IslandGuru Who payed the critics

Colibel Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

ScoobyWell Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

Suman Roberson It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Tyypo I am going to have to side with remembrapril and his review. Yes, it was interesting and touching in many ways, but it violated a Cardinal Rule of Doctor Who continuity. That is: The Doctor cannot intentionally go back in time to make his present situation more favorable. That has been stated repeatedly. For instance, after the death of Adric at the end of Earthshock, The Doctor cannot go back in time to save him. If this is something that becomes a trend, it can easily become a deus ex machina plot device that can be used as a "get out of jail free card" in any circumstance. In fact, if he fails to do this in future episodes, then it will beg the question, "why doesn't he just go back in time and...?" The precedent has been set. As a stand-alone time story in the general "time travel" genre, it works. As a Doctor Who episode, it fails.

merry_squirrel I was really really disappointed in this episode.It was overly sentimental and not satisfying. I didn't find the overused Scrooge plot interesting. Nor did I find the time jumps for the the various Christmas Eve's past very compelling. The singing, the fish, the scenes with the father, and the rewriting of the past did not come together very well. It was like a stew in which too many ingredients have been added and none of them go together very well.I think I may be missing a sentimentality gene or something, since clearly a lot of other people reviewing this episode really enjoyed it. It lacked "Whoness" and didn't fit in very well with the types of plots and dialog from other episodes.

doctor-934-207111 One imperfection!Great start and yeah a bit of a Star Trek holiday ship rip off I must admit!!The Doctor first begs for the lives of those on board and gets the boot.He then here a Christmas Carol and decides to play Dickens.I do not fault Moffatt for the interference in Time Travel. That actually enhances to the art.And this is fun ( Anyone for a Doctor Who and MArilyn Monroe meetup?)What I did not like was the young Sarkis meeting the old Sarkis.Anyone recall Maydryn Undead and what one brigadier did to another?Also, political power and influence, Moffatt weaves these themes well.Well casted!!

Maarten Labeeuw Highly entertaining and perfectly fitting for Christmas.Takes an old tale and masterfully reinvents it, meshing it seamlessly with the Doctor Who look and feel. Where many try to simply shift the story into a new setting, and by so doing botch the underlying message of the tale or make it so blatantly obvious as to strip it of all of its poetry, the Doctor Who team have managed to make it entirely their own while keeping its simple elegance.This once again reaffirms my belief that Doctor Who is one of the best series on television in quite some time, even after having watched now for five years, each new episode continues to be new and refreshing.One comment on the music ... beautifully executed, and magnificently sung by Katherine Jenkins ... did anyone else get the impression that "Abigail's Song" was strongly influenced by Philip Glass' "Open the Kingdom"?