The Doctor Who Save Me Reviews #005: The Aztecs(S1, Ep6)

The Doctor Who Save Me Reviews #006: The Aztecs(S1, Ep6)

-note: The Doctor Who Save Me Reviews #006: The Aztecs(S1, Ep6) is the correct title, I finished this late in the night but didn't catch this mistake and Reddit won't let me change the title, that's why it says #005 even though it's actually #006

Season 1, Episode 6

The Aztecs(4 parts)

-Written by John Lucarotti

-Directed by John Crockett

-Aid Date: May 23rd, 1964

Or as I like to call it…

The one where Barbara casually robs a corpse 

We Begin!!! In a tomb, the TARDIS has landed inside an Aztec tomb during the height of the Aztec empire. While inside the tomb, Barbara spots a snake bracelet which she fancies and decides to wear. Barbara leaves the crypt to go see the Aztec, however after leaving she’s immediately surrounded by Aztec warriors who see her as a thief . The two High Priests, Tloxol the Priest of Sacrifice and Autoloc the Priest of Knowledge, approach Barbara, wondering how she came out of the crypt, with one spotting the snake bracket she was wearing. Noting that she poses said bracelet, the priests believe Barbara to be the reincarnation of the late priest, Yetaxa, therefore a god. The Doctor, Susan, and Ian leave the crypt following after Barbara and are surprised when being told all this by the Aztec warriors. Though something else catches their attention, the door to the tomb has shut itself and there seems to be no way to get back inside, leaving the crew without the TARDIS, stranding them. They meet up with Barbara, who had declared the rest of the crew as her servants, and talk about the need to find a way into the crypt. The Doctor notes that with Barbara in her position, they are able to easily move around and try to find an entrance so they can leave. The thing is Barbara has great knowledge of Aztec culture, but abhors their practice of Human Sacrifice, and with her new position she believes she can abolish this practice, removing this “evil” from the Aztec people so that only the “good” remains, believing this will help save their people from the Spanish. The Doctor objects to this action and orders the others to not try and interfere with time, however Barbara ignores his pleas and calls out to the Aztec people for her objection to this practice. This action severely messes up the TARDIS crew’s position with the people, putting them under the suspicion of Tloxol, who begins to see her as a false god. The Doctor is stuck still trying a way inside the crypt and now forced to contend with the actions of Barbara, as she continues to try and influence history in the way she sees best, despite The Doctor’s warnings.

This episode I thought was really good and I really enjoy the moral dilemma it presents for the most part. This is the first time Doctor Who has decided to deal with the ramifications of time travel and the care one should have in not shifting the events of the past too much, a story which would be done several more times over its history. The dilemma of changing an older civilization’s culture in order to better fit modern sensibilities so that they aren’t wiped out is an interesting one which pits The Doctor and Barbara against each other. It’s interesting to see Barbara trying to do what she thinks is helping these people, even though it’s shown clearly that the majority are for this way of life and beliefs about their gods and the nature of human sacrifice, and Barbara’s attempts to stop it are rather useless in the grand scheme of things, especially since the Spanish would’ve massacred them anyway due to them mostly just seeking their land and the foreign diseases killing many off. The Doctor for his part does dislike human sacrifice but he knows what shouldn’t be tampered with and that even though he disagrees with it, it’s the Aztecs’ culture and that history needs to be maintained lest there be consequences.

 I feel it’s very well handled for the most part with the writing for these scenes being really well handled, with Barbara’s want to help these people and stop this practice she sees as terrible being understandable but The Doctor stopping her do to the consequences of changing history and even Ian telling her that her efforts are useless since this is these people’s beliefs and culture and most won’t so readily move on from that belief system even if they believes she’s a god. I like how this episode shows Doctor Who isn’t afraid to look at the darker, more uncomfortable sides of history, with human sacrifice along with some parts about women’s lack of autonomy with Susan and the Aztec marriage customs, stuff Lucarotti began to touch on in his previous episode, Marco Polo. Though it’s mostly handled well, there are parts where it does feel a bit iffy and it can feel a bit condescending towards the Aztec people, calling them uncivilized at one point or even stating during Ian’s speech that they hold that evil belief like Tloxol. Now obviously I’m not defending human sacrifice, but I feel like it takes away a lot of the nuance in this discussion by stating that their beliefs and culture are inherently superior and those who listen to them are in the right and those who don’t are in the wrong, especially since there isn’t a single character who does support the culture that isn’t evil in some way, I feel it takes away a bit of the nuance in this moral dilemma and makes the episode age a bit poorly, even though I do really enjoy the rest of episode and its moral dilemma.

