Joshua Noel and Christian Ashley dive into the whimsical world of "Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol," the third entry in this year’s Christmas Drive-In series on Systematic Geekology. They kick off the episode by exploring how this unique special weaves the classic tale of redemption into the fabric of the Doctor Who universe, showcasing a rich blend of humor and heart. Joshua shares his personal affection for this episode, dubbing it one of his "Christmas Fantastic Four," while Christian, the unsung hero of the day, rolls with the punches as the backup host. Their light-hearted banter is peppered with witty observations about the show's quirks, like the Doctor's charmingly reckless approach to time travel and the bittersweet moments that define the characters' journeys. Ultimately, they touch upon the profound message of the story: everyone is important, making this festive special a delightful watch that resonates beyond just a holiday treat. The Christmas Drive-In series rolls on, and this time, Joshua Noel and Christian Ashley dive deep into the Whovian world with a discussion about 'Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol'. With a laid-back vibe, they kick off by reminiscing about their own Christmas traditions and what makes this particular special a staple in Joshua's Christmas Fantastic Four. They chat about the unique twist on the classic Dickens tale, where the Doctor, played by Matt Smith, takes on the role of a whimsical yet poignant guide for the curmudgeonly Kazran Sardick. The conversation flows effortlessly as they explore themes like redemption, the significance of human connection, and how the Doctor's adventures often reflect deeper moral lessons. They also toss in some witty banter about their personal feelings towards the characters and plot twists, making it clear that while the show may have its quirks, it still delivers a heartfelt narrative that resonates during the holiday season.

Takeaways:

1. Joshua and Christian dive deep into the themes of 'Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol', showcasing how it creatively intertwines classic Christmas motifs with sci-fi elements.
2. The discussion highlights the importance of character development, particularly Kazran, as he transforms from a selfish old man to someone who realizes the value of human connection.
3. Humor is abundant as Christian and Joshua banter about their personal favorites, showcasing their chemistry and love for Christmas specials in a laid-back manner.
4. The episode explores the poignant moments in the special, emphasizing the Doctor's unique perspective on the significance of every individual, no matter how seemingly insignificant.
5. Listeners will appreciate the clever nods to traditional Christmas narratives while enjoying the fresh take that 'Doctor Who' brings to the beloved story of redemption.
6. Overall, the podcast captures the essence of Christmas spirit through reflection on hope, redemption, and the importance of every person's story, making it a must-listen during the holiday season.

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Listen to the rest of our 2025 Christmas Drive-In series:

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Check out all of our Doctor Who episodes:

https://player.captivate.fm/collection/ed801af8-c4d8-44ec-98c2-1d55e04d11dd

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https://player.captivate.fm/collection/642da9db-496a-40f5-b212-7013d1e211e0

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A movie drive in at Christmas. Wow. This has my name all over it. Well, not literally, but give me time and some grounds.

I am Joshua Noel here with the one and only Christian Ashley, here for the Christmas Drive in series where we've been doing TV specials. We've done, you know, Batman, the Joker Christmas.

We've talked about the Supernatural Christmas and now we are here another one voted from our Facebook group, Priest to the Geeks. Make sure you join it. Links are somewhere they voted to allow me also to talk about a Christmas Carol.

You know, I don't really like Christmas that much. I usually don't end up on the drive ins that frequently. But for some reason both Supernatural and Doctor who made it to the drive in this year.

So here I am. And this is one of my what I call my Christmas Fantastic Four.

There are four things I have to watch every Christmas and this has made the list for me is Doctor who's A Christmas Carol starring Matt Smith as the Doctor. The other ones, if you're wondering, It's a Wonderful Life Miracle on 34th street in a Year Without a Santa Claus.

That rounds out my Christmas Fantastic Four.

It's a solid list.

Yeah, I mean, I like them. What's your Christmas Fantastic Four?

I don't have one. You've just crippled me with choice on this episode we were really prepared for.

Yeah, Christian was not supposed to be on this episode. So it was supposed to be me and another host and that didn't work out. So another host. So Christian's the backup. Backup.

Really what it is is Christian's on too many episodes. So I try really hard not to drag him into more. Or is it because I won't. Don't want y' all have to listen to him that much.

One of the one of those options.

It'S what happens is the flare, the bat symbol goes up and of course I have to be the one to answer.

