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Rose Tyler (Ninth and Tenth Doctors)

The first nineteen years of my life, nothing happened. Nothing at all, not ever. And then I met a man called the Doctor.

Played by: Billie Piper (2005-06, 2008, 2010)
Young Rose played by: Julia Joyce (2005)

A shopgirl from 21st century London, Rose was the first companion seen in the new series. Left after series 2, returned for series 4. Madly in love with the Doctor, which is awkward for everyone involved and leads to the Doctor making up a "falling in love not allowed" rule for his subsequent companions. (This works about as well as you would expect.)

Beware the Nice Ones: Series 1 finale counts.
Clingy Jealous Girl: Forms most of the tension with Sarah Jane when they first meet, and she really doesn't seem to like the idea that the Doctor has had female friends other than her in the past (or may have in future).
Everyone Loves Blondes: Lampshaded by Martha and Jack:

Martha: Is that what happens though, seriously? You just get bored of us one day and disappear?
Jack: Not if you're blonde.
Martha: Oh she was blonde! Oh, what a surprise.

First Girl Wins: Rose is one of the few companions that The Doctor has expressed obvious romantic affection for, eventually ending up with his half-Donna clone. In a very strange (but sweet) way. The writers have explicitly said that the Clone told her "I love you" when they hooked up.
Girl Next Door
Grand Theft Me: To Cassandra's chagrin. "I'm a chav!"
Heroic Sacrifice: Series 2 finale counts, though she's technically not dead.
It's All About Me: Has some very self-centered moments, especially regarding Mickey. She naturally gets called out on this.
Love Confession: She tells the Tenth Doctor this. While he does not say it back, his clone whispers it back in her ear (according to the writers). She stays with the clone in the alternate universe.
Living Emotional Crutch
Morality Chain: For the Ninth Doctor. For the Tenth, not so much...
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Indirectly responsible (along with "Sexy") for the return of the Master (and by extension, Professor Lazarus' rampage) and Miracle Day.
Stranger in a Familiar Land
She Is Not My Girlfriend: To the Ninth Doctor, mainly.
Took a Level in Badass: Series 4.
Tsundere: The "sweet" type.
Unreliable Narrator: Everything she says about her death.

Mickey Smith (Ninth and Tenth Doctors)

Me? I'm their 'man in Havana', their technical support… Oh God, I'm the tin dog.

Played by: Noel Clarke (2005-06, 2008, 2010)
Young Mickey played by: Casey Dyer (2005)

Mickey at first was the "abandoned boyfriend" of Rose during the first series. This, however, didn't stop him from running around for a few adventures during that series anyway. Later joined in the TARDIS crew as a theoretical Companion for a few episodes early in the second series, only to stay behind off-planet (sort of). Returned at the end of the second series, as well as the end of the fourth and briefly in the 2009 specials.

All Love Is Unrequited: Played straight with Rose, later averted with Martha, whom he married.
Always Second Best: to the Doctor
Badass Beard: Once he starts fighting aliens freelance.
Badass Normal: Eventually.
Black and Nerdy
Butt Monkey: The Doctor considers him an idiot, his girlfriend gives him little to no respect, his girlfriend's mother accuses him of murder when her daughter goes missing, Jack starts making fun of him within ten seconds of meeting him, and even K-9 gets to throw in a bit of snark while informing him, "We are in a car." Hell, his own parallel-universe equivalent finds him embarrassing, and this is a guy who considers himself a badass because of the number of parking tickets he's accrued.
Humiliation Conga: His girlfriend runs off with an alien after basically snarking how useless he was. She goes missing for a year and the police actually haul him in five times. And the Doctor keeps calling him Ricky and turning into better looking guys while hauling his girlfriend all over the cosmos. It gets better...
I Choose to Stay: At the end of "The Age of Steel," he stays behind in the alternate universe to help his dead alternate self's boyfriend (long story) fight the Cybermen and take care of his parallel-universe grandmother. Then he comes back for good at the end of "Journey's End" (after returning briefly in "Army of Ghosts" and "Doomsday").
My Name is Not Ricky: It's Mickey!
Pair the Spares: With Martha Jones.
Punny Name: Perhaps not intentional, but to "take the mickey" out of someone is to take any fight/vigor/self importance out of them by mocking them, and Mickey does have to put up with a great deal of mockery and bullying from Rose and the Doctor (mostly Nine), and Jackie at first.
Poke the Poodle: Ricky Smith is London's Most Wanted. ...For parking violations.
Rebel Leader: Alternate Mickey. (It's Ricky.)
Salt and Pepper: Alongside his partner in crime, Jake.
Taking Up the Mantle: When his alternate self dies, Mickey simply assumes his identity and continues the fight.
Took a Level in Badass: Multiple.
- To wit, from lovable but aimless boyfriend to a capable hacker and fully-fledged companion. Ends up fighting Cybermen in an alternate reality and respected member of that reality's Torchwood, and finally earns his happy ending with a woman who saved the world with the power of story.
Where Da White Women At?: He and Rose seem quite happy, though not exactly soulmates.

Adam Mitchell (Ninth Doctor)

When I was eight, I hacked into the US defence network… you should have seen them running about!

Played by: Bruno Langley (2005)

Short-lived companion; a Teen Genius from 2012. Holds the dubious honor of being the only companion to be evicted from the TARDIS for bad behavior.

Arbitrary Skepticism: Has a job that revolves around alien artifacts, but sees alien abduction stories as nonsense.
Butt Monkey: He doesn't get a lot of respect.
Deconstruction: Intentionally written as a troublemaker to show what kind of person makes for a bad companion.
Insufferable Genius
Teen Genius

Captain Jack Harkness (Ninth and Tenth Doctors)

Mickey Smith: What are you captain of, the innuendo squad?

Played by: John Barrowman (2005, 2007, 2008, 2010)

51st century native Jack (not his real name) is an omnisexual former Time Agent, turned time-traveling con-man, turned galactic hero when he met the Doctor—and, eventually, turned immortal. Madly fancies the Doctor, although it doesn't exactly stop him from also hitting on Anything That Moves. Got his own spin off.

For tropes pertaining to Jack in Torchwood, see that series' character sheet.

Age Without Youth: Expresses some worry about having an extremely slow version of this, since despite little actual signs of aging he's begun to find white hairs. To top it off, he is implied to eventually mutate into the Face of Boe after billions of years.
Anti-Hero: Though a more family-friendly variant than on Torchwood.
Anything That Moves: Has a penchant of flirting with everyone he meets, even when the world is ending—to the Doctor's constant frustration.
Badass Longcoat: Of The World War II greatcoat variety.
Boldly Coming
Casanova
Catch Phrase / Phrase Catcher: Some variation of the following exchange will be said when he's around:

Jack: (To his latest object of attraction) Captain Jack Harkness, and who are you?
The Doctor: Stop it.
Jack: I was just saying hello!

The Charmer
Chekhov's Gunman: In "The End of The World,", as he's the Face of Boe. (Russell T. Davies refuses to elaborate on whether or not they're actually the same person, as it would ruin the joke.)
Chivalrous Pervert: Never tries anything with someone who's already in a monogamous relationship, and is very willing to be strictly monogamous if the right person comes along. Is kind and considerate towards his fuckbuddy Ianto in Torchwood and, after a while, asks him out and starts a proper and very sweet relationship with him. Has been married at least once, although his immortality has made him a bit wary of commitment.
Even the Guys Want Him: As a youtube comment put it,

If you're a guy and you like guys, you're gay.

If you're a guy and you like Jack, you're human.