The set design and costuming in this episode is fantastic with it really capturing the feel of this ancient civilization and going with to not just feel like a hodgepodge of a bunch of Mesoamerican cultures like most depictions at the time tended to do, they really did their research on this. The set design does well at getting a grand view of the Aztec city and civilization even though we spend the episode in only one temple, helps to show the size of this grand civilization; the background paintings are really well done. The costumes are like the Marco Polo episode in that they do well in capturing this ancient foreign culture and make it feel like we really traveled through time.

I have a few minor gripes with this episode, which I’ll mention in a bit, but the main gripe I had was though I enjoyed the episode a lot, I was left wishing they had done more with certain elements. While I really enjoyed the confrontations between The Doctor and Barbara I feel it’s wrapped up a bit too quickly by the start of the last part. I wish there were one or two more scenes to flesh it out a bit more and show Barbara’s acceptance that her actions are futile and understand The Doctor’s position; since as is it kinda ends on a weird note where The Doctor accepts Barbara’s actions and their positive influence on Autoloc while basically stating how it wasn’t possible to change these people for the “better”, at least that’s how I saw it and it could just be seen as him comforting her over her failed actions.

Something I felt was a real wasted opportunity in this episode was the scene where The Doctor interacts with Tloxol and he gets him to agree to get Ixta to give The Doctor the plans for the tomb so that The Doctor can find a way inside and Tloxol can use this opportunity to prove Barbara a false god, this doesn't come to pass as Ixta says that his father never wrote plans for the tomb. It would’ve been really interesting to see The Doctor working with the villain and helping them prove Barbara to be a false god in order to get into the tomb, actively helping the villain to remove Barbara from power since he disagrees with what she’s doing and feels he needs to put a stop to it. It shows how much The Doctor is only focused on getting to the TARDIS and how he doesn’t care for Barbara’s action’s, it would’ve been really cool to see him working with Tloxol so that the crew can escape and Barbara’s meddling can be stopped, would’ve added a really interesting layer on top of the moral dilemma with The Doctor working with the villain to stop her that I’m sad they didn’t do more with.

One other thing I wish they had done was to have at least one good person that is on the side of the Aztecs culture, showing the consequences of Barbara trying to change people’s culture in order to make these people try and fit her “civilised” standards. While Barbara has noble goals it’s clear that she’s going about things in the wrong way and doesn’t understand the value and importance of this culture to the Aztec people. It’s clear the episode is meant to show her as in the wrong for trying to change their culture, but I feel it loses a lot of the nuance it could've had by painting all those trying to protect or uphold their culture as sneaky and villainous while the “good and civilised one” are those that listen to Barbara, it makes it very one sided, not helped by Ian’s iffy line of the rest of the Aztec people sharing Tloxol’s evil.  I feel it makes the episode lose a bit of its weight by not showing at least an average Aztec person who accepts this culture and doesn’t understand why Barbara is so hell bent on trying to change it. The closest we get is Tonila, but even he ends up conspiring with Tloxol and trying to get the high priest position, and Cameca who shows no real opinion on the whole matter. It makes the dilemma feel one sided as it focuses more on the impact this has to time than the morality of actually changing one's culture to fit another’s standards, especially since the episode is already on a tightrope to not seem like a white savior narrative of trying to teach the savage natives about more civilised concepts. It would’ve helped a lot in making this more nuanced, and while I still got into the moral dilemma of the episode, there was just more I felt could’ve been done with it, which is part of the reason I didn’t get into the episode as much as others did even if I did really like it; it was the 60s and most didn't care for that nuance in such tales so what you going to do(shrug).

