12 Reviews of Christmas - Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol (2010)

          Hey guys, Chuck here. Well, we've reached the end of yet another 12 Reviews of Christmas. We had quite an interesting mix of fun yuletide titles to discuss, some old and some new. But, it's time to bring 12 Reviews of Christmas to a close with another rendition of A Christmas Carol. And, since we're also continuing to enjoy the sixty year anniversary of Doctor Who, I think that it's the right time to talk about the 2010 Christmas special: Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol.

        Written by Steven Moffat, this isn't really a traditional adaptation of A Christmas Carol, but rather a fun Doctor Who story inspired by A Christmas Carol. The story starts off with an interstellar cruise ship on a collision course with a nearby planet. The planet has a unique cloud and atmosphere, and has fish and sea life literally swimming through the air. And, because two of the cruise ship's passengers are Amy Pond and Rory Williams, enjoying their honeymoon, the Doctor, specifically the Eleventh Doctor, does what he can to save them. 

        Unfortunately, the clouds are controlled by a crotchety old miser named Kazran Sardick, who also has an assortment of individuals under cryogenic preservation as collateral for the families who have borrowed from the Sardick family previously. The Doctor requests assistance from Kazran, who refuses due to lack of caring. However, seeing that Kazran is clearly fearful of his domineering father Elliot, the Doctor comes up with a plan to change the heart of Kazran Sardick. 

        Taking cues from the Charles Dickens tale of A Christmas Carol, the Doctor goes back to when Kazran was a child, acting as the Ghost of Christmas Past, and taking young Kazran on a slew of adventures, the first of which sees the emitter from the Doctor's sonic screwdriver get caught in the throat of a shark. The shark is soothed by Abigail, a woman who was under cryogenic preservation in the Sardick basement. And, of course, the Doctor and Kazran go on many Christmas Eve adventures with Abigail, returning her into her cryo pod after each one. And, as each year goes, Kazran gets older, and he and Abigail fall in love. Unfortunately, with each year, a day is knocked off the cryo pod, meaning that by the time it reaches zero, Abigail can never be refrozen, which is unfortunate as she is suffering from an incurable illness. So, with one day left, Kazran asks the Doctor to end the annual Christmas Eve tradition. Meanwhile, in the present, the elder Kazran is having these new memories mix with his old memories. 

       And, as the Ghost of Christmas Present is needed, Amy takes on that role. And, what she does is show Kazran the people on the cruise ship who will not survive if Kazran does nothing. However, most all of the work done isn't quite enough to sway his position, and Kazran still adamantly refuses to help the cruise liner. So, the Doctor returns, and in an interesting take on the Ghost of Christmas Future, the Doctor has brought the younger Kazran to see the man he'll eventually grow up to be. Realizing he's become a reflection of his father, Kazran stops himself from striking his younger self on the face. Finally reformed, Kazran attempts to shut down the cloud controller, but to no avail,.as it was his meaner self that controlled the machine, and the Doctor changed him too much. 

       However, Abigail is awakened for the first time in years, and she sings into the sonic screwdriver, to emitter of which is still in the shark, and thus can resonate with the clouds. The song calms the clouds, allowing for snow to fall, and the ship to land safely. The Doctor reassembles his sonic screwdriver, reunites with Amy and Rory, and Kazran and Abigail have a wonderful Christmas together. 

        So, while not one of the more traditional adaptations of the Dickens holiday classic, Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol is a very unique take on the story of A Christmas Carol. I like how the Doctor used the TARDIS to make an old miser into a better man by having a number of holiday adventures with him. Also, the love story between Kazran and Abigail, leading to him holding onto that one last day they could have together, was definitely interesting, and makes this particular take on A Christmas Carol stand out. 

        The performances are all fantastic. Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, and Arthur Darvill were all fantastic as the Eleventh Doctor, Amy Pond, and Rory Williams. Now, while we don't see them on screen together, the moments they do share are pretty enjoyable, and show just how well these three worked as a trio during this particular era of Doctor Who. Katherine Jenkins, who is a famous mezzo-soprano, was absolutely fantastic as Abigail, both with her acting and her singing. Her singing in this special was absolutely amazing, and especially given that this was her first major acting project, so kudos. 

         But, my biggest praise as far as acting goes has to go to the late Michael Gambon as Kazran Sardick. As the stand-in for Scrooge, Kazran goes through quite a fascinating character arc in the special, and Gambon's acting prowess really stands out, especially since this was one of his most notable acting roles after years of playing Dumbledore in Harry Potter. I was really saddened when I heard that Michael Gambon passed away earlier this year, and I did really want to talk about how great his performance was in this particular Doctor Who special. 

         The visual effects, especially of the various fish and sharks swimming through the air, was amazing. The idea of seeing fish swim through air is something that has been seen before, but the intricacies of the visual effects getting the movements exactly accurate to how actual fish swim around was just incredible. Also, the multiple jumps through time, and seeing stills of the amazing Christmas Eve adventures the Doctor goes on with Kazran and Abigail was absolutely great. Obviously, we don't see everything due to time constraints, but we get enough of an impression of how much fun this trio had with each Christmas Eve. 

        Honestly, this is a really fun take on a familiar concept. Using the Dickens classic to tell a time-hopping sci-fi story is definitely different, and is really supported by great writing by Steven Moffat. I'm giving Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol a rating of 4.85/5. 

        Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off. I'll be taking a bit of time off for the Christmas holiday, but I'll be back on the 27th with my review of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Enjoy your Christmas holiday, thanks for tuning in to another 12 Reviews of Christmas, and I'll see you guys next time.