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I'd guess that one might have got an honourable mention if he'd done them. Then again, that could be said for a lot of the cold opens. However the episode turns out, DW is really good at the cold open.
It's like that scene in Far from Home with the Mysterio reveal, where it's basically dumping exposition, but it's in such an over the top and crazy way that you don't even care
I would imagine that it didn't make the list because while it's an excellent cold open, it doesn't so much set up or introduce the episode as it does emphasize the final solution of the episode. Capaldi sure does do a great monologue, though, doesn't he?
i love the cold open from A Good Man Goes to war and the bit at the end with Rory and the Cybermen and the final moment where he goes "Would you like me to repeat the question?" and he just stares at the cybermen like he is so done with their bs and then you see all the ships behind him exploding. badassery at its finest
Peter Capaldi's monologues were amazing, he just had a way of conveying all his emotions into the words he was saying. You could tell how the doctor was feeling, but more than that, Capaldi made you believe every word.
Russell T Davies used to joke that he wanted to redo the opening credits for Utopia - basically add Jack to the outside of the Tardis while it goes through the time vortex. I actually think it would have been great if they'd had the money to do it.
One of my personal nitpicks is when they mess with the intro for a quick gimmick. For example, when they replaced Capaldi's eyes for Coleman's and put her credit before him. Why? For what reason? It's the same when they add snowflakes into the intro (though I can forgive this one a little more.) It adds nothing and is pretty distracting. The title sequence is such a special part of a show and when it's fiddled with for a quick 'oo, look at us, aren't we clever' it really irks me.
I actually used the "Listen" - monologue for a theatre-exam/test-thingy, where I had to direct a monologue, because it literally was the best monologue I could find.
I actually think that the opening monologue from that episode was the best thing about Listen... at least on my first viewing... probably because I found it like a wannabe Midnight at the time.
One of my favourite cold opens is the unquiet dead. The woman strangling the man, then she glows blue and has horrible white eyes, she starts walking outdoors and heading towards the camera as the music builds up and she just puts her face into the camera and screams. Terrified me so much as a kid, I could never watch it. It’s horrible but amazing lmao. IMO the RTD has the best cold opens. They’re normally really interesting and hook you straight away, or they’re funny/scary. Moffats era has some good coldopens but they tend to be forgettable IMO.
For me the best cold open is probably 'A Good Man Goes to War', I'm not a massive fan of the overall episode but seeing Rory step up to pretty much a Doctor level of badassery in order to save his family was endearing and probably one of the most blockbuster esque visuals in the show.
My favorite type of cold open is one like Silence in the Library. I love when you have a moment with no context. It's like a single puzzle piece, and when they finally slot it into place, and it ties the whole story together, there's something satisfying about that. It's why I like heist stories so much. Like Leverage, or the Ocean's series of movies, where you get glimpses of things as the occur, but they don't connect until they very end when you finally see behind the curtain, and see everything connected.
Something else really good about the Magician's Apprentice opening, I read the script for that scene, and the subtext Moffat wrote is perfectly shown on Capaldi's face
I really love the cold open to Runaway Bride, the Doctor all somber because he just said goodbye to Rose, and then Donna shows up, and he's all like "What?"
Jon Pertwee’s story “The Ambassadors of Death” had some recap “cold opens,” “Remembrance of the Daleks” had a cold open, and “Inferno” had some interesting volcano footage before the opening credits finished, but other than that, from what I’ve seen from Classic Who, it started with the credits, yes. Your pick for number one was SPOT ON. I actually said “Yeah-HAHH!” out loud when you said that.
The Ambassadors of Death is an interesting case. They're not technically cold opens, because you get the first part of the title sequence, then the recap, then cut back to the title sequence for the episode name, part, and writer. That cut feature the first use in Who of that now iconic 'sting' or 'scream' sound, later used till 1979, and used in the new Who for the Davies era.
Gotta give a nod to The Impossible Planet!! The Doctor and Rose land on an unknown planet, there's writing on the wall that even the TARDIS can't translate, and a bunch of aliens seem to swarm the two of them repeating, "We must feed," over and over. That one is pretty fantastic!
Well done. It is good to see high quality thought on Dr. Who. Others seem to feel being on UA-cam just needs good quality book report style presentations.
Even though I defend series 11 a lot more than others do, one of my issues with it was the fact there were no cold opens. I think your list captures pretty spotlessly why they’re as brilliant as they are and I unquestionably agree with your Top 3. Do you mind if I ask what your issues with Listen are? I honestly don’t mind it that you’re not a fan as it’s healthy and perfectly natural to have different opinions to others. Plus I do acknowledge the plot-hole that Orson Pink, without spoiling the rest of the series, shouldn’t really exist. Just that it’s my absolute favourite episode of the entirety of New Who so I’m intrigued as to what faults you see with it that I haven’t.
I also defend that serason more than others but I think the lack of cold openings was one of those things Chibbers changed for the sake of changing, not because it needed it. Just like the lack of two-parters. DW has been great at the cold opens, to pick 10 of them you could almost pick any 10 and it would work. I definitely missed them in season 11.
Listen was a travesty because it does everything a really strong Doctor Who episode does, and could have set up a really interesting villain. Instead it was a just a red herring that meant absolutely nothing in the arc of the series. It was like it occurred in an alternate universe about a monster who didn't actually exist. It could have been great, instead was a massive waste of everyone's time.