Tloxol is a very good and interesting villain for this episode, as he’s essentially try to do the right thing, in proving Barbara to be a false god and trying to change their culture to her standards, but for the wrong reasons, as he wants to maintain his power and position that would be gone if human sacrifice was stopped. It’s an interesting contrast for the villain to have, since Barbara is doing something wrong by trying to trick these people as a false god but Tloxol only cares to stop her because it jeopardizes his own position of authority. I enjoy his various inventive schemes in order to try and get Barbara to prove her godhood, like poisoning her cup and see if she lives or threatening Ian to get Barbara to try and do some divine power to save him. His actor John Ringman does a good job at being this clever and slightly unhinged villain, even if I do have the same complaints about the Brownface as I did the Yellowface in Marco Polo.

The thing I like the most about Tloxol is how he’s used to show how some religious leaders seek their positions for the power they hold and how religion is used more as an excuse and justification for certain beliefs. Tloxol only starts objecting to Barbara’s godhood when she decries the practice of human sacrifice, something that would jeopardize his position and strongly goes against the beliefs he has. It shows how some beliefs and interpretations about religion can become so ingrained in people that when their God literally comes to tell them off, they claim them as false for not agreeing with them, even if Tloxol was right in this case. Tloxol clearly enjoys the practice of human sacrifice and enjoys the power his position of High Priest brings, so he uses religion as a justification for this continued practice even when it seems his own Gods are against it. He’s also unique, seeing as he succeeds in the end, showing Barbara to be a false god and regaining his power as the singular High Priest after Autoloc has left. Tloxol as a whole is a very interesting and unique character as he is trying to do the right thing for the wrong reasons and paints a good picture of corruption that can exist in many religious leaders and those who claim faith as an excuse for their beliefs even if it’s unsubstantiated. 

Autoloc is another fairly good character who serves well in the moral dilemma of Barbara’s attempts to change history. Autoloc is much more open to outside ideas and influence than Tloxol and while he is confused by Barbara’s declaration he still accepts and questions her about why she would want to stop it. He has his own doubts about some of the actions of his religion, though his faith in the Gods remains strong, he is still critical of some of it’s practices and it’s interesting to see him start to question his faith in what he's been doing. I enjoy his interaction with Barbara as he’s really the only one willing to hear her out and understand the unnecessary nature of human sacrifice, he’s kind and understanding of her words and willing to hear different perspectives on his own culture’s actions. Even if the episode starts to get a bit uncomfortable with Ian calling him one of the only “civilised ones” that listens to reason, he’s still a good character who has a healthy amount of doubt in his own religion and is willing to change when he sees what’s happening as in the wrong. He's a kind and gentle soul who seeks only the best for the Aztec people and questions his faith when it seems what he’s been doing has been against his god’s will, his actor Keith Pyott does a good job showing the old, worn faith of this character. Barbara’ actions help give him the reassurance that his original doubts were correct and understands that now he must go to sort out his faith in nature, no longer possessing the clarity of faith needed of a High Priest. It’s a nice little end to his character as it shows how much Barbara’s words did shake him and I like the ambiguity of his ending, since while The Doctor says she helped him see the truth, it’s unknown his ultimate fate from going into the jungle and whether he will get the clarity and understanding of self he seeks after this ordeal, still he is overall the better for his experience with Barbara as it helped clear up the doubts he had on human sacrafice.

The Doctor in this episode is really great in this episode, with his conflict with Barbara being the clear highlight. The Doctor cares little for what Barbara attempts to do, stating the while he disagrees with the practice of human sacrafice they must not interfere with the Aztecs and their traditions, especially with Barbara's god guise, since one cannot rewrite history for their own ends. The arguments between the two are really the highlight, Hartnell gives an excellent preformance as he berates Barbara's action, trying to get her to stop her attempts at rewriting history, he really does well in his angrier, more stern scenes along with the more lighthearted curious ones. I like how frustrated he gets when Barbara continues on with her attempts even after the consequences have already been shown, and enjoy when they make up by the end with Barbara letting go of her attempts to change history and The Doctor comforting her, understanding she did have good intentions, even if what she was doing wasn't right.

