The first doctor was always looked upon as someone to be respected in “the three doctors” and “the five doctors” in this episode he was looked upon as everything bad about the 60s

Tbh Eccleston's regeneration remains my favourite because 1)there was no great lead up to it/it came as a surprise 2) he accepted it as a part of life.

Of all the things I'm going to miss, I'm going to miss the Moffat's massive brain joke the most. #RIP

Prediction of a comment I'll inevitably get: "You are letting your fanboyism for the first doctor cloud your judgement" My response: ....yeah, so?

You're definitely right about Moffat's dislike towards the Hartnell era. I read this old interview ages ago about Moffat's problems with Doctor Who and the Hartnell era was one of them.

I can't help but feel that there was a genuinely good idea in this episode being wasted that could of been beautiful. Namely the soldier taken out of time at the moment of his death. Have the soldier taken out of time at the beginning of the episode (cut out the stupid new new earth tech stuff, have it just been a rift or tear in time or something) and have him come across the doctor. Have the doctor then attempt to work out where exactly in time he came from in order to take him back and gave a friendship form between the pair as he does so. He then discovers that the soldier had been moments away from dying in that trench and if takes him back he will die. Reluctant to do so and determined to find a way to prevent it, he refuses to take the soldier back, causing a tear the space time continuum. This gets the timeless attentions and after refusing to come to heel, they send the 1st doctor to go and talk reason to him... they don't get along at first, with one being condescending and angry at what his future regeneration is doing. The both continually argue till 12 snaps and shows 1 his memories, showing him all that has happened over the years. The things he had done, all his pain and loss and just how tired of it he is. 1 is naturally horrified and around the same time, soldier finds out about his fate and at first refuses to go back. Eventually the soldier comes to terms with his death and talks to the two doctors, reassuring 1 and convincing 12 to take him back. 12 then lands the tardis somewhere and the soldier steps out, only to find he is outside his home on Christmas day. He proceeds to spend the day with his family, the doctor giving him an extra day to live.... At the same time 1 and 12 talk, with 1 asking him Why do they still travel after all of these years and why do they still keep going with 12 responding something along the lines of "that... moments like that makes it worth going" gesturing to the soldier who is reuniting with his family. With that, 1 smiles, says a clever line and disappears, returning to his own timestream. The doctor then collects the soldier and returns him to the point in time where he is supposed to die before returning to his tardis and have the regeneration scebe be the same as they were in the special as they were actually really good.

It really shows that Moffat originally wanted the Doc to regenerate in The Doctor Falls.

This episode was...nice. It was a generally inoffensive send off to Moffat, Capaldi, Gatiss and Gold, funny in places, even if everything about this episode that wasn’t to do with the Captain and the Glass Lady was pretty much just garnish to all that stuff. I like that it’s not really a Christmas episode until the very end and when that happened it felt really poignant. It’s a BIT strange that this doesn’t feel like a significant culmination of the recurring themes and ideas in Moffat’s era, being his last episode, but then he’s already that at LEAST twice. One of those was with Day of the Doctor, and I get the feeling that part of why Moffat didn’t really know how to use the First is that he said everything he wanted to say with the First Doctor *through* the War Doctor.

Yeah, you pretty much nailed this review as usual; that being said, Capaldi himself has been such a huge waste that I couldn’t help but cry during the regeneration. He was such a brilliant Doctor, but he got absolutely fucked by the scripts in Series 8 and 9, and just as he was in his element in Series 10, he left.

One specific moment I would've loved to see fleshed out/emphasised was this exchange: Captain: "World War one?" Doctor: "Judging by the uniform, yes." Captain: "Yes, but what do you mean by, one?" Doctor: "Oh sorry. Spoilers." Can you imagine going through that horror of world war hoping that it'll end soon, only to find out it's going to happen again, and worse? I think it tied in nicely enough with the other arcs of the episode to have been a bigger driving focus.

The doctor doesn't die when he regenerates, he just changes

Yeah the first doctor as a sexist really angered me. He's my favourite Doctor I've seen all of his episodes and he's not a sexist. Why bring back 1 if you don't like him or can't write him.

