Cold War (2013)

After an episode which divided opinion, it was time for the first ‘big’ episode of series 33. The Ice Warriors first appeared in the 1967 story ‘The Ice Warriors’, they returned in 1969 in the story ‘The Seeds of Death’. Their fear factor was slightly ruined in two cameo in 1972 and 1974. So this is their first appearance in nearly 40 years. I was intrigued to see what they would do with the Ice Warriors or should I say Warrior. The story sees the lone Ice Warrior known as Skaldak thawed out on a Soviet submarine in 1983 and after trying to seek rescue decides to go on a revenge trip.

Mark Gatiss doesn’t simply go for the nostalga in his episode. Gatiss revealed in the Radio Times that setting the story in a submarine and a base-under-siege story was a love letter to the Troughton era which had many under-siege stories. He does the introduction that most fans would expect but he manages to create some new stuff that we have never known about them. The first being is that if an Ice Warrior leaves its ‘shell’ it is regarded as a sign of dishonour. When the face of Skaldak is revealed I was absolutely knocked out by it. It was a wonderful sight and I can’t tell you how happy I was that we got more than just the simple classic Ice Warriors. First of all the look of the Ice Warrior was brilliant and they have managed to keep it looking traditional whilst making it not look silly and cheap.

All the performances were really good. Matt Smith and Jenna-Louise Coleman have well and truly settled down together and I liked the scene with JLC when she realises that travelling with the Doctor isn’t always a picnic. I thought it was a really good moment. However for me the story was noticeable for the appearance for David Warner (Professor Grisenko) who has appeared regularly in Big Finish plays over the years (just appeared in two Fourth Doctor adventures) and it was a long overdue appearance from Warner and he does the likeable senior member of the submarine crew. He is instantly likeable and whereas the Captain and the rest of the crew are scared, Grisenko is rather a bit more blasé and is rather more willing to take the Doctor and Clara at their word.

I really really enjoyed Cold War. It was in a enclosed setting which I always love and it also managed to restore some pride back into an alien race that outside of Big Finish had really suffered from neglect. It would have been nice to see more than just one Ice Warrior but as was shown in the 2005 story ‘Dalek’, you can still have an effective monster when there is just one. Best story of the series so far and also Gatiss’ best story.