Pyramids of Mars is one of the most popular adventures and its not hard to see why. Stephen Harris is credited with writing this story but in reality it was Robert Holmes and Lewis Greifer working together after Greifer’s original script proved unworkable. This era of Doctor Who borrowed from the horror genre and this four part adventure borrows from the Mummy. The story is set at a country house in 1911 on the site of what would be become the UNIT base. Sutekh is trying to free himself from his prison and is using Scarman and others to help him build a rocket which will destroy the prison and allow him to escape and rule. That’s it as far as the plot is concerned but what we have keep us going is some fantastic dialogue, great scenes and some wonderful acting. This being in the early part of the season its clear that the budget hasn’t run out. The production values are very good in this adventure and make up for some of the weaker ones seen in ‘Planet of Evil’. The effect of the black robed person walking along the carpet with the smoke appearing as well as the smoke appearing when the figure touches Namin were very good. The Mummy’s are very effective and the whilst the idea that they could kill you by literally squeezing you to do death is a different form of way of killing off an extra. Though it is slightly hard to believe that they could catch anyone, especially as they are moving at about 5 mph. Ok so not all the effects used in Pyramids of Mars are as good, the weird colidascope in that the black figure appears from is a little bit rubbish as is the excessive use of CSO when the story moves to Sutekh.
Sutekh is a very good baddie because he doesn’t really have any failings or character flaws. Ok so he is slightly mad for wanting to be the ruler but apart from that he wasn’t the victim of alien invasion of left outside of a supermarket as a child but just wrong by people and wanting revenge. All the lives that have been affected and ultimatley killed are because of Sutekh. The story spends long enough on Earth and so when the action moves to Mars. The story enters a different style. There is a bit of ‘Death to the Daleks’ when the Doctor has to try and solve some puzzles. He moves from room to room trying to stay one step ahead of the mummies.
I liked the scene where the Doctor takes Sarah to 1980 to show her what Earth would look like it Sutekh remained unchallenged. I thought that it was a nice thing to do and showed the viewer at the same time why the Doctor cant just run off when the going gets tough. Then there was the line about time being rewritten which is what is talked about in new Who and this was done in 1975! There are other scenes that are good. The sight of the Doctor dressed up as a mummy isnt something that any other Doctor would have done but this being Tom Baker’s Doctor it seems perfectly at home. This story is home to one of the funniest gaffs in Doctor Who history. When Sutekh stands up from his throne in Episode 4, you can clearly see a hand disappear to the back. Can only assume this was a prompt for Gabriel Woolf.
The cast were all very good. Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen are in fine Doctor/Companion form, in particular Baker who’s more jolly than serious Doctor that we had in the previous year has been replaced by a more serious than jolly Doctor. This means that his performances fit in more with the style of the story. His best moment came in episode 4 when he was in the scene with Sutekh. Some fine acting was going on there. Michael Sheard makes another Doctor Who appearance and is fantastic. I think I could watch Sheard in absolutely anything. I liked it how at one point he feels like a child because he is being talked to like one as he cant/wont accept that his brother has been taken over. Sheard gives a very heartfelt and loving performance in what is possibly his best performance. Bernard Archard gives a brilliant performance as Marcus Scarman. He is extremely scary as the possessed brother. He does a good job in the scene where he gets shot and has to perform the stunt in reverse. Gabriel Woolf also deserves praise for giving his performance a very menacing feel.
The death of Namin at the end of Episode 1 is particularly grim. I think that it was the scream that really made it seem horrific. Though we are suppose to not really care because he was rude to Dr Warlock but in reality I found it a sad moment because there could have been a chance for Namin to redeem himself like Sorensen did in the previous adventure ‘Planet of Evil’.
Pyramids of Mars is definitely a classic Doctor Who story and its in the golden era of Doctor Who. This is somewhat due to Robert Holmes who is responsible for writing some of the finest stories in Doctor Who and even though Lewis Greifer is suppose to have been involved, this is definitely Holmes’ story.
Sutekh is a very good baddie because he doesn’t really have any failings or character flaws. Ok so he is slightly mad for wanting to be the ruler but apart from that he wasn’t the victim of alien invasion of left outside of a supermarket as a child but just wrong by people and wanting revenge. All the lives that have been affected and ultimatley killed are because of Sutekh. The story spends long enough on Earth and so when the action moves to Mars. The story enters a different style. There is a bit of ‘Death to the Daleks’ when the Doctor has to try and solve some puzzles. He moves from room to room trying to stay one step ahead of the mummies.
I liked the scene where the Doctor takes Sarah to 1980 to show her what Earth would look like it Sutekh remained unchallenged. I thought that it was a nice thing to do and showed the viewer at the same time why the Doctor cant just run off when the going gets tough. Then there was the line about time being rewritten which is what is talked about in new Who and this was done in 1975! There are other scenes that are good. The sight of the Doctor dressed up as a mummy isnt something that any other Doctor would have done but this being Tom Baker’s Doctor it seems perfectly at home. This story is home to one of the funniest gaffs in Doctor Who history. When Sutekh stands up from his throne in Episode 4, you can clearly see a hand disappear to the back. Can only assume this was a prompt for Gabriel Woolf.
The cast were all very good. Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen are in fine Doctor/Companion form, in particular Baker who’s more jolly than serious Doctor that we had in the previous year has been replaced by a more serious than jolly Doctor. This means that his performances fit in more with the style of the story. His best moment came in episode 4 when he was in the scene with Sutekh. Some fine acting was going on there. Michael Sheard makes another Doctor Who appearance and is fantastic. I think I could watch Sheard in absolutely anything. I liked it how at one point he feels like a child because he is being talked to like one as he cant/wont accept that his brother has been taken over. Sheard gives a very heartfelt and loving performance in what is possibly his best performance. Bernard Archard gives a brilliant performance as Marcus Scarman. He is extremely scary as the possessed brother. He does a good job in the scene where he gets shot and has to perform the stunt in reverse. Gabriel Woolf also deserves praise for giving his performance a very menacing feel.
The death of Namin at the end of Episode 1 is particularly grim. I think that it was the scream that really made it seem horrific. Though we are suppose to not really care because he was rude to Dr Warlock but in reality I found it a sad moment because there could have been a chance for Namin to redeem himself like Sorensen did in the previous adventure ‘Planet of Evil’.
Pyramids of Mars is definitely a classic Doctor Who story and its in the golden era of Doctor Who. This is somewhat due to Robert Holmes who is responsible for writing some of the finest stories in Doctor Who and even though Lewis Greifer is suppose to have been involved, this is definitely Holmes’ story.
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