I'm watching modern era Doctor Who (2005-present) for the second time. Doctor Who is a TV series that is dear to me but at the same time somewhat uneven so for the benefit of future me and hopefully others I'm writing a short episode guide this rewatch.

I try to avoid spoilers as far as possible except when needed to justify my verdict or when spoiler warnings are well past their due date, such which episodes have the Doctor reincarnate. Double episodes are combined into one review.

S01E01 Rose - Watch

In which Rose is introduced. Unmemorable story but it is the first episode of the new series after all, so it's worth watching for the introduction.

S01E02 The End of the World - Watch

Warming up with a light and not too onerous space station adventure. It also seeds some minor story arcs for future series.

S01E03 The Unquiet Dead - Watch

Slightly scary episode. Here we learn that the Doctor sometimes makes mistakes and cannot always save everyone. First major Bad Wolf reference apart from the minor comment in the previous episode.

S01E04-05 The Aliens of London & World War Three - Skip

This is stupid silly sitcom. No offence against sitcoms, but it's not how I like my Doctor Who at all. Unimportant to the overall series story arc apart from the introduction of Harriet Jones, but she will be reintroduced in her next appearance so you won't miss anything notable in her story by skipping this.

After reading a bit about this story I realize that there is some elegant political satire here, but I was not literate and/or British enough to understand it while watching the episodes. I just couldn't get past the fart jokes.

S01E06 Dalek - Skip

I hate how they portrayed Rose in the episode. She is being totally damsel in distress and even runs "like a girl" in one scene. Speaking of hate, I also didn't like how hateful the Doctor was against the Dalek. It's not compatible with my view of the Doctor's personality. To be fair to the Ninth Doctor though, his resentful character came before the more compassionate later Doctors.

S01E07 The Long Game - Watch

Simon Pegg visits Doctor Who and makes a great villain. It's a story about unquestioning media consumption and shallow journalism. It sets the scene for the final episodes in this series.

S01E08 Father's Day - Watch

A story about Rose and farewells that answers a question of "why can't the Doctor just...". The story being paradoxical in nature contains some mechanics that are best not dwelt upon, like the origin and purpose of the bat monsters and how the TARDIS key can be recharged with a camera battery.

I think this episodes marks a point for Rose's personality where before she may have considered how she could use time travel to her own advantage but afterwards she, like the Doctor, fully becomes a traveling helper in service of the universe.

S01E09-10 The Empty Child & The Doctor Dances - Watch

The highlight of this season. A mystery story that gets a bit intimate with the Doctor, Rose and the newly introduced sidekick Captain Jack Harkness. This is the first episode written by Steven Moffat who wrote many of the best Doctor Who episodes in my opinion.

S01E11 Boom Town - Skip

The stupid Slitheens from S01E04-05 are back. There is a superficial moral dilemma here but it doesn't reach any kind of conclusion so it's a bit pointless. Like the ending that had no real consequences for anybody. There is a significant Bad Wolf appearance in this episode for those that are counting, but nothing else to see here.

S01E12-13 Bad Wolf & The Parting of the Ways - Watch

The conclusion of the Bad Wolf story arc. We are back on Satellite Five from S01E07, without Simon Pegg this time. The chivalrous Ninth Doctor tries to save Rose from harm but ends up being the one in need of saving by her instead. I like the argument made in these episodes on how human progress can regress by careful feeding of stupid media.

It's a nice ending of Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor who is not my favorite but nevertheless had his unique and memorable style.