Doctor Perseus Reviews: Doctor Who S10E9&10 "Empress of Mars" & "The Eaters of Light" · 12:17am Jun 22nd, 2017
Time to catch up with my Doctor Who reviews too.
First, let's talk about Empress of Mars.
This was an episode that I was very interested in. Not only due to it seeing the first appearance of the Ice Warriors since 2013's Cold War, but also due the fact that it was a Mark Gatiss episode. While I've never really had any issues with his episodes, Gatiss has had a mixed reception from the fanbase throughout his entire career of writing episodes for this show. So how did his latest outing turn out? Pretty well IMO.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. 12 and Bill are great together. An incredibly likable and entertaining TARDIS team. It's always an added plus to have Nardole along. Sadly, Nardole is mostly absent in this episode. But we still get some nice moments between the Doctor and Bill (such as them referring to movies like The Terminator and Frozen). But, overall, neither the Doctor nor Bill get to do anything truly amazing in this episode. They get a lot of great lines but are almost spectators to a grand majority of the action going on.
The premise of the episode is an interesting one. Victorian soldiers on Mars. Sadly, we don't get to see too much of the Martian surface. We do get a couple great CGI shots. But most of this episode takes place underground. Still, the guest cast proves to be very entertaining. Godsacre gets a great redemption arc and Catchlove is wonderfully hateable (plus he gets a satisfying comeuppance in the end). Friday is likable enough as the main normal Ice Warrior we get to know. And Iraxxa was a great foe for the episode. Equally hammy as she was intimidating. Plus the cameo appearance from Classic Who character Alpha Centauri (who appeared in past Ice Warrior stories) was a welcome treat. Missy's surprise appearance at the end also did a good job hinting at mysteries to come.
One thing I didn't notice until afterwards was how this episode mirrored the recent "Brexit" in the UK. I missed the messages at first but I've since become to notice them after watching Travis's video on the subject. I'll link it here.
Who knew a Mark Gatiss episode would be more political than a Peter Harness episode?
Overall, while not an amazing episode, I found Empress of Mars be a solid Series 10 entry.
Now let's talk about The Eaters of Light.
This was an episode that I was very much looking forward to. Not only because of its premise but also due to how it was written by Classic Who writer Rona Munro (who penned the final episode of Classic Who: Survival). How fitting that the woman to write the last episode for the 7th Doctor also gets to write the last episode for the 12th Doctor that's not written by Steven Moffat. And, overall, I really liked this episode!
Granted, I'll go ahead and get rid of my negatives first. The monster of the episode was a bit underwhelming despite having the episode named after it and having a really cool premise and design. We don't get to see much of it and the most we get to see of it is when it gets defeated at the end. The rest of the episode, however, is really solid.
I'll say that it was a bold move to have the Doctor and Bill separated for most of the episode. But it proved to work quite well as we get to see just how much Bill has grown as a companion. Inspiring a group of worn down and frightened people. Working out how the TARDIS translation matrix works on her own. The moment where a somewhat uncomfortable Bill discuses her sexuality with the surprisingly accepting and "modern" Roman soldiers was a highlight moment of the episode. The Doctor and Nardole also get a lot of fun moments throughout the episode. This episode provides a number of great Doctor quotes that almost perfectly sum up the show.
Do you know what that sound was? That was the sound of my patience shattering into a billion little pieces. Now, there are only two things I need to know: where is my friend, and what destroyed the Roman army?
The supporting characters were all well-developed and likable. Kar and Lucius both stood out as great one-off characters. The moment where they all realized they could understand each other thanks to the TARDIS was another great moment. The episode also looked great with many awesome shots of the Scottish landscape around them. And Missy's appearance at the end was yet another interesting hint at what's to come in the finale. I really am interested in seeing what happens with Missy and what her overall scheme is (or if she even has one).
Overall, The Eaters of Light was a great episode and a nice final solo adventure for the 12th Doctor before the finale and his upcoming Christmas regeneration.
What did the rest of you think of Empress of Mars and The Eaters of Light?
I found "Empress of Mars" interesting as it reminded me of Robert Heinlein's novel The Number of the Beast. There's a section of the novel where the protagonists travel to an alternate dimension where Mars has been colonized by Victorian British. Mark Gatiss I most know as the co-creator of Sherlock. He also appears on it as Sherlock's brother Mycroft.
I did not know that "The Eaters of Light" was written by the woman who wrote the last Classic Doctor Who episode. I still don't know much about Classic Who to be honest. I couldn't help thinking of the movie Brave watching this episode. I also enjoyed the scene where Bill discusses her sexuality with the Ninth Legion. I do believe that is historically accurate.