Top 40 Scariest Doctor Who Monsters & Villains (20-11)
Guest contributor Tomas Edwards continues his countdown.
20) The Empty Child
Scariest moment: “I sent it to its room. This is its room.”
19) President Rassilon
This insane and corrupt Time Lord is terrifying in two ways. One is that he is the embodiment of all power crazed politicians and dictators that seem to exist all around us, and the other is what he did to the Doctor. He forced the Doctor to point a gun at not only himself, but also at his best friend, a man he had tried to save even after he had massacred the human race. And that is just what we see in The End of Time, Rassilon is so powerful and so terrible that he made the Doctor destroy everything in the Time War. Now that is scary.
Scariest moment: “I WILL NOT DIE!”
18) Sutekh
Pyramids of Mars is an excellent example of the Hinchcliffe and Holmes era, and Sutekh is an excellent example of one of their terrifying monsters (On the basis of what I have seen). He is a chilling, evil and sadistic nemesis, who happily causes horrible experiences for the Doctor and other characters. He has many scary moments, from the first scene where he kills professor Scarman to when he tortures and then brainwashes the Doctor. Add on the very creepy servant of Sutekh and this Egyptian menace has a well eared place on this list.
Scariest moment: Sutekh tortures the Doctor.
17) The Minotaur
“That suggests what you fear most of all is fear. Very wise.” Ok, this quote is only loosely connected to the monster in question, but I couldn’t resist the temptation to reference my favourite book. And as the Minotaur works using fear as a weapon it does have some relevance (especially if you consider the possibility that what the Doctor saw in the room was simply fear). The Minotaur is very scary in this respect, and also it has quite a scary design. It is also graced with brilliant direction and an unsettling script which highlights the horror of this creature, even though it was, ultimately, as much the victim as anyone else.
Scariest moment: Rita’s death.
16) Whisper Men
The odd thing about this monster is that they are far scarier in the prequel than in their debut episode, but it cannot be denied they provide a great element of fear in The Name of the Doctor. They have a certain resemblance to Slenderman in that they have only vague/no features and the way they slowly sneak up on prey. Their whispering voices and limerick are very unsettling, and who didn’t jump when one burst through the hologram (for want of a better word) of River. Very scary stuff.
Scariest moment: “I think I’ve been murdered.”
15) Davros
Davros is among the scariest men in the Whoniverse because of just how insane he is. This insanity is best portrayed, I feel, in Michael Wisher’s performance as the Kaled scientist, whether he is talking in a low and dangerous whisper or screaming at the top of his voice, he always makes the most of the already chilling dialogue handed to him. I don’t feel any other Davros has caught this feel (Although Julian Bleach is still amazing), and if they had, Davros would probably be sitting in the top 5 of this list.
Scariest moment: “And through the Daleks, I will have that power!”
14) The Gelth
The concept of having ghosts with Charles Dickens at Christmas is a wonderful idea, and in my opinion they really did well with it, certainly from the perspective of scaring. The Gelth themselves aren’t that scary (except in the morgue scene) but the corpses they inhabit are the stuff of nightmares. The make-up department really did a good job in bringing the bodies to life (OK, that was awful but I haven’t put in that many bad puns…yet), and the actors provide excellent performances.
Scariest moment: “We want this world and all its flesh.”
13) Emperor Dalek
The Daleks have already been on this list, and some people might argue that the Emperor being on it is a cheat, but I disagree. The Daleks are scary because of their unreasonableness and their great power. The Emperor is scary because of how twisted and insane he is. His self-loving, vain nature drives him to consider himself a God, the creator of all things, and he is driven even more insane than his obedient and self-hating Daleks, who worship him as if he is a God. He is also aided in the fear department by a brilliantly deep voice from Nick Briggs and some truly sick dialogue.
Scariest moment: “Only one cell in a billion was fit to be nurtured.”
12) The Silence
Another position likely to send some fans stark raving mad, but if I’m honest these monsters have never had the effect that they should have had on me. Whilst they get many scary scenes and are based on a chilling concept, they have never made me feel really frightened, and have never sent me behind a cushion (I may or may not have already mentioned the lack of space behind my sofa). But, this enemy is still based on a very unnerving concept and have some very chilling scenes.
Scariest moment: The orphanage scene.
11) Werewolf
Werewolves are one of the classic horror movie monsters, but out of the few werewolves I have seen, the one in Doctor Who will always be my favourite and the one I find scariest. The Wolf itself is a truly ferocious monster, tearing the men of Torchwood house to shreds in a brutal manner, and also it should be noted that the director of this episode really understood how to use shadows, small glimpses and noises to show the Wolf’s presence without giving it so much screen time we become bored stiff of it. The human host is also very scary, and he gets some very chilling dialogue which shows how twisted the monster which has taken over this young man is. The monster is at its scariest, though, when it is transforming, a scene which the CGI team should be very proud of.
Scariest moment: The Transformation
Come back tomorrow for part 4!
