The Eaters of Light
Story 274, Episode 837, Series 10 Episode 10
Doctor: The Twelfth Doctor
Companions: Bill Potts, Nardole
Rona Munroe writes a delightfully unique episode in the ancient highlands of Scotland that manages to hit all the right notes.
The Review
It seems as weird to say something as simple as The Eaters of Light is as good as Extremis, but that it is. Looking for the lost Ninth Legion, the Doctor and Bill get stuck with the Scots while Bill hides from the Eater of Light with the remaining young Roman soldiers who ran from it. They serve to bridge the divide between the two cultures (even if it comes from incredible luck as Bill and the Romans pop right out in the cairn where the Scots were camped out). The thing this episode got absolutely right was the tone, it was perfect and the atmosphere provided by the gorgeous Highlands was quite a sight to behold. In some ways the episode is a meditation on what it means to have honor in a community, as all the Scots and Romans who have survived are children.
The monster is almost irrelevant to the little moments in the script. Nardole talking about the Mary Celeste, the Doctor’s deadly seriousness, the looks on Bill’s face when Lucius says he’s 18 and the oldest one there. The one scene that didn’t work for me was Bill explaining sexuality and Lucius saying they were all bisexual. Not for lack of historical accuracy, but because it seemed forced. We don’t need a ‘Bill’s a minority’ scene every episode, and there’s better ways to do it. The end with the monster being forced in the portal and the Romans and the Scot gatekeeper Kar (a wonderful performance) is great. Seeing them do what the Doctor has done, fight until the end of time to save people they care about, it hit home. Even the talking crows repeating the name ‘Kar’ as their cry for eternity somehow felt heartfelt and not idiotic.
Unlike the previous two episodes ending on abrupt scenes with Missy, this time Missy’s final scene was much better. Having waited in the TARDIS and seen what happened, she seems dismissive. The Doctor tells her off quite gently, that she always understood the universe but never stopped to hear the music. When he catches her crying later, it is really touching. Maybe it is a diabolical plan, but it seems that the Doctor is right, there is good in everyone. You just have to hear the music.
9.3/10 One of the best small-scale episodes the show has done in recent history, it manages to be memorable and effective with an emotional climax. Bring on the finale.
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