TV Review: Doctor Who Christmas Special "The Next Doctor"

Doctor Who has always held a special place in the hearts of viewers. It's one of those great shows that doesn't take itself too seriously, instead just going all out to entertain and have a bit of fun. But, that said, the Christmas specials haven't always been up to scratch. Would 2008's teasingly titled The Next Doctor be another flop, or could the Doctor deliver?

After spending several Christmases in the present, the Doctor takes a trip to Victorian London. But, as usual, trouble has followed him there, and it's not long before he hears someone calling his name - but not calling for him. As it turns out, another man referring to himself as "The Doctor" is in London, and so are some of his oldest enemies, the Cybermen. What follows is the usual Doctor Who episode; some aliens have a plan to conquer Earth, the Doctor pulls a selection of facial expressions and reels off his usual quips, before saving Christmas and getting a round of applause.

While it's the typical Doctor Who format, the humour, slapstick, and fun were a little lacking. The episode chugged along a little too slowly, and spent a little too much time figuring out the identity of the Victorian Doctor - who, unsurprisingly, is not going to be the next Doctor - and skimmed over the Cybermen and their weird new Cyber-dog-things as if they were only kept around so that they'd have an excuse for a brief CGI sequence at the end of the episode.

The inclusion of the kids seemed incredibly forced, and it didn't help that all the child actors chosen didn't seem to have any idea what they were supposed to be doing, unless the basic direction for kid actors in a scene full of Cybermen is "look very confused". If they'd managed to get a selection of child actors who could pull a facial expression that wouldn't be portrayed on the internet with a colon and a capital "O", it could have worked, but the end result is poor, and feels very out of place. If at any point the episode managed to absorb you, this would knock you right back into reality.

Tennant's performance as the Doctor, too, feels lacklustre. It's plain to see why he's leaving the show, and it seems a lot of the enthusiasm and excitement that he had when he first became the Doctor has gone. The quips are still there, but they feel a little forced, and he doesn't even put as much effort into hamming it up any more. He's been a great Doctor, but it definitely shows that he's reaching the end of his tenure.

By the looks of this Christmas special it appears both writer Russell T Davies and tenth Doctor David Tennant won't be going out with a bang, unless the cheesy CGI explosions count. The episode just lacked in any flair or fun, and without those elements Doctor Who is barely passable as entertainment. It's another Christmas disappointment from the Doctor, and with Davies in charge of three of the specials next year, it looks like a bleak year for the Time Lord.

2/5

Does it really matter who the next Doctor is? All the role needs is an Englishman with big hair.

Is bigger on the inside...wait, what? - tomdoodle16@live.co.uk