10 Times Doctor Who Went Too Far

Doctor Who might be a family show, but the Whoniverse has featured several dark and disturbing moments over the decades...
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[@tescobesco]

I loved how dark Capaldi’s era could get. It was amazing. I want more dark doctor who. I really really want more proper scary doctor who

[@spicysaddness9049]

YESSSSSS!!!!! It was sooooo H.P. Lovecrafty I freaking love the Capaldi

[@steve-0493]

Yeah,we need to get back the melty-face,break ur fuckin hands by crushing em,dark side of Who lol .. Kerblam man actually walked into homes and exploded...yeah I'd watch

[@spicysaddness9049]

@@steve-0493 say less….I’m bringing the drinks

[@steve-0493]

@@spicysaddness9049 🤣😅..gotcha🤐🤐

[@jayfredrickson8632]

Dr who is at its best when it's dark. Fun is fine, but it wears thin.

[@karachter]

wilf saying "that's what they called them last time" is why i love turn left so much, rest in peace bernard cribbins

[@alyzu4755]

Yes! The whole episode was amazing, but that one line was a gut-punch.

[@thelarryman482]

Yeah, that has some bad nazi background

[@westzed23]

Both Catherine Tate and Bernard Cribbins showed how strong they both were in acting. Stars.

[@Trebuchet48]

Yes, "Turn Left" is dark. But it's one of the very best episodes ever.

[@tracyroweauthor]

agreed! It shows just how strong and heroic Donna actually is, even on her own.

[@Donnagata1409]

Quite agree

[@pikachucetthesecond4296]

It being so dark is arguably what makes it so good

[@CortexNewsService]

@@tracyroweauthor She really was the most important woman in the universe.

[@tracyroweauthor]

@@CortexNewsService true story

[@greeneyes66]

Bill Potts being abandoned, transformed and mostly forgotten in her final episode got me especially. Can't blame the creators for not pushing the envelope...

[@GerryIII]

Watching the inevitability of every death, the doctor’s discomfort and Adelaide’s suicide makes “Waters of Mars” one of my favorite dark Who episodes.

[@0xEARTH]

every time Tennant said "i really, really should go" broke me honestly, and just when we thought all was good, and that the Time Lord Victorious was able to make a good change like that, history corrected itself.

[@andu1854]

Worst instead of their mother being the reason her daughters went into space exploration, it ended up being the survivors, just one of the Doctor’s worst blunders and why he needed a companion to call him on his crap

[@yaraelpoof7242]

Same

[@snakedriver]

Great episode

[@NurseRekka]

I've seen it once and ONLY once. Hits a little too close to home...

[@sanddagger36]

I will always applaud the fact that Moffet gave us 2 completely different itterations of the Doctor. For every happy-go-lucky moment of Matt Smith that was a much darker one for Peter Capaldi.

[@tracyroweauthor]

Capaldi was THE Doctor. He and then Matt Smith are by far my favorite Doctors.

[@rainestar82]

And theyre vastly different in their darkness too. Matt's Doctor always came off as barely restrained when angry, he only spoke calmly so much because if he loses it, its completely over. Capaldi's Doctor was just calmly assured and authoritative. It's like all that quite darkness from Eleven solidified, and its closer to Ten's way of being angry. The Doctor's darkest moments are also where you can see the actors and the character through regens developing, it's always been one of my fav parts of the show.

[@tracyroweauthor]

@@rainestar82 I never actually thought of that! What a great analysis!

[@kaizoisevil]

Which is ironic given that Matt was playing a version of the Doctor who was on his last regeneration, so ideally he should have been the darker one. Whereas Capaldi was the first in a new set, plus he no longer has the guilt of destroying Gallifrey. So one would think he would be the more cheery one.

[@ozthebeeman]

i will never ever ever forget the scene where the patient is clicking the button that says pain and the nurse comes in to mute him its so horrid so cruel i have no other option then to love it one of the best scenes ever

[@pikachucetthesecond4296]

The "Don't Cremate Me" scene made 10 year old me terrified of getting cremated after death And I'm STILL terrified of it.

[@veevs]

Yes, and I think it should have been made clearer that Missy's afterlife is made of lies and is not a real thing (though I don't understand how the child was sent back in his physical body).

[@MinimalistTheatre333]

My brother was cremated before this episode came out. Imagine how I felt.

[@bamherolive1861]

There's no need to be afraid of things like that. The Bible gives us a clear answer of the condition of the dead. Ecclesiastes 9:5 states: "For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing at all, nor do they have any more reward, because all memory of them is forgotten." This verse acts as a great comfort for me as I also was scared about Doctor Who's warning of cremation. I hope it comforts you too! 😊

[@mattosborne3252]

​@@bamherolive1861 religion is like penis. It's great that you have one but put it away, nobody wants to see you waving it about, there's a chap.

[@danthemeegs8751]

It really is chilling, I watched it again recently and it still hits hard. Not surprised it received so many Ofcom complaints

[@andrewmorton7482]

"Turn Left" is one of the best pieces of Science Fiction in the last 2 decades

[@matthewhenthorn3343]

Speaking as someone who was genuinely traumatised by The Empty Child and can't be around a gas mask, I feel that one was deserving of a place on this list.