Extreme Omnisexual: Provides the page image. Creator Steven Moffat calls him "bi", but that doesn't even begin to cover it.
Facing the Bullets One-Liner: Before he was rendered immortal, his response to the Daleks' "Exterminate" was to defiantly throw down his gun, stand up straight, and mutter "I kinda figured that".
Fantastic Racism: After his transformation into a fixed point in time, the TARDIS initially really does not like him. She considers him an abomination. She seemed to be over it by "Journey's End".
The Good Captain
Handsome Lech
Heel Face Turn: Originally, he was merely a charming con artist. He became a better person thanks to the Doctor's influence, to the point he'd happily be a Love Martyr for him.
Immortal Life Is Cheap
The Lancer: Turns into this around the Doctor, with shades of The Big Guy.
Made of Iron: On top of being immortal, he also is far more resistant to things that should instantly kill. He once sat in a radiation chamber that should have done have disintegrated him from the intense concentration of stet radiation.
Mr. Fanservice: Gets completely naked in his third episode, with much glee. Also gets a proper sex scene (with a bloke) in Torchwood: Miracle Day, making him the first and so far only Doctor Who companion to be shagged senseless on screen.
No Name Given: He admits that "Jack Harkness" is an alias. We still don't know what his name really is.
Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Over 170 in series 3, over 2040 in series 4.
The Slow Path: Between series 1 and 3, and again between series 3 and 4.
Time Police: Formerly.
Who Wants to Live Forever?: back and forth between this and Living Forever Is Awesome. You could say both are deconstructed because both are true at points.

Donna Noble (Tenth Doctor)

Didn't I ever tell you? Best temp in Chiswick -- 100 words per minute!

Played by: Catherine Tate (2006, 2008-10)^[1]

Donna was a temp worker from Chiswick, London in the 21st century. She first met the Doctor when the Racnoss queen fed her an ancient energy normally only found inside TARDISes, and the TARDIS pulled her into itself as a result. Played by established comedienne Catherine Tate. Originally a one-off character for the 2006 Christmas Special, Donna returned as a regular companion for the fourth series as well as a role in the Tenth Doctor's last two specials.

Abusive Parents: Donna's mom, Sylvia, is verbally abusive to both Donna and Wilt (Donna's grandfather) in a depressingly realistic way. The Doctor is actually shocked when he realizes the extent of it, and tells Sylvia to stop it.
Badass
Badass Abnormal: Temporarily, as the Doctor Donna. This also protects her from the Master's scheme in The End of Time.
Badass Bureaucrat: She was an office worker prior to being a companion, and her office skills prove extremely useful in "The Sontaran Strategem", "The Doctor's Daughter" and "Journey's End". Her ability to understand office files, work a calender system and type 100 words a minute ends up saving the universe several times over.
Badass Normal: The Doctor infiltrated (and later broke into) a corporate office building with psychic paper and the sonic screwdriver. She did the same with little more than really good BS skills and an absurd amount of patience.
Better as Friends: With the Doctor, to his great relief. In fact, he wouldn't have let her into the TARDIS otherwise, because he was very tired of everyone falling in love with him. (They share one snog, but it's completely for comic relief and not remotely romantic. And she does find him attractive, but not in that way.)
Boisterous Bruiser: A rare female example.
Catch Phrase: "Oi!"
Character Development: Oh, very much. It's a testament to Tate's acting talent when Donna's mom and grandfather beg the Doctor to let her keep her memories, as traveling with him made her a better person—and we see her revert to her shrill, gossipy, idiotic old self when those memories are erased.
Christmas Cake: Donna is one of the very few companions older than 30.
Clingy Jealous Girl: Averted; the Doctor expects the same snarking he got from Rose/Sarah, but when Donna meets Martha they just shake hands and get along fine. Donna's concerns are more that she might lose her position as the Doctor's companion.
Crazy Prepared: Drove around ready to travel with the Doctor with every type of clothing she might ever need after her debut episode just in case he showed up one day and made her a companion.
Failing a Taxi: In the Christmas Special where we first meet her, she tries to hail a taxi and gets one driven by a Mook, forcing the Doctor to save her.
Fiery Redhead: Scorching!
Flowers for Algernon Syndrome: Played With. Donna is frequently horrified by the amount of responsibility the Doctor has, but copes by going back to being snarky for the start of each new adventure. This means that her Character Development is gradual and zig-zaggy. It makes it all the more horrifying when we see her go back to her old old self.
Good with Numbers: It's more than just math, though—she's spent most of her life temping, and she's gotten ridiculously good at it, having gained a knack for spotting patterns in numbers not even the Doctor would notice.
Half-Human Hybrid: In "Journey's End", she saves herself from Dalek-inflicted doom by splicing her DNA with the Doctor's. She then indulges in Techno Babble, yelling like the Doctor, and hijacking the Dalek's motor commands to make them spin in circles. Fun is had by all, but it does not last.
Inferiority Superiority Complex
Large Ham
Mismatched Eyes: Real ones.
Missing the Good Stuff: In "The Runaway Bride", her first appearance, she has (somehow) managed to avoid all of London's previous encounters with extraterrestrials.
Morality Chain: Explicitly considers herself one for the Tenth Doctor.
Pity the Kidnapper: When she was in peril, she often made the bad guys regret putting her there, even without the Doctor's interventions.
Plucky Girl: Explicitly called this by the Doctor.
Redheaded Hero
Red Pill, Blue Pill: "Turn Left".
Refusal of the Call: When the Doctor first asks her if she'll travel with him, she says no—being, understandably, weirded out by his tranquil fury. She later regrets this and begins searching for him.
She Is Not My Girlfriend: Quite honestly so this time.
- Like Brother and Sister: She and the Tenth Doctor have this dynamic, both trading sarcastic barbs constantly but obviously caring deeply for each other. The Doctor outright calls her his best friend.
Shoe Slap: Declined. In 'The Poison Sky', she was supposed to use a shoe to knock out a Sontaran. Thing is, she'd only wear trainers, and those don't have quite the kick needed. Fortunately, Percussive Maintenance leaves mallets around when you need them.
Tsundere: The "harsh" type. Pompeii, the Ood, the Doctor in distress and her own two alternate dimensions trigger the dere side.
Victory-Guided Amnesia: Mind Raped to prevent her skull runnething over.

Dr. Martha Smith-Jones (Tenth Doctor)

I travelled across the world. From the ruins of New York, to the fusion mills of China, right across the radiation pits of Europe…

Played by: Freema Agyeman (2007-08, 2010)

Martha was a medical student when her hospital ended up on the Moon in the early 21st century. She and the Doctor saved each other's lives a few times that day, and she ended up as the third female (second regular female) companion of the Tenth Doctor. Tries hard not to fall in love with him, but fails rather spectacularly at that. After she left the TARDIS, Jack Harkness pulled some strings to get her a job with UNIT in what seems to be Harry Sullivan's old job. She remains friends with Jack, and has popped up in a a couple of Torchwood episodes helping out Torchwood Cardiff. In the comics universe, she left UNIT to become a freelance monster fighter but still seems to work with them.

