Yesterday I railed about the stupid science fiction trope of "alien courtroom drama". Today, by all rights, I should be complaining about the trope of "main character is mistaken as a God". The difference, though, is that The Aztecs uses said trope with deftness and restraint. Writer John Lucarotti, who also penned the amazing Marco Polo, spent a great deal of time researching Aztec culture and history, and it shows. Best of all, the entire plot centers around Barbara Wright. Have I mentioned lately that she is a goddess? Because in this story she takes on the literal role of the goddess Yetaxa. I love this story so much!

Let's talk about that.

The Temple of Evil

The TARDIS arrives inside an Aztec tomb, and Barbara is the first to step out to explore. A historian by trade, she specialized in studying the Aztecs. As she examines the contents of the room, she picks up a snake bracelet and puts it on as she identifies the rooms contents. She happens upon the tomb's door, which uses counterbalances in order to easily open from the inside. Unfortunately, once the entire group has exited the tomb the door closes again and appears to be impossible to open from the outside. Cut off from the TARDIS, the situation is further complicated when a high priest finds them in the antechamber. Seeing the bracelet on her arm, he immediately proclaims Barbara as the returned incarnation of the tomb's occupant the High Priest Yetaxa.

The rest of the story flows from there. One "light side" priest believes in Barbara/Yetaxa, while another "dark side" priest does not. Susan is sent off to the temple for education. Ian is sent off to the warriors' quarters to assume the role of Yetaxa's warlord. The Doctor is sent off to the gardens, where anyone over the age of 52 is retired to live in peaceful contemplation. While Barbara sets out to end the practice of human sacrifice, the others search for any information that will help them re-enter the tomb and depart in the TARDIS.

"I liked, personally, the Aztec story. I got to wear a lovely hat." - Jacqueline Hill

There is so much rich detail going on here, all based on deep historical research, it is impossible for me to do it justice. Even the "bad guy" is not so much evil as he is a true believer in his culture's traditions. The horror of human sacrifice is portrayed with the very real complexity that the person being sacrificed (actually named the Perfect Victim) is participating voluntarily and with great honor. This is as far from the cartoonish writing of the previous story as you can possibly get. The first episode ends with the dark priest vowing to uncover Yetaxa for the fraud she is.

The Warriors of Death

Most of the second episode revolves around a trial-by-combat between Ian and the previous high warrior. During the run-up, the Doctor inadvertently provides assistance to Ian's competitor, by way of a drug to slow down his opponent. It's fun to see the Doctor's own machinations turned against him, and in this episode Hartnell gives a particularly strong performance.

During the climactic fight, which is ostensibly to be a non-fatal competition, Ian holds his own well until he falls victim to a scratch from the poisoned thorn. Even then he still holds up well for a good long time. Ultimately, however, the tide turns and Ian is on the ropes. The dark priest urges the warrior to kill Ian, at which point Barbara/Yetaxa arrives and is challenged to prove her godhood by stopping the fight. Surely Ian will be dead in moments.

Tomorrow: the second half of The Aztecs, in which I weep that this excellent story only got four episodes when yesterday's travesty got six. Life is truly unfair.

STATS:

Doctor(s): First
Companion(s): Ian Chesterton, Susan Foreman, Barbara Wright
Episode(s): The Temple of Evil, The Warriors of Death
Steps Walked: 6,582 today, 99,916 total
Distance Walked: 2.96 miles today, 43.82 miles total
Weight: 300.50 lbs (five day moving average), net change -6.50 lbs