Well we all knew how this one was going to end so it was really just a case of how also departing writer and show-runner Steven Moffat would get us there that mattered. In so doing he found a nice juicy part for his sometime collaborator Mark Gatiss with character whose identity I guessed long before the end and a story which saw us encounter the Doctor's first incarnation, plus the reincarnations, or so it seemed of Bill Potts and more briefly Nardini and more welcomely, Jenna Coleman as Clara. There was a mysterious presence going by the name of Testimony, a glass-formed creature which handily gathers and retains the memories of individuals on the verge of death, a meet-up with a reformed Dalek and of course at the climax, the at last welcome regeneration into new doc, Jodie Whittaker.For once then the doctor wasn't pitted against some galaxy threatening do-badder, although I felt the lack of any sense of danger, coupled with the inevitability of the outcome, rather took some of the edge off the episode. The commemoration of the Christmas 2014 World War 1 Armistice (remembering this episode was this year's Christmas Special), was apt and tastefully rendered. Perhaps more could have been done in the interaction between the two Doctors, although the old doc's antiquated sexist outlook couldn't have been more accidentally topical if it tried.I'll certainly miss Capaldi's waspish humour and yes, his Scottishness, but with a new writing team as well as the first ever female doctor the next season will be intriguing to say the least.I wish Ms Whittaker well in the part and will be keenly anticipating the new doctor's new adventures in the coming year.

This episode features David Bradley recreating the very first Doctor (originally played by William Hartnell) and accompanying Peter Capaldi in his final adventure before his 12th Doctor regenerates into a female 13th Doctor. The episode begins with a beautiful clip from Hartnell as the 1st Doctor sstarting to feel his regeneration coming before a slightly unnecessarily noticeable transition to Bradley playing the 1st Doctor. The tiny flaw in this transition is quickly forgotten as Bradley does a fantastic job throughout the episode. Bradley is a supremely good actor and it shines through in this respectful, humorous and magical portrayal of the Doctor. Capaldi is on top form and the story is thoughtful, moving, funny, interesting and works really well in all departments. I also loved Mark Gatiss role of the Captain who joins the adventure and turns out to be of lovely significance. The element which lifts the story even more into greatness is the inclusion of the Great War (now known as World War I) and the movingly beautiful scenes and thoughtful ideas presented with brilliant acting all round. Excellent stuff.Steven Moffatt's final episode as 'showrunner'/writer is among his best in my opinion. Moffatt has been a great servant to the show and the writer of some truly great episodes but also has been the architect of some overblown and illogical plotting in his years in charge. His use of humour has also been known to slip into silliness from time to time. I think he had a bit too much power and was not quality or logic checked enough at times. I hope new writer Chris Chibnall will have a team around him working to ensure stories are logical and top quality. Chibnall has incurred the wrath of a section of fans before he even starts by casting a young woman in the role of the 13th Doctor. The over the top online reaction to that decision is typical of online craziness nowadays about everything (Doctor Who, Star Wars, Game of Thrones etc all attracting online hate every time they depart from this vocal section of fans personal view of how it should go.). No sensible, measured approach is shown by these internet moaners, they just have huge over-reaction, hate and exaggeration, ignoring facts to claim their own personal view is the only acceptable truth and lacking any consistency in judging new work against earlier work. For instance I have seen online ranters saying this episode was poor because it was 'boring'. Well classic series of Doctor Who had slower pacing, relative lack of visual wonder and less action. There was also a lot of filler conversation and repetition of capture and recapture etc. This was due to the multi episode story format and constraints and expectations of the era. I LOVE those classic series. I loved it then and I still love it now. Slower paced, character building, thoughtful presentation of views and ideas all can be great. This episode is like classic Who in many ways and to criticise it for those aspects as if Doctor Who has to be a non-stop roller-coaster of action is ridiculous unless someone is a fan of the series only since 2005. The script, plot and acting in this episode carries off the slower paced, less action oriented story superbly well and matches most classic Doctor Who great stories. I am not saying this is the best episode ever but it easily sits alongside the top class.My own personal view is that a female actor taking on the role of the Doctor is of no real consequence as long as the acting and writing quality is high. Surely anybody should judge quality not gender. Yes, we all grew up with a male Doctor but why does gender matter really? If it is written and created well it will be absolutely fine. I suspect Jodie Whittaker will not be among my top 5 or 6 Doctors but I am willing to bet her tenure will be a lot better than the show was during the 6th Doctor's era or the first two years of the 7th Doctor when the show was well below the usual standard of writing or production.The 13th Doctor's arrival at the end regeneration scene was rather dramatic. I think I would have preferred a less shocking introduction and it has given more ammunition to the haters who latched onto the scene as evidence of it 'ruining their show'. I will wait and see her first episode though before I form any initial thoughts on her or Chibnall. This episode was about Peter Capaldi signing off as the 12th Doctor and he really finished on a high. His acting was superb and the writing gave him a great send off. Moffatt chose to have the 12th Doctor suffering a sort of identity crisis throughout his time, I guess you could argue the new cycle of regenerations given to the Doctor could cause this or just the chain of events could have made him question himself in a kind of mid-life crisis type situation. I loved that in Capaldi's farewell Moffatt allowed his Doctor to have a feeling of resolution and renewed faith in himself. Maybe this was overdue but it was done very well indeed. I hope fans can be open minded and stop over-reacting. The show goes through cycles and changes, it always has. If it ever slips it is only temporary so why not stick with it and try to look for the positives. By all means make constructive criticism where appropriate but be reasonable. Too much to ask in the online craziness but no harm in me trying.

