HBO Max has launched today, featuring acres of new content for subscribers to enjoy. Obviously, it’s mostly Warner Bros. properties that are available for streaming, but the studio has also managed to lock down a few other lucrative titles from elsewhere. One of those is Doctor Who, with all 12 seasons of the modern series of the BBC sci-fi institution up on the site to watch at your leisure.
If you’re a Who newbie, though, you may need some guidance on how best to approach the show. With five different leading actors across the past 15 years, Doctor Who can be intimidating to the fresh viewer. Here’s a handy guide then to every season of 21st century Who so far, highlighting the stars of each run and the standout episodes you may wish to look out for.
Season 1 (2005) – Starring Christopher Eccleston (Ninth Doctor), Billie Piper (Rose) and John Barrowman (Captain Jack)
Standout episodes: “Dalek”, “The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances” and “Bad Wolf/Parting of the Ways”.Season 2 (2006) – Starring David Tennant (Tenth Doctor) and Billie Piper (Rose)
Standout episodes: “The Girl in the Fireplace”, “Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel” and “Army of Ghosts/Doomsday”.Season 3 (2007) – Starring David Tennant (Tenth Doctor), Freema Agyeman (Martha) and John Barrowman (Captain Jack).
Standout episodes: “Human Nature/The Family of Blood”, “Blink” and “Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords”.Season 4 (2008) – Starring David Tennant (Tenth Doctor), Catherine Tate (Donna) and Freema Agyeman (Martha).
Standout episodes: “Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead”, “Midnight” and “The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End”.Specials (2009-10) – Starring David Tennant (Tenth Doctor). Standouts: “The Waters of Mars” and “The End of Time: Parts 1 & 2”.
Season 5 (2010) – Starring Matt Smith (Eleventh Doctor), Karen Gillan (Amy), Arthur Darvill (Rory) and Alex Kingston (River Song).
Standout episodes: “The Eleventh Hour”, Vincent and the Doctor” and “The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang”.Season 6 (2011) – Starring Matt Smith (Eleventh Doctor), Karen Gillan (Amy), Arthur Darvill (Rory) and Alex Kingston (River).
Standout episodes: “The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon”, “The Doctor’s Wife” and “A Good Man Goes to War”.
Season 7 (2012/13) – Starring Matt Smith (Eleventh Doctor), Karen Gillan (Amy), Arthur Darvill (Rory) and Jenna Coleman (Clara).
Standout episodes: “Asylum of the Daleks”, “The Angels Take Manhattan” and “The Name of the Doctor”.50th anniversary special/2013 Christmas special – Starring Matt Smith (Eleventh Doctor). Titles: “The Day of the Doctor” and “The Time of the Doctor”.
Season 8 (2014) – Starring Peter Capaldi (Twelfth Doctor) and Jenna Coleman (Clara).
Standout episodes: “Deep Breath”, “Listen” and “Dark Water/Death in Heaven”.Season 9 (2015) – Starring Peter Capaldi (Twelfth Doctor) and Jenna Coleman (Clara)
Standout episodes: “The Magician’s Apprentice/The Witch’s Familiar”, “The Zygon Invasion/The Zygon Inversion” and “Heaven Sent/Hell Bent”.Season 10 (2017) – Starring Peter Capaldi (Twelfth Doctor), Pearl Mackie (Bill) and Matt Lucas (Nardole).
Standout episodes: “The Pilot”, “Extremis” and “World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls”.Season 11 (2018) – Starring Jodie Whittaker (Thirteenth Doctor), Bradley Walsh (Graham) Tosin Cole (Ryan) and Mandip Gill (Yaz).
Standout episodes: “The Woman Who Fell To Earth”, “Rosa” and “Demons of the Punjab”.Season 12 (2020) – Starring Jodie Whittaker (Thirteenth Doctor), Bradley Walsh (Graham) Tosin Cole (Ryan) and Mandip Gill (Yaz).
Standout episodes: “Spyfall: Parts 1 & 2)”, “Fugitive of the Judoon” and “Ascension of the Cybermen/The Timeless Children”.
Obviously the best way to do it would be to simply start with 2005’s pilot episode “Rose” and continue on until season 12, but if you’d rather take more of a casual approach, hopefully this guide will help you select a certain season or batch of episodes that appeal to you. In any case, Doctor Who season 13 isn’t expected to arrive until late 2021, so you’ve got a lot of time to catch up before the TARDIS returns to our screens for some new adventures.