Just watched “Empress of Mars” and “Eaters of Light”. I thought they were fantastic. More to the point, these were really classic-style Doctor Who. They looked very much like Tom Baker episodes – slower pacing, multiple story lines, gritty settings with interesting human cultures, the party split up and each wrestling with their own problems, which then come together for the climax. And in a season with many cheesy endings, they both have GREAT endings. Anyone who likes old Doctor Who should enjoy these two episodes!
Yes, they certainly were. And they were a nice bridge after the terrible “Lie of the Land”, leading into an amazing finale. Mark Gatiss is a huge fan of the Pertwee era (he has written some good novels in that era). The bit with Alpha-centauri was a huge throwback to Curse of Peladon. It’s the kind of reference the RTD era stayed far away from, and the Moffat era has embraced. Even though I see how it might be easier to attract and keep new viewers when you’re not totally steeped in the past, and that it’s probably good that Chibnall will apparently take things in a direction away from that, I’ve got to say I enjoy it. And the Christmas Special will be a big last hurrah for that style.
Eaters of the Light was great. Rona Munroe wrote the last story of the old show (Survival), which was a pretty good script very mixed production quality. It would be nice if she kept writing in the Chibnall era.