I personally really liked this episode. I thank you though for giving me a reason as to why your opinion is different then my own. I see a lot of reviews going ‘I just don’t like it that much’. You actually gave a reason that I agree with. I do think the first doctor wasn’t as poorly written, but you have convinced me he could have been better

my biggest let down. the regeneration. i'm tired of the doctor standing up when regenerating. its supposed to be painful, not elegant. have him rench in pain on the floor changing his body....i think i have a problem

Finally someone who's actaully going to pick the Christmas special apart, instead of just "Oh my god its like the 1st Doctor and everything; 10/10". Thank you Stubagful

Well, given your thoughts here, hopefully Big Finish's latest First Doctor release will give David Bradley a better chance to shine.

Once again i pretty much agree with you Stu. But over the last couple of years with Moffat ive come to understand that if your a Classic fan; this version of the show isnt made for you (i mean just look at the 50th): the First Doctor was out of character cause youre not meant to have watched the Hartnell era and know how he was (God knows theres some people online who say Bradley did do Well as Hartnell when theyve never watched a single episode). NuWho is all about ticking boxes for every Doctor: hes gotta have a catchphrase, make a long speech every season like this was Shakespeare, and ALL his Companions have to be there. Hoy know how Classic Who used to known as "The show that made you wanna hide behind the sofa?". Well go online; apparently now its "the show thatll made you cry". One version of the series is universe and story driven while the modern one ever since Roses romance with David Tennant feels like a soap with aliens and a time machine. Perhaps thats why we like the 4 episode format and BF a lot more. PD: I agree on Gatiss being surpringsingly good PD2: F*ck Clara

I think I prefer it over Time of the Doctor simply because of Peter and Mark's' performances. It's a real shame this ended up being a real damp squib of an ending for Twelve. The fact this was written at the last minute so they didn't lose the Christmas day slot really didn't do it any favours either.

I wasn't ready for that plot twist at the end!

OMG it's Moffat's massive massive brain!

if you think about it, that steven moffats giant brain thing was the original "you need high iq to watch rick and morty"

I think that somewhere along the way, a piece of Moffatt just gave up. I know that he's a talented writer, but too often he just took the easy way out with his writing. And he recyled so many of his own ideas. Here's a drinking game for you, take a shot every time he reuses a story premise or plot element needlessly. You'll be drunk before the Pandoraca opens. I don't think it's ego that was the downfall of Moffatt's era, it was laziness. Or maybe it was because he tried running two shows at the same time and he over extended himself. It's too bad, because he was so close to being amazing, but he wasn't. I feel bad saying this, because I know he did put a lot of work into it, but that's how I'll remember Moffatt's time as showrunner. He was a guy who faltered under the weight of his own ambitions. Oh well, great review, Stubagful. See you next series.

So, Hell Bent is even worse in retrospect now? Bloody hell! I hate that episode so much!

I did not like this overall. It kind of represented Moffats Who as a whole. Over the top plot points, trying to be too clever, a lot of terrible jokes and cringey politics, a lot of character emotions that don't work at all and a few moments here and there that were amazing. For me that amazing moment was the Christmas armistice. I know it's history but damn it was beautiful to see. No real merit to Moffat but it was a great moment. Too bad the rest was bad.

Having read up a bit on Moffat's alleged fanboyism of Doctor Who, I've come to a realization. Moffat is the kind of "fan" who only likes what he likes and craps on all the rest. To compare, Moffat is like all those Modern Who "fans" who skipped series 1, fell in love with Ten and Eleven (and loved every single episode because that's what "true fans" do), and then went running the moment they saw Capaldi. These self-proclaimed "true fans" will swear everything before Tennant and after Smith is utter garbage while they write fanfiction about Ten and Rose or ElevenxReader. That's what Moffat has done. He has disrespected most of Classic and RTD Who while obsessing over the bits he liked and bringing up those bits while he rewrites canon for the sake of his illogical fanfiction. *_Moffat Who is FANFICTION..._*

I don't remember the First Doctor refusing to regenerate!