I like how The Doctor's only priority is to get to the TARDIS so the crew can leave, only aiding Barbara in a way the helps benfit his attempts to find the TARDIS. He cares little in Barbara's schemes and actively works against her at points if it means finding an entrance into the tomb, like when he asks Tloxol for the diagrams after helping Ixta, even if he later tried to stop Ixta after learning Ian was his opponent. The Doctor really just wants to leave and is doing all that he can to ensure he's able to find away into that tomb, whether that means helping or hindering Barbara's claim to godhood. His cleverness when finding the secret tunnel and then opening the tomb from the outside with the wheel is fun to see and it shows where his priorities lie throughout this whole adventure.

One more thing I enjoyed about The Doctor in this episode was his relationship with Cameca, which I found very sweet. Cameca is a nice character who emans well to aid The Doctor, with the two quickly becoming friends, before Cameca develops romantic feelings for him. Cameca is also used to show more sides of Aztec culture that is overshadowed by the human sacrafice, how there is a great culutre underneath sucha gruesome practice. She's clever and helpful, aiding the TARDIS crew in their escape, and has developed a good fondness towards The Doctor, one which he paritally does reciprocate. The interactions between the two feels very sweet and genuine with btoh actors doign well to sell me on the relationship between the characters, the hot cocoa scene is really cute. Normally I'm not a fan of relationships with The Doctor, probably because New Who loves to string all the drama from it which makes me just not care, especially when they keep doing it to death, but here Hartnell and Margot Van der Burgh really sell me on there connection and the whole thing is small but feels very genuine instead of being some piece of high drama or importance that other relationships with The Doctor always make it. William Hartnell once again gives an excellent preformance as The Doctor caputring all these factors to him in this episode, he is really engaging to watch, and all of his scenes, espcially those with Barbara, are the highlight of this episode.

Susan is sidelined in this episode once again, not getting much to do but what there is for her is still fairly good. She is made handmaiden to Barbara and sticks by her side, she too has an abhorrence to human sacrifice and seeing such a gruesome site, crying out when it occurs. This forces her to be punished with Barbara managing to alleviate enough that she just goes to the cemetery for reeducation. This is where she spends the majority of the rest of the episode until the end with her escape. I like how in these parts she shows off her intelligence and ability to remember things with Autoloc being mostly cordial towards her and recognizing her great gifts. It shows how clever Susan is that can be forgotten in her myriad of screaming and crying most writers make her do. This little subplot also is used to show the more problematic women’s rights issues that happened back in the day with Susan learning in Aztec society, women have their husbands chosen for them and only make eye contact when speaking to her husband; this shows how Doctor Who isn’t afraid to show the more uncomfortable aspects of the past. Susan of course objects to this notion and gets some nice scenes with her trying to stand up for herself only for the other Aztecs to be shocked and seek to correct such behavior. When the Perfect Victim chooses her to be his bride, her emotions are very genuine and real at disliking the role she’s been forced into without her will, even if her calling all Aztec people monsters is really iffy, though I let it slide since it was in the heat of the moment and something awful was happening to her. Carol Ann Ford gives a pretty good performance once again despite the continuing sidelining of her character, she still does great with what she’s given even if it isn't as much as the other members of the TARDIS crew.