@@maurinet2291 Hmm… fair enough point about the episode not contributing to the series arc in any way. However, I do have to respectfully disagree with you about the monster never being revealed to be a negative. I LOVE it that we never properly learn what the creature is, or even get a name for it. Not only does it maintain a wonderful sense of mystery to what it is, but I also find that discovering the creature’s identity isn’t the point of the episode. The point is everyone learning that used in the right way, it’s okay to be afraid once in a while. And as someone who’s perpetually shy and worrisome, I personally find to be a great deal of comfort. People can say what they like about Clara, but her monologue at the end brings tears to my eyes each time.
@Rebecca Woolf Oh yeah, I have no doubt that the absence of cold-opens was because of this series’s intention to go, for lack of a better term, “back to basics”. I’ve never seen Classic Who so, for all I know, it might work better that way in the classics. I still miss them in Series 11, though, and would be thrilled to see them return in Series 12.
The cold open was used in classic who sparingly. They tried it in some sixth & seventh doctor epsides as part of trying to breath life into the project. Also first and second doctor some times the credits were played overtop the opening scenes.
My first thoughts went to Beast Bellow. But that was the first Doctor Who episode I ever saw... that I liked. Honest, I think almost every Moffat era episode has a damn good cold open.
I can only recall 2 Classic Who cold opens: Castrovalva: The Fourth Doctor's Regeneration The Five Doctors: Hartnell's "I shall come back" speech from "The Dalek Invasion of Earth"
I love your choices! The only one I would have added is The Impossible Astronaut. Largely because I remember my feelings upon watching it the first time; the story it seemed to be setting up was just so impossibly bizarre, and I couldn't imagine how it was going to resolve in a plot and episode that made any sense whatsoever. Of course, it failed to do so, but that's hardly the fault of the cold open!
Back in the day, the scheduling on the BBC would go like this - BBC Evening News, continuity announcer, opening titles to "Doctor Who". Here in the UK almost all programmes opened with the title sequence until relatively recently when the BBC (and others) have had to change to fit in with the US way of doing things. It wasn't until I visited the States (many years ago) and watched quite a bit of TV that I understood why American TV shows were constructed like that with the end of one show running into the cold open of the next as a way of keeping the audience watching. Here in the UK it was always; start with the titles; run the show; finish with the end credits. Many, just for UK consumption, are still like this
Classic Who did a cold open only ever four times. Castrovalva Episode 1 - Reprises the ending of the previous episode, Logopolis The Five Doctors - The “one day, I shall come back” speech from The Dalek Invasion of Earth, featuring the late great William Hartnell Time and the Rani - The regeneration sequence from the “sixth” (actually McCoy in a curly wig) to the seventh Doctor. Remembrance of the Daleks - A Dalek ship approaching Earth with random radio-like broadcasts in the background. My personal favourite of the classic ones, because it’s just so atmospheric.
I love that you talk with passion and conviction! A lot of youtubers talk "fakely" or like they're reading off a list. But it's clear that you really care about this topic and find it interesting! So it's really enjoyable to watch and hear what you have to say 😊
Two of my fav cold opens are "The Name of the Doctor" and "The Time of the Angels." Though the latter one does go on a bit long, but I love the River reveal!
Actually, the classic series did have a couple of cold opens. There was 6th doctor’s regeneration at the start of Time and The Rani and the shot of the Dalek ship at the start of Remembrance of the Daleks.
All of the episodes in the final two seasons of Classic Who use cold opens. There are some classic Who episodes that use fancy credits like "Inferno" or "War Games"
Good list! I agree, I could listen to Capaldi monologue all day long. I would've put the intro from Before The Flood on my list as well, because I could also listen to him play the guitar for a similar period of time. Another that sticks in my mind is A Good Man Goes To War, because I love seeing Rory show off his final level in badassery. I'm sure I'll think of more later, but I'm a little scattered right now. I understand your frustration in not being able to use the descriptor you wanted, but such are the perils of running a clean channel. ;)
Even before I watched this video I was thinking the Magician's Apprentice would take the number-one slot. I've never really liked this two-parter but have always been blown away by the opening. Awesome!. Would have had Silence in the Library in my top three. Surprised Human Nature didn't make the list.
Can I also give a shout-out to The Crimson Horror's cold open? I love the creepy way Mrs Gillyflower and her goons show up just before the woman's husband is killed, offering their condolences, and the stinger of the Doctor's image being frozen in the dead man's eye. Yikes!!
There's too many to choose from! While the content of the cold open is important, sometimes I think how they end and coincide with the sting and titles is more memorable. For instance with The Magician's Apprentice as you mentioned: "HELP ME!" DEEEEEEE-OWWWWWWW. I don't know how many times I've replayed that, it's just perfectly synchronised. Or The Doctor's Daughter I also like: "Hello Dad!" DEEEEEEE-OWWWWWWW - they just work perfectly with the sting and then you're ready to go: HERE WE GO, IT'S DOCTOR WHO TIME AGAIN!
You forgot Before the Flood. "The Bootstrap Paradox". Also, kind of a weird take for a cold open, but I'd have worked in "Go to your room" from The Doctor Dances somewhere in there.
1) Dalek 2) Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead 3) Heaven Sent 4) Magician's Apprentice 5) Night of the Doctor 6) Stolen Eart 7) Girl Who Waited 8) Human Nature 9) Amy's Choice 10) Utopia Honourable Mentions: Vincent and the Doctor Shakespeare Code Sound of Drums
oh my god I watched The Doctor’s Wife the other day and thought that it was a great cold open and my mind wandered to you (bc I’ve been binging these tbh) and I was thinking you should do a list of best cold opens and then I found this and that episode is the first one mentioned that’s pretty funny
I always switch off before the "Next time" trailers because, for one thing, they're spoilers and I hate spoilers, and for another thing they're trying to tell me to like the episode before I've even seen it. I'd rather make up my own mind than be waiting for those previewed scenes while I'm watching the show.