[@hollymatton474]

I have to confess that after watching The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances first air, I've never been able to rewatch them! 😂 They absolutely terrified me! Not just the gas mask zombies or the transformations of the people into the gas mask zombies, but the whole concept of the episodes was a bit too creepy for me! My sister and mum would wind me up all the time afterwards by saying "Mummy, are you my mummy?" to scare me! 😂😊

[@matthewhenthorn3343]

@@hollymatton474 one of my brothers did than to me with a paper-masha gas mask he made at school. I wasn't happy. I've rewatched the episodes since but it wasn't easy. Even after 12 years, I stayed well away from the round house when it was being fumigated by a friend. I swear if he had tried to mess with me, the school would have had an alarming day.

[@BeeWhistler]

I suppose it was saved by the fact that everyone lives? But yeah, the teen mom who lost her kid and saw him come back as a monster… pretty dark.

[@reubenmanzo2054]

I'm surprised the Abzorbaloff didn't make the list.

[@rachelcookie321]

Funnily enough, while that episode did scare me a bit, it never left me terrified. I feel like maybe I was too young to truly understand what was happening in it. I get scared very easily but I watched that episode many times as I had it on dvd and I was fine. The thing in Doctor who that gave me nightmares was the cybermen and daleks. I used to fall asleep every night with my head under my covers because I was scared I would get murdered by cybermen or daleks. At the time I took solace in the fact the daleks wouldn’t be able to get up the stairs, but then the daleks started flying so I wasn’t so safe anymore. I used to suffocate myself every night for years because I was terrified if any of my body parts were visible then I would get killed.

[@lupino77]

Torchwood's Countrycide is easily one of the most horrifying episodes in the whole Whoniverse

[@susaniacuone5758]

Yes I've never rewatched Countrycide

[@tracyroweauthor]

Still can't watch it. That one and most of "Meat"

[@joseignacioreallozano348]

Overall torchwood had some moments that were very horrifying. Season 3 and 4 basically hahaha

[@lupino77]

@@tracyroweauthor Yeah, Meat is traumatizing, but it's sad, not scary.

[@tracyroweauthor]

@@lupino77 not so much scary, I just can't stand to see an animal (even an alien one) tortured and in so much pain at the hands of ignorant humans

[@pixywings]

The dark and "Deeply upsetting" parts of the show are what make it so damn good! And if we're including Torchwood in here then the absolutely most disturbing thing is the episode "Small Worlds." Those fairies were freaking terrifying! The little girl who they wanted to take was even more terrifying than the fairies themselves because A. She knew the fairies protected her and was extremely happy when they violently killed the creepy pedophile who tried to take her. B. Whenever she didn't get her way she threatened people saying the fairies would get them. And C. The creepiest thing about that kid is that she WANTED to go with the fairies and even threatened her own mother with death if she wouldn't let the fairies take her.

[@Myne1001]

And of course at the end Captain Jack lets them take her as the mother is breaking down and everyone else is clearly upset.

[@pixywings]

@@Myne1001 Yeah, because if he didn't the fairies would have slaughtered like the whole city or something. I feel like that was totally the most disturbing episode of that show!

[@Myne1001]

@@pixywings they were literally unstoppable. Jack had no choice :/

[@pixywings]

@@Myne1001 I know! that's why it's disturbing!

[@JekaterinaZyryanova]

They really went too far with Bill. She didn't deserve such fate... But in the same time I like that because it shows that traveling with the Doctor in fact is dangerous.

[@JenomKolemjdouci]

"Well, that's alright then!"

[@foolonthehill8410]

I love series 3 and 4 of Torchwood because of how realistic it felt. We've never had aliens demanding our children, or a morphic field making everyone on Earth immortal, but if we did the reaction by our governments would be identical to the TV show.

[@tracyroweauthor]

that was one of the most harrowing things about COE. You could honestly believe that the government would be THAT uncaring about it's people and that willing to go to that extreme.

[@julieeverett7442]

@@tracyroweauthor if it were real the government would do what even Torchwood would not dare touch. The special needs kids. Do you know how many 10'sof 1000's it takes to care for them each year? (NOT my opinion, but I can easily imagine it!!!)

[@amandadadesky5192]

​@julie everett As the mother of special needs children (who is also a disabled dame, herself), I am always expecting the government (as well as some of our sketchier neighbors) to throw us all under the bus, as the saying goes. Even now, you've got doctors in Canada essentially not treating certain chronic ailments and all but *encouraging* their disabled patients to end it all. This kind of thing *terrifies* me on the daily.

[@tracyroweauthor]

@@julieeverett7442 I don't disagree at all. And Torchwood COE did kind of touch on it. When they decided that the "least useful" children would be sacrificed, I think it's implied that disabled children were among that group even if they never showed it or said it

[@Myne1001]

The pedophile character in Miracle Day is too good. Like I could genuinely believe that guy raped & murdered a child.

[@WarDragon989]

I feel many people might not have seen this but one dark episode that haunts me to this day is Touchwood: Miracle Day. To summarise everyone on earth can no longer die while Jack now can. The horrific scene plays when Touchwood infiltrate a camp that houses people who would have died from illness or seroous injury. The world can't cope with the mouths to feed so they use an incinerator to burn groups of people. The horrific part the ash that remains is still alive combined together. Touchwood had some of the horrific and motally questionable ideas with sci-fi.

[@raypsychodad]

The Italian family in turn left made me cry,coz it touched on reality. Wilfs line that's what they called it last time was so disturbing and truthful.

