Doctor Who: Christmas Episodes Poll

[butterfly]

So, sunnytyler001 did a poll on which Christmas special was your favorite and I decided that I wanted to know even more. Also, I can't get to sleep.

[Poll #1320945]

Apart from polls, I'd curious about how you'd place the episodes in relation to each other. Personally, "The Christmas Invasion" remains my favorite of the Christmas episodes, with "The Next Doctor" slipping into second place. "Voyage of the Damned" is third (I really like Astrid) followed by "The Unquiet Dead" and topped off with "The Runaway Bride" (which I still like a lot -- I've enjoyed all of the Christmas episodes).

* there may be spoilers in comments *

Comments

[sunnytyler001.livejournal.com]

Shame on me!!!! I forgot "The Unquiet dead"!!! One of my favourite episodes!!!!!
*tries to regenerate into a little mouse*

[arabian.livejournal.com]

It did take place at Xmas technically, but I've never put TUD in the Xmas categories, but if I were too, it would easily rank first as I ADORE that episode. I'd go with TRB next, followed closely by TCI and then very, very closely TND. VotD is the only I was meh on, but I did think Astrid was delightful.

[solitude-82.livejournal.com]

i didn't think The Unquiet Dead was a Christmas Special, even though it's set during Christmas. i love that episode to pieces though. i think my order would go (if you count The Unquiet Dead): TUD, TND, TCI, TRB and VotD. I love love love the first 4 I listed and was sort of ehhh about VotD

[shinyopals.livejournal.com]

I'd say for me, first place is really a tie between TCI and TRB. The reason TCI gets a slight edge is because while TRB has some truly awesome moments, in a way I feel drowned by the emo. TCI still makes me smile like a loony even now (I rewatched it yesterday and it's just as wonderful as it ever was).

Might get back to you later, though, since TRB rewatch is likely to happen today! XD

[nic]

Huh, looking at the poll I see that my dislike for VotD is not so unique after all!

[shaela]

Apart from polls, I’m curious about how you’d place the episodes in relation to each other.

Well, I liked “The Unquiet Dead,” “The Christmas Invasion,” and “The Runaway Bride” so much that it was hard to choose between them. But in the end, I went with “The Unquiet Dead,” mostly because it’s the only one that has the Ninth Doctor real snow.

P.S. I know you can’t edit polls, but I thought I’d mention that I rated “The Next Doctor” as a three because “I didn’t watch it” wasn’t an option.

[nohwrah.livejournal.com]

My favourite is without a doubt The Christmas Invasion if only for all the Rose/Ten that was going on (and dude, Ten was quoting the Lion King at a bunch of aliens). Closely behind is The Unquiet Dead, if only for all the Rose/Nine that was going on (and Welshies!). Then The Runaway Bride, almost tied with The Next Doctor (I absolutely adored both Davids and Dervla, just the plot was absolutely ridonkulous). Last is Voyage of the Damned- I love Kylie something fierce, but the episode was pure drivel.

I ship Rose/Ten as if my life depends on it, so I guess my liking of any episode is mostly based on how much I can link back to that (even though Blink is my favourite episode of all time...). And I just really don't like it when RTD wants to rub our noses in the fact that the Doctor is supposed to be this lonely god.

[lefaym.livejournal.com]

I had to come over here from your other post and support you on the VotD front. Although, I think I've proved to myself once again that I can't really be a "true" Doctor Who fan, because not only did I really like VotD, but I think I liked it better than The Next Doctor (not that I hated TND by any stretch-- I just really liked the epic disaster movie-ness of VotD).

I just honestly don't get what's supposed to be wrong with VotD-- it's not perfect, and I can see that for some people it just won't be their thing, which is fine, but I don't understand why it inspires so much hatred. But then again, I like Love and Monsters too and Russell T Davies in general-- I can't be a "real" fan because I like the show too much! :P

[lt-kitty.livejournal.com]

Out of the "Christmassy themed episodes," the Unquiet Dead is my favorite. I have fond memories of falling in love with the whole Doctor Who phenomenon during the first disk.