Just a quick reminder that in that billion year loop episode the Doctor kept finding the clothes of the previous Doctor, which means the first one to arrive spent half of the episode in the nude. I find this amusing.
A cold opening in the classic series was the regeneration of "Colin Baker" into McCoy in Time and the Rani (reason I put Colin's name in quotes was he wasn't really in the episode, it was really McCoy laying face down.
There was one cold open in the classics, time and the rani. A monster and the rani enter the TARDIS "forget the girl. It's the man I want" and the monster rolls over the 6th doctor to reveal a doctor regenerating. Then BAM opening theme.
For me, the cold open to The Magician's Apprentice is hands down (ha ha) the best. I didn't mind the hand mines and the guy who died managed to make me like him better in two sentences than Danny Pink did in a whole season. And I would have swapped the Doctor's Wife's open for A Good Man Goes to War. Especially since it was the first time we even suspect that side of Rory exists. Given where the rest of the episode went, the cold open to Listen just seems a little self indulgent to me. Though I haven't watched it as much as others because I find the whole concept infuriating.
There’s so many good ones, it’s difficult to pick. I like Night of the Doctor with the surprise of Paul McGann being the doctor again. Bit of a random one but I also really like the opening to the rather poor Vampires of Venice with the doctor bursting out of the cake at Rory’s stag do. It’s just so funny. I love how he drops in that the stripper was diabetic and then goes on and on to dig himself into a massive hole talking about how Amy kissed him. It’s just a very Doctor 11 thing to do.
Classic Who has two cold opens, one of which was a recap: "Castrovalva" (shows the ending of "Logopolis" again), and "Time and the Rani" (shows the Sixth Doctor's regeneration). Also, the movie kinda has a cold open too.
Human Nature. It begins like any other Doctor Who episode, with the Doctor and his companion running from aliens. The Doctor begins to tell Martha something important, when suddenly... The Doctor wakes up. But it's not the Doctor. It's a man who looks like the Doctor, but is just a normal human named John Smith in 1913. After being assured by Martha that he's not the Doctor, he smiles, but we know something is terribly wrong.
Before the Flood should have been on here ngl. One of the very *best* openings *ever*. Can't support on patreon, so here's a like and comment. All my love
The best bit about The Magician's Apprentice opening for me was that for that series I was busy with U i ersity and therefore yasnlt stumbled across any series spoilers. So I had no real way of seeing that reveal coming.
Two thoughts: I was sure Rory's scene from A Good Man Goes to War would make the list, but I realized that the reason I love it so much, rather than being a top cold open is because after playing 2nd fiddle to the Doctor for so long, he finally has his moment to be Amy's hero for once. Which made me think how awesome would it be if you did a top 5 or so list of each companions best moments, or most defining moments. I think you could really have fun with that and I think viewers would love to hear your take. 2. If know you didn't mean to do a long plug but I'm glad you did! I've been super busy lately so I might have missed it, but please tell a little about the novel!!
They've kind of gotten rid of the cold open for Series 11. Also they did a cold open for Time and the Rani for the classic era which involved the TARDIS crashing and the Sixth Doctor regenerating into the Seventh.
With props to the comments, particularly @I hate unicorns for remembering the Five Doctors cold open. As far as I can recall then, the Original Series cold opens are: Castrovalva - an edited recap of the regeneration from the end of Logopolis Part 4 The Five Doctors - archive footage of William Hartnell from the final episode of The Dalek Invasion of Earth Time and The Rani - the first cold open with new footage Remembrance of the Daleks - a memorable cold open, FX shot of Earth, with audio soundbites from JFK, MLK and deGaulle to set the 60s scene, pulling back slowly to show the Dalek Imperial ship approaching the planet.
I always liked The Girl in the Fireplace - I just tend to like episodes where the cold open is from late in the episode and half the story is explaining how we got there. Blink, The God Complex, The Crimson Horror and the Unquiet Dead are some others that stick in my mind. Disagree with Listen as the top pick - I never really liked a lot of the Capaldi openings - I think they were a little too removed from the actual story of the episodes - they were almost like mini-sodes or one man monologues / plays. I preferred the use of the cold open as a hint towards the main monster in the episode - almost as though a cliffhanger throwback now the episodes are more standalone and less serialised. It felt like a nice nod to the classic series but at the same time updated for the new format.
I think Human Nature should definitely be on this list. It's a mystery. It feels like it opens in media res (twice over), leaving the viewer delightfully lost. But also, like Silence in the Library, it jumps out of the initial story into another world. And not in a cheesy, winking at the audience, sort of way, but in a way that connects both worlds into a greater whole. And I think Human Nature is better than Silence in the Library in this respect, because the historical context gives the story such a great depth. It does help that the story this is the opening to is just fantastic, but the opening really contributes to the story's success.
Arguably, the first "cold open"; i.e. not starting with the opening titles, would be 1982's Castrovalva although that was a recap. '83's The Five Doctors also began cold, with a clip from The Dalek Invasion of Earth. Of brand new moments shown before the titles, we've got to look no further than the McCoy era: Time and the Rani's cold open tries to emulate Castrovalva's while Remembrance of the Daleks evokes the era in which it was set.
Regarding Utopia cold open. Two Missed Opportunities. 1. Having the image of Captain Jack clinging into the Tardis merge seamlessly into the time vortex opening credits. 2. By omitting the Futurekind from the cold open (their inclusion adds nothing) it would help build up the fear factor by holding back their reveal and focusing on how the last humans talk about them. In a way that's very reminiscent of how people talk about the Reavers in Firefly (whom the Futurekind are clearly inspired by). EDIT: Then again it would've been tricker to flip from Futurebound red vortex to Pastbound blue vortex and back again. Unless they are in the Futurebound red vortex all the time with the 180 camera spin for a change of temporal destination.