[@CortexNewsService]

that line always gives me chills.

[@KaragMile]

@@HrLBolle I am afraid he was talking about British labour camps during WWII, actually.

[@HrLBolle]

@@KaragMile I must confess to not being to aware there were camps this specific type in the domain of the British isles. I was aware there were POW camps but this also only akin to looking at Jupiter through a ( by todays standards primitive) telescope from the 1750s

[@raypsychodad]

@KaragMile yeah I got it tbh. 👍

[@billiegooch6237]

As a child I never understood that line, but rewatching it one day and realising what it meant broke my heart

[@TheManInBlueFlames]

Dark Water and Death in Heaven are two of my favourite episodes of ALL time! The twists and introduction of the Mistress were FANTASTIC!

[@zyphbehr]

I understand under Torchwood, they felt they could get away with a lot more adult concepts, but it’s been more than 10 years since “Miracle Day” and as and adult, the sometimes very graphic “non-deaths” (they were still living but in all the pain), has stuck with me more than some of these. Such Episode 4- Escape to LA. While the character was a Villan, making the point of crushing Mayor Ellis Hartley Monroe in a car, but on TOP of it, getting a camera through and making a point of SHOWING the person’s eye still looking around, showing she is still ALIVE and living in the pain, isn’t “getting what they deserved” kind of scene, but a “OMG” one. I get they wanted to give the Villian an exit, but didn’t need to do the extra scene with the Eye. There were a lot about those getting burned and we are aware they have “lived” through it, but this was too far.

[@leeannturner494]

I thought another Torchwood episode went too far. The one where the little girl is protected by fairies. Her mum wasn't just aware her partner was abusing her daughter, she also wasn't bothered. Her daughter will have made it perfectly clear to her what her partner was doing, yet her mum disregarded her & was going to marry her partner. I could see quite clearly see why the little girl wanted to go with the fairies & I didn't blame her. In this day & age, it's harrowing to think there are people who know their children are being abused & killed & that their parents just don't care as they value their relationship with their child's abuser over the child.

[@DaraGaming42]

It’s worse than u can even imagine

[@jshplock]

I always found the Mondassian Cybermen particularly creepy so when they came back and brought Bill into their fold that was nothing short of horrifying

[@Jims1994]

same, i want them to bring them back more, and the moonbase cybermen with the pointy fingers and the helmet you can see was screwed on. it made them look more human than robot. which is way creepier.Also would love if Murray gold uses the music from that era cause that was way more creepy than the newer stuff. (I love Murray gold, just some of the stuff the radiophonic workshop made is unrivaled.)

[@Tasorius]

That's what created my phobia of cybermen, and helmets with too small and round eye holes...

[@pandastrix4082]

The waters of mars still stands in my opinion as the best one off doctor who episode, the concept is so unique and Adelaide’s character was so engaging to watch her fighting her own inevitable history

[@TwoLeftThumbs]

Bill was one of my favourite companions. She didn’t deserve to go out like that.

[@larsg.2492]

Even when Moffat couldn't let anyone die (except Pink), Bill's gradual transformation was so hard to watch. The character was such a breath of fresh air after the strange relationships with Amy and Clara.

[@BeeWhistler]

@@larsg.2492 Yeah, they did her dirty multiple times. Companions usually run into conflict and loss at some point but it was like they enjoyed hurting Bill. Not a good look especially considering she was black AND gay. In the States, at least, that would have gotten them roasted. It plays into a lot of cinematic cliches and bigotry.

[@larsg.2492]

@@BeeWhistler You mean despite real US politics? The first episode would have gotten an outcry from certain groups just because the character was what she was. What do you think of Martha then, she got put through the ringer about every episode, even in the following season when she was a recurring character.

[@doctorwhouniverse9338]

As a gay person myself. I’m not even mad or even considered they did it because she was gay. Doesn’t bother me at all

[@TwoLeftThumbs]

@@doctorwhouniverse9338 I didn’t think that either. My issue was that she was a genuinely likeable character and I didn’t feel she got enough time in comparison to less likeable companions, especially in such a tragic way.

[@MichaelPhillipsatGreyOwlStudio]

The ones I remember are the glass Dalek in "Revelation of the Daleks" and people getting their arms lasered off. Also, the transformations of Winlet and Keeler into Krynoids in "The Seeds of Doom" were very traumatizing at the time.

[@rainestar82]

Smith's dark moments were why I fell in love with Eleven's run. Perfectly balanced, a Doctor so aware of how lethal he is that he constantly hides in childlike innocence and avoiding the truth to cope. As much as I love Twelve, many of his episodes felt designed for shock value rather than to drive a story or characters forward, so as dark as his run got, Eleven's is still it for me. But Donna's whole season is one heartbreak after another, beautifully acted, I'm never gonna stop wanting more Ten and Donna.

[@TardisNerdGirl]

Eleven is definitely my Doctor because of the ability to act so old while looking so young and being able to play both parts split seconds apart... Just absolute brilliant acting. Plus, I have a TARDIS tattoo with the "We're all stories in the end," quote under it. But full agree, Donna is #1 companion... Tied with Wilf because that man is a damn legend with how much he absolutely believed in both Donna and the Doctor. Beautiful to watch.

[@thelinedrive]

Honestly this entire list could be Torchwood. Especially some of the stuff in Miracle Day.

[@thelinedrive]

Honestly surprised the woman still alive in a crushed car didn’t make the list.