Yeah. Also for those wondering, he does have a recorder attached to his pants and every time he walks into your house, it starts playing.

That signal. Sorry, not symbol.

Anyway, so Doctor who A Christmas Carol, one of my all time favorite Christmas viewings. We Christian, we're gonna pretend we just got in the car.

We went to the drive in, we watched this on a big screen in the car eating popcorn and stuff. Then you looked over to me after the showing and what's the first thing you said?

Well, Joshua, considering pretty much what happened today is you basically drove into my house, said, christian, we're gonna go see a movie together. Only it's Not a movie. It's gonna be a Doctor who episode. You have two hours to prepare. And you know what?

I got to watch it in that amount of time again because it's been a while. And I'm gonna look at you and say, you know what? Despite all the damages you've caused to my home, I'm glad I watched this with you.

Yeah. Yeah. I. Matt Smith is one of my least favorite Doctors, but some of my favorite episodes are Matt Smith episodes. This is one of them.

And two of my favorite Doctor who quotes are actually from this special. So it's possible that after the drive in, I would have looked at you and said, one of those. I might have been like that. Had my name all over it.

Well, not literally, but give me time and some grounds.

It's also possible I would have looked at you and said, man, you know, I thought you were somebody important, but it turns out somebody not important, but it turns out that even If I had 900 years of space and time travel, you still would not meet a person who wasn't important. Crazy. Yeah. I just.

I love that moment when the Doctor just, you know, he's doing his little, like, going back and forth and being silly and acting childish bit and see somebody frozen, and it's like, oh, who's that? And you have definitely not Dumbledore or Scrooge, but both of those things go say, oh, don't worry about her. She's no one important.

The Doctor just stops and goes, you know what's crazy? In 900 years of space and time travel, I've yet to meet a single person who wasn't important. And I just. I don't know.

Something about that one line that was kind of. It felt like a throwaway line, but also just beautiful.

It's a pretty bolder line for him, especially as someone who's traveled and he's seen a lot of people and he's seen the worst of humanity and other races, and the Time Lords, he's also seen the best, and every single one of them was notable in some way or fashion. And I appreciate that line a lot.

Yeah. Insert rant from both of us about Imago Day. So we're just going to brush right past that. Yeah.

For those who don't know, this isn't a direct retelling of A Christmas Carol. Rather, what happens is the Doctor's companions just gonna, you know, put a pin in that for now. They're in a trip.

They get stuck in on this planet that has a cloud belt with flying fish, flying Fish. How do people ever get bored? Who invented boredom? I. Yeah, you. I could probably quote this whole special, but they get stuck.

He ends up finding the man who has device doohickey that controls the cloud belt that can help them out. Who's refusing because, I don't know, Money, perhaps.

Do you want to actually give a synopsis or are you gonna bungle your way through this?

I'm gonna bungle my way. No synopsis.

Goddamn Himmel.

The point is because reasons he needed to convince an old crotchety man to do the right thing. And as he was trying to figure out how to do that, he heard people singing a Christmas carol.

And the Doctor basically recreates a Christmas carol, but visiting this man's past, showing him what's happening in the future. And also my favorite twist, actually, this is a lot of Steven Moffat twist annoy me.

But this one I thought was actually pretty good of, you know, instead of showing him the future of what's going to happen, you know, the man's prepared to be shown the future and he goes, oh, I am showing it to you. And the child version of it walks out and sees what he becomes and he's like, dad. And it's like, ooh, yeah, that was. That was hard.

Since we're not doing a synopsis and Christian is annoyed. We're not doing a synopsis because we don't have time, Christian. But go ahead and say the things you want to say about it.

All right, so they're not stuck on the planet. They're stuck on a spaceliner, Amy and Rory. And they're about to.

They're stuck in the sky belt of the planet still.

Yeah, yeah, but they're on the ship about to die. That's fresh land.

Because this whole planet is controlled by Kazarian Sardic, whose dad basically made a way to where the clouds can be moved around for his own purposes. There's some vagueness to it. There's some that's legitimately explained about how he can control it to control the planet and its resources.

That's why he has all the money and everyone under his thrall. Kassern at this time is old, bitter, and has been abused his whole life.

And the Doctor tries to go to him, be like, hey, like, these people are all going to die. You're the only person who can save them. Because you know, science nonsense. And if you don't do it, 4,003 people are dead.