Twice upon a Time is the title of this episode, which sees a nice bit of casting by drawing David Bradley from the depiction of the actor William Hartnell, to here play the character he was most famous for (while Bradley himself is more famous for Game of Thrones now). This is one of the many positive things that this special held out; a final outing for Capaldi, a final appearance for Mackie (somehow), and a regeneration into a new Doctor. Lots on offer, so it is frustrating that it doesn't really hit many high notes as it goes.The plot sees time frozen, but it is the tone that seems the most awkwardly stuck between two stools. It knows it has to be 'important' but at the same time it also kind of knows that it should be entertaining too. Any time it tries to do one, it seems overly conscious not to move too far from the other; the end result is something that is very middle-of-the-road and lacks conviction in what it is doing. Capaldi deserves a stronger bow out than this; he gets his moment on screen but the episode itself doesn't build up as well as previous exits have. Bradley's Doctor isn't used particularly well at all; there is a novelty of seeing him but mostly his character is not great - which is a fairly poor situation if you are going to bring the original Doctor back. As a story there isn't really a pace to it, and I didn't find myself held by it as it unfolded. Returns and references for many characters just felt like they were throwing things at the screen, not that the story made sense to have them all.This weakness meant the more important moments felt fake, or at very least unearned. The use of the WWI setting and famous moment is corny, the references/connections to other characters are clunky as usual, but what bothered me more was the way that themes were not delivered on as they could have been. More could have been made of the two Doctors being there - more could have been done to engage that reflective tone, and to bring it round to be a conclusion and decision to start afresh. At times it seems to be looking for this, but the show doesn't have the determination to go for it.

To me this episode was perfect. I've seen a lot of complaining about the lack of action and no enemy. But they're missing the point. 12 already had his final battle in the doctor falls. This episode was more about the doctor learning about himself and everything he stands for. It showed the evolution of him. I loved the story of how the first doctor left galifrey because he wanted to see how good could ever beat evil and actually the answer to that was himself. David Bradley was a great first doctor and he's a great actor and its a shame he couldn't be his own original doctor. The final shots of the ww1 Christmas truce were beautiful it sums up why the doctor loves the earth so much that these soldiers who are at war could lay down their weapons for one day just to be kind was a brilliant moment and the scene of the 2 doctors standing there watching like ghosts was truly amazing. The cameos were a nice touch. Clara needed to be there in some form and they had a nice moment even if it wwsnt actually her. Also it was obvious Peter and Jenna didn't film the scene together but it was still a lovely moment and while nardoles appearance wasn't necessary it was still a nice and his speech about his battlefield being empty because everyone else had fallen was truly tragic and the last bit where they hugged and disappeared leaving his arms empty truly hit me hard. 12 I feel truly struggled with being alone more than any other.Capaldis 2 final speeches were truly beautiful about kindness. A doctor who had often been criticised as to dark or to cold and ruthless has shown he is the one who values kindness more than most. Say what you want about Moffat but he has truly given the doctor as a whole so much depth, he truly understands what makes him tick. Peter Capaldi you have been amazing both in the role and out of the role you truly are the doctor the universe we all need and have done so much and you deserve a great career ahead still and I may not like it but doctor, I let you go.The only negative I have is Jodie whitakers first scene. It felt lazy to me. This was chibnals debut scene and he did nothing to establish her character, the first words were as cliche and unoriginal as you can get then basically copied the 11th hour opening. Really hoping this isn't a sign to come for his era.But overall a beautiful episode for Peter Capaldi and him and Steven Moffat will truly be missed. Thank you gentleman for the best era of doctor who in my humble opinion.Overall rating: out of 10...12