The thinking was just ‘He’s old and from a time not now...he must be stupid!’ Which is hilarious given how dumb New Who can be

Good bye Steven Moffats giant Brain.

12:30 No worries, Stuart! Whilst this does make Hell Bent, as you say, even shitter than it already was (something I did not think was at all possible), it also means in a way that the episode is entirely inconsequential! The episode had so many elements which were setups for later...now it is highly probable they will never be brought up again (heck, the Doctor is unlikely to return to his/her homeworld after what happened!). Also, the First Doctor essentially said in Twice Upon A Time that he left Gallifrey to be a hero and make a difference, thus going back to what was established in the show prior to the whole Hybrid bullshit being brought up. And now, it seems the Doctor may as well have remembered Clara this whole time! In consequence, Hell Bent has gone further than rock bottom, but it is also entirely irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, so we can pretend the events of that episode never happened!!! :D :D :D Excuse me, I'm going off to write my own preferred version of the episode, right next to my preferred version of Day of the Doctor ;)

I genuinely liked this episode. I liked how it didn’t really have a villain and was a parable about change and forgiveness

This has the same rating I gave The End of Time but for opposite reasons. While The End of Time was too much of a greatest hits album for RTD. This didn't even feel like a proper send off for 7 year era.

At least it wasn't End of Time.

You honestly make the best reviews, and I always look forward to them. Constructively critical, coherent and above all, humorous.

Bradley's performance was a complete pisstake. No plot to speak of. A completely witless, unfunny, emotionally incontinent, self indulgent and eye-rollingly sentimental episode.

The problem I have is that by sharing the story with the 1st Doctor and the ancestor of Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart just makes the Doctor Who Universe appear really small, it allows Morefart and more recently Chinbal (intentional misspellings) to rewrite cannon while taking credit of the show's successes of other eras as their own. Sigh

That ending twist made this review a more satisfying conclusion to the Moffat era than the actual episode! Mind you, I read a while ago that Moffat was planning to step down after The Doctor Falls, but because Chibnall was thinking of skipping the Christmas Special and just go into Series 11, Moffat decided to write the Christmas Special in fear of the show losing it's slot on Christmas day. This kinda shows.

Using Christmas as a excuse to slack off is never a good idea, just look at the Hessians that occupied Trenton.

The First Doctor was originally scripted as defying regeneration

Stu, how do you feel about Murray Gold leaving Doctor Who as well?

If you think about it the events of twice upon a time happened very quickly so the first doctor will probably be very confused at first. Also the 12th doctor is nearly 2000 years older so he’s bound to know more or do you jut assume that the doctor’s intelligence wouldn’t increase.

Eh I really like the 12ths regeneration, because I liked the 12th I'm legitimately sad Peter Capaldi is leaving the show. I think I think he was my favorite of the modern doctors, so that little good bye speech he's giving to himself(Really the audience). Is touching because it's the last time I'll see him at the doctor. Unless another multidoctor story happened. I honestly really liked this episode. The way the two doctors played off each other was hilarious. I also took the First reactions not as ignorance, but indignance. He's flustered because there's this guitar playing grandpa going around wearing sunglasses indoors all the while using his name. It's sort of like the First Doctor was the Grandfather of the Twelth Doctor. Yeah he's a bit less PC, but he means well he just derived his values from a different time. And all the strange behaviors and toys of his grandson make him feel like the boy isn't right. Now I haven't seen the first doctors era, so I won't speak to how well the character is represented. But I didn't have much trouble with the way he spoke and acted. I know there wasn't malice in what he was doing, and if I met with someone claiming to be my future self and he acted completely differently. I'd definitely react the way he did.

Part of me likes to believe that this whole special was just a pre-regeneration hallucination like Eleven had with seeing Amy again. It would actually explain the First Doctor's bastardized characterization as a projection of The Doctor's self-loathing for (in his perspective) ruining Bill's life and leaving Nardole for dead.

9th Doctor: Ah don't worry, I'll be different sure, but deep down I'm still the same. 10th Doctor: I don't want to go. 11th Doctor: I had a good run, but now it's time for me to say good bye. 12th: I really don't want to go, but I still have to.

