Not only was this year's Doctor Who Christmas special, A Christmas Carol, a fun and surprisingly kinetic episode - it also ended with an intriguing sneak peek at the show's upcoming sixth season.

For those of you who were unable to catch it, don't get your suspenders in a twist -  the minute-long trailer has just debuted online courtesy of BBC America. So now you can get your first glimpse of old friends, new foes, and The Doctor's latest fashion accessory (personally, I prefer the fez).

In a somewhat unusual move, the new season of Doctor Who will be split it into two parts. The first six episodes begin airing this spring and will culminate with a mid-season finale (presumably a cliffhanger) before picking up again in the fall. Since the show is still currently in production, the majority of the footage featured in the trailer (such as The Doctor's inaugural trip to America) is likely from the earlier half of the season.

Fasten your bow ties and check out it out below:

It's hardly a surprise to see that the River Song character will be prominently featured again. Evidently, season six will finally clue fans in on her connection to The Doctor and in my opinion it's not a moment too soon. The ambiguity of their relationship was great fun initially, but I felt that the whole thing was getting a bit tiresome by the end of last season.

There have been a few other missteps along the way (like the Crayola-colored Daleks), but by and large I think showrunner Steven Moffat has done a pretty incredible job since he inherited Doctor Who. I remain impressed with previous showrunner Russell T. Davies' ability to craft a multi-season arc, but I have to say I much prefer Moffat's writing and overall approach.

While there haven't been too many callbacks to the Davies era, it's nice to see the Ood pop up in the trailer. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of context provided for their appearance or for anything else that we're seeing in the preview, but this definitely teases at a refreshingly diverse and suitably epic season.

Matt Smith is probably my favorite actor to play The Doctor since the show's resurrection in 2005 and I think Amelia Pond (Karen Gillan) is one of his better companions. I can't wait to see what sort of trouble they get into this season.

As stated, season six of Doctor Who will premiere in spring 2011.

Source: BBC America.