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As one of the oldest sci-fi shows of all time, Doctor Who has built an impressive array of enemies, both human and extraterrestrial. Some of the villains the Doctor faced appeared only one time but others have been an important part of the show for years.
Other than the Daleks, the Cybermen are the Doctor's most iconic enemies. Humans transformed into Cybermen, they're intelligent but have no emotions and only one goal - to make everyone like them. The lack of humanity makes them frightening, and Doctor Who used this well in multiple episodes featuring the Cybermen.
8 Closing Time
While Closing Time isn't the best Doctor Who episode, it shows that sometimes it's possible to combine humor and the terror Cybermen spread. In this episode, the Eleventh Doctor meets his friend Craig (played by James Cordon) again, and their reunion is hilarious.
Craig is dealing with taking care of his newborn son while the mom's away, and at the same time, he and the Doctor have to face the Cybermen. It's an unusual combo that, nevertheless, works, and Craig's struggles with parenthood will be familiar to multiple viewers.
7 Earthshock
The show isn't always kind to the Doctor's companions but it tends to leave them alive - for most of the part. Not so much in the case of poor Aldric who was the companion of the Fifth Doctor played by Peter Davison.
The Doctor faced his old enemies, the Cybermen, after quite some time and even though he managed to defeat them, he wasn't able to save Aldric from getting murdered. This came as a shock to the viewers, especially once it became obvious the Doctor wouldn't find some miraculous way how to bring Aldric back.
6 Dark Water / Death In Heaven
The Cybermen are impressive enough on their own. But when they join forces with the Doctor's old enemy, Missy, the result is even better. Missy uses the Cybermen as her personal army and she puts it together by collecting dead people.
The sheer brutality of her plan leaves a strong impression, as well as the look on an army of Cybermen following Missy's every wish and whim. Even the Twelfth Doctor seems unsure what to do when he discovers what Missy's doing.
5 Ascension Of The Cybermen / The Timeless Children
In the recent series, the Doctor had to face the Cybermen again. This time, the fight was even more difficult since the Cybermen were at the height of their power in these two episodes.
The Doctor ended up in the future during the Cyber Wars, and even though she eventually won the day, it wasn't without losses. The Cybermen didn't always come across as frightening in the new Doctor Who but their newest adventure shows why they have become such iconic Doctor Who enemies.
4 Rise Of The Cybermen / The Age Of Steel
The Cybermen have two major appearances in the second season of the renewed Doctor Who, and this is the first of them. The episodes set the background for the season's finale because they introduce the concept of multiple universes.
Even though the Doctor, Rose, and Mickey manage to defeat them in the end, it's not without losses. One of the victims is Rose's mom from another universe. That later gives Rose's actual mom the chance to reunite with her dead husband and get back together.
3 The Haunting Of Villa Diodati
Even though this episode uses a concept that previously appeared with the Daleks - aka the Doctor's iconic enemy made more human - it turns it around.
The Cyberman in this episode, called Ashad, remained still partly human, a bit similar to how the Daleks created a human/Dalek hybrid in Daleks in Manhattan. However, even though one might expect it would make Ashad more kind, understanding, and, well human, the result was the exact opposite which made for several intense scenes.
2 Army Of Ghosts / Doomsday
Even the people who aren't fond of Rose Tyler often admit that Doomsday is one of the most emotional episodes in the series. It's the episode in which the Doctor and Rose say their goodbyes, believing that they will never see each other again.
The Cybermen and the Daleks are responsible for this separation since they both invade London and Rose and the Doctor has to stop them. Especially the Cybermen's impact is long-lasting on the events of this universe since it influences not only the Doctor's life, but the life of Ianto Jones from Torchwood and the Cybermen also kill Martha Jones's cousin.
1 The Tenth Planet
The Cybermen are now established Doctor Who villains but even they had to start somewhere. The Tenth Planet with the First Doctor (portrayed by William Hartnell) is their first story.
While the masks may seem dated today, the story still works and it manages to explain why the Cybermen are so scary. Unfortunately, not the entire story has been preserved but the parts that did survive help the audience to understand why the Cybermen became such iconic enemies.