It's been 3 years and the twist of the identity of Steven Moffat's Massive, Massive Brain still gets me

I agree, I didn't really know how I felt at the end and World and Time enough + The Doctor Falls felt like more of an exit to his character with this being a little tacked on part with not much of an aim but some good moments

I think that this episode should have been written by both Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss so that once Steven Moffat finished the final draft, Gatiss could make the necessary rewrites to the character of the First Doctor

Twist endings are always ba- Mofats brain is the LFSC

You know what would be really cool? If when Jodie's time comes she just lies down outside the TARDIS and says "night night" before there is a proper brief flash effect and the new Doctor stands up.

I think Mark needs to stay as a low key actor. He was absolutely creepy as Tycho in the 7th season of Game of Thrones. If we Hollywood him, some magical part of him is lost forever. And yeah, Clara's appearance pissed me off. Go away, Queen Victoria!

Hearing what you've said about this, I think the main reason I enjoyed this special so much is that I'm not that familiar with the first Doctor's era.

Steven Moffat's brain must be a planet and all of doctor who takes place on there

It feels hard being a fan of Doctor Who at this point, of any era. Whether you like Twice Upon a Time or not, the NewWho haters are popping up more because of it. In a way, it brings my self-esteem down a bit, knowing how fans can get towards others. For now, I think I may have to leave the fandom for a while, until I can bring myself back up to debate with others.

I just totally realized, after watching your review of the Doctor Falls and going into this, you mentioned how he wanted to wrap up an explanation of the Master's regeneration into Missy, and it seems really unlike him to leave something unexplained like the fact all the Doctors knew to come save Gallifrey, so I really do think he forgot about it because THIS episode was the perfect way to integrate that in! The 12th Doctor meets the First and maybe near the end he could have been like "oh yea go save Gallifrey, and oh right I was there too wasn't I? I haven't did that yet so let's both go and do this then both regenerate". It was the perfect way to tie up that loose end but I think Moffat genuinely forgot about it.

What happens to the editorials for 1- 9

"Without the net of a big franchise" His very next work is dracula

To me it just felt sort of directionless and as I said somewhere else, was just a sequence of stuff happening. Not awful but I struggle to think what a casual fan would have to latch onto with something like this. I know people will be like "but it's for the fans" but consider that it is being broadcast on arguably most major channel at mealtime on Christmas Day. That timeslot really should be catering for your general audience and is in a perfect position to hook in potential new fans if you produce something that can entertain more casual viewers. Instead we get something that is just about servicable at best for fans and has no appeal for anyone else.

To be continued; In Stubagful's Class Episode 7.

Although I loved this story and your take on it, I feel like it's a very easy one to ruin for yourself by getting hung up on the wrong things.

This is one of my favorite Christmas Specials

He did base the Sexism and Xenophobia from watching/revisiting the first doctor era.

No series 11 predictions?

‘Smacks the desk’ I knew that Brain wasn’t real!

I can actually understand why a Doctor may become attached to a current form. Partly because they are around humans for so long and because there's the possibility the prospect of regeneration feels like a never ending cycle.

Moffat's brain is the living flesh supercomputer. My life is complete.

Hartnell era used to be my favourite but my big issue with it is lack of rewatch ability and I completely enjoy the story but don't usually come back. Saying that the space museum, the Chase, the rescue and the crusade are pretty damn good

It doesn't even matter to me what this video says. This is something I have been waiting for.

It's kinda funny that this and the last two regenerations feature the word "Time". XD Speaking of which, how does this compare to "Time of the Doctor" and "The End of Time"?

While the episode has issues, peter capaldi gave a bloody amazing performance as always

THEY SAID THE N WORD IN THE CELESTIAL TOYMAKER?!??

Is this the quickest that a video has even been uploaded after the episode has aired?

The episode expects you to see it from a variety of different angles and hoping you enjoy it, if you only see it from a few angles then you start to see the holes in the whole thing.

