Doctor Who's Worst Episode Is 20 Years Old Today, And It's Time To Forgive It

Can we see the positives in Doctor Who's infamous "Love and Monsters" episode? We're certainly going to try. Start a conversation about the worst of Doctor Who's modern episodes, and it won't be long until someone mentions this ditty from the largely excellent season 2.

Penned by showrunner Russell T Davies, "Love and Monsters" spearheaded the trope of Doctor-lite episodes, where the Time Lord takes a week off once per season. Spawning classics like "Blink" and "73 Yards," the Doctor-lite format can often work wonders, but with "Love and Monsters," it had the shakiest of starts.

Drawing inspiration from season 1 character Clive (the guy researching The Doctor's presence throughout Earth history), "Love and Monsters" takes the premise further by introducing a club of Doctor-hunters affectionately calling itself L.I.N.D.A. The Doctor and Rose bookend the story, but it's really a ground-level narrative about the L.I.N.D.A. members themselves.

Roundly rejected with a "what on Earth was that?!" attitude upon airing, "Love and Monsters" has been the butt of many a joke over the past 20 years. That's not without reason, and no amount of revisionism will ever result in the chronicles of L.I.N.D.A. being hailed as a nu-Who classic. It is, however, possible that "Love and Monsters" doesn't fully deserve its place in the bargain bin of RTD's first stint as Doctor Who showrunner.

Even 20 Years Later, "Love And Monsters" Isn't A Great Episode Of Doctor Who

Rewatching Doctor Who's "Love and Monsters" in 2026, some of those gut-reaction criticisms from 20 years ago still have merit. The longer the episode runs, the more jarring its tone becomes, and what starts as quirky and lighthearted soon descends into not-especially-brilliant comedy. Part of that comes down to the execution of certain plot points that probably looked better on paper, with the Jackie "isn't it getting hot in here" Tyler and 'paving slab' conclusion both prime examples of where "Love and Monsters" aims for humor and misses.

The tonal mismatch also comes from the episode's unloved Abzorbaloff villain. As the story goes, the Abzorbaloff was designed by a young Doctor Who fan who won a competition to have their creation included in the show. No criticism there; the youngster did a very good job for someone all of nine years old (and he has since taken to YouTube to give his thoughts on the episode overall). Likewise, it's difficult to point fingers at Peter Kay, the comedian cast as Doctor Who's bulbous green villain. Kay gives exactly the kind of performance he was known for at the time.

But the Abzorbaloff was the wrong villain for "Love and Monsters." With so much joviality and whimsy elsewhere, it might have been wise to balance the books with a more menacing villain, something closer to Anthony Head's Mr. Finch in terms of a human-looking alien feeding on innocent victims. Because, at its heart, "Love and Monsters" is a grounded story about loneliness. It's about a young child coming downstairs to find his mother dead. It's about Bridget's daughter falling into drug use and going missing. It is, ultimately, a story about finding love in a world of darkness. Peter Kay running around in a giant green suit doesn't quite do those themes justice.

Why It's Time To Forgive Doctor Who's "Love And Monsters"

Thinking back to when "Love and Monsters" first aired in 2006, the disappointment was real, and anyone would be forgiven for dreading the moment it crops up during a binge of RTD's first era. Curiously, "Love and Monsters" is a lot more enjoyable when you're plowing through Doctor Who season 2 in quick succession, and while that's partly because you're bracing yourself for a bad time, there's more to it.

The initial backlash was amplified by the context of Doctor Who's run back in 2006. Imagine, you've just witnessed the brilliant conclusion to The Tenth Doctor vs. Lucifer in "The Satan Pit," and you're eagerly awaiting the next installment of a sophomore season that has delivered absolute belters like "The Girl in the Fireplace" and "School Reunion." Then, after a long week, Doctor Who rewards its patient audience with "Love and Monsters." Anyone would feel let down, and as the show's very first Doctor-lite episode, viewers also weren't accustomed to getting Doctor Who episodes focused on characters they'd never seen before.

It's far easier to appreciate "Love and Monsters" when you know what to expect. Because the episode is, essentially, a very good short story that got out of hand. What could have been a brilliant online minisode or short trip audio somehow ended up being spun into a full-length installment of the main Doctor Who series. It isn't always easy to spot that potential behind the blubbery green faces shouting "Run, Elton!" but the bones of a good Doctor Who tale are definitely there.

He's no Sally Sparrow, but Elton serves as an endearing protagonist nonetheless, naturally sympathetic despite (or because of) his immense awkwardness. The early interactions among L.I.N.D.A. members are similarly heartwarming, seizing upon that fascinating notion of 'what happens when humans encounter The Doctor once and never see him again?' In fact, the first 20 minutes of "Love and Monsters" are surprisingly good for an episode with such a poor reputation.

If only the script had stayed with its human characters rather than delving into juvenile comedy, it might have fared better. RTD never expands upon the fate of Bridget's daughter, nor how Elton's new friends each met The Doctor. The Jackie Tyler subplot, meanwhile, is more concerned with being a Carry On tribute than properly examining how Rose's mother is coping alone in London. The episode's climax puts so much effort into the Abzorbaloff's defeat and Elton's moss-covered "love life," it obscures how the ending is really about a young boy who met The Doctor the night his mother was killed by a monster, but found love through that very same encounter. Love and monsters, indeed.

No one will ever look at Elton's brush with alien life as Doctor Who's finest hour. But those who typically skip "Love and Monsters" during a rewatch of RTD's first era might find themselves pleasantly surprised that this jaunty side-story isn't nearly as bad as they remember.