[@WhoCulture]

It could! But we wanted some variety of eras/shows.

[@cassandra.wladyslava]

Or what happens in the modules.

[@briscoethecollie1510]

Never.liked Torchwood, felt the sex and swearing was unnecessary and bad scripts

[@DaraGaming42]

Miricle dat

[@BlueSpring3]

I give an honorable mention to the season 2 episode of Torchwood called "Adam". The concept of a memory altering being is explored in all its terrifying possibilities. I'd go as far as saying Adam is on the same level as the weeping angels in terms of how paranoid it can make someone.

[@Grizzly01]

His powers worked on us too, as he appeared in the opening title sequence.

[@GabePuratekuta]

Who's Adam?

[@tracyroweauthor]

@@GabePuratekuta are you punking us, or seriously asking?

[@BlueSpring3]

@@GabePuratekuta the camera footage was deleted for the last two weeks, I dunno why.

[@kieran7675]

The darkest by far is Wilf saying about the labour camps, because it's so real, and it could happen again Nothing else here, even the cannibals is really realistic, but people getting shipped off to die is always a possibility

[@briscoethecollie1510]

Happen again? Gave you ever heard of China?

[@findtheblue]

@@briscoethecollie1510 China? Mate have you heard of the UK?

[@joshuaplotkin8826]

I don't think you could get away with concentration camps in the modern era. It's a lot harder to keep something like that a secret

[@RenSako]

@@briscoethecollie1510Just China? No mention of the U.S. framing innocent people of crimes because prisoners are forced to work for free?

[@androidspock158]

The Empty Child and the one where they turn Bill into a cyber man are the only episodes that truly, deeply disturbed me.

[@vrewq]

You should have included "The Girl who Waited" with old Amy dying

[@BeeWhistler]

Good pick. That one is haunting.

[@andu1854]

That was one of the better season 6 story and so heartbreaking, showing that even 11 can be cruel and is capable of lying

[@thethreekings9120]

I definitely remember Matt Smith's 11 most for his darker, more serious side, especially season 6, which many episodes from that series are absolutely brilliant to me.

[@doctorwhouniverse9338]

Yeah 11 in my opinion was the best. He started out very nice and caring, after getting over the whole “time lord victorious” thing he became much more positive of a doctor, then as you get to series 6 he gets a little more serious with a little bit of humour mixed in. Then by the end of series 7 he’s much darker than when he started. He developed so much which made him very interesting. One of the many reasons why he was my favourite doctor

[@rainestar82]

There are a few moments from Ten, but Eleven and Twelve really made me believe that the character was centuries old, lost too much, been pushed too far. Their darker moments, you realize this person really is an alien and you know why he's called Destroyer of Worlds. But it never changed the genuine, kind loving moments either. The Doctor is BOTH and thats why the character has lasted this long imho

[@RenSako]

Too bad it’s so focused on River, and her plot is so empty and forced. My biggest issue with the Matt Smith era is us being told to absolutely love characters we’ve been given no reason to love. River wasn’t just unlikable, she was so utterly unimportant for someone who was insisted to be one of the most important people in the Doctor’s life, which was so unconvincing that even the Doctor didn’t seem to believe her. River is honestly one of the worst examples of telling instead of showing I’ve ever seen.

[@NORMAN728]

SJA's curse of Clyde langer was a bit scary for me. Having everyone you know and love hate you for "no reason" leaving you alone. Was dark especially as since there was nothing you could do to fix it.

[@sistakia33]

Yes! It was hauntingly powerful because even though at heart Clyde was a survivor and he would have made it out in the world so many people don't! And the fact that so many are kids and shouldn't have to...well I just cried!

[@peterkaplar1660]

I might be incredibly messed up, but I loved all of these. Doctor Who can get very dark sometimes, and it's always amazing.

[@LeeHardingakaFirmament]

Turn Left is an astonishing, faultless episode - dark, yes, but absolutely brilliant.

[@unikkorns]

Adric's death was pretty shocking and sad. Also Peter Capaldi's pre-Doctor murder-suicide of his family in Children of Earth while you were talking about it. The Seventh Doctor manipulated Davros into blowing up Skaro with the Hand of Omega, which seems out of character for the Doctor. The Seventh Doctor was a little unhinged, though. This most likely started the Time War. The Fourth Doctor had the chance to destroy the Daleks at their origin and refused, but the Seventh Doctor did it without batting an eye. Tenth Doctor getting a bit power mad towards the end of his life, causing an acclaimed astronaut to shoot herself. The Master marrying a human woman in The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords and beating her so we could physically see her bruises and driving her insane. The true identity of the Toglafane in Last of the Time Lords. Donna and the Doctor being the actual reason why Vesuvius erupted because they had to make the choice between the World or 20,000 people. Torturing the space whale in The Beast Below because it's carrying a whole country. Abandoning old Amy to die in The Girl Who Waited....but making Rory choose. The way the Doctor turned humanity against the Silence and got people to kill them on sight.

[@kaluca]

Great list!

[@RoqueFortStu]

7th Doctor tricks Davros into blowing up his own planet: "Well Doc, it's destroyed- just like you wanted"

[@Zick-ThingS-Col]

You know the most disturbing part of turn left is? is an alternate reality... but it IS a reality...

