The Doctor and Leela arrive in 60 AD during the Roman occupation of Britain. The having a falling out after meeting the warrior queen of the Iceni tribe, Boudicca. Leela sympathizes with her cause while the Doctor feels that this is a bit of history best left alone.
Tropes
- Action Girl: Leela of course, but also a real life example in the form of Boudica, who led a revolt against the Romans and actually won a number of battles before finally being defeated.
- Been There, Shaped History: Suggested; the Doctor is 'forced' to tell Boudica how the Romans will react to her upcoming attack, but later admits that all he did was tell her how to win a battle history records her as winning anyway.
- Blatant Lies: Leela hears the sounds of battle. The Doctor is ahead of her in guessing where they are and tries to pass the sounds off as energetic Morris Dancers. Leela is not fooled.Leela: Doctor, it is no dance! You are lying to me!
- Broken Pedestal: Leela experiences this for the Doctor and Boudica to varying degrees, as she is initially angry that the Doctor won't help Boudica in the name of not changing history but soon comes to realise that Boudica is far too ruthless for her to truly follow the other woman.
- Continuity Nod: The Doctor tells Leela how evil Morris Dancers are, up there with Daleks and Cybermen. Morris Dancers and other villagers tried to burn him alive in "The Daemons".
- Dark and Troubled Past: Leela is horrified when the Doctor tells her about Boudica's losses, including how her daughters were raped in front of her.
- General Ripper: Boudica will not settle for anything less than the death of every single Roman in Britain. And any Briton who collaborated with them. Or any Briton who was made a slave by them.
- Historical Domain Character: Boudica, queen of the Iceni tribe.
- Hypocrite: Boudica rails against those Britons that collaborate with the Romans. Leela calls her out for doing that very thing in the past.
- Leave No Survivors: The tactic that ultimately turns Leela against Boudica.
- Noble Savage: Leela has very definite ideas about right and wrong, despite her warrior upbringing and willingness to kill.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: The Fourth Doctor does this as naturally as breathing. He switches back and forth between this and deadly earnestness at the drop of a hat.
- Rousing Speech: Boudica gives one to her warriors before launching the attack on Camulodunum.
- Something That Begins with "Boring": The Doctor plays I Spy with Bragnar while they are held prisoner. However, because he is trussed up and lying flat on his back, the only thing he can see is the roof...
- You Can't Fight Fate: The Doctor and Leela have a short discussion about changing the course of history. The Doctor insists that it can't happen, while Leela's point of view is that there is no such thing as history, only the here and now.
