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Post by matthewsee on Jun 10, 2017 22:44:25 GMT -5
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Post by matthewsee on Jun 12, 2017 22:39:20 GMT -5
For the first time ever we see the Ice Warriors on Mars, despite them being Martians and a momentous occasion this is as this year 2017 marks fifty years since the Ice Warriors made their debut in 1967.
Big Finish had long beaten The Empress of Mars in its dramatic depiction of Ice Warriors on Mars with their Fifth Doctor story Red Dawn in 2000.
Written by Mark Gatiss and four years after the previous Ice Warrior episode Cold War which was also written by Gatiss.
Read afterwards that this episode was originally planned as the sequel to Gatiss’ 2015 episode Sleep No More remnants of which is presented with the Ice Queen saying “sleep no more”.
Fun the teaser at NASA and seeing the message God Save The Queen
This then leads the Doctor, Bill and Nardole to Mars 1881 where they find not just Ice Warriors but Victorian soldiers as well.
Of the time travellers it became just the Doctor and Bill as Nardole got accidentally send back on the TARDIS back to present day Earth which then had him employing Missy’s help to get back to Mars and of course at the end
Very good introduction to the Ice Queen and there is a feeling that Empress of Mars is like the Ice Warrior version of Tomb of the Cybermen. Incidentally the Ice Warriors’ debut story came just two stories after that said Cybermen story.
Funny as mentioned here that despite his long life the Doctor has not seen a lot of well known movies like Terminator & The Thing. This seen to be a follow-up to when the Doctor discovered that there is a horror movie called Alien in Last Christmas.
The Doctor however seem to have seen Frozen.
There is a portrait of Pauline Collins as Queen Victoria and with regards to Doctor Who’s depiction of real people this certainly contradicted with the previous episode The Lie of the Land when it included a picture of the real Winston Churchill instead of one of Ian McNeice as him. In fact both episodes were directed by Wayne Yip and as director he is responsible for the visual presentation of these episodes.
Bill referenced The Vikings starring Kirk Douglas and Tony Curtis. I saw this movie back in the 1990s and what surprising about hearing this movie getting referenced in this Doctor Who episode is that I don’t think I have heard it referenced elsewhere.
When the Ice Warriors kills people their victims turned into the shape of beach balls. Sure makes the Mirrorlon a distant memory.
The Colonel reacted incredulously about a woman in the police force. Certainly reminded me of how we first saw Amy (my wife Karen Gillan) as a young woman although she was a kissogram not a real cop.
Funny when Bill commented about the Colonel having Victorian attitudes before realising that Victorian times is where he comes from.
Not bad resolution to the main plot with the Colonel executing Captain Catchlove and making peace with the Ice Queen.
Captain Catchlove is played by Ferdinand Kingsley and I discovered from Adam Richard on Whovians that he is the son of Sir Ben Kingsley.
Surprising on the cameo by Alpha Centauri who had previously appeared In the two Peladon stories from the Pertwee era. Like those two previous stories, Alpha Centauri is once again voiced by Ysanne Churchman. It is particularly surprising since Churchman had retired from acting beforehand.
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Post by matthewsee on May 16, 2021 11:40:38 GMT -5
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Post by matthewsee on May 16, 2021 12:19:05 GMT -5
From 10 Things Who May Not Know About Empress of Mars: "While the soldiers naming their Martian friend Friday is a reference to Robinson Crusoe in the story, it is also a sly nod from Mark Gatiss to the 1964 movie Robinson Crusoe on Mars, which features a mine, and human characters befriending a Martian native and calling him Friday. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Egf7wjf0nqU " |
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Post by matthewsee on May 16, 2021 12:42:14 GMT -5
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