All Love Is Unrequited: Develops a crush on the Doctor big enough to rival Rose's feelings. He acknowledges her feelings, after a while, but nothing ever happens. By the time she's no longer a companion, she's working on getting over him and they go back to being just friends.
Always Second Best: How she feels about replacing Rose.
Better as Friends: Leaves the TARDIS when she realizes the Doctor's never going to like her "that way". In season 4, she's recovering from her crush on him, and they're much happier together just being friends.
Big Damn Kiss: Eventually kisses Jack Harkness, even though she's engaged at the time, simply because "everyone else has had a go". Jack just sort of stares at her.
Black and Nerdy: Medical student, natch.
Clingy Jealous Girl: A mild case, but more so when Rose is brought up. Once she's getting over her crush on him, she's actually really happy when the Doctor and Rose are reunited.
Determinator: At the end of Series 3.
Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!: To John Smith in "Human Nature / The Family of Blood".
Hospital Hottie
Just Friends: With the Doctor, to her great frustration.
Meaningful Name: Martha Jones. Who leaves the TARDIS when the Doctor is still jonesing for Rose.
OOC Is Serious Business: Although not The Stoic, Martha does keep a grip on her emotions. When she gets angry ("The Sound of Drums") or really scared ("The Sontaran Stratagem"), you know things are very bad.
Pair the Spares: With Mickey Smith. What happened to her engagement to Thomas Mulligan from Series 4 has never been explained.
Replacement Goldfish: It doesn't take very long for her to feel as though she's simply this for Rose.
Technical Pacifist: Doesn't carry a gun, but has a position of command in a military organisation.
Took a Level in Badass: In The Year That Never Was. Joins UNIT right after.
Uncanny Family Resemblance: Actor Freema Agyeman first appeared as a Torchwood London employee; a character later retconned into Martha's identical cousin Adeola.
Walking the Earth: During the Year That Never Was.
What Happened to the Mouse?: During series 4, Martha was engaged to Tom Milligan (the engagement ring was a bit of a plot point in one of the episodes), but when we next see her one series later, she was inexplicably married to Mickey Smith.^[2]
What the Hell, Hero?: The Doctor's reaction when he hears about Martha's plan to blow up Earth to stop a Dalek plot.
Yaoi Fangirl: As revealed in Torchwood, where she takes interest in Jack and Ianto's "dabbling".
You Look Familiar: As above.

Astrid Peth (Tenth Doctor)

Mr. Capricorn? I resign!

Played by: Kylie Minogue (2007)

A one-shot character in the 2007 Christmas special. A struggling waitress from the planet Sto on board the Starship Titanic.

Wilfred Mott (Tenth Doctor)

Every night, Doctor, when it gets dark, and the stars come out, I'll look up on her behalf. I'll look up at the sky, and think of you.

Played by: Bernard Cribbins (2007-10)

A newspaper salesman from 21st century Chiswick, London. Originally a one-off character in Voyage of the Damned, Wilfred was eventually revealed to also be Donna Noble's grandfather (a last-minute rewrite due to the actor hired to play Donna's father dying). This resulted in quite a few recurring roles throughout the fourth series, leading to fan-favorite status for the character and finally full-fledged companion status in "The End of Time", the Tenth Doctor's final story.

Ascended Extra: Originally intended to be named "Stan" for Voyage of the Damned and never show up again, this changed when the actor playing Donna's father passed away.
Badass Grandpa: The entire population of London evacuates because they're afraid aliens will invade, and Wilf stays in his stall. Daleks are invading the Earth, and Wilf's first thought is how to disable them... with a paintball gun. He even proves a crack shot with an asteroid laser.
Badass Normal: Dalek. Paintball gun. It didn't work, but that's still quite a few levels of Badassness above the norm.
Chekhov's Gun: Owns one, and convinces the Doctor to accept it as a gift.
Cool Old Guy
Like a Son to Me: Despite being the Doctor's junior by more than 800 years.

The Doctor: "I'd be proud."
Wilf: "What?"
The Doctor: "If you were my dad."

Parental Substitute: Is this to Donna. After her father died, and given her mother's aloofness, she always turns to "Gramps".
Prophecy Twist: "He will knock four times." The Doctor was absolutely sure that it referred to the Master (and, admit it, so were you.) Instead, after the Master is defeated, Wilf politely knocks four times on the door of his glass cage, hoping the Doctor will let him out. Wilf previously trapped himself in the cage to save a random guy's life. The only way the Doctor can get him out is by killing himself, which, although Wilf protests, he does with quiet resignation.
Older Sidekick: Obviously more than qualifies in the real world; he's more than twice David Tennant's age. In fact, Bernard Cribbins is the oldest actor to have played a companion on the show. In-universe, the Doctor is still much older.
Weapon of Choice: A paintball gun. Or his old service revolver. That works, too.
You Look Familiar: Cribbins co-starred in Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. in 1966. Sure, it isn't canon, but nonetheless.

Professor River Song aka Melody Pond aka "Mels" (Eleventh and Tenth Doctors, in that order from her perspective)

Spoilers!

Played by: Alex Kingston (2008, 2010-present), Sydney Wade, Harrison/Madison Mortimer, Maya Glace-Green, Nina Toussaint-White (2011)

A professor of archaeology who has an unusually close relationship with the Doctor. She and the Doctor never meet in the right order; the Tenth Doctor first met her in the Library in the 51st century, where it would be the last time for her, and it only gets more confusing from there. They move roughly in opposite time directions, and depending on what end of the timeline they're on respectively, they each know secrets about each other that they're unable to talk about without creating paradoxes. As a result, she's a walking collection of "Spoilers!" and very much aware of it.

Adventurer Archaeologist
Adventurer Outfit
Anti-Hero
Ax Crazy: Extremely so in "Let's Kill Hitler", as her young, Doctor-wanting-to-kill incarnation as Mels.
Badass: She made a Dalek ask for mercy. A freakin' Dalek!
Badass Boast: In "The timeline of River Song" which was in Doctor Who confidential after the 2011 finale, during the footage of River effortlessly gunning down multiple Silence with a laser pistol from the start of the series.

Did I mention I was kick ass with a gun? No one kidnaps me and gets away with it!

Badass Bookworm: Scariest Archaeologist Ever. She is rather kickass for an academic.
Battle Couple: The Doctor and River Song are made of this. He is feared across time and space, and she is part-Time Lord and raised as a weapon to fight the Doctor. They've fought off alien invaders back-to-back, while flirting.
The Big Guy: She is the most competent fighter out of the Eleventh Doctor's companions, other than Rory when he taps into his memories of his time as the Centurion.
- The Smart Guy: She is arguably even more intelligent then she is strong, so she probably fits this better in the team lineup, with Rory as The Big Guy.
Bi the Way: Word Of Moffat. In her first episode, she had one team member keep on his helmet because he was the only person in the room she wasn't attracted to. The room consisted of Donna and the Doctor, two female members of her archaeology crew and the two Daves.
Black Best Friend: To Amy and Rory.
Boxed Crook: In The Time of Angels/Flesh And Stone. Her crime is "killing the best man [she] ever knew". The man turns out to be the Doctor, of course, although his death was faked.
Brains and Bondage: The trope's poster girl for the series. Why would she have handcuffs? Spoilers.
Brainwashed and Crazy: Spends the first years of her life being indoctrinated to kill the Doctor. Does so, then realises that she's made a horrible mistake, revives him using her regeneration energy and spends the rest of her life trying to make up for it.
Catch Phrase: Along with "Hello, sweetie!" whenever she meets the Doctor, she also says "spoilers" when keeping anyone's relative future a secret. It's also her Famous Last Words before her Heroic Sacrifice.
Character Development: Played With, a lot. When we first meet her, she's very mature and independent, but we don't know anything about her yet. Since her life unfolds in the opposite direction of the Doctor's, we very slowly get to know her, but each time we see her she's a bit younger. Eventually, when we see who she really is and how she became River Song, she's very young, barely out of puberty, and incredibly crass and stupid.
Child Soldier: Raised by the Silence to kill the Doctor for the first few years of her life.
Consummate Liar: So as to not spoil anyone's relative future.

"I lied. I'm always lying."

