This was an odd one, as we're kind of prepared for the Christmas story to be self-contained, but this is tied in closely to the ongoing 'Impossible Girl' narrative arc, something that hadn't really happened since The Christmas Invasion had been the tenth Doctor's first episode, if at all.
I do wonder about all the Clara hate out there. I can't say she's a favourite companion, but I don't hate her, or particularly dislike her. I disagree that a lot of her character got lost along the way. Actually, I wonder if she's too capable for some people - I don't mean sexist men who want a useless screamer for a companion, but generally that she seems to good at everything, too confident in every (OK, most) situations and a bit smug at times (actually, that makes her sound awfully like a female Doctor...). It's a bit like Adric or Wesley Crusher as boy geniuses only without the teenage element. Perhaps it would have been better if we'd kept the 'bad with computers' bit to give her a weakness. I should say I'm not sure this is the case, it's just an idea I had recently that I thought I would share.
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I do wonder about all the Clara hate out there. I can't say she's a favourite companion, but I don't hate her, or particularly dislike her. I disagree that a lot of her character got lost along the way. Actually, I wonder if she's too capable for some people - I don't mean sexist men who want a useless screamer for a companion, but generally that she seems to good at everything, too confident in every (OK, most) situations and a bit smug at times (actually, that makes her sound awfully like a female Doctor...). It's a bit like Adric or Wesley Crusher as boy geniuses only without the teenage element. Perhaps it would have been better if we'd kept the 'bad with computers' bit to give her a weakness. I should say I'm not sure this is the case, it's just an idea I had recently that I thought I would share.