history, others are criticized for factors such as lackluster plots and strange character choices.
Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor in Doctor Who holding Karen Gillan as Amy Pond as they stand in front of a big window
Smith served as the Eleventh Doctor from 2010 to 2013. He was the show's leading man during several iconic stories, such as finding the answer to the first question. His Doctor is remembered for his youthful exuberance as well as his ability to switch to a shockingly darker tone. Eleven had various companions during his time on the show but is most closely associated with Karen Gillan's Amy Pond and Jenna Coleman's Clara Oswald. However, it was his early travels with Amy that most came under fire, and they led to some of Smith's worst Doctor Who episodes.
The Doctor, Amy and Rory in Doctor Who The Curse of the Black Spot
Smith's second Doctor Who episode, 'The Beast Below,' didn't live up to his first. Despite having big shoes to fill in the wake of David Tennant's departure, Smith hit the ground running and made the character of the Doctor his own in 'The Eleventh Hour.' The episode was also the first with Steven Moffat in the showrunner's chair, leading to an overall change in tone for the show that was largely well-received. For all the success of 'The Eleventh Hour,' the quality of the following episode nosedived.
The Doctor, Amy and Rory in Ponchos in the Doctor Who episode "Amy's Choice"
The Dalek Dilemma
It's difficult to imagine Doctor Who as a franchise without the presence of the Daleks. With one of the most recognizable silhouettes in science-fiction, the Daleks are essential iconography for the BBC show. Spanning back to Doctor Who's classic era, the Daleks have always looked largely similar. Although their design was refined and modernized ever so slightly for the show's revival in 2005, the differences were subtle and consistent with their traditional aesthetic. Doctor Who season 5, episode 3, 'Victory of the Daleks,' attempted an overhaul of the famous villains and added to the Daleks' timeline within the show's canon.
Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor standing before five very brightly-colored Daleks in Doctor Who
As with 'The Beast Below,' the overall premise of 'Victory of the Daleks' is sound, and even begins with a more recognizable form of the Doctor's sworn enemy. The issues arise during the episode's crescendo when a new 'Dalek Paradigm' is introduced. The set of five Daleks consists of brightly-colored versions of the villains, and are contained in much larger casings. Despite being an even further 'updated' version of the Daleks, their overall image takes on much more of a retro feel. This goes against the actual intention of attempting to make them more imposing. The new Daleks have barely been used since 'Victory of the Daleks,' perhaps suggesting they were poorly received by fans.
Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald in Doctor Who with her hand on the cheek of Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor
Recovery and Renewal
Matt Smith's time as the Doctor may have had rocky beginnings, but it settled into a much more effective formula within a relatively short space of time. Part of the inconsistency came from the unusual writing choices for the interactions between Amy and the Doctor, and the introduction of additional companions leveled things out. For instance, Amy's romantic feelings for the Doctor evaporated once her fiancée, Rory, joined their travels. In addition, the return of Alex Kingston as River Song, the Doctor's wife, helped build on the lore regarding her marriage to the Doctor.
Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor and Alex Kingston as River Song standing on the beach in Doctor Who
As Matt Smith's time as the Doctor increased, the stories started to have much higher stakes and focused on who could be lost at any given moment. Various stories were also split into two episodes rather than trying to rush through a particularly dense narrative. By the time Amy and Rory left the show, Doctor Who had dialed in on how best to use Matt Smith's versatile acting style. As a result, Clara's episodes with Eleven ended up being much more consistent than the installments that had preceded her time as the companion in Doctor Who. All of Matt Smith's Doctor Who episodes are available to stream on Max.
The Eleventh Doctor talking to Clara in Doctor Who