Extreme Omnisexual: Once dated a guy made of plastic.
Family Relationship Switcheroo: Inverted. Typically the situation is that a child is raised by someone they're told are not their mother or father but secretly are. River spent her childhood with her parents without them knowing it was her, though she knew. And due to Trolling Creator, just as we're starting to figure all of that out, there are anvil-sized hints that Amy's baby may also be the Doctor's. It turns out to be a giant Red Herring.
Faux Affably Evil: In "Let's Kill Hitler", prior to her Heel Face Turn. She acts much like she always does, except with more murder attempts.
Femme Fatale: Becomes this in her middle phase, black dress and all. Thinks she's this when she's young. Grows out of it when she's older, which is when we first meet her.
Foregone Conclusion: Her death in her first appearance, "Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead". Her subsequent appearances are earlier in her timeline.
Good Thing You Can Heal
The Gunslinger
Half-Human Hybrid: She's got primitive Time Lord DNA from being conceived on the TARDIS. It's explicitly said that she's the TARDIS' daughter as much as she is Amy's and Rory's.
Happily Married: To the Doctor, although most of her meetings after the marriage, he hasn't married her yet, and he doesn't realize he's going to -- although he starts to suspect it as soon as the topic comes up.
Have We Met Yet?: The Doctor and River meet in the wrong order: for example, the Doctor's first encounter with her is her last encounter with him. In her first encounter with him, she realizes he's already had many encounters with her future self, motivating her to save his life.
- In "A Good Man Goes to War", Rory asks River this when he comes to recruit her to find Amy.
Heel Face Turn: Kills the Doctor, then brings him back to life, using up all her remaining regenerations in the process. "As first dates go, I'd say that was mixed signals."
Heroic Sacrifice: Twice. Both times to save the Doctor's life. The first time (from her perspective), she tries to kill him, then uses all of her regeneration power all at once in order to save him. The second time (from her perspective), she prevents him from making a Heroic Sacrifice to save Donna and thousands of others, and gives her own life to save him instead. She had to, because she wouldn't even exist if he'd died that day.
Hypercompetent Sidekick: She can fly the TARDIS better than the Doctor, amongst other things. Extremely justified: The TARDIS is her second mom.
I Know Your True Name: The only character in the show's 48 years confirmed to know the Doctor's real name. For a very good reason.

Tenth Doctor: River, you know my name. You whispered my name in my ear. There's only one reason I would ever tell anyone my name -- there's only one time I could.

Improbable Aiming Skills: Shooting Eleven's stetson right off his head.
In Love with the Mark: River was supposed to be The Silence's weapon to use against the Doctor. She learned another side of the story while growing up with Amy and Rory and fantasises about marrying him instead. She still tries to kill him, but saves his life when she realises the implications. When it came time to kill him at Lake Silencio, she refused, and all of time nearly fell apart due to it being a fixed point in time.
Instant Expert: In TARDIS piloting. Justifed, since the TARDIS herself teaches her via telepathy, and is her second mom.
Internal Homage: A nod to the extremely long-running Expanded Universe companion Bernice Summerfield, another professor of archaeology who keeps a diary about the Doctor.
Karma Houdini: Played straight and possibly subverted. After nearly tearing the universe apart during the Season 6 finale, claiming that her suffering will outweigh that of everyone else in the universe, the most she gets is a What the Hell, Hero? from the Doctor and a largely voluntary stay inside a Cardboard Prison. Possibly subverted in that they keep running into each other backwards, which means that eventually, the Doctor won't know her, but whether it's invoked as an actual punishment or simple coincidence is, as yet, unknown.
Kid From the Future: She's Amy and Rory's daughter.
Kiss of Death: She prefers hallucinogenic lipstick over the traditional poisonous lipstick. Played straight in "Let's Kill Hitler", when she was programmed from birth to assassinate the Doctor.
Lady of Adventure
Large Ham: In "The Time of Angels" and especially "Let's Kill Hitler", when she's still very young.
Laser Guided Tykebomb: She was originally raised as a weapon to kill the Doctor.
Like an Old Married Couple: Her bickering with the Doctor is made of this.
Like Mother, Like Daughter: She has a penchant for denying mercy to her enemies even when they beg for it, and she's willing to tear time itself apart for her husband's sake. Just like her mum, it turns out.
Loony Fan: Was deliberately brought up all her life to become obsessed with the Doctor, and inevitably fell in love with him in the process. Sacrificed centuries of her life to save him. Then studied archaeology just so she could find him again. When they finally meet face-to-face again years later, she firmly believes that if she were to be separated from him again, she would suffer more than the rest of the universe combined. When he hears her say that, the Doctor marries her in sheer exasperation, just to get her to listen. From that point on, though, she becomes much more mature, and he's in no way inclined to divorce her.
Love Confession: River professes her love to the Doctor in "The Wedding Of River Song."
Lovable Sex Maniac: Although the Doctor is the only one we know she is sleeping with.
Luke, I Am Your Father / Luke, You Are My Father: River is Melody Pond, the daughter of Amy Pond and Rory Williams. River tells them this after her newborn self is kidnapped.
The Masochism Tango: The first time she properly meets the Doctor, she tries to kill him with poison lipstick, then makes a Heroic Sacrifice to revive him. The second time she properly meets the Doctor, he angrily makes her marry him (long story) and they snark at each other as time itself explodes around them. From that point on, they date quite happily, but she gets on significantly less well with younger versions of him that she occasionally meets -- because she can't spoil anything for fear of paradox. By the time she meets a version of him so young that all they can have is UST, their entire relationship revolves around snarking, bitching and flirting while he keeps on being frustrated at how secretive she is. The last time she meets him, she punches him in the face, handcuffs him to a wall and makes a Heroic Sacrifice to save his life.
Mrs. Robinson: The Doctor calls her this. She's not amused.

Doctor: ...the Legs, the Nose, and Mrs. Robinson.
River: I hate you.
Doctor: No, you don't!

- In her past (and his future), though, she gleefully calls him "Benjamin" in return.
Mysterious Past
The Nth Doctor: Alex Kingston, Harrison and Madison Mortimer, Sydney Wade, Maya Glace-Green and Nina Toussaint-White. Technically, some of those actresses are differently-aged versions of the same regenerations, but still.
Poisonous Friend
Psychopathic Womanchild: In "Let's Kill Hitler" she's essentially a hyperactive teenage girl in a 40-year-old body. One who sees nothing wrong with firing a lot of guns to get her way.
The Reveal: River Song is in fact Melody Pond, the daughter of Amy Pond, Rory Williams and the TARDIS. She's also been one of Amy and Rory's closest friends since long before they saw her fly out of the Byzantium or take over the Auton Roman camp.
Running Gag: She seems to have a habit of shooting whatever hats the Eleventh Doctor finds himself wearing.
- And free-falling and being caught by the TARDIS.
Sassy Black Woman: As Mels.
Shipper on Deck: Ships Amy and Rory, her parents, and merrily played a part in them hooking up when they were all teenagers. Although they most likely would have, anyway.
Sociopathic Hero: She has shades of this, and it's played very darkly in the series six finale.
Stable Time Loop:
- She's named after herself... twice. To explain, Amy named her "Melody" after her childhood friend, Mels... who turns out to be her daughter Melody. The second time, she adopts her Gamma Forest name translation "River Song" only because the Doctor, Amy, and Rory keep calling her that, because that's the name they always knew her by.
- Gets the idea of defacing land marks to summon the Doctor from Amy and Rory, who in turn got it from her.
- She and the Doctor give each other the "Spoilers!" Catch Phrase, during their respective first proper meetings.
Suddenly Ethnicity: Played With, subverted, then Played Straight, then completely turned on its head again. Is half human, half Time Lord. Except that she has no Time Lord parents -- her parents are two humans and the TARDIS. And she spent her entire childhood in her second regeneration, which happened to be black.
Super Strength: A very minor example, but in "Day of the Moon" River mentions that the little girl -— her younger self, it turns out -- would have to be incredibly strong to tear herself free from the space suit.
This Is My Name on Foreign: Played for a dramatic reveal in "A Good Man Goes to War", when it turns out that River Song's name is actually a close in the language of the Forest People: "Melody" becomes "Song", and they don't quite have a word that means "Pond" because "The only water in the forest is the river..."
Timey-Wimey Ball: Deep breath: Conceived on the TARDIS and born in Demon's Run, given the nickname "River Song" by accident (see This Is My Name on Foreign). Grows up in the 1960's as Melody Pond, named after Amy's and Rory's best friend Melody. Travels to England after regenerating into a toddler, where she grows up in the 90's together with Amy and Rory as their best friend Melody. Meets the Doctor properly and tries to kill him, then does a Heel Face Turn when she realises that the "River Song" broad he's so fondly talking about is her in the future. Studies archaeology in the 52nd century. Meets the Doctor properly for the second time when she's forced to kill him, refuses until he marries her. Gets locked in Stormcage for the murder, where the Doctor, now her husband, merrily takes her on dates every once in awhile at very random points in her timeline -- all the way up to the Singing Towers, her final date with Eleven, during which he gives her his screwdriver. Also meets increasingly younger versions of him throughout that period (i.e. the regular episode order, backwards for her) until she finally meets Ten, dies, and he saves her consciousness with said screwdriver.
Touched by Vorlons: As a result of being conceived in and by the TARDIS, she is part-Time Lord. The Doctor tries to argue that evolution does not work that way. The TARDIS pointedly disagrees.
Twin Threesome Fantasy: In "A Good Man Goes to War", River strongly implies that she once spent a very enjoyable birthday with two Doctors at once.
Whole-Plot Reference: To one of Steven Moffat's favourite novels, The Time Traveler's Wife. The similarities would take quite a while to count. She even meets the Doctor in a library, exactly like the novel's titular characters.
Wife Husbandry / Companion Husbandry: "The Impossible Astronaut" revealed that the first time River met the Doctor he knew everything about her, and it's starting to trouble River herself. As it turns out, he knew her as an infant -- she's Melody Pond. Subverted in that the Doctor doesn't realize he knew her as a child until some time after they had their first kiss.
Younger Than They Look: Is a young twentysomething when she gets her adult body. She instantly loves it.
You Already Changed the Past / You Can't Fight Fate: The Doctor's first meeting with River is her final meeting with him, and the first time River meets the Doctor (at least at a point she can actually remember, rather than as a baby), he knows everything about her. This means they have no true beginning to their relationship (when one of them first meets the other, the other already knows and cares for the other deeply), and two endings.
- Another example: River's assassination of the Doctor-inside-the-Teselecta is a fixed point in time. When she attempts to avert it, the universe is plunged into a massive Anachronism Stew that threatens to tear time itself apart, leading the Doctor himself to unleash a What the Hell, Hero? on her.

