Twenty years ago, David Tennant stepped into the TARDIS for his first full-length Doctor Who adventure, “The Christmas Invasion.” That episode did so well for the sci-fi family show that it kickstarted the well-loved British tradition of the Doctor Who Christmas special — and cemented a fan-favorite duo. The playful, feel-good chemistry of The Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler (Tennant and Billie Piper) solidified their adventures across time and space as a monumental era in Doctor Who history. There have been so many different Doctor/Companion mash-ups throughout the years, but the Tenth Doctor and Rose remain an incredibly beloved pairing that fans are still discussing on the 20th anniversary of their Doctor Who era.

Even though the Doctor is defined by their ability to regenerate — allowing different actors to play the iconic Time Lord over the show’s 60-year-plus history — fans were still concerned when Christopher Eccleston left the show at the end of series 1. Showrunner Russell T. Davies had been hired to bring a new lease on life to Doctor Who after the 16-year gap between the Classic Who of 1989 and the New Who that launched in 2005. Would Tennant and Piper work as well as........

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