11:16 I actually found the ending to be Spot on - The whole Winter Truce bit... It adds to the Timey Wimey Wibbly Wobbly set up... If the Doctor had NOT fought against his regeneration - The this would have been that soldiers death, And all teh time the Doctor has lived through would have been different! His Life is NOT linear... If he had NOT fought his regeneration - This soldier would have died JUST BEFORE the Truce... And with that, Lethbridge Stewart would NEVER have been Born.. So with The Doctors Life NEVER being Linear- He ends up not where he wants to be but where He NEEDS to be!!!! A Fixed point in time that even he never knew existed but just is there... Which then brings more questions too! Like did the Time Lords KNOW the Doctor would get another Regeneration Cycle out of them anyhow? If not, How could this happen? How does the Doctor not know he is teh reason UNIT exist? How the F**KING hell is anyone supposed to understand Time in Doctor Who? (Oh wait - You are not supposed to... Suspension of Disbelief!)

The Original Doctor so you might say line has been pretty destroyed by The Timeless Children

I had no big issue with the sort-of retcon of the First Doctor's attitude towards his regeneration. It fits with his personality as well the act that it was his first time doing so. I would respond to the idea that all Classic Doctors were resistant to changing. Doctor Two certainly wasn't happy and I wouldn't have been shocked if the sixth Doctor had taken such an attitude had he been conscious. And it isn't like all new Who Doctors are resistant? Nine and Eleven didn't fuss. I agree they should try something different next time. Don't draw it out so much, do it outside the TARDIS for once and have it occur at a less predictable point in the story. Modern regeneration are getting rather clichéd.

I mean I liked the episode since it’s essentially a character piece with the Doctor on 2 sides of the spectrum. One man is completely new to this process and idea of change and is self admittedly scared of it. The other man is someone who’s been through change so much and fighting for so long he’s as he called him ‘the last soldier on the battlefield’ Both refusing regeneration for separate reasons but by the end coming to accept it again, for their own reasons. While it’s a split episode in terms of reception, I appreciated it being about the Doctor a lot more than spending time sending Clara home.... *twice* and forcing in elements like the Time Lords simply to try wrap up story arcs as fast as possible. Capaldi’s speech at the end was also bloody brilliant

I was kind of meh on this one myself. Don't really disagree with much of what you had to say. Even the regeneration was very eh. Best part was probably Nardole's appearance. I was thinking it was kind of shame if he didn't show up for this one and it was nice to see him. I might have had Missy make a cameo somewhere as well since she was pretty much the biggest recurring thing in the Capaldi era but I guess that might have taken things a bit too far.

Just curious but are these Christmas episodes filmed at the tail end of production for the regular season? I mean they don't all come back in like October to do one episode right? It seemed pretty obvious this is the case as the after show special has a scene with Peter where he regenerates and they say that is the last shot filmed for this crew. I assume then later Chibnall came in with the new Doctor Her and filmed the follow up scene but that must have been some time later.

the twist at the end of the video was better than the episode

The critiques I can largely appreciate. The sarcasm? I loved! I agree the first Doctor's character was mostly mishandled. The detractor/kicker about a showrunner not being a fan is that they can often do a shit job of actually understandng the Doctor's characters,. The Doctor's mourning, sometimes grief -stricken attitudes, pre-regeneration, I see differently. Each Doctor expresses aspects of the Doctor's overall personality. He/she mourns, or grieves because in some sense the Doctor changes, in those expressions, feeling as though their is lose of the identity, death of that aspect of personality. My take on this. It does add poignancy, & weight to the changes for me. Aside from the issues, it was the last good episode, so far, in Doctor Who.

I think a lot of people who comment on this story are confusing the 60s and its values with the 40s or 50s. Let's get one thing straight...the 60s were the coolest decade EVER! The era that gave us The Beatles, Hendrix, the Moon landing and, yes, "Doctor Who" has the bragging rights over EVERY other decade in my opinion. And let's not forget...the modern world of today was born in the 60s. Any and all of the modern, enlightened, "progressive" attitudes and social values people are so proud of (and indeed, SMUG about) today are a direct result of the radical changes and upheaval brought about in the 60s. So really, people should honour and revere the 60s for making the world we live in today possible, rather than sneer at and deride that wonderful decade...

