Story #6 - The Aztecs (1964)

Harry -
Let’s get right to it, there’s a blizzard about to hit and I need to move some canned goods down to the cellar.


Sarah -
The Upper Midwest is gripped by Stormageddon 2011 and I'm already missing the balmy setting of "The Aztecs."


Harry -
To borrow a sporting parlance, “The Aztecs” is a tale of two halves.

I found the first two episodes slow-moving with surprisingly little going on after the main and secondary plotlines are first introduced. The camera work was shoddy at times.


Sarah -
Wait, isn't that part of the charm?


Harry -
True, but it can still be jarring at times. The final two episodes more than make up for it. Riveting stuff, interestingly shot, and the story brought to a brilliant conclusion. It felt like they switched not just directors but the entire production company in mid-story, the contrast was so striking.


Sarah -
Sorry, but how have we gotten this far without the mention of Tlotoxl? John Ringham just may have turned in the best Doctor Who performance ever. Oh, I was skeptical at first – convinced that he was merely a frustrated thespian who never had the opportunity to show the world his Richard III – but he soon won me over with the depth and consistency of his most excellent performance.


Harry -
Speaking of mean old Uncle Dicky... in keeping with the varied and experimental nature of Season 1’s stories, “The Aztecs” offers us Doctor Who as a BBC Shakespeare teleplay. It had that feel to it. Tight sets, a small cast always in each other’s faces, and a great moral quandary at the heart of it.

The story revolves around Barbara and her attempt to alter history on a grand scale by overturning the fundamental religious beliefs of the Aztecs. Her intentions are met with disapproval from all sides, with only Susan and Ian offering (somewhat passive) support.

The Doctor is adamant – history cannot be rewritten, despite Barbara’s good intentions.

Sarah -
Barbara, Barbara, Barbara, what were you thinking? History cannot be rewritten … except when the viewers don’t know the history. (Take the Thals, for example.) Still, has Barbara rewritten their history, or just confirmed it? Might the Aztec empire still exist today if it weren’t for a meddling English history teacher?


Harry -
Autloc is respectful but puzzled, trying to understand why the reincarnated High Priest Yetaxa would return to refute their age-old beliefs and rites.

Tlotoxl is utterly contemptuous of this newcomer, who dares to challenge the ways of the gods, as well as his own standing as the High Priest of Sacrifice.


Sarah -
But, as Ian points out, Autloc is the outlier. Tlotoxl’s behavior is entirely appropriate for his culture. And, have I mentioned he’s utterly fabulous?


Harry -
It is a dangerous game that Barbara plays and it would have been fascinating to watch the story progress. Only, it didn’t. Once the players were introduced, the story seemed to drag. Scenes were overly long, and often marred by poor camerawork. During the first human sacrifice – a critical moment – there is one whopping great camera wobble that pulled me right out of the story, back to the BBC set, wondering how in hell they wouldn’t have re-shot such a pivotal scene.

Another pulled-me-out-of-the-story moment was Ixta donning what appears to be a cheetah mask. Were there cheetahs in ancient Mexico? Maybe some similarly spotted jungle cat? I have to do some Googling.


Sarah -
It is a dangerous game and she plays it so boldly. I loved the moment when she tells Tlotoxl that she’s not a god and there’s not a damn thing he can do about it. The way she plays everyone off against each other is quite cunning, coming from Our Barbara.

The first episode was a little too similar to the Velvet Web – Barbara showing up before everyone else and settling into the moment with nary a blink. Still, she looks great in the costume. The Aztecs had some awesome headgear. Even Ian got in on the action.

On a technical note, I’m sure the black and white helped, but I found the sets quite excellent. The backdrops were clearly backdrops, but they looks fabulous and sold me on the story.


Harry -
The third and fourth episodes of this story are something else. Each of the one-on-one moments feature some crackling lines. There’s even a moment of humour to break the tension, played perfectly by Hartnell and Russell:

“Where did you get hold of this?”
“My fiancé.”
“I see. [beat] Your WHAT?”

Sarah -
That old heartbreaker and his wicked charm! As much as he’s clearly manipulating Cameca for information about the temple, I don’t doubt that there’s something there. I love that he was constantly being shuttled back to the garden with all the other plus-52s. Talk about being put out to pasture!

Ian, meanwhile, gets to put his fighting skills, which one assumes he picked up while doing his National Service, to the test.


Harry -
Indiana Chesterton!


Sarah -
His fight scenes with Ixta have to be among the least interesting in television history. That said, I appreciated when he stood his ground in the final episode, knowing that he must face Ixta before leaving in the TARDIS.

Susan has the strangest storyline of all. Wisked away to the seminary, she once again excels as the excellent student. Then she almost gets married off to Ixta and inadvertently slags off the entire Aztec empire. Oops.


Harry -
Yes, Susan’s seminary plotline was weird. I mean seriously, her entire adventure consisted of being kept in a small room by herself, with the occasional spot quiz from Autloc. Weird!


Sarah -
Apparently, it was Carole Ann Ford’s turn to be on holiday and her scenes in the second and third episodes were pre-filmed.


Harry -
You are Toby to my Rob!


Sarah -

I'm clearly the Toby in this relationship!


Harry -
As the various conflicts in the story race to their resolution, this story surprises with an ending where the goodies end up suffering the most, and the baddies come out on top.

Cameca, having been used and mislead by the Doctor, suffers a broken heart.

The Doctor, realizing what he has done to her, is saddened and guilty.

Barbara is depressed, her optimistic efforts having been crushed. (I loved how, after she was repeatedly berated by the Doctor, Ian put it to her more gently: “You can’t fight a whole way of life, Barbara.”)

Most tragic of all is Autloc, a gentle soul who ends up losing his faith, left to wander the wilderness.

Tlotoxl wins the day! The hunched, sneering antagonist, who – like Tegana before him – was merely playing out his role in that culture at that time. As the Doctor concludes, Tlotoxl had to win in order to preserve history (which is the one bit of hypocritical rubbish throughout Doctor Who – the most important rule, yet the one that is most often broken).


Sarah -
There wouldn’t be a show if that rule weren’t broken!


Harry -
Do you wonder if the Doctor ever thinks about Cameca?


Sarah -
Of course. Perhaps he went back for a visit…


Harry -
I’m sure there’s a fanfic for that.

Do you think this is the story where Barbara starts thinking about going home again?


Sarah -
It would be hard not to after all that, don’t you think?


Harry -
I could write on and on about this story, but let’s wrap things up before the power cuts out.


Sarah -
Lasting image - The Doctor’s face when he discovers he’s engaged!

Favorite moment – Every moment Tlotoxl is on screen.

Best line - "Yes, I made some cocoa and got engaged..."

Rating: 8/10


Harry -
Lasting image: Barbara resplendent as Yetaxa.

Favourite moment: the Doctor and Cameca’s sweet courtship in the garden.

Best line: “Was ever such a potion brewed? In bliss is quenched my thirsty heart.” Cameca, sipping cocoa with the Doctor, delivers a line right out of Shakespeare.

After a slow and wobbly start (6/10), “The Aztecs” comes to life at the midway point and gives us a great finish (8/10).

Rating: 7/10

 

 


Our marathon continues with Story #7 - The Sensorites...