It was FREAKING AWESOME!!! I loved it, totally loved it.

Oh, wait, you wanted more? Fine, but be wary that there are spoilers ahead (unavoidable, really, sorry).

At WonderCon this past weekend, we were treated to a screening of the first episode in the brand new season of Doctor Who. This season is brand new in so many ways…new Doctor, new companion, new Tardis and new showrunner to name a few. Combine all these together and you have a new variant of Doctor Who that could go in an entirely new direction.

When it was first announced that David Tennant was leaving, and then shortly thereafter it was announced that Matt Smith would be the eleventh Doctor, I was filled with sadness and anticipation. I felt the same way when I jumped from Eccleston to Tennant (Eccleston was really my first Doctor, FYI), but quickly got over it. I was hopeful that Smith would do a good job, since Stephen Moffat — the new showrunner, long time Doctor Who fan and writer of some of the series’ best episodes — chose him.

Well, I have to say within a few moments, I was convinced. Going through the Doctor’s “new mouth” — in which he tried a bevy of new foods, first saying he loved them, then hating them — was funny and charming, and totally pulled me into the character. From then on, I totally believed Matt Smith was indeed the Doctor. One episode in, I have a feeling he might be better than Tennant in the end (Yeah, I said it, but honestly I liked Eccleston more than Tennant anyway).

Why do I say this? Tennant was a bit spastic at times, and honestly this grated on me now and again. While Smith can also be a bit spastic, he also seems more subdued, more subtle, yet more intense. He’s a bit arrogant — which the Doctor deserves to be — but not so much so that you wanna punch him in the mouth or slap him, as Donna would. He’s intelligent, intense, charming and yet confident without being too arrogant. Overall, I have high hopes for Matt Smith’s eleventh Doctor, and I can’t wait to see more of him.

Our new companion is Amelia “Amy” Pond, whom the Doctor meets when she’s seven years old after he crashes the Tardis in her back yard. Amelia (I prefer that over Amy so I’m sticking with it) is immediately intriguing, praying to Santa for someone to fix her wall, not being overtly scared by the Doctor or his Tardis with a swimming pool or a library, and barely batting an eye when she has to give him an apple, yogurt, cook him bacon, make him beans, and so on. She seems to have a strength of character that one can immediately find endearing and relatable.

When we see her again twelve years later — now played by the stunning Karen Gillan — her life has been forever changed by the “raggedy doctor” who, twelve years and four psychiatrists later, she still remembers, and has had her life forever changed by their one meeting. I honestly liked Amelia a lot, but there are also things I didn’t like about her…which made me like her as a character overall even more. She’s hot-headed, arrogant, and controlling for example, but that also helps make her the flawed character we can relate to and believe in. I’m concerned about the whole “love interest” aspect, but since the Doctor’s true love is really the Tardis, I think, I dunno if anything will come of it besides unrequited tension.

Speaking of the new Tardis, we didn’t see too much of it, but what I saw I really, really liked. It definitely has a harsher tone to it, a steampunk sensibility that I found appealing and attractive. The original typewriter, the old-radio look of some of the display screens, and other controls just added to the charm. Since they’ve talked about other sections of the Tardis, like the swimming pool and library, I’m hoping we’ll see more of her than just the control room.

As for the episode itself, it was pretty great. I found it funny, entertaining, charming and exciting, with just a few bumps. The nemesis of this episode, Prisoner Zero, was never really that scary, and the Atraxi — the aliens looking for Prisoner Zero — were kind of silly. Then again, the Adipose were also a bit on the silly side, so I guess this could be forgiven.

The other thing I didn’t like, honestly, was the new theme song. Taking a few steps back from the awesome themes of previous seasons, this version seems almost ploddingly slow in its delivery, and rather than getting me pumped and excited, was more like a speed bump slowing me down. I’ll likely be fast forwarding through the opening bit to avoid the song from now on.

That said, I totally loved “The Eleventh Hour,” and nearly everything contained within. Matt Smith is compelling and believable as the new Doctor; Karen Gillan has the makings of a great companion (my other favorite companion, Donna Noble, was also a redhead, so I’m hopeful); and if this episode is any indication, we could have a fantastic season ahead. If the “Coming Soon” teaser is any indication — including camouflaged Daleks with Union Jacks, the weeping angels from Blink, wounded Cybermen, and my favorite, Spitfires in space — then we have one helluva ride in store for us.

For future reviews, my friend, fellow writer and huge Doctor Who fan Josh will be trading off with me, and we’ll do some joint reviews as well to keep things interesting. I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at the new incarnation of Doctor Who, and share my enthusiasm for what’s to come.