I am so disappointed they didn't show Clara's stupid ass flying dinner TARDIS, but they made up for it with the awful green screen I guess.

Also, speaking of Mark Gattis, he's going to be the Winnie The Pooh live action film from Disney.

You know what, I really fucking miss regenerations where the Doctor doesn't bleat on for about half an hour... to him/herself... about whimsical and nonsensical shite. I hope Miss Whittaker has a better exit. This is not to say I don't want her to go already - I am so excited for her portrayal!

Are we sure Steven Moffat isn't a H-h-harmony Shoal (shudders from it's non-scariness) being a space-brain and all that. If you would like to know what a Harmony Shoal is, click here. tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Shoal_of_the_Winter_Harmony

Nailed it. Nice use of one of the best pieces of music ever written too :P Journey of the Sorcerer for all us towel carriers.

Also in the five doctors the doctors 2-5 kind of feels like companions but yeah this was kind of the opposite

Hey! I don't know where you get off thinking a hammer can't make fine adjustments;-) Or is that final adjustments?

Moffat doesn't like the first Doctor, he doesn't like the Tom Baker era either. Not as much as Moffat enjoys the Davison era - especially Kinda

You are letting your fanboyism for the first doctor cloud your judgement

9:15 I cant remember if it was Steven or Russell or somebody else but I seem to recall an idea for a Christmas regen story from someone which just had the doctor being mortally wounded helping like, one family at Christmas. No big event, just all in the aid of a small group of people under relatively low stakes. I'd like to see that again.

To anyone who says the First Doctor was racist and xenophobic, I'd point them towards The Sensorites. That's one of my favourite First Doctor serials and it literally has him and his companions go up against a xenophobic alien conspiracy.

I don't know if it's fair to say Classic never played Regeneration off as death. Look at the Second Doctor. Or the Fourth. Hell, I'd argue the First Doctor threats it as death too. The morose horror with which he says "Oh, it is far from being over". I never saw it as the Doctor's race don't see death as something scary, I always saw it as Doctor himself putting on a brave face in the face of death. I dunno, Stuart, I get it, the idea of a race who are so different from us they don't see death as anything sad is interesting, I just don't know if that's what I want Doctor to be. Fear of death is something natural. It's a character flaw. It gave us some really amazing moments. I love this exploration of regeneration as something terrifying. Cause it is. It's not just death, it's loss of identity. Becoming something you're not. Losing what made you yourself while still being conscious. Waking up with ideas you may have previously found disgusting.

Hey Stu! I was wondering, will you be doing a 12th Doctor Retrospective?Thanks!

I'm scared to think of who the original stubagful is.

personally, i found the episode to be really nice, although after watching it, i also saw its flaws, and the first doctor did feel a bit off. However i am gonna wait for chibnal to make his first episode.... judging by his past 4 episodes.... im guessing it will include a timer counting down. Also, i really want to see the new companions being gradually introduced to the doctor through the season. start with 1 or 2, then add more later.

Did anyone else think the great war soilder would turn out to be Hitler?

I don't really understand why the TARDIS exploded. It didn't make a huge amount of sense when it happened for Ten either but I justify it then because he died by absorbing a massive amount of nuclear radiation so his regen energy expelling it all seemed a plausible enough reason why everything started exploding. This time... didn't he die by getting shot a couple of time. Doesn't seem like there's any reason why that would cause a huge explosion especially considering regens of the past have been basically peaceful, a screen transition between old and new not a giant fireball. Granted they need a reason for the TARDIS to change as a new showrunner would naturally want a new TARDIS for his run but that seems like something that should be covered in the opening of the next episode. This just felt kind of cheap.

By the way, which Stuart is that in the thumbnail? Like, I know it must be the "first" Stuart, but where is he in the Timeline? Your first Video? Did he regenerate into 50 Shades Stuart after his encounters with Twilight? We need to get the canon straight, cause right now I'm just going off your videos from oldest to newest.

You forgot that mark gatiss was in game of thrones once or twice as the head of the iron bank

For gods sake Stuart so much for you being a fan of Doctor Who... why aren't you reviewing The War Master instead of this Christmas special?! hehe jk :)