 Ian’s focus for this episode is in the subplot with the Aztec warrior Ixta, who sees him as a threat to his position as leader of the Aztec armies. I found this subplot just alright, feeling it went on for a bit longer than necessary and ended up taking some of the episode’s focus on the moral dilemma. Ixta is a good character with his need to prove himself better than Ian and his relation to the tomb with his father having built it being used interestingly in the story. Ian himself is meant to be a great fighter in this episode, with it showing how he’s able to contend with an Aztec warrior, something I really don’t buy from the Coal Hill teacher. He’s shown to be better than Ixta, a trained Aztec warrior, beating him multiple times with the latter only winning once with the use of poison. While Ian has always been a natural leader and able to hold himself decently in a fight, I personally don’t see him as an action hero, fighter this episode tries to show him as. His first defeat of Ixta, catching him by surprise in his back with a pressure point makes sense as Ian is clever and skillful but the later scene where the two are fighting and Ian is winning consistently against Ixta, a trained warrior, it felt like a bit much. Even if Ian served a military service, it isn’t something that is explained in the episode and his previous appearances don’t really give me the idea of him as a skilled fighter, just someone who can hold his own. I also feel like giving him a few legitimate losses against Ixta would’ve given more tension to their final fight on top of the Aztec temple, as Ian is facing a more skilled opponent instead of just defeating someone he’s already beaten several times by this point; the subplot is still alright overall and Ian is still a great character.

Ian is also important to the moral dilemma as unlike Barbara he follows The Doctor’s orders of non interference, and tries to convince Barbara to stop. Their conversation where he manages to show her the futility of her efforts is really good and shows the strong connection between the two characters and the fact that Barbara can’t change the Aztec’ fate, even if some of the dialogue has some really iffy connotations. William Russell still gives another great performance as Ian and he’s still very enjoyable to watch, even if I found the main subplot with him just ok.

Barbara is the highlight and focus of this episode and she is fantastic here. I love her part in the moral dilemma, as she clearly admires and appreciates a lot of parts about Aztec culture and society but wants to change a fundamental aspect of it that she abhors, human sacrafice, believing that this change is for the greater good and will save the Aztecs in the long run. It's clear she's well intentioned but the episode makes it clear that what she's doing is wrong, as she trying to change time regardless of the consquences that could occur and trying to change a culture to fit her standards, not understanding that most Aztec people readily agree with this way of life. I really enjoy Barbara's fights with The Doctor, they really paint the moral dilemma well, and both actors are jsut fantastic delivring these scathing lines with full force and convenction.

I also like how Barbara continues on to try and stop human sacrafice even after her complete faliure of a first attempt, she keeps trying until she ultimately realizes with the help of Ian that her action are ultimately futile in the grand scheme of thigns and no greater change she wants can be made. I like her interactions with Autoloc and how they show pretty much the only change she could really make, helping a man questioning his own beliefs find soliace that he isn't hertical, it's the one postive Barbara could make and it meant a lot to him; shows how while big changes should not be made lest there be great consequences to the Web of Time, little changes to time can still occur, which would be the understanding of time travel used by the series going forward. Even if her belief that stopping human sacrafice will save the Aztecs is increadibly erronious, the Spanish would still colonize their land regardless and diseases they brought unintentionally would've massacred them, she still has good intentions at heart in her attempts to help the Aztec people and it's really interesting to see her coming to terms with the futility of actually changing Aztec culture and how wrong it was to try and change time, finding solace that she could at least help Autoloc find some form of peace from his doubts. Jacquline Hill gives a phenomenal preformance capturing all these complex parts of Barbara in this moral dilemma, she really makes it all work, and makes this episode Barbara's best outing as a companion to date.

As a whole this episode is really good, with a great sets, actors, and an excellent moral dilemma at it's core. However even though I really enjoyed most of this serial, there were a few gripes here and there that left me wanting more from it, which left me coming out of this episode liking the episode a lot but just not as mcuh as other fans tend to. Still it's a really good episode that has a great core moral dilemma about the ethics of time travel that has helped to influence the shows understanding of time travel for years to come, coming with some fantastic preformances from the main cast, makes this episode truly a great watch.

Next time: The TARDIS crew have managed to successfully get back to the TARDIS and escape the Aztec warriors. However after taking off, the TARDIS seems to have stopped suddenly, to the shock of The Doctor and Susan. Checking the devices, they seem to have stopped traveling but are somehow still moving, with Barbara thinking they could’ve landed inside some kind of ship, a spaceship.

Final Rating: 8/10

"But history cannot be rewritten! Not one line!"       

-The Doctor, stating the key fact of time travel which would influence how the show interacts with the concept for years to come