Doctor Who: Ranking The Christmas Specials

8. The Christmas Invasion

The Christmas Invasion - the first Christmas special of NuWho and only post-regeneration story to barely feature the incoming Doctor. Its an odd decision to have our new protagonist bedridden for 75% of his first episode, but it does make his entrance in the climactic sequence that bit more special.

The first half of the episode is solid, showcasing for the first time how the people of Earth would tackle an alien invasion without the Doctor's assistance, and doing this through Harriet Jones, who we are already familiar with, is a good decision.

The Sycorax prove to be a fun and above average Christmas villain, even if their means of dispatching the Doctor and his companions (rocket launcher Santas and a murderous Christmas tree) are incredibly lame. Points to the Sycorax for getting in the festive spirit with their killing machines though...

The ending is what us viewers remember through - with Tennant finding his feet and engaging in a sword fight above London, before finally dispatching his foe with a satsuma (upon reflection, this episode really overdid the Christmas theme...). We're also given an early indication of Ten's darker shades as he denounces Harriet Jones for, arguably, doing the right thing by destroying the fleeing Sycorax.

The episode comes to a heart-warming conclusion, with Ten listening to his own Christmas song (Google the lyrics) and picking his iconic outfit, before joining the Tylers for Christmas dinner (something he famously always says he never does, but also does many times).