Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars

"But you can't rewrite history! Not one line! Barbara, one last appeal: what you are trying to do is utterly impossible. I know! Believe me, I know!" - the First Doctor, The Aztecs, May 1964

The penultimate adventure of David Tennant's run as the Doctor, The Waters of Mars sees the time traveler land on the red planet in the year 2059. There, he meets the first human off-world settlement, commanded by Adelaide Brooke. The Doctor is absolutely thrilled to meet these trailblazing pioneers. That is, until he learns the date: November 21st. With his knowledge of history, the Doctor knows that this is the exact day that Bowie Base One will be destroyed in a mysterious explosion, killing everyone.

The Doctor is, of course, an incorrigible meddler, and he wants to get involved. At the same time, he realizes that the destruction of the Mars settlement is one of those key fixed points in history that absolutely cannot be altered. The Doctor finds himself struggling with his desire to save the lives of the expedition, and his responsibility to adhere to the laws of time.

The cause of Bowie Base One's impending troubles soon makes itself known: a sentient viral lifeform that exists in the glacial waters of Mars. Released, it begins possessing members of the crew. Its goal is to escape to Earth, a planet that is composed of over two thirds water.

The crew members controlled by the water virus are a truly ghastly, unnerving spectacle: wide staring eyes with pinpoint pupils, cracked skin, shriveled black lips twisted into a rictus grin, water pouring out of their mouths and hands. And all it takes is a single drop of contaminated water to infect a person. These are some of the scariest monsters in the history of Doctor Who.

In certain respects, The Waters of Mars is a very traditional Doctor Who story. It utilizes the "base under siege" formula that was very prevalent in the late 1960s when Patrick Troughton played the Doctor. The alien menace's end goal is to invade Earth. And there is a hell of a lot of running up and down corridors, a hallmark of the series.

In another respect, though, The Waters of Mars is something of a departure from typical Doctor Who, as it explores at length the darker, arrogant, manipulative side of the Doctor's nature.

That quality has been touched upon from time to time in the series' history, from the very beginning, with William Hartnell, the first actor to play the Doctor. Even his successor, Troughton, who was a much more light-hearted figure, was not above occasionally engaging in deception and manipulation. It was a quality that would pop up once in awhile in the Doctor's successive regenerations. This finally became much more pronounced in the Sylvester McCoy years. The Doctor adopted the role of a cosmic chessmaster, maneuvering people and events to achieve a specific outcome.

Even David Tennant's Doctor showed this inclination early on when he altered history by arranging for the downfall of Prime Minister Harriet Jones as a reprisal for her ordering the destruction of the Sycorax in The Christmas Invasion. Mind you, this ended up blowing up in the Doctor's face. The succeeding PM was Harold Saxon, who turned out to be the Doctor's arch enemy the Master, who used the position to nearly conquer the world. After him came PM Brian Green, who brought political expediency to an art form, and who was willing to sacrifice ten percent of Earth's children to appease a group of alien extortionists in Torchwood: Children of Earth. So, yeah, nice going Doctor.

Obviously not having learned his lesson from the Harriet Jones debacle, the Doctor decides to save the crew of Bowie Base One. Ignoring the warnings he often gave his traveling companions about the dangers of altering history, the Doctor decides that, as the last of the Time Lords, the laws of time no longer apply to him. He boldly proclaims himself "Time Lord Victorious," and from his attitude it is apparent that he believes he knows what is best for everyone. In other words, he decides to play God. This is a monumental act of hubris on the Doctor's part. It is also an incredibly frightening moment. The Doctor, with all his knowledge and power, unhindered by conscience or scruples, has the potential to become the most dangerous being in existence.

David Tennant is absolutely electrifying as the Doctor in The Waters of Mars. I've stated before that Tennant is probably the best Doctor since Tom Baker. It definitely shows here. Tennant's performance runs the spectrum of emotions. We see the Doctor's giddy enthusiasm at meeting Adelaide Brooke and her historic crew, his seemingly random babbling as his thoughts ricochet from one subject to another, his deeply inquisitive nature as he investigates the threat to Bowie Base One, his palpable sorrow when he realizes the crew is destined to die, and his arrogant determination to flout history and reshape time according to his whims.

Another strong performance is turned in by Lindsay Duncan, portraying Adelaide Brooke. Duncan imbues Adelaide with the iron determination needed to command Bowie Base One. At the same time, in her conversations with the Doctor, we see Adelaide's passion to explore the unknown, to find out what is out there in the vast universe, a wanderlust that has propelled her for most of her life. And, when Adelaide learns of the base's destined destruction, we see the rage and unwillingness to quit as she struggles to avert the events the Doctor has foretold. Adelaide really is the Doctor's equal in this story.

The Waters of Mars is directed by Graeme Harper. Considering the dark nature of the story, he was an appropriate choice. Harper directed The Caves of Androzani and Revelation of the Daleks, two of the grimmest Doctor Who serials of the 1980s. So he definitely knows how to establish a somber mood. Harper makes The Waters of Mars a taut, atmospheric thriller.

This is one of the best episodes of David Tennant's run as the Doctor. It is exciting, thought-provoking, and unsettling. The first time I watched it, on BBC America, I found it enjoyable. The second viewing on DVD was an even richer experience.

By the way, when I first learned there would be a Doctor Who story entitled The Waters of Mars, I wondered if the Ice Warriors would be involved. Obviously it turns out they weren't. But the Doctor does give them a shout-out. It was a nice nod to continuity. Hope they show up again one of these days.