The Christmas Special is a big annual event for Doctor Who, but with Moffat’s writing picking up the pace since the awful Impossible Girl storyline, I can only hope that “Last Christmas” follows up nicely to series 8, which is arguably the best series since Who’s revival.

1. Santa Science

I can already feel a big let down coming with this one. But for me, Doctor Who needs to be both scientifically correct and a little bit magical. But with the introduction of Santa last episode, we need an explanation as to why Santa…exists. I mean I get that this is a family show, but there needs to be a bit of science in a science fiction show. Hopefully, Moffat can deliver a good balance of science and magic that any fan hopes for.

2. Clara Explanation

This has been the talk of the fandom lately. Will Clara Oswald make it to series 9? Fans have been wildly speculating but with no answers from Jenna Coleman, Peter Capaldi, or Steven Moffat, it’s just that: speculation. Hopefully “Last Christmas” will offer us an answer so we don’t speculate our way to series 9.

3. A Confessional

When Clara and the Doctor last saw each other, they were lying to each other about their own happiness. The Doctor told Clara he had found his home planet, while Clara withheld her late boyfriend’s decision to sacrifice himself for a child whom he had killed in battle. But hopefully we can have a good emotional confession scene between the two before the conclusion of Christmas.

4. Emotional Moments

While confessionals seem like a good source of emotion in the episode, there needs to be a lot more of it in the episode. Clara and the Doctor are both in dark places and so putting them in a happy Christmas setting would not seem the best followup. Let’s hope for a darker Christmas like the one in “The End of Time” or “The Time of the Doctor.”

5. A Wonderful Plot

With Santa, aliens, and elves (Oh my!) this episode has been set up for a wonderful, twisting, and deep plot. My concern is that this will follow last year’s tradition of greatly unrealistic, overly complicated, and loose ended plot lines. From the small amount of footage shown, this episode has a lot going on, so the plot is in danger of a repeat of last year.

6. Mourning

With Danny dead, Clara is in an obviously dark place. One problem with Moffat’s previous writing is his complete lack of consequence. Three out of four of his finales have been aborted timelines that affect completely nothing unlike episodes such as “Doomsday” and “Journey’s End” which changed history. Amy, after having her parents restored after over two decades without them, left her house and never visited them again on screen. Also with Amy, she seems very unaffected when she is kidnapped, held hostage, robbed of her child, and made infertile. Hopefully, Clara will reflect on Danny and grow from his death unlike some earlier lazy writing.

7. Scary Monsters

Moffat has written many creepy monsters through Who’s history (Who-stery?), and with the trailers, we can see some weird looking reptilian creature that looks like a toothless T-Rex. Hopefully he can create another truly scary creature like the Weeping Angels, the Empty Child, or the Silents.

8. Osgood

Oh, a fan can wish, can’t they. After the sad murder of fan favorite Osgood, the whole fandom has been dying to know if we will ever see our science-y, cosplaying, asthmatic friend again. It seems like a long shot but Santa did ask the Doctor what he wanted for Christmas. Perhaps the girl he promised travels before her death? (This however describes Lynda, Rennette, Astrid, Clara Oswin, Rita, and Jenny, but let’s just hope for Osgood for now)

9. The Little Boy

Danny sacrificed his life for a little child who was the victim of war. But how was Clara supposed to find his parents? For all we know they could have died and even if they hadn’t how can she locate them? How can she explain that their boy is back? Maybe a slight nod toward Sarah Jane or Torchwood helping Clara locate the parent? Or maybe he could return this Christmas for the Doctor to help him home?

10. A Look to the Future

Series 9 is a ways off, but the Christmas episode should look to the next series as it did the last three years. Maybe this episode will end with the Doctor setting off to find Gallifrey. Or maybe it could just be the backdoor pilot for The Clara Oswald Adventures (a new spinoff is way past overdue). Whatever happens at the end, let us look to the future of the Doctor and Clara.

And the one thing we don’t want to see… A Ruined Childhood

Santa’s introduction to Doctor Who has about a million and one ways it can be screwed up. Making him anything less than Santa could be a little risky due to younger viewers. Plus we all want to believe in Santa. I mean we are all children inside. But, though I do want a scientific explanation, I don’t want one that makes Santa Claus anything more or less than Santa Claus.