"The Next Doctor"/Jackson Lake (Tenth Doctor)

I'm the Doctor! Simply, 'the Doctor.' The one, the only and the best!

Played by: David Morrissey (2008)

The Doctor teams up with this Doctor during the 2008 Christmas special on Christmas Eve, 1851, making the traditional Doctor into his companion for a while. Of course, this Doctor was just a normal human, but that doesn't change how awesome he was.

Back-to-Back Badasses
Badass Bookworm
Badass Normal
Large Ham: He's hammy even by normal Who standards.
Laser-Guided Amnesia
The Nth Doctor: He seems to be number 11 -- but just got blasted with the Doctor's personality and thought he'd regenerated.
Tomato in the Mirror: He spends most of the special thinking he's the Doctor, and Ten seems to think he is a future Doctor. Then it turns out he's just a human whose mind has accidentally been tampered with.
Stay in the Kitchen: His attitude towards Rosita, due to Deliberate Values Dissonance.

Rosita (Tenth Doctor)

Rosita: I'm glad you think it's so funny. You're mad! Both of ya! You could've got killed!
Jackson Lake: [still guffawing] But evidently we did not!

Played by: Velile Tshabalala (2008)

Companion of the aforementioned other Doctor, who teams up with the both of them.

Badass Normal
- Veers into Only Sane Man in the chase scene, when she's the only one with the presence of mind to cut the rope loose before both Doctors can be dragged out the window.

Rosita: You idiots.

Expy: A rather obvious amalgamation of the new series' main companions.
Hooker with a Heart of Gold: Done subtly so the kids wouldn't realize.
Meaningful Name: "Rosita" is quite close to "Rose", and this is subtly pointed out.
Sarcastic Devotee

Lady Christina de Souza (Tenth Doctor)

Tenth Doctor: Come on, allons-y!
de Souza: Oui, mais pas si nous allons vers un cauchemar. [Yes, but not if we're going into a nightmare.]
Tenth Doctor: [Obviously impressed.] Oh, we were made for each other!

Played by: Michelle Ryan (2009)

One-shot character during the 2009 Easter Special, Lady Christina is a thief of noble blood from the early 21st century drawn into the Doctor's world of the weird.

Blue Blood
Classy Cat Burglar
Crazy Prepared: She has something in her pack for every situation... except bus fare.
Dark Action Girl

Captain Adelaide Brooke (Tenth Doctor)

This is wrong, Doctor. The Time Lord Victorious is wrong.

Played by: Lindsay Duncan (2009)
Young Adelaide played by: Rachel Fewell (2009)

Stepping into the companion role for "The Waters of Mars" was tough-as-nails Captain Brooke, heading the very first human Mars colony in the 2050s. The Doctor is a huge fan of her, which makes him slightly more involved and slightly less level-headed than usual—with disastrous results.

The Captain / The Good Captain
The Determinator: She never snaps.
Heroic Sacrifice
What the Hell, Hero?: Calls the Doctor on his ego trip.

Amelia "Amy" Pond (Eleventh Doctor)

Amy: Twelve years! And four psychiatrists!
Eleventh Doctor: Four?
Amy: I kept biting them. They said you weren't real.

Played by: Karen Gillan (2010-present)
Young Amelia Pond played by: Caitlin Blackwood (2010-2011)

Amy, a kissogram, is a Scot raised in a small village in rural England. She first met the Doctor as a little girl in 1996, an encounter that everyone but Amy dismissed as imaginary. But Amy never forgot her "raggedy Doctor", and he served as a sort of imaginary friend for her… until he finally returned, twelve years later. Her relationship with the Doctor is arguably inspired by Wendy Darling's relationship with Peter Pan.

Action Girl: Word of God says she exerts this when "pushed into a corner." "The Girl Who Waited" sees Amy exhibit this trope to her fullest potential.
Always Save The Boy: The Doctor even lampshades it.

Doctor: Rory! Rory! Always with the Rory.

Amnesiac Lover: From the end of "Cold Blood" to the end of "The Pandorica Opens". Subverted in that it's the Doctor trying to rekindle Amy's memories of Rory, who's been completely erased from existence.
- Subverted again in "The Wedding of River Song." Amy remembers that she has a husband named Rory whom she loved dearly, but can't remember who he is, even when looking Captain Williams in the face. Again, it's the Doctor who tries to restart both their memories.
Aw Look She Really Does Love Him: While she often takes Rory for granted, if anything happens to him, she'll be crushed, even suicidal. "The Girl Who Waited" is one big testament to how deeply she's in love with him.

Old!Amy: You're asking me to defy destiny, causality, the nexus of time itself for a boy.
Young!Amy: You're Amy, he's Rory... and oh yes I am.