Of the Christmas Specials, I think its TND, VOTD (I love disaster movies - and it really was perfect), TCI (b/c by the end of the episode, I realized I loved The Doctor, not just one particular version of him, and I suddenly wanted to watch the Classic series) and those three are really quite close. It depends on my mood which is my favorite.

Between the earth being formed around a space spider's nest and a screechy sidekick, TRB is the one I'm least likely to rewatch apart from doing a full series start to finish viewing.

[papilio-luna.livejournal.com]

Not counting TUD (I don't think it's quite fair to put it up against the now-traditional Xmas Blowout Extravaganza episodes) my ranking goes:

1. TCI (I love Rose and Ten and everything but mainly TCI always wins for me because of the amazing way the script manipulates the viewer without the viewer even being aware of it--this was Ten's first episode and it could have made or broke the show--that could have been the end of the DW franchise--and RTD just worked this incredibly bit of magic with that script)
2. TRB (I never had a problem with Donna, even in her TRB incarnation I always thought she was hilarious and fab)
3. TND (Something felt off to me in this, not intimate enough, missing something)
4. VotD (I haaaaaate the complete OOC-ness of Ten in that and even sexy Tennant in a Tux can't even save it for me)

[acciochocolate.livejournal.com]

Which Christmas episode is your favorite?

1. The Unquiet Dead :) Dickens and ghosts and some great characters and some lovely plotting make for a great story. The only problem (and it's a small one) that I have with this story is that Rose's Victorian garb is not that of an upper-class lady, but something more like what might be worn by a lightskirt or an opera dancer (period slang for "ladies of the night"). Other than that little costuming mistake (surprising, as the BBC is well-known for their historical costume dramas and epics), I found TUD to be a great introductory episode to time-traveling in the past for Rose. The "I'm glad I met you" speech is one of the best moments ever in any DW episode. And Dickens' reaction to the TARDIS leaving is just wonderful and priceless! :)

2. The Next Doctor is just a lovely story of quiet character moments interspersed with some exciting action scenes. After watching this special, I find it too bad that David M. won't be the Doctor, as I think that he could have turned in a great performance, based on this one show. He cares about people and isn't afraid of things, he's up for heroics, and always wants to do good. :) And Rosita would have made a kick-butt companion! :)

3. Voyage of the Damned starts off with a bang and never lets up! Once again, the Doctor inserts himself into a situation fraught with potential trouble, and finds a way to save the day, and a cute possible new companion in the process. However, the Doctor's authority does get questioned (and does so again in Midnight), a realistic thing to see that probably ought to happen more often, and the possible companion who wants to have an exciting life instead sacrifices herself to save a planet and a people she barely knows anything about. Lovely but so sad.

4. The Christmas Invasion. Nice to see UNIT and Harriet Jones, but that UNIT doesn't stand up to past deeds and the PM does what she thinks is right but isn't, but happening it topple her from power in the end, are depressing actions. The Doctor's not very present in this special, and the statement of "no second chances" was a bit discouraging to this viewer as a look at the then-Tenth Doctor's character in the process of hardening. Rose does mourn a lot, and understandably so, since Nine never bothered to inform her about regeneration. At the same time, it's as though she missed Nine so much that it seems in the beginning that she's not willing to give Ten a chance. By the end of the special, all that has changed, of course. I liked this special when I first saw it, but it has fallen somewhat in my estimation.

5. The Runaway Bride had many exciting moments, but in the end I breathed a sigh of relief when Bride!Donna didn't take Ten up on his traveling offer. She was just too upset throughout the special and didn't re-act well to anything that was outside her expectations. But having her call the Doctor on his actions and telling him that he could stop now, that was a great moment. I've always felt that Ten needed someone to do this (Rose and Martha loved him too much to disagree, perhaps), so when it was announced that Donna was to be brought back, I was skeptical at first. But by the end of PiC, I had certainly changed my mind; Donna had had time to learn, to change, to grow, and develop, and made a great companion. TRB doesn't do her character justice, so that's why it's on the bottom of my list of the Christmas shows.