DW Autumn Special 2009: Waters of Mars

A Guide to Classic Who references in new Who.

Doctor Who Autumn Special 2009 (Story 44) in which The Doctor goes to Mars.

Warning: May contain spoilers for

"Waters of Mars"

Viewing Order

"Planet of the Dead" > The Doctor's Timeline > "Dreamland"

References

[OLD] - Things that first appeared in the classic series (or the film.)  Episode List.

For context, the following are also covered:

[1ST] -  The first appearance of things in Doctor Who series.

[NEW] - Things that first appeared previously in the new series.

Ongoing References...

• [OLD]  TARDIS - The Doctor's time and space travel vehicle.  TARDIS stands for Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space.  Like a lot of Time Lord technology, it is "bigger on the inside."  The Doctor stole his Tardis when fleeing Gallifrey.  It is an older model ("Type 40") and unreliable, often ending up in the wrong location, and being unable to blend into its environment.

• [OLD] The Doctor - The central character of both series of Doctor Who.  He's a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey.  Real name: unknown; actual age: unclear.

• [OLD]  Two hearts - The fact that the Doctor had two hearts was first noted in "Spearhead in Space" (Doctor Who (1963) season 7) the Third Doctor's first story.  Previously it seemed that the First and Second Doctor only had one heart.  Since then it is usually implied that Time Lords always have two hearts (with early references being retroactively regarded as goofs) although some non-televised sources claim that Time Lords have only a single heart in their first body (or the number changes).  Other non-televised sources state that the First Doctor and his granddaughter Susan actually had two hearts.   In "Dalek" (Doctor Who (2005) series 1) Henry Van Statten discovered that the Ninth Doctor had two hearts and in "Smith & Jones" (Doctor Who (2005) series 3) Martha made the same discovery.  Having two hearts saved his life in "The Shakespeare Code" (Doctor Who (2005) series 3).

• [OLD] Robot Dog - K9, the Doctor's robot companion from  the classic series (see Allies: K9). Mark III appeared in "School Reunion" (Doctor Who (2005) series 2) in which he was replaced by Mark IV. He has also made cameo appearances (like this) in "Invasion of the Bane" (Sarah Jane Adventures special) and "The Lost Boy" (Part 2) (Sara Jane Adventures series 1).

• [OLD] Sonic Screwdriver - The Doctor's favourite tool.  First appeared in "Fury of the Deep" (Doctor Who (1963) season 5) and has been used off and on by various Doctor including the Ninth and Tenth.

• [OLD]  A Dalek - Classic Doctor Who villain (see Daleks).

• [OLD]  Time Lord - The time traveling ruling elite of Gallifrey.  It is noted here that they are not easy to come by.  This has probably always been true, however since the Time War they have been trapped outside the universe and then relegated to the end of time.  This would make them hard to find.

This episode...

• [OLD] Mars - Appeared or was mentioned a few times in Classic Who:
• Home of the Ice Warriors (see below).
• Mars Probe 7 was returning from Mars in "The Ambassadors of Death" (Doctor Who (1963)  season 7, where they met radioactive humanoids. The events occured in the 70s or 90s.
• The Osirans arrived there around 5000 BC and the Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith visited in 1911: "The Pyramids of Mars" (Doctor Who (1963)  season 9.

In New Who:

• A British probe was on its way to Mars in "The Christmas Invasion" Doctor Who (2005).

• [1ST] Bowie Base One - First appearance of this base that answers the question "Is there Life on Mars?"

• [NEW] Spacesuit - The suit the Doctor got from Krop Tor in "The Impossible Planet"/"The Satan Pit" (Doctor Who (2005) series 2).

• [1ST] The Flood - First appearance of this alien virus.

• [NEW] Dalek Invasion of 2008 - A reference to the events of "The Stolen Earth"/"Journey's End" (Doctor Who Series 4).

• [1ST] First and second female Briton to land on the Moon - First mention of these events.

• [1ST] Oil Apocalypse - First mention of these events.

• [OLD] Ice Warriors - Doctor Who villain (see Foes:  Ice Warriors) who appeared in
• "The Ice Warriors" (Doctor Who (1963) season 5 (set on Earth)
• "The Seeds of Death" (Doctor Who (1963)  season 6 (set on the Moon)
• "The Curse of Peladon" (Doctor Who (1963)  season 9 and "The Monster of Peladon" (Doctor Who (1963)  season 11 (set on Peladon).

• [NEW] Planets in the Sky - Another reference to the events of "The Stolen Earth"/"Journey's End" (Doctor Who Series 4).

• [1ST] The Dragon Star - First mention of this location.

• [1ST] The Celestial Belt of the Winter Queen - First mention of this location.

• [1ST] The Watersnake Wormholes - First mention of this location.

• [1ST] Tandonian prince -  First mention of Tandonians.

• [NEW] Pompeii - The events of "Fires of Pompeii" (Doctor Who (2005) series 4). 

• [NEW] Knock Four Times - A prediction made by Carmen in "Planet of the Dead" (Doctor Who (2005) Easter Special 2008).

• [NEW]  The Ood - First appeared in "The Impossible Planet"/"The Satan Pit" (Doctor Who (2005) series 2) as members of a slave race.  They later gained freedom in "Planet of the Ood" (Doctor Who (2005) series 4), primarily due to the actions of Ood Sigma...

• [NEW] Ood Sigma - An Ood important in the revolution on the Ood home planet who made predictions about Donna's fate.

~ DUG.

The Time Crash blog was created to help New Who fans understand Classic Who references - and to know if something isn't a reference but a new idea.  If there's a reference I missed or a subject that you feel needs more explaining, please comment.

"Planet of the Dead" > The Doctor's Timeline > "Dreamland"

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