Doctor Who: Series 10, Episode 10 – “The Eaters of Light” (2017)

While a little uneven, I did enjoy this episode, although I think having it right after “The Empress of Mars” doesn’t serve it well.  The setting, sensibility, and resolution are all different, but it hits the same notes of empire and what it is to be a warrior, and putting these episodes back-to-back makes this one feel a little repetitive.

The Doctor and Bill have a bet about the ultimate end of the Roman Ninth Legion, and since being a time traveler is even better than googling something, they head to 2^nd-century Scotland to try and prove their respective theories (with a slightly-unwilling Nardole in tow.)  However, neither finds what they bargained for – there’s a monster loose in the countryside looking to destroy Romans and Scots alike, and if the Doctor is going to have a prayer of stopping it, he needs both sides working together.

I’d say this episode takes a more interesting look at war and empire than last week’s.  Both sides provide a few characters we get to know, and it really helps that the Romans we meet aren’t the leaders.  They’re cogs in the Roman imperial machine, which allows the discussion to be more about the nature of empire-building/conflict itself rather than the specific groups involved in the fighting here.  I did have a bit of trouble with how the Doctor interacted with the main Scottish leader – I get the point, that she and all the warriors so young and isn’t it such a waste to see these children killing each other to feel grown-up, but since the Doctor keeps his condescending critiques mainly focused on her and she’s the only woman in the main story other than Bill, it feels like there’s spillover onto her gender instead of just being about her age.  Now, I don’t think this was the episode’s intention at all, but given the balance of characters, it just looks a little off.

Other than that, there are a number of good lines and bits from our heroes.  Nardole is a lot of fun in this episode – I love his attempts to ingratiate himself with the locals.  While I still wouldn’t say Bill gets in any real solid wins, she spends part of the episode going her own way, making some friends and staying alive.  It’s nice to watch her putting pieces together without the Doctor confirming her suppositions.  And apart from the aforementioned condescension that doesn’t really work for me, the Doctor is pretty good here.  He’s at his best when the two groups come into one another’s immediate sphere and he has to get them united against the monster (the Eater of Light, which is an awesomely-badass name, despite the questionable CGI in a few shots) instead of going after each other.

My favorite part of the episode is the scene in which Bill tries to explain her sexuality to a handful of Roman soldiers and realizes she’s in a period of history/with people that are a lot more progressive on that front than she expects.  For me, it’s a more successful flip of those kinds of questions of identity than the bit with the alien in “Oxygen,” and it’s just cool all-around.  If you need to dispel some bi erasure, talk to an ancient Roman – happy Pride month!  Made me smile.