We're back in the Victorian era, where a very sulky Doctor has retired from adventuring after the loss of Amy and Rory. But a new mystery will bring him back to his old ways alongside the Paternoster Gang (The Silurian Vastra, her human wife Jenny and comedy Sontaran Strax) and the second incarnation of soon-to-be companion Clara!
There is a lot to like here. Vastra, Jenny and Strax became instant fan-favourites and quite rightly so! They are the modern-era UNIT family for the Eleventh Doctor. And just like UNIT, the enemy is the Great Intelligence, returning for the first time since the sixties!
I'll ge this out of the way... I don't like the titular Snowmen themselves. They seem a little too silly to me. I would have much rather seen some redesigned Yeti robots.
However, that aside, I enjoyed this special a lot. It still runs on the fairy tale logic that became a signature of Matt Smith's Doctor, but as long as you're willing to accept that, this is a well-made adventure and good fun! Not the best Christmas special, but head and shoulders above most.
Matt Smith is fully settled into his role and can pull off the expressive emotional contortions demanded of his incarnation. Strax is a comical delight in small doses and the rest acquit themselves well. Twice non-Doctor Richard E. Grant and the legendary Ian McKellan are not as fully utilized as their star power suggests, but both use what are given well.
The Snowmen is the first of three good Christmas specials in a row.