To be fair they could have colour corrected the blue vortex to the red/orange hue and then just have the TARDIS speeding off into another red vortex to keep with the future theme.
Never, actually thought about this before. I know that's theres some that literally made me squeal, right before the title music, and some that's had me go what!?, ah few that's had me "oh gosh, here we go. And a few that's just meh, cant really think which ones thought. I'd probably have to watch them all again.
Just realised Captain Jack was the reason the master returned and the whole Saxon thing coz the TARDIS only went to the end of the universe to get rid of him
You could pretty much put any of them in a Top 10 and not be far off an excellent list. DW really is good at the cold opening. Having to pick just 10 is definitely tough.
Back in the day, when I was younger than most of you, watching Star Trek we called these the twaser. WOW I completely agree with the top two. I might reverse them but I'd have to think about it. Since I'm not Deeo Thought I don't want to take the time.
Twaser? Is that Vulcan for teaser? I couldn't resist. ;-) You could call the DW ones teasers, it's accurate enough but a teaser can also mean something that's outside of the episode, whereas a cold open has to be part of the episode itself.
What are the issues that made your opinion of Listen change? For me it was the opposite. I didn’t like it on first watch but now I love it (also what happened with the whole of Capaldi’s run for me).
The best cold open was when Scooter checked backstage and they revealed that John Cleese was being held hostage until they finished the episode... wait, what show were we talking about again?
Classic Who Notes: - There was a specially made cold open featuring The 2nd Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe in the TARRIS post Wheel in Space that set up the BBC One re-run of Season 4's The Evil of the Daleks between the finale of Season 5 & the premiere of Season 6. - There was a cold open to The Five Doctors using footage of Harntell's "One Day..." speech from The Dalek Invasion of Earth; this was mostly done so Hartnell could be credited in the series 20th anniversary despite passing away 7 years prior. - The TV Movie opens with a monologue of McGann setting up the premise of Doctor Who for First time viewers, it is technically a cold open since its before the titles role. EDIT: I erroneously left out the pre-title sequences of 1980s Classic Who; my apologies / thank you Mehmet Yilmaz for pointing this out - The Fourth Doctor's Regeneration is played as a Cold-Open to the Season 19 Premiere Castrovolva - The Sixth Doctor's on screen regeneration in Season 24's Time and the Rani was a pre-title sequence - The Star Wars: A New Hope Style Spaceship opening was a Pre-Title sequence to Season 25's Remembrance of the Daleks
@Mehmet Yilmaz The regeneration in Time and the Rani was pre title? I'll need to give it a rewatch - my bad... same w/ Remembrance of the Daleks I completely forgot about those ones. I love McCoy (he's my favourite 80s Dr, but it's been a tick since I last watched that era of the show).
The Utopia cold open would have been even better if Jack hanging on to the TARDIS had been added into the entire opening title sequence!!
They were planning (or at least considered) doing that, but couldn't afford to remake entire title sequence.
Just rewatched the opening for that and that same thought went through my head. Missed opportunity!
That is exactly what I was just about to comment, man! Come on! lol
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I thought Rory showing up on the Cybership with the question and the message from A Good Man Goes to War would have made the list.
I'd guess that one might have got an honourable mention if he'd done them. Then again, that could be said for a lot of the cold opens. However the episode turns out, DW is really good at the cold open.
Absolutely! I could (and often do) watch this cold open more than once when I'm replaying this episode .
Yeah, I have a lot of problems with that episode, but it's a great opening.
I find that moment really cringey tbh
I forgot about that one, that was great to see when it aired. Now, it's still good, but I have a few issues with it.
I really love the bootstrap paradox cold open from 'Before the flood'
It's like that scene in Far from Home with the Mysterio reveal, where it's basically dumping exposition, but it's in such an over the top and crazy way that you don't even care
That's the first one that came to mind when I saw the title of this video.
Every time Twelve monologues is an amazing scene
I would imagine that it didn't make the list because while it's an excellent cold open, it doesn't so much set up or introduce the episode as it does emphasize the final solution of the episode. Capaldi sure does do a great monologue, though, doesn't he?
i love the cold open from A Good Man Goes to war and the bit at the end with Rory and the Cybermen and the final moment where he goes "Would you like me to repeat the question?" and he just stares at the cybermen like he is so done with their bs and then you see all the ships behind him exploding. badassery at its finest
Peter Capaldi's monologues were amazing, he just had a way of conveying all his emotions into the words he was saying. You could tell how the doctor was feeling, but more than that, Capaldi made you believe every word.
Russell T Davies used to joke that he wanted to redo the opening credits for Utopia - basically add Jack to the outside of the Tardis while it goes through the time vortex.
I actually think it would have been great if they'd had the money to do it.
One of my personal nitpicks is when they mess with the intro for a quick gimmick. For example, when they replaced Capaldi's eyes for Coleman's and put her credit before him. Why? For what reason?
It's the same when they add snowflakes into the intro (though I can forgive this one a little more.) It adds nothing and is pretty distracting. The title sequence is such a special part of a show and when it's fiddled with for a quick 'oo, look at us, aren't we clever' it really irks me.
@@TeaSquiffy2 Bloody snowflakes, ruining doctor who
I actually used the "Listen" - monologue for a theatre-exam/test-thingy, where I had to direct a monologue, because it literally was the best monologue I could find.
Imo H. I like that and the Zygon Inversion speech. And the Where I am Is where I stand, where I stand is where I fall speech.