[@vuraxis953]

I was 11 when Dark Water aired and it completely flew over my head at the time. Now I love how messed up it is

[@rachelcookie321]

I was 9 and same. I didn’t even notice how messed up it was. It was like that with a lot of Doctor who episodes for me as a kid. I was too young to understand the deeper meaning to them so the truly scary ones didn’t scare me. I was more scared by ones where you just see a bunch of people getting rapidly killed because I could understand that.

[@SuperEpicNiceGuy]

Imagine an episode where the Master gave humanity all the memories of the things they've forgotten, for example the year that never was with the Toclafane, the event with the 456 and Miracle Day, the planets in the sky... everything they all seem to forget due to the Doctor, ie the cracks in time, etc. The planet in mayhem because they remember everything, they remember dying, they remember the Doctor and chanting his name, they remember what their governments did to them. At the flick of a switch the Master could watch humanity kill itself

[@Johninadelaide2022]

That would make for a fantastic episode

[@MRTransportVideos]

@@Johninadelaide2022 That would have to be a 2 or even 3-parter, therre is just so much to unravel here, so many angles to explore - would the Doctor step forward, take over the world in order to reset the memories (or merely to help the population come to terms with the hidden truths), would he run and hide in order to avoid being charged with crimes against the planet, would he wrestle with the ethics of "how do you close Pandora's Box?" - actually, is this where the Pandorica comes back into play, or maybe a version of the Genesis Ark?

[@tracyroweauthor]

The melting face scene in Indiana Jones totally traumatized me. Still can't watch it, so thank you for hitting me with that again. Also, I've never been able to watch Countrycide. The only other Torchwood ep I've never been able to watch is Meat. Turn Left is one of my favorite episodes because it shows us just how strong Donna actually is. It's this point where we realize that she, on her own, is a heroic character even without the Doctor. COE is some of the best television I've ever watched. It is gripping and well written and damn, it is heartbreaking.

[@jonathanoneill6404]

All of Torchwood was dark AF. I remember during the season where they keep everyone alive using Jack's blood, they use ovens to cremate those who are deemed "non-viable" and literally just cook them, along with one of the characters of the season; fully alive the entire time.

[@null_verdict]

7:02 The one time that stands out to me that refutes this idea of never seeing blood of the Tenth Doctor covered in scrapes and cuts after falling through a glass ceiling in his last episode. Sure it's not a lot of blood, but it's still there and adds that bit of grounded reality which makes his actions and sacrifice a bit more impactful in my opinion.

[@kittysuttonauthor]

I am an avid Who fan and the most disturbing scenes that still upsets me today is where Clara has to meet the raven. I cried and cried, I still watch it but not often because I still cry.

[@bec1482]

I'm generally surprised no 4th doctor stories were in this, especially deadly assassin. That's the first story I thought of when I saw the title. That drowning scene got them in a lot of trouble when it aired, I'm shocked that it wasn't included. What about series 13 and 14 in general... mary whitehouse complained quite a bit about some of the stories in those series. I feel like classic who derserves more of a mention in this, especially the early tom baker stories which were known to be quite dark. Plus why was torchwood in this, I feel like that should of been in a seperate video considering the title.

[@alyzu4755]

My kids were very young when "Children of Earth" aired, and it was absolutely terrifying and heartbreaking.

[@tracyroweauthor]

mostly because it makes you realize just how much government really doesn't care about our children. I thought that was so on point.

[@socalodeas]

This one is a top notch breakdown. Very well done.

[@ronnietexan]

Every episode you mentioned, for me, showed how good Doctor Who was with Doctors, nine, ten, eleven and finally my favourite, number twelve!. I can see how for some it may have been "too far" but I personally think it showed how good the writing, acting, and in general the whole show was if compared to "other" more recent television shows!

[@geraldstiling3735]

Jenna Colman's first appearance ,with doctor's "I am so so sorry!" As it's revealed she is a Dalek ,the first time around. The chilling "where did you get the eggs?"😱.

[@StarDragonJP]

It's funny, I was just thinking of that episode right before I saw this comment

[@DanBrizuela]

I absolutely adore the whimsical and colorful look of the 11th doctor era, but love how moffat chucked all that out once 12 came in

[@julianaylor4351]

People usually request that they either be buried or cremated, etc, after death, so that scene was actually about emotional blackmail, by Missy, who was behind the whole dead into cybermen plot.

[@gerrimilner9448]

this episode made me want to be composted, now a posibility in US

[@maschii6851]

Finally some more love for torchwood

[@medafan53]

You missed one thing when listing other dark moments from Children of Earth, the moment Frobisher murders his family and then kills himself, because the government want him to give his children to the 456 and this is the only way he can think to spare them of this fate. Particularly with the hindsight knowledge that, while at a terrible price, Jack did succeed in stopping the 456, meaning it was for nothing.

[@dursty3226]

Children of Earth was heartbreaking. i'm not even a parent, but i cried i don't even know how many times. and i was so ANGRY that the Doctor was nowhere to be found. that was exactly the kind of situation that a so called protector of Earth should have been involved with.

[@matriculus2]

The deadly assassin's cliffhanger with the Doctor drowning literally changed the shape of classic Who as the BBC were forced to abandon the scary stories in favour of more slapstick style after questions were raised in parliament about it.

[@StefanTravis]

Interesting that you've chosen some of the greatest moments. Not a coincidence they're also the darkest, methinks.