And he's like, bahambug, because I'm your screwed for this episode and disagrees with the Doctor and there's a moment where he goes to this boy and he's about to strike him because he kind of got in his way and messed with him, but he stops himself. And that's what makes the Doctor go, okay, maybe there's something redeemable about this guy. So he learns about who he is.

There's a little bit of Sherlock scan moment going, okay, this is why you're like this. So he goes into the past in the TARDIS to become his Mary Poppins babysitter, and they have romps around time.

And they find that Mary Poppins comparison is rubbish, by the way.

Yes. And they find that he used to be a sweet kid, but abused by a terrible father.

And one of the things that this, the original his father did, is he would. Can't really even rewatch this. I don't get it completely. It's the idea of selling a family member as like collateral or something like that.

And these cryopods for reasons. And we have a young woman there who. Go ahead.

He's. I'm trying to think of, like the word for it in our world, but basically mob kind of mentality of.

He allows people to borrow money, he charges an incredible amount of interest on it, and then for the down payment, he takes humans, basically, and puts them in a pod. So you're basically trapped until you pay him back. And a family member can volunteer to be that person so that you can get the loan. Loan shark.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's what I was thinking.

So they're little flying space sharks and also, you know, this human loan shark.

And the Doctor goes down there with him after they have some problems with one of the flying sharks he's curious about, gets into his room, the sonic screwdriver gets snapped in half. Half of it is inside a shark, half of it is with the Doctor and Kazarin.

And they.

To save the shark because the kid does is just an animal doing its thing. He finds this young woman in there named Abigail, who was one of these people who sold themselves as a lonely.

And he becomes enamored with her over the years. And through the process, they learned that her voice kind of because of sound waves or something.

Every time he complains about it, you know, he gets bitten. So don't worry about the science or anything behind it. It's.

It's science reasons, it just works.

The Doctor and Kazarin end up teaming up with her, and he slowly falls in love with her as he grows up, because one of the things to do is that every Christmas Eve they're going to show back up because she has to go back in the pod after they're done. And as he grows up, she kind of falls for him.

They go through shenanigans in time until eventually it learns that there's actually a countdown involved and she has one single day to live. She started with eight, so they've had eight Christmas Eves together.

And this breaks him and it becomes the bitter old man in a different way than he did in the original timeline. So the Doctor is then forced to work with them again to make him realize what's going on.

Rory and Amy try to get the goodness gracious crew of the ship and the passengers to, like, sing a Curse of Carol, remind them that they're human beings. That doesn't work. Then finally, what does work is that the Doctor brings the past version of Kazran to see his future self almost hitting him.

And that's where the line of dad comes up, because it's the idea of I've become the abuser again. And he almost hits him and stops himself. And that's what's like, okay, I don't want to be him anymore. And it works together.

Everything is perfectly fine. They're able to land a ship because they have a change of heart. And Abigail's brought up for one last Christmas with him.

And that's where we kind of left off as the Doctor and Amy and Rory go off on their own.

I'm glad we're not doing a synopsis. Yeah, the. I will say, too, like, that first time that he almost hits the other kid, that was one of the other things.

I really appreciate that he almost hits the kid and the Doctor. That's what makes the Doctor stay behind and talk to him more. Because he says. And he point.

He does like a Sherlock number almost of like, oh, there's this picture of your dad over here. All the chairs are pointing away from it. All this stuff's going on. It's why you're afraid of your dad and you're not like your dad, not really.

Do you know why? And he's like, why? He's like, you didn't hit the kid. And it was like, yeah. There's so many moments in this that are just truly heartwarming.

It's good. The connection to the overall Doctor who ness I love too.

Because, like, even though I think it's kind of nonsensical that she only has, like, really specifically eight days to live, we know exactly how long she has to live for some Reason, whatever, you know, eventually he has to choose what will be the last day he has with her.

And it's important because the Doctors, having kind of a timey wimey journey with River Song, and also knows based on their journals that they both keep that whenever they see each other, next is going to be the last night they spend together, which we now know will be on Christmas. I could unpack that, but that's a whole nother special and it is so good. So that's probably my second favorite Doctor who Christmas special. Yeah.

Anyway, so while here, it's just a fantastic story.

