Episode #82 : Pyramids of Mars

"Deactivating a generator loop without the correct key is like repairing a watch with a hammer and chisel. One false move and you'll never know the time again."

Episode 82:    Pyramids of Mars.
Companions: 4th Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith.
Air Date:       Four episodes. 25th October to 15th November 1975.

The TARDIS materialises on Earth in the year 1911 inside an old priory owned by Egyptologist Marcus Scarman. Scarman has been possessed by Sutekh, last survivor of the god-like Osirans, who is held prisoner inside a pyramid in Egypt by a signal transmitted from one on Mars. Sutekh desires his freedom and instructs Scarman to construct servicer robots - which look like Egyptian mummies - to build a missile with which to destroy the Martian pyramid.

Pyramids of Mars is an absolute gem of story, one that blends elements of science fiction and horror perfectly. Make a few minor tweaks and this could have been a classic 70's horror movie in the style of Hammer films. The story itself deals with a god-like being, Sutekh, the last of his kind who we can assume influenced the ancient Egyptians. Sutekh is trapped beneath a pyramid in Egypt and desires release so that he can reign over the universe. The key to his prison resides within a pyramid on Mars and it must be destroyed if he is to regain that freedom.

I cannot praise this story enough. It is just that good. However, there are a couple niggles that I am going to raise. The first is Sutekh himself (see picture above). When the Doctor Who team can do such well made masks as they did in stories like The Sea Devils, why oh why can they not do the same for Sutekh in this story? His true appearance just likes terrible. Secondly, and a much less of a niggle, I feel that there is a small continuity issue here as how does the pyramid on Mars influence the Ice Warriors? Surely they know it's there? Do they know what lies within? Some sort of reference would by the Doctor would have been a nice touch there.

There are a couple of interesting time travel elements that come up in this story. One is that contrary to how I always thought the TARDIS works, it seems it is possible to travel forward from an event and see how it plays out even though you know from past travels that it never happened that way, and then return to the point you were at. I had always worked under the assumption that once part of events you couldn't just move away and return as you will. Secondly, events seem to occur before you do them (timey-whimey!). The house where this story takes place burns down and would be rebuilt in the future as UNIT HQ in the UK. Did it burn down before or did the Doctor and Sarah actually do it before they went on this adventure? Sometimes I am glad that time travel isn't real.

The story features the late Michael Sheared as a short lived ally of Sarah and the Doctor. He had previously appeared in The Ark and The Mind of Evil, and would go on to feature in three more stories. Star Wars fans will remember him as Admiral Ozzel in The Empire Strike Back. He was also Mr Bronson in children's drama Grange Hill.

Pyramids of Mars is another classic story that I fully recommend.