Last Christmas Grading and Discussion Thread

[Toxteth O´Grady]

As someone who abosalutely loves Clara (seemingly the only one, as evidenced in this thread) I was completely floored that she i sstaying. I was so sure she was leaving, and apparently she was at one point. When I saw her run off with the Doctor and the text promising more of the Doctor and Clara I lost my shit. I am extremely overjoyed at this news, Clara is my favorite companion, edging out Ace just a tad.

After last season I thought that we hadn't seen enough of Clara to rank her as a companion just yet. But after her first full season and furthermore this episode, I have no problem putting her on top. The ending to this special put a big smile on my face.

 

[Aldo]

Merely speculating since we don't know anything much:

But assuming she signs on for a full series and the Christmas Special, she could end up being the longest running nuWho companion yet, edging out Amy by half a series.

 

[intrinsical]

Ho boy. For me, this episode raises more questions than answers.

Why were these 4 random people, Clara and The Doctor specifically targeted by the dream crabs? Unless the TARDIS was parked right next to a volcano, The Doctor did not even seem to be on Earth. Which, to me, makes it quite an extraordinary length the dream crabs have gone to just to kill these 6 people.

 

[Vendikarr]

A pointless story and completely unlikeable. Easily the worst Christmas episode.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Oh, yeah, and the Danny scene also went on too long. Seriously, how is it no one can write a good scene for this guy. How does his presence automatically make things so bad?

Normally, I would agree because I found the execution of Danny's character and his relationship with Clara to be absolutely horrible. However, in this instance, I actually thought he was handled well in terms of the dream sequence.

 

[BruntFCA]

My first thought was that it was a great episode, my second thought was how much more I liked Shona then Clara. My hope is that since the first episode of season 9 is named "The Magicians Apprentice" and Shona called The Doctor Magician that she will join the Tardis next year.

 

[Saul]

Not a bad episode although we are redoing 'Amy's Choice' at Christmas this time.
Lots of rip offs (not nods) to other movies as Moff's Christmas specials seem to always do. But for the most part I liked it.

I wonder if that ending was re-written because Coleman decided to stay on the show at the last minute. Would have been a nice ending for her character. Where are those little Pinks indeed.

 

[tomalak301]

It was ok, but I was hoping the 4 people would have an impact on what they experienced. They were enjoyable to know, until the end where it ended up being a little pointless.

This episode did have probably my favorite Doctor Who line:

Doctor: You have a horror film called "Alien"? That's really offensive. No wonder you're always invaded.

In a season or so, Capaldi might be my favorite Doctor but it's too early yet. Also, I'm so sick of Clara. Everyone said that Rose wore out her welcome? How people feel about Rose is how I currently feel about Clara. Let it go.

 

[BeatleJWOL]

Sounds like most of the complaints about the ending aren't about the ending but how Clara's still around.

 

[tomalak301]

Sounds like most of the complaints about the ending aren't about the ending but how Clara's still around.

Well, it totally diminishes the Finale episode, which while it wasn't all that great, now is probably a little worse.

 

[Guy Gardener]

"No. I saved Clara. The rest of the human race just got lucky."

At first glance, that line makes Danny seem hardcore.

However, that wasn't Danny.

That was either Clara talking to the Doctor, or the Doctor talking to himself.

 

[davejames]

Enjoyed the heck out of this episode. Like everyone else I realized early on that they were all still dreaming, and that there would probably be more than a few "dreams within dreams", but Moffat still did a good job keeping you guessing at the end anyway as to what was actual reality and what was not.

And I have to admit, as much as I was looking forward to a new companion, I also couldn't help but feel incredibly relieved at the end to see Clara running off with the Doctor on yet more adventures. Especially now that all the ugly tension between her and the Doctor seems to have dissipated, and now that the Danny Pink storyline is (hopefully) done with.

I obviously wouldn't have wanted a continuation of any of that, but a Season 9 with the happy and adventure-seeking Doctor and Clara we saw at the end of the special I think would be really fun to see.

 

[Timewalker]

Well, since Dream-Danny said she only had to miss him for 5 minutes a day, she can gallivant around with the Doctor for 23 hours, 55 minutes completely guilt-free.

I want her gone.

And let there be no more lying. I came to despise Matt Smith's Doctor for all the lying, and am not impressed that there's more with this one. Lying to one's friends is not cool.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Those lies turned into the Gift of the Magi which is a superb Christmas story.

 

[Australis]

BTW, how did the dream crab reach Clara on Earth? illogical, IMO.

 

[Orac]

Fantastic! I was hoping it would be a bit sillier though.

You guys who hate Clara and Danny are cool.

 

[davejames]

This is a total retread of Amy Pond. The Doctor leaves her behind. Then an enemy brings her back into his life and they end up traveling together again, thus completely undercutting the first leaving scene. Then there's a bit where he finds her again as an old woman having lost out on her good years.

I will definitely agree that Amy and Rory stayed on too long, and that their journey with the Doctor seemed to reach it's natural end at the end of Season 6. Since they obviously had each other and didn't need the adventure with him anymore.

But this feels a bit different to me, in that Season 8 was all about Clara and the new Doctor adjusting to each other and her trying to bring the humanity back out of him. And that most of the conflict was about that, or about Danny and the problem he and the Doctor had with each other. Her wanting to leave was more about choosing Danny over the Doctor than about her truly being "done with the adventure".

It only makes sense to me that once she finally warmed up to the new Doctor (and he lightened up as well), and that once Danny was out of the picture, that she would eagerly sign up for more adventures.

 

[BeatleJWOL]

BTW, how did the dream crab reach Clara on Earth? illogical, IMO.

The same way they reached the Doctor and the other four people?

 

[Guy Gardener]

The telepathic connection went through time.

Physically it could have taken the dream crabs thousands of years to get to Earth or where ever the others where... Or there could be dream crabs all over Earth unseen all the time, just like all the trillions of unseen Vashta Nerada and trillions of unseen Silence, where Clara could have been telepathically tagged since the day she born, waiting for one of the 7 Dream crabs on Earth to get in range enough to face hug her.

Oh.

If Clara was tagged early in her life, then later, maybe after the impossible girl splintered, into billions of Claras across space and time, they all became Dream crab Catnip? Billions of Dream Crabs have been hunting Billions of Claras for the last billion years and the next billion years.

(We never did find out what was on the other side of that door in Orson Pinks time bunker at the end of time.)

Or?

Dream crabs are physical manifestations of psychic energy, the feeding act gives them substance. Before this manifestation into physical being, when they are still thought based life forms (living memes) protodreamcrabs can travel astrally, or since they have no mass, they can travel at 1 times the speed of light without effort.

 

[Australis]

Hmmmm., Suspiciously well thought out for a Guy post...