Nine months after the conclusion of its twelfth season, Doctor Who will return with its holiday special, "Revolution of the Daleks." The holiday special has long been a tradition for the BBC series, and fans were eagerly awaiting the announcement of this next one. While they knew it was coming, the only question that remained was, would it be a Christmas special or a New Year's Day special?

Now, with the release of the upcoming episode's trailer, we know "Revolution of the Daleks" will air on January 1, 2021. Already, certain fans are complaining, longing for a return to the Christmas specials of prior seasons. But this is actually a nice change of pace for the long-running sci-fi series. In fact, the New Year's Day special has officially become a tradition of sorts for the 13th Doctor — and that's actually kind of perfect.

RELATED: Doctor Who: A Mysterious Ancient Race Is Coming for the Daleks

Doctor Who Spyfall group

The Christmas holiday special became a tradition thanks to the modern revival of Doctor Who. It began with Season 2's, "The Christmas Invasion," and it kept going yearly throughout the Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors' respective tenures. Even in a year where there wasn't a season of Doctor Who, the series would return for a Christmas special, as was the case with 2016's, "The Return of Doctor Mysterio." But that tradition was altered with the arrival of Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor, under the direction of new showrunner Chris Chibnall.

After this new Doctor's introductory season, the Time Lord and her companions returned in the New Year's Day special "Resolution," which aired January 1, 2019. While there were no new Doctor Who episodes for the rest of the year, Season 12 then premiered with "Spyfall, Part 1" on January 1, 2020. Now, fans will once again kick off the new year with the Doctor, Yaz, Graham and Ryan with "Revolution of the Daleks."

RELATED: Doctor Who Teams Up The Daleks With [SPOILER]

This will now be the third New Year's Day in a row that brings a new Thirteenth Doctor adventure, making this holiday a signature of sorts for this version of the character. The Christmas special has always been a warm and endearing part of Doctor Who, but it's actually a fun change to have the last few years focus on New Year's Day. This allows the series to keep the holiday tradition alive, but focus on a different aspect of it.

As the first female Doctor, the Thirteenth Doctor herself was a beacon of change. She heralded a whole new era for the series, one filled with promise and wonder — the very same thing that comes with New Year's Day. Before, the Doctor Who Christmas specials brought tidings of comfort and joy. Now, with Whittaker's Doctor, the series brings different tidings: those of hope, promise and inspiration.

The Christmas specials were often heartwarming offerings that helped close out the year, but the New Year's Day specials are much different: they bring about new beginnings.

Doctor Who stars Jodie Whittaker as the 13th iteration of the titular Time Lord. Whittaker is joined by co-stars Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole and Mandip Gill in a series helmed by showrunner Chris Chibnall. The holiday special, "Revolution of the Daleks," will air this holiday season on BBC America. All previous 11 seasons will stream on HBO Max later this year.

KEEP READING: Doctor Who Gives Rose Tyler a LETHAL New Role