Badass
Berserk Button: Like Rory, hurt her family and you'll regret it.
Beware the Nice Ones: When pushed enough or her family's in danger, she can be terrifying. Her (much-deserved) murder of Madame Kovarian, for example.
Bi the Way: Seems to be mostly straight, but quite fancies herself.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Because of the cracks affecting her reality so much and leaving her with a fear of abandonment even before the Doctor entered and then left her life, she treated Rory pretty badly during Series 5. She got much better once time was fixed, but she still has her moments.
Broken Bird/Break the Cutie: The Doctor abandons her repeatedly in "The Eleventh Hour", leaving her with lifelong psychological problems as a result.
- She repeatedly suffers this in "A Good Man Goes to War": First she gives birth in captivity, held prisoner God-knows-where in time and space. Then her baby girl is taken away from her by the villains. Then after the sheer joy of getting Melody back and reuniting with her husband and the Doctor, the villains reveal that they've already taken off with the baby and replaced her with a flesh duplicate, which promptly dissolves in Amy's arms.
- In "The Girl Who Waited", she's left to fend for herself against killer robots for 36 years, hardening her into a bitter old woman whose faith in the Doctor has dissolved into hatred.
- Finally, in "The God Complex", the Doctor deliberately breaks that faith in order to save both her life and her future.
The Call Put Me on Hold: As above, she answered yes to the call long before she was able to actually have the adventure associated.
Clingy Jealous Girl: She gets pretty annoyed when she thinks Rory is more focused on another woman. Justified for a few reasons though; he's her husband, he's had a Single-Target Sexuality on her for most of their whole lives, he has a tendency to die and she's probably feeling guilty over calling him her "sort of boyfriend" in their first episode.
Changed My Miniskirt: A worse offender than the Doctor himself. Wearing a miniskirt in public probably would have been a hanging offence in 16th century Venice, and that's just one example.
Character Tic: In Series 5, she would bulge her eyes and pucker her mouth a lot. As she never does it in Series 6, this was probably intentional on Karen Gillan's part.
Double Consciousness: After the events of "The Big Bang", she remembers two different versions of her life, as stated in the "Good Night" mini-episode. In "The Wedding of River Song", this is now triple consciousness, with Amy remembering her life in the time-everywhere universe.
Drives Like Crazy: According to Rory.
Fag Hag: Believed herself to be this to Rory for years. It's implied they hooked up as soon as she realized she wasn't.
Fiery Redhead: Though she mellows out considerably as time goes on.
Friends with Benefits: Wants to be with with the Doctor. She gets one kiss in before he pushes her away. She tries again during her wedding—twice.
Future Badass: Thirty six years spent defending herself from robots who kill with kindness. With a sword.
Grandma, What Massive Hotness You Have! / Never Mess with Granny: Since Older Amy is something like 58 years old, quite justified.
Genre Savvy: She doesn't quite match Rory, but there are numerous examples, most notably the fact that it only takes her three very brief encounters with the Silents to figure out that they have some kind of agenda against the Doctor, what powers they have, and that it would probably be wise to take a cellphone photo of one.
Heroes Want Redheads: Inverted with the Doctor, played straight with Rory.
- In the 2011 Comic Relief short, Amy Pond flirts with herself.
Hidden Depths: She really loves van Gogh's work.
Hot Chick with a Sword: In "The Girl Who Waited".
Hot Mum
In-Series Nickname: The Girl Who Waited. Twice.
Jumped At the Call: Asked to come along, as a girl; unfortunately, the caller got waylaid and she had to wait for fourteen years before she got to see the inside of the TARDIS.

Amy:When I was a little girl, I dreamed of time and space. Last night, all my dreams came true.

- Invoked by the Doctor with his repeated declaration.

Doctor: Amelia Pond! Get your coat!

Lady of War: In "The Girl Who Waited" the future Amy has taken a level in badass and become one of these. This attitude is also very much in evidence in "The Wedding of River Song".
Laser-Guided Amnesia: Done to her memories of Rory courtesy of the time-crack. And, it later turns out, to her memories of her parents as well.
Last-Name Basis: The Doctor has the habit of calling her “Pond.“
Like Brother and Sister: Appears that way with Rory in series 5; they get mistaken for siblings in The Vampires of Venice.
Limited Wardrobe: For the first six episodes of the 2011 series, appeared to have nothing in her wardrobe except two or three similar-looking plaid shirts. Possibly a subliminal hint to the audience that she's actually a mind-linked Doppelgänger in these episodes.
Love Triangle: Thinks she's in one with Rory and the Doctor. Rory and the Doctor both disagree. She readily accepts the fact that the Doctor wouldn't necessarily love her, being a 907-year-old alien and all, but she still hopes for a quick shag. The Ship Tease around it eventually becomes a major plot point, due to Trolling Creator, when she becomes pregnant and people start to assume that it might be the Doctor's baby. Of course, it's not -- despite there being, at first, overwhelming evidence for it.
Mama Bear: Very nearly kills a spaceship full of people, including herself and Rory, to save their child. No guarantee that anyone died, but none that everyone lived, either.
Meet Cute: She and the Doctor have one when he shows up in a crashed TARDIS asking for an apple.
Mistress Of The Mixed Message: Towards Rory in Series 5 and early in Series 6. Since then, she's clearly established him as her number one priority.
Ms. Fanservice: She's a Kissogram, and so has several… interesting outfits. Seen onscreen is a Fair Cop police uniform; refered to are Naughty Nurse Outfits, Naughty Nun, and French Maid outfits. Has a general liking for short skirts or hotpants that show off Karen Gillan's long legs; there's only two episodes of the fifth series in which we don't see her in something like that.
- This notably causes a minor disaster in the 2011 Comic Relief skit, when her wearing a short skirt distracts Rory enough to cause him to drop a thermocoupling, causing a spatial paradox.
- It's also implied she Invoked Trope this to pass her driving test.
Oblivious to Love: For a kissogram, she was a little bit slow in realising that Rory liked her.
Pajama-Clad Hero: In "The Beast Below" and "A Good Man Goes to War", although in the latter episode they're hospital pyjamas.
Reality Warper: Her Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory is the only reason the Doctor's second Big Bang goes off without a hitch and is also the only way the Doctor comes back into existence.
Real Life Relative: Gillan and Blackwood are cousins who had never met before being cast to play Amy.
Redheaded Hero
Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: Develops this as an actual explicit power, though not so much ripple-proof as ripple-resistant. She can lose memories of her own history if she doesn't really concentrate when the moment is rewritten. But she can get those back. This culminates with her remembering the Doctor back into existence after a rather nasty Ret-Gone.
- This skill comes back again in "The Wedding of River Song" — unlike Rory, she can remember events in the correct timeline, but only with a lot of effort and many scribbled illustrations.
Scarf of Asskicking: Occasionally wears one.
Screw Yourself: When the TARDIS gets split in two, Amy finds her duplicate self rather fetching.

Doctor: Ohhh... this is how it all ends. Pond flirting with herself -- true love at last. Oh, sorry, Rory.

Rory: Absolutely no problem at all.

Security Cling: The Eleventh Doctor and Amy have a variation. Because Amy's story is one traumatic Break the Cutie moment after another, the Doctor develops a habit of clinging tightly to her and rubbing her back while delivering each new piece of bad news. Asking permission from her husband Rory every time, of course.
She's Got Legs: To the point where "Time" seemed to be about them.
Ship Tease: With the Doctor. This becomes a major plot point when she becomes pregnant and her baby turns out to have Time Lord DNA. Due to Trolling Creator, it takes a while before we find out that it was all a big Red Herring, and the Doctor really has never touched Amy.
Show Some Leg: How she got her driver's permit.
Small Name, Big Ego: Very mild case of this sometimes, as she tends to overestimate her own competence.
Strange Girl: Amy's insistence that her childhood encounter with the Doctor was real is apparently well-known to the people in her small town… and has landed her in psychiatric care a few times. This makes her the first companion with canonical mental issues since Ace.
- She has distinct and serious obsessive tendencies, seems to suffer severe sensory overload on occasion, and at one point in "The Beast Below" (although this is almost certainly unintentional) her speech patterns are disturbingly similar to Ladd Russo's. The implication is that these obsessive tendencies have been focused mainly on the Doctor during the twelve years they've spent apart.
- She also shows a reluctance to face growing up, or at least getting married. Hardly surprising, given the aforementioned Peter Pan parallels.
Surprise Pregnancy
Took a Level in Badass: Thirty-six years of defending yourself from killer robots will do this.
Trauma Conga Line: Gets severely traumatised roughly every two episodes. In "Night And The Doctor", she tries to talk to the Doctor about it, but he sort of dodges the implications of all that's happened to her.
Tsundere: "Harsh" type at the beginning of Series 5, "sweet" by the end.
Violently Protective Wife: It's not a good idea to mess with Rory.
Wistful Amnesia: Finds herself crying over Rory without realizing it or knowing why several times in series 5.
Yaoi Fangirl: As shown in the comics, when Rory kisses the Doctor by accident and Amy asks them to do it again. Slower.
You Called Me "X" - It Must Be Serious: As she points out, the Doctor only calls her "Amelia" when he's worried about her. And "Amy Williams" when things get very, very serious.
You Have Waited Long Enough: Amy runs off with the Doctor on the night before her wedding.
You Look Familiar: Karen Gillan had previously played a soothsayer in a Tenth Doctor episode, "The Fires of Pompeii".