I actually think that the opening monologue from that episode was the best thing about Listen... at least on my first viewing... probably because I found it like a wannabe Midnight at the time.
It’s a travesty that Before The Flood is not on this list
*laughs in guitar solo*
10 best Council of Geeks cold opens!
One of my favourite cold opens is the unquiet dead. The woman strangling the man, then she glows blue and has horrible white eyes, she starts walking outdoors and heading towards the camera as the music builds up and she just puts her face into the camera and screams.
Terrified me so much as a kid, I could never watch it. It’s horrible but amazing lmao. IMO the RTD has the best cold opens. They’re normally really interesting and hook you straight away, or they’re funny/scary. Moffats era has some good coldopens but they tend to be forgettable IMO.
I also really like Blinks cold open, I tend to love the creepy and mysterious ones.
For me the best cold open is probably 'A Good Man Goes to War', I'm not a massive fan of the overall episode but seeing Rory step up to pretty much a Doctor level of badassery in order to save his family was endearing and probably one of the most blockbuster esque visuals in the show.
I personally really like the Dark Water opening. Just seeing Clara's face when The Doctor says "so what can I do for you?" Gets me every time
My favorite type of cold open is one like Silence in the Library. I love when you have a moment with no context. It's like a single puzzle piece, and when they finally slot it into place, and it ties the whole story together, there's something satisfying about that. It's why I like heist stories so much. Like Leverage, or the Ocean's series of movies, where you get glimpses of things as the occur, but they don't connect until they very end when you finally see behind the curtain, and see everything connected.
Something else really good about the Magician's Apprentice opening, I read the script for that scene, and the subtext Moffat wrote is perfectly shown on Capaldi's face
I really love the cold open to Runaway Bride, the Doctor all somber because he just said goodbye to Rose, and then Donna shows up, and he's all like "What?"
Jon Pertwee’s story “The Ambassadors of Death” had some recap “cold opens,” “Remembrance of the Daleks” had a cold open, and “Inferno” had some interesting volcano footage before the opening credits finished, but other than that, from what I’ve seen from Classic Who, it started with the credits, yes.
Your pick for number one was SPOT ON. I actually said “Yeah-HAHH!” out loud when you said that.
I think the movie also had a cold open.
I seem to recall that The Five Doctors also has a pre-credit scene of the first doctor doing a monologue.
I hate unicorns I think you’re eight.
The Ambassadors of Death is an interesting case. They're not technically cold opens, because you get the first part of the title sequence, then the recap, then cut back to the title sequence for the episode name, part, and writer. That cut feature the first use in Who of that now iconic 'sting' or 'scream' sound, later used till 1979, and used in the new Who for the Davies era.
Gotta give a nod to The Impossible Planet!! The Doctor and Rose land on an unknown planet, there's writing on the wall that even the TARDIS can't translate, and a bunch of aliens seem to swarm the two of them repeating, "We must feed," over and over. That one is pretty fantastic!
I’m going to say it: love and monsters
Dinosaurs!
On a SPACESHIP!
(Human Nature and The Girl who Waited are really good too)
The cold open to "Rose" is so well done and captures modern Doctor Who perfectly
Well done. It is good to see high quality thought on Dr. Who. Others seem to feel being on UA-cam just needs good quality book report style presentations.
Even though I defend series 11 a lot more than others do, one of my issues with it was the fact there were no cold opens. I think your list captures pretty spotlessly why they’re as brilliant as they are and I unquestionably agree with your Top 3.
Do you mind if I ask what your issues with Listen are? I honestly don’t mind it that you’re not a fan as it’s healthy and perfectly natural to have different opinions to others. Plus I do acknowledge the plot-hole that Orson Pink, without spoiling the rest of the series, shouldn’t really exist. Just that it’s my absolute favourite episode of the entirety of New Who so I’m intrigued as to what faults you see with it that I haven’t.
I also defend that serason more than others but I think the lack of cold openings was one of those things Chibbers changed for the sake of changing, not because it needed it. Just like the lack of two-parters. DW has been great at the cold opens, to pick 10 of them you could almost pick any 10 and it would work. I definitely missed them in season 11.
Listen was a travesty because it does everything a really strong Doctor Who episode does, and could have set up a really interesting villain. Instead it was a just a red herring that meant absolutely nothing in the arc of the series. It was like it occurred in an alternate universe about a monster who didn't actually exist. It could have been great, instead was a massive waste of everyone's time.
@@maurinet2291 Hmm… fair enough point about the episode not contributing to the series arc in any way. However, I do have to respectfully disagree with you about the monster never being revealed to be a negative.
I LOVE it that we never properly learn what the creature is, or even get a name for it. Not only does it maintain a wonderful sense of mystery to what it is, but I also find that discovering the creature’s identity isn’t the point of the episode. The point is everyone learning that used in the right way, it’s okay to be afraid once in a while. And as someone who’s perpetually shy and worrisome, I personally find to be a great deal of comfort. People can say what they like about Clara, but her monologue at the end brings tears to my eyes each time.
@Rebecca Woolf Oh yeah, I have no doubt that the absence of cold-opens was because of this series’s intention to go, for lack of a better term, “back to basics”. I’ve never seen Classic Who so, for all I know, it might work better that way in the classics. I still miss them in Series 11, though, and would be thrilled to see them return in Series 12.
The cold open was used in classic who sparingly. They tried it in some sixth & seventh doctor epsides as part of trying to breath life into the project. Also first and second doctor some times the credits were played overtop the opening scenes.
Before the Flood for me helps that the opening theme is amazing too
My first thoughts went to Beast Bellow. But that was the first Doctor Who episode I ever saw... that I liked. Honest, I think almost every Moffat era episode has a damn good cold open.
