Doctor Who Series 10 Episode 9: 7 Big Questions After 'Empress Of Mars'
6. Where Does This Story Fit In Ice Warrior History?
Empress of Mars explains how the Ice Warriors left Mars and
became members of the Galactic Federation. This insular race will soon be
sharing a table with the Alpha Centaurian delegate, who here welcomes them to
the universe. Albeit in the loosest sense of the word then, Gatiss’s story is a
prequel to The Curse of Peladon. The events trigger what the Doctor describes
as the Golden Age of the Ice Warriors.
The Curse of Peladon was an allegory on Britain’s entry into the common market with the planet Peladon a cipher for Britain. If reflected a bygone age of optimism in progressive international alliances. Originally Gatiss wanted to write a sequel with Brexit in mind. Peladon, disillusioned with the Federation would make a bid for independence. But in the end this association with topical politics was split between a parody of hopeless British Imperialism and the message that the Ice Warriors must break out their isolationist mentality in order to survive.
It’s easy to place Empress of Mars before the Peladon stories, but working out a coherent pre-history of the Ice Warriors is virtually impossible. Even excluding the varied treatments in audio and novel form their timeline is messy. It’s not helped by the repeated theme of an individual Ice Warrior waking up to a whole new reality having been frozen for long periods of time (The Ice Warriors, Cold War, Empress of Mars).