A lot of heartwarming moments and just a lot of sci fi, sci fi, sci fi ness, you know, and maybe some fantasy because we don't feel like explaining things because we have a time limit here. Yeah. But since this is just a special, it's not going to fill out the whole movie slot. We have to do it as a double feature.

Christian, what would you pair with this showing to fill out our drive in experience?

I keep getting surprised by this question, and it. I don't know why it's so funny that you do. Sorry. I'd say I'd read this outline, but one doesn't exist for this one.

But I prepared for the other one I'm going to be doing today, the one I was actually supposed to be on, as I'm bungling around for time. Sure. Let's go with tent Doctor regeneration. Isn't that on Christmas, too, with the Sycorax?

I think that was the first of our era of Christmas specials. Sure.

You know what? The fumble around for an answer. That's my answer.

I think. Hear me out. I'm probably cheating, but the Muppets Christmas Carol is only an hour and 20 minutes.

I feel like these go together and that's like, you know, this is a good solid block.

Okay. Mickey's Mickey Christmas Carol.

Oh, man. Christian, one again. I have once again been defeated. Unless you ask tj. TJ loves them up at Christmas Carol.

I mean, they're both good.

Yeah. Yeah. I think what stands out about the Doctor who one is that it's not actually a Christmas carol. They didn't go, you know what?

Let's redo that story again. They were like, we're going to incorporate the story in a respectful way, but tell our own story with time travel. Yeah, yeah, of course. Oh, man.

So what is for you? What about this special really stands out? Good or bad that you're like, this is what makes this, I don't know, good?

Definitely seeing the Doctor Care not only.

I mean, he's got a personal stake in the story and that, you know, Rory and Amy are going to die because if this doesn't happen the way he wants it to, that ship's going to crash Landmark. Also, he repeats, 4,003 people are going to die. So he's doing whatever it takes to get that done.

And you go, he would easily have gone like Time Lord Victorious for a moment there if he hadn't seen Kazran might not hit the kid. And that's that moment of, oh, there's actually some humanity left in you, and I think that's worth preserving and I think that's worth fighting for.

Oh, that's sort of a threaty thing. But it's like, I always took that as not a threat. I think the Doctor genuinely meant, no, I'm saving you, too. And he does.

To be fair, it's a little easier with time travel.

You don't actually have to worry about the people running out of time and crashing to the planet because you're just like, I'll come back to the right time. But he does.

He spends a huge chunk of time getting to know this character who is more or less just because of his own crotchetiness, is putting in danger the Doctor's best friend's lives. And he's like, I'm gonna go back in time.

And you really get to know this guy and help him, help them out and learn, kind of teach him to be a better person. And it's like. It's like the combination of, like, leaving the 99 for the 1 and loving your enemy to the extreme.

Like, it's like, I'm gonna do both of those things at the same time in the most extreme way possible.

Yes.

Yeah. And I think, too, I like. And maybe this is, as a Matt Smith hater, it makes me like it more that the Doctor kind of misses it on this one.

He's like, oh, we're having fun. This is great.

And eventually he's gonna grow up and be a good guy, and he just misses the fact that what actually happens is he's gonna fall in love and it ends up making him into the grouch. Like, the Doctor actually kind of dropped the ball in that first act. And I like that. I like that that's what happened.

It wasn't like the Doctor just simply went in and made him a better person. It was a. Oh, the Doctor messed up because he's a little too silly. It was a little too childish. He was just having fun with it all and.

And, you know, consequences are still real, even when you can just go back in time and fix things.

Yeah, I'm with you. Yeah, that nitpicky one. Thing I'm not big on. It's a throwaway joke, and you shouldn't really take it that seriously.

But when you actually know the history behind it all, it gets a little worse.

And then he gets upset with them for kissing, just like he does with Amy and Rory, because they're not focused on him because he's a little bit of a man child in this, you know, incarnation. Well, pretty much all of them. He's a man child, but this is more exacerbated, shall we say. And she's like, fine, well, I'll go get married to her.

And he leaves. It's a joke, so I'm not taking it too seriously. But, like, wait, if you look at Marilyn Monroe's rose life, it's depressing.

This woman was trying to find love and it just went poorly. So now he adds himself to that list. I don't like the Doctor doing that, but you know what? That's nitpicky.

Yeah.

They weren't thinking too hard about it.