I can only recall 2 Classic Who cold opens:
Castrovalva: The Fourth Doctor's Regeneration
The Five Doctors: Hartnell's "I shall come back" speech from "The Dalek Invasion of Earth"
I'd add Oxygen to the list for the awesome cinematography alone
Love the vamp Willow tribute in this cold open!
I love your choices! The only one I would have added is The Impossible Astronaut. Largely because I remember my feelings upon watching it the first time; the story it seemed to be setting up was just so impossibly bizarre, and I couldn't imagine how it was going to resolve in a plot and episode that made any sense whatsoever. Of course, it failed to do so, but that's hardly the fault of the cold open!
Back in the day, the scheduling on the BBC would go like this - BBC Evening News, continuity announcer, opening titles to "Doctor Who". Here in the UK almost all programmes opened with the title sequence until relatively recently when the BBC (and others) have had to change to fit in with the US way of doing things.
It wasn't until I visited the States (many years ago) and watched quite a bit of TV that I understood why American TV shows were constructed like that with the end of one show running into the cold open of the next as a way of keeping the audience watching. Here in the UK it was always; start with the titles; run the show; finish with the end credits. Many, just for UK consumption, are still like this
Classic Who did a cold open only ever four times.
Castrovalva Episode 1 - Reprises the ending of the previous episode, Logopolis
The Five Doctors - The “one day, I shall come back” speech from The Dalek Invasion of Earth, featuring the late great William Hartnell
Time and the Rani - The regeneration sequence from the “sixth” (actually McCoy in a curly wig) to the seventh Doctor.
Remembrance of the Daleks - A Dalek ship approaching Earth with random radio-like broadcasts in the background. My personal favourite of the classic ones, because it’s just so atmospheric.
I love that you talk with passion and conviction! A lot of youtubers talk "fakely" or like they're reading off a list. But it's clear that you really care about this topic and find it interesting! So it's really enjoyable to watch and hear what you have to say 😊
You should do Best endings ever.
i think he already did a finale list and a cliffhangers list if you scroll back a bit
Lucy Preece Ik he did a list of best cliffhangers but that’s not the same as best endings tho, just a suggestion.
Two of my fav cold opens are "The Name of the Doctor" and "The Time of the Angels." Though the latter one does go on a bit long, but I love the River reveal!
Actually, the classic series did have a couple of cold opens. There was 6th doctor’s regeneration at the start of Time and The Rani and the shot of the Dalek ship at the start of Remembrance of the Daleks.
All of the episodes in the final two seasons of Classic Who use cold opens. There are some classic Who episodes that use fancy credits like "Inferno" or "War Games"
Jason Thayer For anyone watching The War Games, be warned because I’m pretty sure it has a bunch of flickering/flashing.
Remembrance of the Daleks has a banger of an opener!
remembrance of the daleks is the only classic episode to have a cold open as far as I know
Good list! I agree, I could listen to Capaldi monologue all day long. I would've put the intro from Before The Flood on my list as well, because I could also listen to him play the guitar for a similar period of time. Another that sticks in my mind is A Good Man Goes To War, because I love seeing Rory show off his final level in badassery. I'm sure I'll think of more later, but I'm a little scattered right now. I understand your frustration in not being able to use the descriptor you wanted, but such are the perils of running a clean channel. ;)
Did the sonic’s battery die in the intro?
Even before I watched this video I was thinking the Magician's Apprentice would take the number-one slot. I've never really liked this two-parter but have always been blown away by the opening. Awesome!. Would have had Silence in the Library in my top three. Surprised Human Nature didn't make the list.
Remembrance of the Daleks episode 1 has a short cold opening.
Went and looked for the Listen monologue when this finished. Yup, that's some class right there.
Can I also give a shout-out to The Crimson Horror's cold open? I love the creepy way Mrs Gillyflower and her goons show up just before the woman's husband is killed, offering their condolences, and the stinger of the Doctor's image being frozen in the dead man's eye. Yikes!!
How about Aliens if London when it turns out rose has been gone for an entire year? I love that
There's too many to choose from! While the content of the cold open is important, sometimes I think how they end and coincide with the sting and titles is more memorable. For instance with The Magician's Apprentice as you mentioned: "HELP ME!" DEEEEEEE-OWWWWWWW. I don't know how many times I've replayed that, it's just perfectly synchronised. Or The Doctor's Daughter I also like: "Hello Dad!" DEEEEEEE-OWWWWWWW - they just work perfectly with the sting and then you're ready to go: HERE WE GO, IT'S DOCTOR WHO TIME AGAIN!
You forgot Before the Flood. "The Bootstrap Paradox". Also, kind of a weird take for a cold open, but I'd have worked in "Go to your room" from The Doctor Dances somewhere in there.
1) Dalek
2) Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead
3) Heaven Sent
4) Magician's Apprentice
5) Night of the Doctor
6) Stolen Eart
7) Girl Who Waited
8) Human Nature
9) Amy's Choice
10) Utopia
Honourable Mentions:
Vincent and the Doctor
Shakespeare Code
Sound of Drums
oh my god I watched The Doctor’s Wife the other day and thought that it was a great cold open and my mind wandered to you (bc I’ve been binging these tbh) and I was thinking you should do a list of best cold opens and then I found this and that episode is the first one mentioned that’s pretty funny
On a... similar (?) note, could you do a top 10 for ‘Next time’ trailers
I always switch off before the "Next time" trailers because, for one thing, they're spoilers and I hate spoilers, and for another thing they're trying to tell me to like the episode before I've even seen it. I'd rather make up my own mind than be waiting for those previewed scenes while I'm watching the show.
