Board Thread:Tales from the Tardis/@comment-188432-20140327234318/@comment-5215868-20140401174752

Clara Listensprechen wrote: As to who the Doctor loves best, it's River Song. But she was long dead by the time the Doctor decided to investigate Clara, and he *was* getting affectionate with Clara, though showing conflict with his timeline's past in The Name of the Doctor. There's that.

No, the Doctor didn't love River "the best." If he loved River as much as he loved Rose things would have wound up very different. Their whole relationship was one of mistrust, and the Doctor showed her very little affection, quite unlike his relationship with Rose, whom he showed affection in a way he has never done before, in a way we never see with 11 and River. "During The End of Time part II", the Doctor went to Rose last because she gave him the courage to move on and was the only one he dared to muster the courage to give a smile before he regenerated. During the episode "Let's Kill Hitler" he said "Give me someone I like" and after all that time, Rose was the TARDIS's first selection. During the last episode with Matt, "The Time of The Doctor", when he began to hallucinate, who did he see? Amy. Not River, but Amy, because he actually genuinely cared for Amy more than River. The ninth Doctor died willingly for Rose because he loved her enough for such a powerful sacrifice, one sacrifice we've only seen the Doctor make once before. The only reason the Doctor wanted to take River's place in "The Forest of the Dead" is because she knew his name, and he felt a sense of duty to put himself into the danger first, as we saw this sense if duty developing in the 10th Doctor's character.

(And he wasn't getting *affectionate* with Clara the way you seem to be suggesting)