Goodnight Raggedy Man -- An Overview of the "Doctor Who" 2013 Christmas Special

"We're all different people all through our lives, and that's okay, that's good, you got to keep moving. So long as you remember all the people that you used to be.... I will always remember when the Doctor was me."
     - the Eleventh Doctor, The Time Of The Doctor

After the Doctor saved his people (the Time Lords) in November’s 50th Anniversary episode, he and his companion Clara find themselves back on Trenzalore, the planet where he will be buried in the future. In a small town called Christmas, the 11th Doctor discovers the same crack in time and space from the beginning of his adventures with the knowledge that his people are ready to return from exile through this crack.

The Doctor defending the town called Christmas

The return of the Time Lords means the return of the Time War, so the Doctor teams up with the villains of Series 5 and 6 (The Silence) in a 300 year stand-off against all the other villains in the universe (Daleks, Cybermen, Weeping Angels, Sontarans, etc.) in order to keep them from destroying the planet and the town of Christmas with it. It’s a conflict that takes its toll on the Doctor, as he fights knowing he has no regenerations left. Yet in a reversal, Clara, who previously implored the Doctor to save his people, now implores the Time Lords to help their savior. They do this by sending regeneration energy through the crack to the Doctor, allowing him to save Christmas and change his future!

Clara pleading with the Time Lords

No matter how good this year’s Christmas special may be, The Time Of The Doctor is always going to have a bittersweet aftertaste. While I personally had issues with parts of the episode (Christmas as a town?), it was bow-tie cool to see Matt Smith one last time in the lead role as the Doctor! Showrunner Steven Moffat was able to tie together loose ends of previous series (The Tardis exploding, The question that must never be answered, The Silence’s motivation) in a convincing - if cumbersome - manner, clearing the slate for the next Doctor. More impressively, Moffat is able to end the discussion on how many regenerations a Time Lord can have!

As for the cast, Orla Brady was a sexy strong nun with her performance as Tasha Lem (Church of The Silence leader), Kayvan Novak brought real emotion to the mechanical Handles and it was nice to see Karen Gillan reprise her role as Amy Pond. While Jenna Coleman’s Clara is more essential than ever (being the human voice of reason grounding the Doctor’s actions), it is Matt Smith who once again shines, from the wacky humor to one last grandiose speech as the Eleventh Doctor. It was a fitting end for the Matt Smith era, and a fun beginning for Peter Capaldi era, as his Doctor asks a surprised Clara how to operate the Tardis.

I look forward to the answer next year!

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