Actually, Castrovalva, Time and the Rani, and Rememberance of the Daleks all had cold opens for their part ones.
Just a quick reminder that in that billion year loop episode the Doctor kept finding the clothes of the previous Doctor, which means the first one to arrive spent half of the episode in the nude. I find this amusing.
Well, not in the nude, but in his skivvies, for sure.
A cold opening in the classic series was the regeneration of "Colin Baker" into McCoy in Time and the Rani (reason I put Colin's name in quotes was he wasn't really in the episode, it was really McCoy laying face down.
There was one cold open in the classics, time and the rani. A monster and the rani enter the TARDIS "forget the girl. It's the man I want" and the monster rolls over the 6th doctor to reveal a doctor regenerating. Then BAM opening theme.
For me, the cold open to The Magician's Apprentice is hands down (ha ha) the best. I didn't mind the hand mines and the guy who died managed to make me like him better in two sentences than Danny Pink did in a whole season. And I would have swapped the Doctor's Wife's open for A Good Man Goes to War. Especially since it was the first time we even suspect that side of Rory exists. Given where the rest of the episode went, the cold open to Listen just seems a little self indulgent to me. Though I haven't watched it as much as others because I find the whole concept infuriating.
There’s so many good ones, it’s difficult to pick. I like Night of the Doctor with the surprise of Paul McGann being the doctor again.
Bit of a random one but I also really like the opening to the rather poor Vampires of Venice with the doctor bursting out of the cake at Rory’s stag do. It’s just so funny. I love how he drops in that the stripper was diabetic and then goes on and on to dig himself into a massive hole talking about how Amy kissed him. It’s just a very Doctor 11 thing to do.
Classic Who has two cold opens, one of which was a recap: "Castrovalva" (shows the ending of "Logopolis" again), and "Time and the Rani" (shows the Sixth Doctor's regeneration).
Also, the movie kinda has a cold open too.
Don't forget Remembrance of the Daleks.
@@swiftbird4846 I forgot about that one.
And "The Five Doctors".
@@Ocsttiac Very true, I forgot to add that one to my list as well.
Helping for absolutely free - cuz I just enjoy watching you.
Human Nature. It begins like any other Doctor Who episode, with the Doctor and his companion running from aliens. The Doctor begins to tell Martha something important, when suddenly... The Doctor wakes up. But it's not the Doctor. It's a man who looks like the Doctor, but is just a normal human named John Smith in 1913. After being assured by Martha that he's not the Doctor, he smiles, but we know something is terribly wrong.
Before the Flood should have been on here ngl. One of the very *best* openings *ever*. Can't support on patreon, so here's a like and comment. All my love
The best bit about The Magician's Apprentice opening for me was that for that series I was busy with U i ersity and therefore yasnlt stumbled across any series spoilers. So I had no real way of seeing that reveal coming.
Two thoughts: I was sure Rory's scene from A Good Man Goes to War would make the list, but I realized that the reason I love it so much, rather than being a top cold open is because after playing 2nd fiddle to the Doctor for so long, he finally has his moment to be Amy's hero for once.
Which made me think how awesome would it be if you did a top 5 or so list of each companions best moments, or most defining moments. I think you could really have fun with that and I think viewers would love to hear your take.
2. If know you didn't mean to do a long plug but I'm glad you did! I've been super busy lately so I might have missed it, but please tell a little about the novel!!
Sad to see the ghost monument isn't on this list
I really like the cold opens of the big bang and blink.
Ambassadors of death from Pertwees 1st season experimented with the cold open in 1970🎩
I'm surprised The Impossible Planet wasn't mentioned.
We must feed.
We must feed.
We must feed.
Bonus points because it's hilariously resolved.
Capaldi monologues are great
They've kind of gotten rid of the cold open for Series 11. Also they did a cold open for Time and the Rani for the classic era which involved the TARDIS crashing and the Sixth Doctor regenerating into the Seventh.
With props to the comments, particularly @I hate unicorns for remembering the Five Doctors cold open. As far as I can recall then, the Original Series cold opens are:
Castrovalva - an edited recap of the regeneration from the end of Logopolis Part 4
The Five Doctors - archive footage of William Hartnell from the final episode of The Dalek Invasion of Earth
Time and The Rani - the first cold open with new footage
Remembrance of the Daleks - a memorable cold open, FX shot of Earth, with audio soundbites from JFK, MLK and deGaulle to set the 60s scene, pulling back slowly to show the Dalek Imperial ship approaching the planet.
I always liked The Girl in the Fireplace - I just tend to like episodes where the cold open is from late in the episode and half the story is explaining how we got there.
Blink, The God Complex, The Crimson Horror and the Unquiet Dead are some others that stick in my mind.
Disagree with Listen as the top pick - I never really liked a lot of the Capaldi openings - I think they were a little too removed from the actual story of the episodes - they were almost like mini-sodes or one man monologues / plays.
I preferred the use of the cold open as a hint towards the main monster in the episode - almost as though a cliffhanger throwback now the episodes are more standalone and less serialised.
It felt like a nice nod to the classic series but at the same time updated for the new format.
I think Human Nature should definitely be on this list. It's a mystery. It feels like it opens in media res (twice over), leaving the viewer delightfully lost. But also, like Silence in the Library, it jumps out of the initial story into another world. And not in a cheesy, winking at the audience, sort of way, but in a way that connects both worlds into a greater whole. And I think Human Nature is better than Silence in the Library in this respect, because the historical context gives the story such a great depth. It does help that the story this is the opening to is just fantastic, but the opening really contributes to the story's success.
