Professor Grisenko) (David Warner) into his 1980's music especially Ultravox and his "oh Vienna." The Doctor identifies the creature as an Ice Warrior and even knows its name Grand Marshall Skaldak (Spencer Wilding). As he soon gets it on his side, one of the sailors uses a cattle prod on it. Thus attacking him and declaring war. Skaldak is chained up and he manages to send a message out to the rest of his people. He's from Mars and believes all his people are dead. The Doctor tells us his history and wants to communicate with him and Captain Zhukov (Liam Cunningham) refuses to let him go, he may be needed. Clara coughs, so she's the one to talk to Skaldak.
The Doctor watches her and tells her what to say in a reversal of 7.1 Asylum of the Daleks where we first encountered Clara as she was watching them. The thawing of the Iceman is reminiscent of how the Daleks have been revived in the past and this is no exception, bringing to mind how Rose (Billie Piper) touched it in one of the early episodes with the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) in Dalek. The Warrior breaks his chains and gets free leaving his suit of armour behind, which the Doctor says is a dishonour. Now he's given up any hope of being rescued and he's got nothing to lose.
The crew and Doctor search for Skaldak but he's fast on his feet as the Doctor explains. Skaldak corners Stepashin (Tobias Menzies) who wants to form an alliance with him, together they can win the Cold War in a mutually destructive capacity. Skaldak kills two more crew and the Doctor says it's analyzing them, it's "turned forensic." A particular stand out moment was when the professor asks Clara if she's really from the future so she must tell him about it, he must know, if Ultravox break up. She laughs as he's funny. Skaldak grabs hold of the Professor and Clara asks him not to kill him. He pauses allowing enough time for the Doctor to reach them and try to talk Skaldak down. He almost gets there when along comes the captain and a sailor who pulls a gun on him.
Skaldak escapes and arms the missiles mentioning the mutually destruction line once more. The Doctor who now has his screwdriver courtesy of the professor who found it on the floor and the Doctor threatens to blow up the submarine with everyone on board. He wants Skaldak to show mercy and save the billions of innocent lives on the planet. Once again earth is in jeopardy. Clara reminds him of his daughter and how he fought with her in the war since he just recalls her as dust now. How they used to sing about the red rain. The Doctor and Skaldak have a face off eye to eye and Skaldak asks who will blink first. Clara sings now, a line from Hungry Like the Wolf, who'd have thunk it, Duran Duran saves the world! Was thinking of this song the other day.
Skaldak's people bring the submarine to the surface with their traction beam and then he's taken too. They think it's over but the Doctor says the missiles are still armed. Finally Skaldak shows mercy and disarms them. As they watch the ship fly away, the Doctor tells Clara he was trying a new system on the TARDIS he hasn't used for a while where it disappears at the first sign of trouble. Only thing is it's ended up at the South Pole and he needs a lift there.
A different setting for Doctor Who this episode as we've all seen the claustrophobic films ad shows where the characters are stuck in one place with nowhere to go and the air is fast running out. It was the same here as we got a dire sense of being stuck and there was no way up or down, or out. Skaldak was revealed to be a creature with red eyes and scrawny fingers with long claws, but still seemed to have tentacles a bit like the Daleks. This was the first time the Doctor had seen him too as the Ice Warriors are always in armour. Some great acting and scenes as once again Matt Smith shows why he's so good as the Doctor and Clara firmly sets herself up as a great companion adding they saved the world, "it's what we do;" echoing the Doctor's sentiments. He also reminds her that anything can happen and history is in flux and can be rewritten, thus she may never have been been born.
Some stunning moments as the Doctor asks "is that gas" when the Warrior is standing behind him and still he doesn't look. Would the Doctor have blown up the submarine to save the world, we won't know, but do you guess that he just may have done exactly that. Oh and since everyone was speaking perfect English it was left to the Doctor to explain they were really speaking Russian cos of the TARDIS translation matrix. In response to her saying she's not a spy, she can't even speak Russian. So the translation still worked when the TARDIS wasn't around.
A bit more singing on show here as this time it's from the '80's so that's allowed since most of us will agree it was a terrific time for music. Even the Doctor recalls the big shoulder pads, ha. Not everyone's cup of tea this episode but now that Clara's firmly established and is introduced to us properly over three episodes, it's time to move forward with the action and next week's haunted house episode looks cool and scary too, just what we need from the show.
Other previous appearances of the Ice Warriors in Doctor Who were in The Ice Warriors (1967) The Seeds of Death (1974) The monster of Peladon (1974) The Curse of Peladon (1973).
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