Doctor Who season 10: ‘The Eaters of Light’ trailer and synopsis

Before we launch into the end game of Doctor Who season 10 next week, it’s time for one more standalone adventure,  this time involving an ancient mystery in Scotland.

We may not want to admit it, but the end of Doctor Who season 10 is approaching. Rapidly. There are only three more episodes to go this year. (Plus the annual Christmas special, but does that really count right now when it’s so far away?)

The series is clearly gearing up for a big, all hands-on-deck kind of finale. Missy’s out of the vault, John Simm’s coming back, and we’re counting down to Peter Capaldi’s regeneration. (Which, we all know probably won’t happen until the Christmas episode, but…. You never know. Capaldi did say he filmed it already.)

But none of that is happening just yet.

This week, it looks like we’ll get one more standalone adventure instead. Entitled “The Eaters of Light,” the next episode sees Twelve and Bill journey to ancient Roman Britain, to try to solve a famous military mystery.

The official BBC synopsis reads as follows:

"A hunt for the lost Ninth Roman Legion leads the Doctor, Bill and Nardole into the middle of an ancient battle that could cast humanity into the dark forever. What is inside the cairn? And how far will they have to go defeat the terrifying alien Eaters of Light?"

But, as usual, the version over at Doctor Who TV has a little bit more detail:

"A long time ago, the ninth legion of the Roman army vanished into the mists of Scotland. Bill has a theory about what happened, and the Doctor has a time machine. But when they arrive in ancient Aberdeenshire, what they find is a far greater threat than any army. In a cairn, on a hillside, is a doorway leading to the end of the world…"

This sort of historical folklore mystery sounds fascinating. Plus, if the episode trailer is anything to go by, it also probably features a really big monster of some type.

Bonus: This episode is written by Rona Munro. Longtime Doctor Who fans probably recognize this name. Why? Well, she’s written for the show before. She penned the 1989 episode “Survival”, which starred Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and was the last installment to air from the series’ original run. Munro’s debut here marks the first time a writer from the classic series has penned an episode for the post-2005 revival era.

Talk about going back to the past, huh?

Next: Doctor Who: What’s next after ‘Empress of Mars’

Doctor Who season 10 continues Saturday, June 17 on BBC One and BBC America.