Honestly I think that one doesn’t do much for because it’s such a soft open it feels weird when the music kicks in with a totally different vibe.
Listen is definitely high on my list.
Cold open to 42? Cold? They are about to crash into a sun far from cold ;-)
classic who sometimes played the cliffhanger from the previous episode as a cold open, that might be what you're thinking of.
Loved this.
Gotta have to put Flatline in here, don't you?
What about the pandorica opens?
Arguably, the first "cold open"; i.e. not starting with the opening titles, would be 1982's Castrovalva although that was a recap. '83's The Five Doctors also began cold, with a clip from The Dalek Invasion of Earth. Of brand new moments shown before the titles, we've got to look no further than the McCoy era: Time and the Rani's cold open tries to emulate Castrovalva's while Remembrance of the Daleks evokes the era in which it was set.
Regarding Utopia cold open.
Two Missed Opportunities.
1. Having the image of Captain Jack clinging into the Tardis merge seamlessly into the time vortex opening credits.
2. By omitting the Futurekind from the cold open (their inclusion adds nothing) it would help build up the fear factor by holding back their reveal and focusing on how the last humans talk about them. In a way that's very reminiscent of how people talk about the Reavers in Firefly (whom the Futurekind are clearly inspired by).
EDIT: Then again it would've been tricker to flip from Futurebound red vortex to Pastbound blue vortex and back again. Unless they are in the Futurebound red vortex all the time with the 180 camera spin for a change of temporal destination.
To be fair they could have colour corrected the blue vortex to the red/orange hue and then just have the TARDIS speeding off into another red vortex to keep with the future theme.
love the list
Way agree about listen. Such a great open
Never, actually thought about this before. I know that's theres some that literally made me squeal, right before the title music, and some that's had me go what!?, ah few that's had me "oh gosh, here we go. And a few that's just meh, cant really think which ones thought. I'd probably have to watch them all again.
Just realised Captain Jack was the reason the master returned and the whole Saxon thing coz the TARDIS only went to the end of the universe to get rid of him
Which means Rose was the reason the Master came back, because she brought Jack back to life.
@@eclecticdog2k901 very very true. Oh why does it always link back to rose 🤣🤣
You're absolutely right this is a tough lists?
You could pretty much put any of them in a Top 10 and not be far off an excellent list. DW really is good at the cold opening. Having to pick just 10 is definitely tough.
This was a good idea for a video.
Alright, I have my own petty reasons to be bitter about Listen, but you've persuaded me to rewatch at least the opening
Back in the day, when I was younger than most of you, watching Star Trek we called these the twaser. WOW I completely agree with the top two. I might reverse them but I'd have to think about it. Since I'm not Deeo Thought I don't want to take the time.
Twaser? Is that Vulcan for teaser?
I couldn't resist. ;-) You could call the DW ones teasers, it's accurate enough but a teaser can also mean something that's outside of the episode, whereas a cold open has to be part of the episode itself.
"Deep Thought" - Is that a reference to HGTTG or am I mistaken?
10. You
9. Can’t
8. Rank
7. Cold
6. Opens
5. Because
4. They’re
3. All
2. Good
1. The Magician’s Apprentice
fyi some classic episodes did have a cold open, for example time and the rani and the animated reconstruction of the macra terror
Ok but why is nobody talking about;
We must feed ...
We must feed ....
WE MUST FEED...
.... You
Silence in the library, Listen, and The Stolen Earth are my favorites
What are the issues that made your opinion of Listen change? For me it was the opposite. I didn’t like it on first watch but now I love it (also what happened with the whole of Capaldi’s run for me).
I think that remembrance of the daleks had a cold open
It did, dalek ship approaching earth
I’m pretty sure that the first episode of Genesis of the Daleks had a cold open.
Top Doctor 10 Who Cold Opens
The best cold open was when Scooter checked backstage and they revealed that John Cleese was being held hostage until they finished the episode... wait, what show were we talking about again?
Where was the Before the Flood cold open? Honestly, it’s my second favorite of the show!
Classic Who Notes:
- There was a specially made cold open featuring The 2nd Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe in the TARRIS post Wheel in Space that set up the BBC One re-run of Season 4's The Evil of the Daleks between the finale of Season 5 & the premiere of Season 6.
- There was a cold open to The Five Doctors using footage of Harntell's "One Day..." speech from The Dalek Invasion of Earth; this was mostly done so Hartnell could be credited in the series 20th anniversary despite passing away 7 years prior.
- The TV Movie opens with a monologue of McGann setting up the premise of Doctor Who for First time viewers, it is technically a cold open since its before the titles role.
EDIT: I erroneously left out the pre-title sequences of 1980s Classic Who; my apologies / thank you Mehmet Yilmaz for pointing this out
- The Fourth Doctor's Regeneration is played as a Cold-Open to the Season 19 Premiere Castrovolva
- The Sixth Doctor's on screen regeneration in Season 24's Time and the Rani was a pre-title sequence
- The Star Wars: A New Hope Style Spaceship opening was a Pre-Title sequence to Season 25's Remembrance of the Daleks
@Mehmet Yilmaz The regeneration in Time and the Rani was pre title? I'll need to give it a rewatch - my bad... same w/ Remembrance of the Daleks I completely forgot about those ones. I love McCoy (he's my favourite 80s Dr, but it's been a tick since I last watched that era of the show).
Might I suggest you do the complete opposite video... Top 10 Best Final Scenes in Doctor Who
I thiks amy choice and the magince apptarincss are the best episide ever
My one complaint: You're talking about cold opens for DOCTOR WHO, and you DIDN'T do the "EEEEEEEwwwoooooosh!" noise? xD