[@therobotFrom94]

my favorite line has to be 'YOU WOULD MAKE A GOOD DALEK.' -it's such a good summary of all of 9's rage

[@kevinbell9255]

Surprised The Two Doctors didn't make the list for having the Doctor straight up murder a character and the waiter in the restaurant who just gets knifed for literally no reason. Maybe everyone at Who Culture wanted to forget the serial didn't exist (much like I do)

[@WhoCulture]

The Two Doctors? What’s that?

[@kevinbell9255]

@@WhoCulture It's the 4th serial of the 22nd season (the one which Patrick Troughton came back for alongside Colin Baker). It was a complete Trainwreck save for the first 15 minutes. Maybe one to include in a part 2 of this video?

[@GoranNewsum]

I still have nightmares from the cyber conversion scenes in Rise of the Cybermen and Age of Steel

[@magorzatakrawczynska7489]

I will never look the same at Lion sleeps tonight

[@BarnyardEngineering]

Yeah, that scene from Dark Water was in my head at the funeral home after each of my parents died. Thanks for the nightmare fuel Steven Moffat!

[@TemporalsonToys]

We completely skipped past how on world enough and time we saw multiple generations of cyber conversion being created with some even saying phrases like “die, me” each more distorting from the original patients becoming more like the cybermen we know.

[@cassandra.wladyslava]

2 things. 1. The Torchwood episode “Adrift”. That shit haunts me. 2. Oswald Danes’ last words: (You're going to hell, Danes.) “But that's where they go!. All the bad little girls, they run straight to hell, and I'm following… Susie, keep running! I'm coming to get you. Run! Faster! Faster!”

[@colinfarrell4354]

How about the entire first episode of torchwood? Legit multiple VIOLENT on screen deaths, A SUICIDE and just the look of terror of the first dude as he goes "oh my god there's nothing" and he just dies because the revive gauntlet thing was out

[@bukharagunboat8466]

I always wondered if there was a link between Torchwood Season 1 and the canned Buffy spinoff Ripper concept. 1) the overarching theme of loneliness, and 2) some of the episodes, especially Small Worlds and Countryside, feel like they could have originally been written for Ripper.

[@westzed23]

I heard that when R T Davies was pushing to get Doctor Who remade, he showed the bigwigs what could be possible with special effects and writing by using Buffy as an example.

[@dexterhill5843]

A worthy list but personally would probably include more 80s/Saward era examples such as Resurrection's kill count, 6 strangling Peri, the acid bath in V on Varos, the Doctor murdering Shockeye/Shockeye's pursuit of Peri with a knife, Davros turning people into Daleks/food, Peri's torture and subsequent death in Mindwarp and about half of Caves of Androzani. Could probably do with a whole separate top 10 times doctor who went too far in the 80s list!

[@bec1482]

yeah I agree, I felt this list lacked alot of good classic who moments. I mean where was deadly assassin, that's litually the first thing I thought of, you could make a whole list on that story alone lol. Plus there were so many dark moments in the early tom baker seasons that mary whitehouse complained about it... definitely needs to be another top ten video on this.

[@dexterhill5843]

@@bec1482 absolutely! Can't believe forgot to mention that era, particularly Deadly Assassin xD the part 3 cliff hanger being the obvious example I suppose xD

[@bec1482]

@@dexterhill5843 yeah the part 3 cliffhanger should have been number 1 in my opinion just because of how much controversy it caused at the time. I also think they should have left torchwood out.... it seemed really out of place in that list. Dr who is a family show whilst Torchwood is an adult show that features sex gas lol... they are very different and it seems unfair to put a family show up against a show that features mature content.

[@dexterhill5843]

@@bec1482 absolutely and yeah fair enough actually re torchwood; whilst I like it being incorporated w doctor who, it does have different margins and standards for things so if discussing horror or violence then bit unfair when it's reallt due it's own list anyway!

[@bec1482]

@@dexterhill5843 Yeah I think it would have been better to have seperate videos on this subject for classic who, new who and torchwood. 60 years of history + the spin offs is too much to cram into one video.

[@KaptainCanuck]

I enjoyed the seriousness that Eccelston brought to Who. After Tennant, the character has just been a variation of his version and the 7th Dr

[@gestaltdude]

I know it would have been the epitome of stunt casting, but I still say not having Hugh Laurie provide the voice of "House" in The Doctor's Wife is the biggest missed opportunity so far in New Who. Well, that and not throwing the whole Timeless Child storyline out the window. the latter would almost have been tolerable if they had managed to make something more out of it, like a spin off where we saw earlier Doctors working for he Division.

[@fima7942]

I consider the whole plotline with Amy Pond’s forced pregnancy terrifying. I cannot imagine the trauma of waking up one day in a metal casket with a huge belly with a child inside it and your creepy captor making you go through the pain of a labor whilst you are completely alone. Furthermore, later you baby is turned into a goo and then you have no idea where it is. One of the most terrifying arcs, in my opinion. And yet I loved it. Just wishing they would do the aftermath, because the next episode Amy and Rory seem completely unfazed.

