Doctor Who season 10: “Extremis” trailer and synopsis
By Lacy Baugher
The new season of Doctor Who continues, as a badly injured Twelve must investigate an ancient text in a forbidden library. What could go wrong?
Doctor Who Season 10 continues this Saturday, and the consequences from last week’s episode continue to hang over everyone. Most obviously, for the Doctor, who remains blind after the devastating events of “Oxygen.” And while we saw him save the day despite being unable to see, this episode will probably provide more challenges. Especially given his decision to keep the truth of his condition from Bill. How long can he realistically cover up what happened to him with sunglasses?
As viewers, we’ve never seen the Doctor in this sort of state. He’s never been permanently incapacitated or injured in a way that wouldn’t heal, or didn’t immediately precede regeneration. So what happens now? We don’t know. This has literally never happened before. (And isn’t that exciting?)
This week’s episode, entitled “Extremis” finds the Doctor summoned to investigate a mystery on behalf of the Vatican.
And the official BBC synopsis sounds pretty dire:
"‘The Veritas. The truth. Truth so true you can’t live with it. Is that looking into hell… or seeing the light?’ Everyone who has ever read the Veritas has been found dead. In a forbidden library at the heart of the Vatican, the pope urges the Doctor to read the ancient text – but can he handle the truth?"
The synopsis over at Doctor Who TV gives us a little more info about this ancient text. (And also sounds pretty dire.)
"In the Haereticum – the Vatican’s secret library of blasphemy – there is an ancient book known only as The Veritas. Throughout history, anyone who has ever read it has immediately taken their own life. Now a new translation is online, and the danger is spreading. The Vatican appeals to the Doctor. Will he read The Veritas? But can even the Doctor survive the ultimate truth?"
Though neither of these sites mention it, “Extremis” will apparently kick off a three-part story, Doctor Who’s first in several decades. (Or at least the first they’re actually going to call a three-part adventure.) That multiple episode saga was rumored to feature a new kind of monster known only as “The Monks”, which certainly matches up with this description. (And the “next time” promo we saw last week.)
Watch the trailer for “Extremis” for yourself:
If that clip is anything to go by, Missy will make an appearance this week. But how? Does she escape from the Doctor’s vault? Or do we learn our predictions were all wrong, and she isn’t its mysterious occupant in the first place? Your guess is as good as mine.
Next: Doctor Who: Three things we’re thinking about after ‘Oxygen’
Doctor Who season 10 continues Saturday, May 20 on BBC One and BBC America.