Cold front

A week late with my Doctor Who Christmas Special review, but then it took me that long to get round to watching "The Snowmen" for a second time, and you know I like to  give Doctor Who a second look. Obviously, despite that second look I continue to be distracted from the actual programme by the credits and TARDIS redesign. Both of which I like, and with the anniversary looming it's nice that the opening credits have acknowledged that the iconic 1970s titles weren't the only titles the original series ever had - although I preferred the slightly sinister, previous Moffat/Smith era titles to the Davies/Eccleston/Tennant ones that came before it, they were both basically exactly the same idea. Whereas while these new ones do reference the 1970s Time Vortex titles at the end, they're mainly a modern version of the 1980s flying through space titles, and there's even the odd moment reminiscent of the original 1960s/early 70s expressionistic shapes. And, of course, there's Matt Smith's face in the credits, harking back to all of those eras and something we've been waiting to see revived for a long time - I thought the way it worked out in the end, with his face just briefly visible, avoided the trap of looking cheesy. And a modern-looking sequence that calls back to all those that came before it is exactly what you'd want in an anniversary season that looks set to do just that.

The new TARDIS interior (and exterior, if I'm not mistaken?) is also surely a 50th anniversary treat, and I really like that too - it's just a shame timing-wise that both these big design changes had to come a couple of series after the last big overhaul. The cavernous orange TARDIS interior was one they could have got a good few more years' use out of and I'm sorry to see it go. The new one's lovely but does seem to be a bit smaller, a bit less epic. Story-wise I can see why the TARDIS redesign could be explained (it presumably reminded the Doctor too much of the Ponds so he changed the desktop background) but Moffat-era Doctor Who does kind of remind me of certain internet message boards, especially a few years ago, whose over-enthusiastic admins would revamp the design every couple of months. Sure, it stops the look from stagnating and everyone coos over the pretty new colour scheme, but nothing sticks around long enough to give the place a sense of identity.

It turns out that between the credits there's also an hour-long episode in there too. I'm not crazy about the initial premise, that the Doctor is mourning the loss of the Ponds by isolating himself again - it's very post-2005 Doctor but the polar opposite of how the first 7 Doctors dealt with a companion leaving. Besides, wasn't David Tennant's entire final year on the show all about the Doctor learning the valuable lesson that he should always have a companion? (Anyway, as far as I'm concerned Amy and Rory didn't *die* any more so than most companions - they got dropped off somewhere/somewhen other than they got picked up, admittedly, but they got to live out their lives. Their main tragedy was that they, and we, never got to see Rory's dad again. 'Cause he was awesome.)

But otherwise "The Snowmen" was probably the best Moffat Christmas Special, maybe one of the best ever. Despite a couple of big-name guests, Richard E. Grant and the voice of Serena, they don't overwhelm the story (does Richard E. Grant's having played a couple of non-canonical Doctors mean his casting was another anniversary nod?) It still remains about the Doctor getting his mojo back via Clara, and as with her surprise earlier appearance Jenna-Louise Coleman makes one of the best early impressions. Clara's perhaps a bit too bolshy for a Victorian girl but Coleman makes her endearing. Despite saying that the remainder of the series will be made up of standalone episodes again, this thread of Clara/Oswin dying twice in different times and places but still being somehow alive is obviously going to be a major arc over the series. It's just a shame the ending and preview suggest the version of her who'll actually end up travelling in the TARDIS will be from present-day Earth. The announcement of Clara made me look forward to the first non-21st Century UK companion since the series returned, so her death was a disappointment on that front. But again, a companion who's somehow from the past, present and future is probably an appropriate one for the 50th.

The return of Vastra/Jenny/Strax also worked well I thought, a bit of continuity and a nice change from the show introducing interesting characters who then barely get used. If you've got some good characters who could fit into another episode, why not bring them back? The Moff's little nods to Sherlock were perhaps a bit smug, but given how many insane people have been suggesting an actual crossover, I think we should be glad it's been dealt with in this way instead. And then the preview of the new series: Imrie! Cake! OK, maybe not cake, but Imrie!