In the original series of Doctor Who, the Doctor would drop off companions and practically forget about them by the beginning of the next episode. The New Series has taken the opportunity to explore the Doctor's feelings surrounding his companions' departure. After losing Amy and Rory in The Angels Take Manhattan the Doctor has decided to seclude himself from humanity by parking his Tardis in a cloud above Victorian London and ignoring pleas from his friends, Vastra, Jenny and Strax, to involve himself in the world again. He soon finds himself investigating the appearance of telepathic snow. This snow is being collected by Dr Simeon of the "Great Intelligence Institute". It is during his investigations that the Doctor meets a new friend, part time barmaid and Governess, Clara Oswald. Matt Smith is excellent at portraying the transformation from tired old man to a younger, energetic one, with a little help from Clara.
Jenna Louise Coleman had already done a good job portraying Oswin in Asylum of the Daleks and the Victorian incarnation of Clara was just as likable. Jenna Louise Coleman shows a range of acting talents as she switches from cockney barmaid to Mary Poppins style Governess. Unlike Amy Pond, we see her involved in the world around her, interacting with people other than the Doctor, such as her employer, Captain Latimer, and she shows concern about the welfare of Latimer's children, Fran and Digby. There's a lot of flirting with the Doctor which should make for a very different relationship than the Doctor had with the Ponds. Moffat did a good job wrong footing the audience when Clara she accepts a Tardis key and then plummets to her death.
The villains were decent, if not spectacular. The Snowmen had a reasonably spooky look, but their lack of movement did not make them seem very threatening. The Ice Governess was slightly more spooky in that she was mobile, and the idea that she is the frozen DNA of a dead human come back to haunt children was unusually dark for Christmas day viewing, but her catchphrase of "That's the way to do it" was a pale shadow of the Empty Child's "Are you my mummy?". The repeated catchphrase is one trope that Steven Moffat really needs to stop repeating.
Richard E Grant was perfectly cast as Dr Simeon. Like the Doctor, Simeon is a man who has distanced himself from humanity, instead finding solace in the snow. Unlike the Doctor, he does not have someone to bring him back to humanity, and he ends up being dominated by the very intelligence he created. It is a pity that Richard E Grant didn't get more scenes with the Doctor. Perhaps they could have gotten far deeper under each other's skin.
A great many people will be happy that Ian McKellan finally gets a cameo appearance on Doctor Who, playing the Intelligence that controls the Snowmen. The revelation that this is the very the same "Great Intelligence" that menaced Patrick Troughton's Doctor in The Abominable Snowmen and The Web of Fear served as a nice treat for the fans. The episode accounts for the Intelligence's motivation behind using snowmen as soldiers, which provides a good excuse as to why the Intelligence would keep using snow creatures even when it was no longer in Tibet.
Vastra, Jenny and Strax made a welcome return Paternoster Gang were good, although their appearance risked the program becoming a little self referential for a casual audience stuffed with turkey and wine. Strax' habit of bringing war into the conversation could become a little tiresome, but is funny in small doses. It was particularly good when he mocked the Doctor, calling him Sherlock Holmes.
Murray Gold's music was good. Particularly the parts where he referenced Sherlock when the Doctor was impersonating him.
Saul Metzstein did a good job of directing this tale. He successfully pulls off a Burton esque piece of Victorian London in the snow. The Tardis on the cloud at night was a beautiful looking thing.
The new title sequence was quite good, though there was almost too much flame and stars crammed in. The return of the Doctor's face in the title sequence worked quite well also. The transparency made it look less ridiculous than it could have been.
The new Tardis console room had a decent design. A nod to the past and a nod to the present at the same time. The white console looks a little tacky, but the lighting makes it all look good.
A very enjoyable episode, blending old and new.
9/10
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