Rory Williams (Eleventh Doctor)

Okay… I'm trapped inside a giant robot replica of my wife. I'm really trying not to see this as a metaphor.

Moffat: "Rory Pond is everything I could never be — brave enough to show when he’s scared, man enough to take his wife’s name, and so steadfastly in love that he’ll wait 2,000 years and not complain once. Everyone needs a Rory in their life."

Played by: Arthur Darvill (2010-present)
Young Rory played by: Ezekiel Wigglesworth (2011)

Rory is a nurse, Amy's childhood friend, and now her husband. Started off as incredibly reluctant to travel with the Doctor, out of love for Amy and fear for his own life. Eventually rose to the challenge and became a force to be reckoned with.

Adorkable: His attempt to fence using a broom and his inability to pass for an American are but two examples. He also tends to lapse into Buffy-Speak.

Oh God, I was gonna be cool. I wanted to be cool, look at me…

Amnesiac Lover: In "The Wedding of River Song", in which he's lost all his memories of the correct timeline and only knows Amy as his boss. The Doctor tries to get them back together again… and fails. At first.
Atheism: The Doctor explicitly points out that he doesn't get affected by an alien that feeds on faith because he doesn't really believe in anything.
The Atoner: As an Auton, following the death of Amy by his own hands.
Back from the Dead
Badass
Badass Adorkable: "A Good Man Goes To War" has him terrifying Cybermen and then later crying with joy at his baby daughter.
Berserk Button: Never mess with Amy or his baby.
Beware the Nice Ones: Normally a gentle soul (he's a nurse, after all), but press his Berserk Button and you will regret it.
Butt Monkey: Toned down a lot since he became the Last Centurion, but he still gets this treatment now and then.
Character Development: He went from an insecure Mickey-type character whose main purpose was to look hurt, to a Badass Adorkable man who is willing to spend two thousand years protecting his wife.
The Champion: Spent 2000 years as the Guardian of the Pandorica, simply to make sure Amy would remain protected.
Cleopatra Nose: Which the Doctor can't resist ribbing him about.
Colonel Badass: Starts to give off these vibes in "A Good Man Goes to War", then fully grows into the role in "The Wedding of River Song".
Covert Pervert: In Space and Time he accidentally causes a major malfunction in the TARDIS because of A. His wife is wearing a skirt and B. The TARDIS has a glass floor.
Deadpan Snarker
Determinator: Auton!Rory spent 1894 years protecting the Pandorica simply because Amy was inside.
- In "The Wedding of River Song", in another version of reality, to give Amy time to flee, he ignores the fact he's being electrocuted.

Amy: You have to take your eye-drive off!
Rory: I can't do that ma'am, I can't forget whats coming.
Amy: But it could activate at any moment!
Rory: It has activated, ma'am.

Disney Death: He seems to have a knack for wiggling his way out of being Killed Off for Real.
Dude in Distress: Frequently. Amy never takes it well.
Double Consciousness: Rory remembers both his original life and his life as the Last Centurion in the universe of the Total Event Collapse. However, he's worked out how to block away the latter set of memories most of the time — unless he decides he needs to access them.
Fan Service Pack: Mild version. In Series 6, the costume department gave the character more flattering clothes (like tighter jeans) and hair gel. Also applied to the roman uniform when it reappears.
The Fettered: Remembering his time as The Centurion hurts, so he blocks it out for his own sanity. When needs must he has has 2,000 years of experience as well as years of training as a Roman soldier that he can draw on.
Foil: The Nurse to the Doctor's Doctor.
Genre Savvy: Rory knows a bit about science and science fiction, and the Doctor gets peeved when Rory doesn't need anything explained to him, especially how he perfectly understands the TARDIS interior being bigger on the inside.
- When we're first introduced to the character, he notices — and photographs — coma patients walking about while everyone else is distracted by the sun going wibbly. Doing so helps the Doctor reveal the location of Prisoner Zero to the Atraxi, saving the world from incineration.
The Good Captain: In The Wedding of River Song.
Good-Looking Privates: The writers really do seem to like putting him in uniform, just about any uniform, really. Security guard, modern combat fatigues, and particularly his signature Roman centurion outfit.
Guile Hero: Rory definitely fell into this mold over time, to the point where in "Let's Kill Hitler";

Amy: Can you even ride a motorbike?
Rory: Dunno. Expect so. Its been that sort of day...

The Heart: This is a common trope for companions of the Doctor, but Rory's compassion and kindness seem to be showcased more than just about any other companion in the Revived Series. These traits often get Lampshaded by the Doctor and it makes him an Unwitting Pawn in the The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People. Of course Beware the Nice Ones is in full effect.
Henpecked Husband: Very much so. He's okay with it most of the time, however, and offers only mild resistance to being called her boy or taking her last name.

Amy: Would I make it up at a time like this?!
Rory: Well, you do have a history of [receives Death Glare]… being very lovely.