[@TheUnknownAK]

3:35 this is the exact reason the 9th doctor was so great and really intriguing and captivating. If you had watched prior doctors then you saw him suddenly go from being this silly, goofy old man in funny outfits who was always the hero of the day to now a cold, broken and disconnected man who wants nothing but revenge for the slaughter of his people (obviously including his family which died on Gallifrey). I think the main change is the seriousness and severity, while previous doctors did have moments of seriousness they don't really compare to how dark the tone is for the 9th doctor. In "Father's Day" the doctor just offers himself to the reapers to give Rose a few more minutes to spend with her dad before they all die. He has no idea that Pete will break the loop and restore the timeline, he just sacrifices himself for seemingly nothing without any question. And obviously in "Dalek" he takes great pleasure in the suffering of that Dalek and if not for Rose to hold him back he would have tortured it to death. I think a really cool part of the 9th Doctor was that he made a lot of tough decisions but they were written in a way that the viewer can't really question him, his actions and feelings in "Dalek" are entirely justified since the second that Dalek was freed it slaughtered dozens of people and enjoys mocking the doctor

[@janharml]

Children of earth should be number one I think. To sacrifice your own grandson, even to save a lot of other children. To me it is as dark as it can get. Torchwood always had very sad storylines. That's the reason even my wife liked it. It was the only scifi series I could get her to watch.

[@brianartillery]

Children Of Earth also had the death of fan favourite character Ianto Jones. Never really got why, either. Tosh and Owen had been killed off at the end of the previous season, and it would have been cool to keep on with Ianto. To say some fans were pissed at his almost casual demise, would be an understatement.

[@magorzatakrawczynska7489]

@@brianartillery I think it was one of the saddest deaths in Doctor who. Because they both knew that Jack will survive. I don’t think Jack loved anyone as much as he loved Ianto. It was unnecessary, but also not. The whole episode was to show that Jack will never be happy, sooner or later he will lose anyone he cares about.

[@johannahyde-parker8422]

@@magorzatakrawczynska7489 so now he knows how the doctor feels

[@matthewbray764]

Season 26 overall was very dark with curse of fenric and survival being the most dark . Snakedance, kinda, the brain of morbius, terror of the zygons, planet of spiders, pyramids of mars, twin dilema, mindwarp, paradise towers, happiness patrol all could have been included in a list like this each one having a dark moment. Maybe you should do a list of dark moments in classic series as there are so many

[@owaissaaltheadickey9341]

There are a lot of episodes of New Who that probably terrified kids. The Weeping Angels,The Vashta Narada,Autons(kids are scared of mannequins,even if they never heard of an Auto) and the "slimey Clone Creatures in the tanks" to name a few. There were even a few Classic Who monsters that were creepy too. I loved them all of course but would definitely be hiding behind the sofa if I were still a kid.🤣🤣💕💕💕💕💕👍👍👍

[@jellybabiesarecool4657]

Dark Water/Death in Heaven scarred me when I was 10 and I still sometimes feel freaked out by it today and I feel it's the one time Doctor Who definitely went too far. It would fit better in Torchwood, although I guess some of the themes of death in Torchwood are arguably also too far as well.

[@ladycplum]

House...ehh it wasn't bad. Kane's death wasn't NEARLY as bad as Belocq and his cronies. As far as Dalek goes, I'd say it was earned considering how much both the Doctor and the world have lost to the Daleks, and only Chris could've pulled it off, which he did magnificently. Since everything in Extremis was a simulation, I really don't count it. Now Countrycide, that was utterly bonkers, compelling, and horrific at the same time. Probably the single best hour of TV Chibnall has written for the Whoniverse. A single, simple sentence about how eating other people makes Evan happy left me horrified at how humanity could be more dangerous than any alien who could visit the planet. (Not to mention the bodies in various stages of desiccation). I didn't really find the conversion in The Doctor Falls that bad, it was the fact that Bill waited so long, and the horror the Doctor felt upon realizing who this Cyberman was, that really got me. Lytton's torture is definitely up there as one of the worst decisions that production team made with regards to the gore shown. It felt gratuitous and out of place on what was still ostensibly a "family" show. Turn Left was another brilliant hour of Who, but definitely got darker and darker the more time went on. The worst part for me was what happened to the Colasanto's. Steven's sacrifice AND Frobisher's killing of his entire family both hit me over the head like a saucepan. But what happened to Steven forever tainted the character of Captain Jack for me. I could just never look at him the same way again. Heck, just like you did with Turn Left I'd put the entire Season 3 of Torchwood up there, as there is no happy ending for any of the characters. As for the three words, it wasn't too bad, but the fact that they turned our beloved Brigadier into a bloody Cyberman (even though he saved Kate in the process) devastated me. If you think about it, it means ANY of the Doctor's old friends and companions who are buried within the area the Cybercloud infected could now be Cybermen.

[@mysteriouschaos3849]

There's a moment in "The Girl Who Waited" when old Amy is outside the Tardis, and current Amy is inside with Rory and the Doctor. Rory asks something like, "[We're back with our Amy now, right?]" and the Doctor says, "Weeeelllll, not really." Wait, WHAT?! Torchwood was seriously darker. I found it at a time in my life when, I probably should not have watched it then. Still haunted by, "Sorry, Gwen. You're slowly being shot in the head."

[@Roadkill2012]

Honestly house is an underrated villain, genuinely a really cool concept and a great bad guy

[@mrq.1236]

I don’t think any episode has had the same impact on me as Turn Left did. Some of the best TV I have seen right there

[@SawItComingNot]

Too far? Not far enough. Remember this is Doctor Who

[@AllThePiecesMatter_]

Ellie, from your list I'd have to say the Children of Earth denouement was the most shocking moment in dr who related tv I've ever seen, cracking series of Torchwood though. Fully agree on Bernard Cribbins line in Turn Left. What makes it so disturbing is its delivered at the departure of the only character in the episode who offers some comic relief. RTD was very good at showing us a darker, more cynical side to the show first time around, imagine what he'll deliver now after 13 years of Tory misrule will have no doubt darkened his writing further. Great video, thank you.

