Pyramids of Mars Part Two

The one where Marcus Scarman brings Sutekh's gift of death to his best friend...

Poor Namin's death sounds terribly painful and agonised, doesn't it? Well done to Peter Mayock for making his character's demise sound so convincingly unpleasant, making the viewer squirm in their seat despite the fact the Egyptian was a nasty piece of work. The dark figure becomes the cadaverous Marcus Scarman, who we haven't seen since the first scene of episode 1. He now looks pale and undead, a walking corpse animated by the will of Sutekh. Bernard Archard looks suitably horrific in pale make-up and red raw eyes.

Marcus has arrived so that he can take control of operations in England, and orders the mummies to take up the generator loop canopic jars and position them at the four compass points to activate a barrier to secure borders around the Priory. It might have been wiser if Sutekh had got Namin to do this earlier, to make sure fewer people were trapped inside the barrier.

One of those unwittingly trapped inside the barrier is Ernie Clements, the local poacher, and the scene where Ernie hears something caught in a trap is eerie. He hears the struggle in the middle distance before seeing the arresting sight of a walking mummy trying to free itself using brute force. Not what you expect to see on your average Tuesday while out poaching. The thing that struck me also was that this trap can't possibly be one of Ernie's, as it's too big for the type of creature he's after (rabbits etc). That trap looks very much like a mantrap, which were ironically used to trap poachers, not animals, in the 18th century. Mantraps were outlawed in 1861, so why there's still one hanging around in the grounds of the Priory 40 years later is a mystery...

Ernie Clements (played by George Tovey, father of Dr Who movie Susan actress Roberta) is one of those characters Robert Holmes excelled at. He's a little man of little consequence to the grand scheme of things, but he's wrapped up in the grand scheme of things all the same. He represents you and me, the ordinary citizen who is affected by the Doctor's world just by going about his business. You instantly feel sorry for him as he tries to escape but discovers that there's an invisible barrier around the Priory preventing him. He's witness to an awful lot of horror in his lone episode, but still tries to fight back.

The scene where he shoots at Marcus Scarman through the window is a memorable triumph by director Paddy Russell. Although it's a simple task of reversing the footage to make it look like the bullet exits Scarman's body, the concentration involved in making sure Bernard Archard looks convincing walking backwards (but really forwards!) is impressive. When Scarman orders the mummies to pursue poor Ernie, the shot of him fleeing across the lawn pursued by two lumbering mummies is wonderfully tense. They then continue to hunt him down in the woods (an ironic reversal of fortune for Ernie), at one point simply standing stock still waiting for him to break cover, before lumbering inexorably - and increasingly speedier - after him.

Ernie finally meets his maker when he's cornered on the drive outside the Lodge, and crushed to death by two mummies (complete with another blood-curdling scream). It's a horrible death, but somehow inevitable. He is a one-episode wonder, invented by Holmes in order to die. Ernie is the innocence in all of us.

Marcus Scarman pays a visit to the Lodge where he meets his old friend Dr Warlock, but it seems the familiarity is one-sided. Archard is wonderful as he portrays Scarman desperately struggling to remember his friend, but the influence of Sutekh is too strong, and he ultimately orders his death as well. The thought of someone cold-bloodedly killing their life-long friend is another example of how Robert Holmes was injecting very adult themes into this "children's programme". Holmes believed children should be challenged and be exposed to some of the raw realities of life. People die. Friends kill. The innocent perish...

Somebody with little sympathy is the Doctor, who rather coldly instructs the grief-stricken Laurence that he should stop thinking of Marcus as his brother. "As a human being, Marcus Scarman no longer exists," he states, as Laurence hangs his head in utter despair. The Doctor's cursory shoulder tap does absolutely nothing to help, although Sarah's more heartfelt gentle touch (barely noticeable in the background) possibly helps a little. I can only imagine this tiny stage direction was improvised by Elisabeth Sladen, but it adds so much to the humanity of the scene. The Doctor's lack of compassion for the Scarmans (and in general: just look at his lack of concern when he hears Ernie's screams outside) is indicative of him concentrating on the bigger - much bigger - picture, and drives home the fact this man is an alien, with alien feelings. Sarah Jane Smith is the heart in this relationship, and the Doctor is very definitely the brains.

But the Doctor gets to turn the tables on Sarah quite wonderfully in yet another memorable scene in which Sarah suggests they just leave in the TARDIS and carry on to 1980, because she knows that the world didn't end in 1911. The Doctor dials up 1980 and shows her the desolation Sutekh would leave in his wake if he isn't stopped in 1911. It's a sobering scene, played beautifully understated by Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen and Michael Sheard. It's a very important scene, as it demonstrates why the Doctor can't just up and leave every time he has an adventure. It also reinforces the belief that people should do what they can, when they can. Do not turn a blind eye to the evils around you. Fight it, stop it, do not be complicit in your indolence. "We've got to go back," states a resigned Sarah. The privilege of being able to travel in time and space brings with it huge responsibility. Marvellous stuff.

By the way, Laurence's childlike wonder at seeing inside the TARDIS doesn't quite work for me, because he doesn't see what he stepped into outside before witnessing the dimensions inside. He doesn't see that it's a police box, so shouldn't really be concerned with dimensional transcendentalism (for all he knows it could be another room in the Priory). The technology around him rightly astonishes him, however, being reminiscent of something by "that novelist chap, Mr Wells"!

Something else which doesn't quite click for me is when the Doctor mentions that Horus trapped Sutekh in his tomb in Saccara "7,000 years ago". In episode 1, Scarman says that the tomb hasn't been touched since the "first dynasty of the pharoahs", which dates it only as far back as 3,100BC, yet the Doctor's suggesting Sutekh's been there since circa 5,000BC.

The cliffhanger is wonderful. Russell directs the mummies' attack on the Lodge with a brutal efficiency, the robots smashing their way through the door and knocking both the Doctor and Laurence flying in order to get to the Marconiscope which is interfering with Sutekh's mental control of Scarman. As the credits close in, we're left looking at Sarah's terrified face as a mummy's club-like hand hovers over her. "DOCTOR!" she screams.

Blimey.

First broadcast: November 1st, 1975

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: The scene where the Doctor shows Sarah Earth in Sutekh's 1980 is spine-tingling.
The Bad: Why does Sutekh need Scarman at all when he's got Namin doing his bidding back in England? It seems odd to kill Namin when he's already there and perfectly capable of carrying out his will.
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★★★★★

"Would you like a jelly baby?" tally: 05

NEXT TIME: Part Three...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: Part One; Part Three; Part Four

Find out birth/death dates, career information, and facts and trivia about this story's cast and crew at the Doctor Who Cast & Crew site: http://doctorwhocastandcrew.blogspot.com/2014/06/pyramids-of-mars.html

Pyramids of Mars is available on BBC DVD. Find it on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Doctor-Who-Pyramids-Mars-DVD/dp/B000198ADY