Heroic Bystander: Though not a fan of adventuring, Rory sets the tone early when, upon coming across a vampire attack, his first impulse is not to flee or chase the monster, but to stop the victim from bleeding to death. Throughout his time with the Doctor, he tends to act to save life first and foremost. This leads to him not only tending the wounded, but frequently doing awesome things like punching Hitler out to stop him shooting an apparent innocent bystander, and then locking him in a closet!
Heroic Willpower: In his Auton form as the Centurion. He draws on this again in "The Wedding of River Song," but it nearly fails. Despite this he manages to keep his gun aimed through nigh unbearable pain. Rory gives Samuel L. Jackson a run for his money in BAMF territory.
Hero of Another Story: Early in "The Big Bang", he spent 1894 years worth of history guarding the Pandorica. Probability of zany adventures: extremely high.
Hospital Hottie: In case you could ever forget, he's a nurse. And a pretty one at that.
Hot Dad
I Just Want to Be Normal: Rory's ideal world as recreated by the Dream Lord is rather quiet — he is a doctor instead of a nurse, Amy is pregnant, and most of the residents of their hometown are over 90.
In-Series Nickname: The Last Centurion.
It Got Worse: Story of his companionship and non-existence right up through the penultimate episode of Series 5, which culminates in an Auton with his memories killing Amy against Rory's will.
Just Friends: Type 2. Had feelings for Amy whilst she was Oblivious to Love to the point she thought he was gay.
Knight in Sour Armor: Starts to display shades of this in Series 6, thanks to spending 1,894 years straight guarding the Pandorica from anything and everything that could possibly threaten it. In "The God Complex" he reveals that he neither fears nor believes in anything anymore.
- This has the unexpected bonus of making Rory highly resistant to Mind Rape, if "The Doctor's Wife" and "The God Complex" are any indication.
Love Martyr: Has elements of it in the cracked timeline. After he dream-dies in "Amy's Choice", Amy admits to the Doctor that she never told him she loved him. And this was the (constant) day before their wedding.
The Medic: Rory is a nurse, and acts like it. (See Heroic Bystander above.) As of "A Good Man Goes to War" he's evolved into Combat Medic.
Mistaken for Gay: Amy never saw him show any attraction to any girl, and assumed this. Except she was being too thick to realise that there was at least one he liked…
Nice Guy
Noodle Incident: He spent 1894 years staying out of trouble… unsuccessfully.
Not So Different: To the Doctor. Best shown in "A Good Man Goes To War", where his actions demonstrate that episodes title could be interpreted as referring to either the Doctor or himself.
Older Sidekick: At least in "The Big Bang", following 2,000 years of guarding the Pandorica as an Auton. Outside of that episode is more debatable, being physically in his twenties, while retaining the Auton memories.
One-Man Army: Successfully served as Guardian of the Pandorica for 2000 years.
- Best demonstrated in "A Good Man Goes To War", where Rory, in full Centurion gear and armed only with a sword, managed to waltz through a Cyberman-controlled vessel and scare the living crap out of them.
Papa Wolf: Where. Is. My. Wife.
Phrase Catcher: Manages to get a good "Oh, Rory" out of the Doctor every once and awhile.
Promotion to Opening Titles: As of the 2010 Christmas special, and thereafter.
Puppy Dog Eyes: They can rival the Tenth Doctor's.
Really 700 Years Old: Mentally, he's almost two thousand years old, potentially even older than the Doctor.
Ret-Gone: Temporarily; he's not only fatally shot, but absorbed by one of the cracks afterwards. The Doctor remembers him, but Amy doesn't.
Secret Test of Character: The Doctor intentionally pushes his Berserk Button (see above) to see if the Auton-Rory he's talking to has genuine human emotions. He does.
Shrouded in Myth: In his Auton form as the Centurion, getting written into legends all over the world as a result.
Single-Target Sexuality: Only ever shows attraction to Amy. His entire life, just Amy. Which, of course, leads to Mistaken for Gay. By Amy. It's a little bit sad, and at the same time, very funny.
- In a very sweet comic in Doctor Who Magazine, Amy and the Doctor get body-swapped. Rory decides that he doesn't even care. He kisses the Doctor, realizing a bit too late that the body switch has already been corrected again. (Amy asks them to do it again. Slower.)
The Slow Path: As the Centurion, he spent 1894 years waiting while the Doctor skipped ahead with the Vortex Manipulator.
Smarter Than You Look: In his first episode, while the rest of the planet pays attention to the sun going wobbly, Rory (who up til now has just been an easily cowed nurse) pays attention to the coma patient that's out walking his dog. Later on, he figures out why the TARDIS is bigger on the inside remarkably quickly and without any help from the Doctor at all.
- Done rather subtly throughout series 5 and 6, and tied to his Took a Level in Badass. He already was smart enough to spot Prisoner Zero, but when the Doctor comes back for him a few episodes later, he's studied up on enough physics and time travel to know more than most comparable companions. Add in his years as the Centurion and he's become one of the Doctor's most competent companions in a while. For all of his occasional mocking, the Doctor seems to trust him more than any other companion, probably due to their similar experiences.
Straight Man: Comes with the savvyness. Word of God says that Rory has to make himself this, otherwise he'll get sucked in to the life like Amy.
Submissive Badass: He is no doubt a BAMF, but he'll always be an adorable dork and Amy will always be the one in charge.
Super Strength: In his Auton form as the Centurion.
Taking the Bullet: At the end of "Cold Blood"... and then he gets retconned out of existence.
Thousand-Yard Stare: The Doctor notes he has one whenever he remembers the 2000 years as The Last Centurion.
Tomato in the Mirror: In "The Big Bang", He was a Nestene replicant whose programming killed Amy. He got better.
Took a Level in Badass: At least 20 levels after his resurrection into an Auton and nearly 2000 years as the Lone Centurion. The man really would do anything for his wife.
- Again in "A Good Man Goes to War". 'WHERE. IS. MY. WIFE?'
Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth: In The God Complex, the titular Hell Hotel shows people their worst fears so the Minotaur can feed on their faith. Rory has neither fear nor faith, so all it can do is show him the exit.
Trauma Conga Line: Part of what causes the above Character Development.
Undying Loyalty: To Amy.
Victorious Childhood Friend
Vitriolic Best Buds: With the Doctor. Both the Doctor and Rory seem to enjoy the level of snark they throw at each other.
When He Smiles: While flirting with him when working the controls, older!Amy tells him to give her a minute and his cutest smile in order for her to fix them properly.

Older Amy: That's the one.

Yank the Dog's Chain: Just as Amy remembers who he is… the Auton programming overruns him and he's forced to shoot her.

Craig Owens (Eleventh Doctor)

Has anyone ever told you that you're a bit weird?

Played by: James Corden (2010-11)

Rented a room out to the Doctor when the latter was stranded on Earth by a malfunctioning TARDIS. Hilarity ensued. As a result of a hasty Mind Meld Info Dump, he knows more about the Doctor's general history than most non-companion characters, and the Doctor has come to view him as a very good friend.

Accidental Pervert
Adorkable
Always Someone Better: The Doctor to Craig, with regards to football and his job. Probably not the best thing to do to your landlord.
Badass
Badass Normal: Emphasis on the latter to justify the former. He's so ordinary that a Lotus Eater Machine exploded instead of killing him, and he once blew up an entire Cyberman base by simply letting them feel the mental feedback of his intense desire to protect his infant son.
Badass Unintentional: None of the stuff he did was on purpose, and he was for the most part scared for his life.
Bi the Way: His only objection to the Doctor trying to snog him is that he's already taken.
Breather Episode: Craig has only appeared in these.
Cannot Spit It Out: Craig and Sophie, even though Everyone Can See It.
Exposition Beam: The Doctor gives him one when they first meet.
Genre Savvy: Craig recognizes that everywhere the Doctor goes, disaster will come...
- Wrong Genre Savvy: ...and also that the safest place for him and Alfie is by his side, because the Doctor always wins.
I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship: Craig and Sophie for most of The Lodger; they eventually decide to ruin their friendship properly.
Mistaken for Gay: The Doctor and Craig. As Val tells them, "There's no need to be coy these days."
- Val has more reason than most do for this trope, what with the way Craig and the Doctor act throughout the episode. She sees them hug, and they refer to each other as their 'partner'. Also, the Doctor tries to kiss Craig, but (as usual) that was to save their lives.
- Craig also makes it a point to make no assumptions about the Doctor when they first meet, telling him that he's always welcome to bring over a girlfriend—or a boyfriend.
Nice Hat: When the Doctor says he is going to America, Craig gives him the Stetson as a parting gift.
Papa Wolf: ...eventually.
Power of Love
Running Gag: The Doctor "Shhh"-ing people and Craig wanting to be taught how.
Stop Helping Me!: The Doctor's attempts to help Craig (joining his football team, filling in for him at work when he's sick, trying to get Sophie to admit that she loves him, etc.) just make him look like the better man who's driving Sophie away.
Stout Strength: According to the Doctor.
Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth: Craig is so happy in his mundane life that it overloads the alien spacecraft in "The Lodger". In "Closing Time", his paternal instincts overload the Cybermen's emotional inhibitors, blowing up their whole ship.
Use Your Head: In order to save time explaining why he's staying with Craig, the Doctor headbutts him twice.
Vitriolic Best Buds: With the Doctor. Craig may express exasperation, terror and irritation whenever the Doctor shows up, but its clear he's secretly having the time of his life.

↑ Donna wasn't a Companion for three years straight. She was a Companion for one full season in 2008 and made one final appearance in both parts of a 2-part story, Part 1 airing on Christmas Day, 2009, while Part 2 aired one week later on New Years Day, 2010.
↑ Possibly the explanation is we're seeing her and Mickey a bit farther into the future than the other Companions Ten visited, but the episode didn't clarify.

[1] Donna wasn't a Companion for three years straight. She was a Companion for one full season in 2008 and made one final appearance in both parts of a 2-part story, Part 1 airing on Christmas Day, 2009, while Part 2 aired one week later on New Years Day, 2010.

[2] Possibly the explanation is we're seeing her and Mickey a bit farther into the future than the other Companions Ten visited, but the episode didn't clarify.

[1]

[2]