[@Trekapedia]

Adric’s death was sad too. I think even Peter Davison said they went a little too far?

[@westzed23]

Trying to explain that episode to my sister and mother who had both missed it was really hard. They wouldn't believe me.

[@williammorton6633]

Times when Doctor Who went too far. Doctor Who has always pushed the boundaries from the very first episode. Sometimes it's pushed too far and got into trouble. Terror of the Autons: plastic flowers, dummies , a doll? All deadly, But the area it got into trouble was the cliffhanger to episode 2 with well not going to spoil it. The Deadly Assassin cliffhanger to episode 3 The Twin Dillemia: a newly regenerated sixth Doctor and Peri is extremely uncomfortable to watch. I'm sure their others. Great video as always.

[@nadinefeiler9204]

i think most of the scenes in here belong to my favorites. The one that really caused me nightmares was when Gwen Reunites Jonah with His Mother

[@LordStormelion]

The time lord victorious series was also surprisingly dark. Book or not it was hella depressing

[@_issylilymay_]

When I first watched doctor who, I was horrified by the toglifiegn, not scared of the creatures, but scared of the idea that all the universe dies instead of finding utopia and when i realised who the toglifein were I switched of the TV and didn’t watch for months because them also coming back to kill us gave me nightmares

[@picturepainter]

The Colin Baker era came under a lot of criticism for being too violent. Particularly the story "Vengeance on Varos", set on a planet where citizens watch the televised torture of dissidents for entertainment. There was a scene in "The Two Doctors" where Shockeye - a character who longed to taste the flesh of humans - was about to carve an unconscious Peri in the kitchen, but was interrupted. Watching it as a kid, I found it strange that Shockeye hadn't taken the time to remove Peri's clothing first. (Too eager to get cooking?) Obviously, something like that wouldn't have been appropriate television for its timeslot.

[@WithScienceAsMySheperd]

@9:40 = went too far, when Capaldi offs his own whole family... and : when Oswald says "She should have run faster" in the last season of torchwood

[@Lupikus]

Can confirm, that "don't cremate me" line terrified me as a kid and still unsettles me

[@bazzer124]

Pretty dark episode when Capt Brooke (The Waters of Mars) suicided in defiance of the Doctor's self-righteousness and ego power trip that he had control over life and death. Cheers....

[@ChrissieBear]

4:35 You misunderstood the episode. They commit suicide not "as a way out", but to deprive the monks from gaining the information they need to conquer Earth. The point of the Veritas isn't just that the world is simulated, but that it's simulated to help an evil force invade the real world,

[@annamariadallolio5000]

Sixie trying to strangle Peri is also frightening.

[@shaunosmorrison8385]

R.I.P Bernard Cribbins

[@MrMann0123]

Oh come on. Capaldi walking into the room. The door shuts. The shots, the pause and the single shot. That is the darkest part.

[@JarrodCook93]

Oh look, I remember being a kids and seeing the alien at the cliffhanger to episode 1 of The Sensorites. It spooked me and I loved it. All the episodes mentioned on this list are awesome. It’s a science fiction show not play school.

[@beatz4224]

As a kid when that one guy turned into an ood at the end of the planet of the ood episode that was really disturbing to me

[@js12334]

The "dont cremate me" bit stopped me watching doctor up untill last year. My mum died and was cremated when i was 11 and then this episode came out a couple years later and it spun me out completly into an existential crisis. Like literally paused the episode and sat there in silence having a panic attack.

[@Nexus-11]

"Memories wiped forever." More like, until the studio gets desperate.

[@ladydevildog8946]

Excellent video!

[@WhoCulture]

Thank you!

[@Aleksandar6ix]

I only ever saw a couple episodes of Torchwood plus a "special" series......what little I saw scarred me for life! This, plus the #1 spot has stuck the idea that you continue to feel the way you die for an eternity.

[@jellybabiesarecool4657]

The conversion process thing also applies to dalek conversation in Revelation of the Daleks.

[@granoluke4150]

Dont forget the episode heaven sent, the fact that the doctor had to relive the same thing for 2 billion years and go through torture every time and remember it all at the end is just horrifying.

[@fastertrackcreative]

There are a lot of pretty grim parts in _Torchwood: Miracle Day_ . The woman crushed to, well, not exactly death in a car. The bomber who is still somehow alive despite being mostly incinerated. The category 1 (I think it was) patient incinerated alive along with the woman who discovered this. All the people around the world who normally would have died but are stuck in a living death hell...

[@jaycoops6886]

The best episodes are the ones that go 'too far' ... its the only way they can actually leave you something to chew on anymore

[@chloeroche7880]

It might not be the darkest. But the one that left me horrified was the first doctor who episode I ever watched which was asylum of the daleks. The fact that Clara thought she was being rescued and had completely blocked out the trauma of what the daleks did to her. Just such a sad episode. I was delighted when she came back later as a companion but wow that episode just always sticks with me. I was so hopeful she was going to be saved in that one only to turn out she never had a chance