Rate "The Christmas Invasion"

Series 1, and Eccleston, are both history. What did you make of Tennant's full debut and the first "Christmas Special"

2/5, mainly because series 2 has worse stories and I need to save a lower mark for those. Introducing a new Doctor by having him asleep with Billie Piper whining all over him is not the best way to do it. The pilot fish were brilliant but it's all downhill from there. This is also the start of Rose's characters downfall. A strong and clever companion in series one is turned into a needy, useless and whining child in series two. Whatever this was, it was nowhere near as good in any way as the fantastic string of episodes that we'd seen six months earlier.

Series 2 was a real low point in WHO for me and this is where the descent started.

Madness up above!

5/5. Introducing a new Doctor by having him asleep with Billie Piper missing the old Doctor yet worried about the new one was the best way to do it, making us wait for the introduction of the new Doctor ramped up the tension and gave us a glorious moment when he was revealed. The pilot fish were brilliant. This is also the start of a more complex character for Rose. A strong and clever companion in series one, additional layers are shown in series two that remind us that she's still a teenager. This was as good as the fantastic string of episodes that we'd seen six months earlier.

I've given it 4/5. As a rule, for me at least, The Christmas specials don't really work - however this first one was the exception to the rule. Great use of the Harriet Jones character, an excellent alien race, and probably the best performance Tennant ever gave as the Doctor.

4/5 An excellent story and, I concur, an excellent and overlooked alien race. It managed to be a fairly traditional Doctor Who story for a Christmas adventure; not a blockbuster like the rest of RTD's nor a whimsical fairytale like A Christmas Carol. Personally, I thought that Tennant hadn't quite relaxed into the role yet, and this isn't anywhere near as towering as he would be in the next three years... (though to be fair you can't do much "towering" sleeping...)

To me, this includes the best (and, so far, the only credible) companion-reacting-to-a-regeneration scenes in the show. She's mourning her friend and hasn't shown reasons to trust or like the new man. Makes sense to me.

4/5 for me. I nearly gave it a 5. I took to Tennant immediately, and found the episode full of great moments for his Doctor. I thought Rose was the same as she ever was, she just ended up falling all the way for a person she'd already had strong feelings for.

Almost a 5. Not fond of the pilot fish and found the tea schtick a bit lame.

Loved the fighting hand and no second chances.

I could never understand why that was followed through in series 2. A big mistake IMO.

still the best christmas special and one of my favourites.

I was quite fond of this when it first aired. The fact that the Doctor was a non-factor for the first half of the story reminded me a bit of Castrovalva. And finding out that the Doctor could re-grow a hand if he was within a certain time of his regeneration was a nice bit of new mythology to add to the character.

The main problem with this story and how it's aged is actually a complaint I have with how BBC-America transmits all the Christmas Specials these days. In order to make them fit into an hour time slot, with commercials, the story gets hacked mercilessly and key scenes simply get deleted. If you really want to watch Christmas Invasion, you have to watch it off DVD.

I'm giving this story a 4.

Best Christmas special, and best ever post-regeneration story. The whole point of having the Doctor out of action for the first half of the story is to generate tension and show what happens when the Doctor isn't there - a theme Davies will return to in Turn Left - but also makes us wonder if this new Doctor will be up to the task of saving everybody. Remember, this is for an audience that mostly haven't seen regenerations before and have no real idea who this Tennant bloke is and it's feeding off their doubt about the whole process of changing the Doctor.