Doctor Who: Ranking The Christmas Specials

We're halfway through this list and the Twelfth Doctor has finally made his first appearance (ironically, in the episode which features his final appearance). Twice Upon A Time turns the regeneration story formula on his head, swapping out the bombastic, explosive send-offs for a small scale, character-centric piece. A fitting way to end an era in which the Doctor goes through more development than any other incarnation.

The episode doesn't even have a villain, which makes for a very different type of story.

Capaldi acts his heart out throughout this, and despite the gentle, light-hearted story, there are some lovely emotional beats throughout. The interactions between One and Twelve are wonderful, with the former chastising the latter for his more, shall we say, NuWho tendencies, and the latter trying to help the former become the hero we all know.

It's a shame they overplayed the whole not-politically-correct angle with First Doctor - one time would have probably been enough as it started to feel like a waste of screen time after a while. The resolution, in which Twelve saves Captain Lethbridge-Stewart by nudging him into the Christmas Armistice is a really nice way to end the story, shedding light on a very special and unique moment in history.

Twelve's final goodbye to Bill, Nardole and Clara is bittersweet and hits just the right notes, before he goes out in exactly the way he should have: with a nice, long monologue. All in all this felt very much like the end of an era, and a befitting one at that.