Yeah, I don't think that they were putting that much thought into it, unfortunately, because they also reference it again at the end when Rory goes to the DAR's, like, Marilyn's calling for you, and I think it might be the mar. Oh, man. Yeah, I don't know. It's hard to find negatives for me, really. I do think my biggest negative is just, like, the. How do you know exactly?

Eight days is how much time she has to live. Like, that irks me a little bit.

I also do the whole thing, too. She doesn't look like someone who's about to die. I'll put it that way.

Yeah, yeah. Like. But I. Dude, I did really appreciate the one year that they. She was like, what if we did this Christmas Eve instead of time travel?

You know, I always like the moments in any show, movie, whatever, where the characters realize, hey, you know what? Actually, our own time. Sometimes it's good to just take a break and appreciate where we are for what we are. Such time as this, etc. You know? Yeah.

So I love that. I also. I didn't like the Amy was in it because I don't like Amy, but that's it.

Wow.

Yeah. Just having a look at her irritated me slightly, but I got Rory, so it's worth it. Okay.

Also, I thought their roleplay joke was pretty funny, actually. That was a funny bit throughout.

Yes.

Yeah. I'm trying to think of anything else. I really do think it just.

Especially when you think back to him saying, I've never met someone not important before. Then that person that he saw was the same girl that Kazarian eventually falls in love with.

And just kind of wrapping that bow on like, yeah, the Doctor went and made not Scrooge. Dumbledore built a real relationship with him because he matters to the 4,003 people on the ship. Also matters. That woman's life matters.

And near the end, when he Kaz around sees her and he's being his grumpy old man, the Doctor even does someone important. Is it? And it's just kind of that, yeah, everyone is important. Imago day rant. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

So I think, you know, we're gonna go like, what is the real meaning of Christmas? I will go back to hope. And that is what the birth of Jesus symbolizes, is hope of salvation to all. You get a little bit of hope.

You get a little bit of that in here. But I think the real message of this one is just that everybody matters. Not a bad thing at Christmas time.

But I don't think that's the message of the season. You know, I was.

I was surprised, I mean, to recall because it's been a while since I've watched this, that they do sing a song about the birth of Jesus as like this hopeful thing and try and turn around Kazrin's feelings. And that's not something I expect from modern who I expect kind of the opposite. And I was glad to be proven wrong.

Yeah. Yeah, that was good. All that said, it was a great time. I think anybody could watch it.

I don't think you need to know what's going on in larger who to enjoy it. I think you just watch this one for what it is.

I mean, pretty standalone.

Yeah. Even the line where he comes in from the chimney, like in the middle of this, like, Scrooge loan shark scene. Like, who were you?

Like, you know, I just. It's Christmas time. I was riding here, I saw a chimney and thought, oh, what the hell? It's just like, yeah, you know what? I gotta give him that one.

Yes. So if you haven't seen it, this is your call. It's Christmas time. A Christmas Carol. What the hell, guys? Might as well.

So, Christian, with that said, if you were to design your own Christmas treat for the drive in concession stand for this showing specifically of Doctor who A Christmas Carol, what would be the design and what would it be made of?

Some type of confection, like in the form of a fish or shark, but that would have, like this sonic screwdriver inside of it. But it'd be like, you know, not hard candy or something. It'd be like a jelly.

Oh, I like it, I like it, I like it. See, I'm thinking, I was thinking of like doing like a 3D snack.

It's just like a little miniature TARDIS that stands up, but it's a Rice Krispie treat and, like, with icing decorations so it looks like Christmas lights going around the tardis. That's what I'm thinking. And maybe, maybe some peppermint filling in the middle or something. Something. Something fun.

If you're gonna do like a 3D thing that's that thin, thick, I think you had to have something, some kind of filling in it. And I like peppermint, so that's where I'm going to go. Yeah, yeah. Good times, good times.

So with that, guys, I do hope that you'll take the time to rate and review this wherever you are listening. We appreciate it. Check our show notes for the playlist of the entire series so far of our Christmas special Drive in series.

Our next one will be the day after Christmas, which is technically the second day of Christmas, if you're counting. Christian will be there to wrap up with, with an actual double feature. So it might be a little bit longer than this one. Hang in there.

I think it'll be a good time and I think everybody's gonna enjoy it. And with that, guys, please do us a big favor and remember that we are all a chosen people, a geekdom of priests.