Editing Pyramids of Mars (section)

===Critical reception===
In 1985, [[Colin Greenland]] reviewed ''Pyramids of Mars'' for ''[[Imagine (game magazine)|Imagine]]'' magazine, and stated that it was "''Dr Who'' at its eclectic best [...] A yeasty brew of Hammer horror, Egyptian mythology, and sf with a touch of [[H. G. Wells]]."<ref name="Imagine25">{{cite journal | last = Greenland|first = Colin |author-link=Colin Greenland| title =Fantasy Media | type = review | journal = [[Imagine (AD&D magazine)|Imagine]] | issue = 25| pages =47 | publisher = TSR Hobbies (UK), Ltd. |date=April 1985| issn = }}</ref> [[Paul Cornell]], [[Martin Day (writer)|Martin Day]], and [[Keith Topping]] gave the serial a positive review in ''[[The Discontinuity Guide]]'' (1995), praising the "chilling" adversary and some of the conversations.<ref name="BBC">{{cite web|title=Pyramids of Mars |work=[[BBC]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/pyramidsmars/detail.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150825052609/https://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/pyramidsmars/detail.shtml|archive-date=25 August 2015|access-date=15 June 2024}}</ref>  In ''The Television Companion'' (1998), [[David J. Howe]] and Stephen James Walker described the first episode as "an excellent scene-setter" and the story as "near-flawless". They wrote that ''Pyramids of Mars'' gave the "fullest expression" of the [[Gothic horror]] era and had high production values and a good guest cast.<ref name="television companion"/>

In 2010, Patrick Mulkern of ''[[Radio Times]]'' called it "a bona fide classic" with "arguably the most polished production to date", and praised the powerful plot. However, he disliked how UNIT was dismissed in the season, and found "minor, amusing quibbles" with the plot.<ref name="Radio Times">{{cite web|first=Patrick|last=Mulkern|url= https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/doctor-who-guide/pyramids-of-mars/|title=Pyramids of Mars ★★★★★
|website=[[Radio Times]]|date=13 July 2010|access-date=9 January 2025}}</ref> [[Charlie Anders|Charlie Jane Anders]] of ''[[Gizmodo]]'' described ''Pyramids of Mars'' as "just a lovely, solid adventure story", highlighting the way the Doctor seemed outmatched, the pace, and Sarah Jane.<ref>{{cite web|first=Charlie Jane|last=Anders|url=https://gizmodo.com/old-school-doctor-who-episodes-that-everyone-should-wat-5939314|title=Old-School Doctor Who Episodes That Everyone Should Watch|website=[[Gizmodo]]|date=30 August 2012|access-date=9 January 2025}}</ref> In a 2010 article, Anders also listed the cliffhanger to the third episode&nbsp;— in which the Doctor is forced to confront Sutekh&nbsp;— as one of the greatest ''Doctor Who'' cliffhangers ever.<ref>{{cite web|first=Charlie Jane|last=Anders|url=https://gizmodo.com/greatest-doctor-who-cliffhangers-of-all-time-5625151|title=Greatest Doctor Who Cliffhangers Of All Time!|publisher=[[Gizmodo]]|date=31 August 2010|access-date=9 January 2025}}</ref> In a 2014 ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' poll to determine the best ''Doctor Who'' stories of all time, readers voted ''Pyramids of Mars'' to eighth place.<ref>{{cite news|title=The Top 10 Doctor Who stories of all time|url=http://www.doctorwhomagazine.com/the-top-10-doctor-who-stories-of-all-time/|access-date=21 August 2014|publisher=Doctor Who Magazine|date=June 21, 2014|archive-date=6 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191206154728/https://doctorwhomagazine.com/the-top-10-doctor-who-stories-of-all-time/|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2018, ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' ranked ''Pyramids of Mars'' at number 18 in "the 56 greatest stories and episodes", stating that "although the mummies are excellent, it is the organic characters who take centre stage, with Baker cementing the increasing alienness of his portrayal of the hero". They concluded that it was "pure gold".<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2017/07/03/doctor-best-stories-episodes-ranked/pyramids-mars-doctor/ | title= Doctor Who: the 56 greatest stories and episodes, ranked | work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] | date=3 June 2018 | access-date=3 September 2021}}</ref>
[[File:Bearded man-MGR Lyon-IMG 9929 c.jpg|thumb|266x266px|The statue described by John J Johnston, vice-chair of the [[Egypt Exploration Society]], as being an inspiration for Sutekh's design.]]
In ''A Critical History of Doctor Who on Television'', [[John Kenneth Muir]] queried the [[Egyptian mythology]] [[conceit]] that is woven through the whole story; he also questioned a number of apparently illogical story elements, such as why the robots that guard the priory were disguised as [[Egyptian mummies]], and why the Osiran rocket was shaped as a pyramid. In his assessment, the use of ancient Egyptian objects and symbols by the Osiran race was inadequately explained in the script, and he contrasted ''Pyramids of Mars'' unfavourably with ''[[Stargate]]'', a 1994 television series which relied heavily on the concept of [[ancient astronauts]] visiting Earth. Muir traced parallels with earlier ''Doctor Who'' serials such as ''[[The Dæmons]]'' (1971) and ''[[Terror of the Zygons]]'' (1975) which had also drawn on the idea of ancient Earth mythologies having extraterrestrial origins. Like ''The Dæmons'' and ''[[The Tomb of the Cybermen]]'' (1967), ''Pyramids of Mars'' exploited many familiar conventions of classic [[Mummy (undead)|mummy films]], but less successfully in Muir's view.<ref name="muir">{{cite book|last1=Muir|first1=John Kenneth|title=A Critical History of Doctor Who on Television|date=2007|publisher=McFarland|isbn=9781476604541|pages=237–241|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qMKSCgAAQBAJ&q=doctor%20who%20robot%20king%20kong&pg=PA238|language=en|chapter=Season 13}}</ref>

John J Johnston, vice-chair of the [[Egypt Exploration Society]], explored the influences on ''Pyramids of Mars'' in the ''Encyclopedia of Mummies in History, Religion, and Popular Culture''. He observed that the story drew heavily on a number of classic horror films such as Universal's ''The Mummy'' (1932) and Hammer's ''The Mummy'' (1959), in both its setting and the performance of the actors. Johnston also noted the influences of [[archaeology]] on the [[production design]]. According to Johnston, the robot mummies designed by the BBC's Barbara Kidd were inspired by an ancient rock painting of a mysterious domed-headed figure that had been discovered by [[Henri Lhote]] in the [[Sahara Desert]] in the 1950s, and which Lhote had nicknamed "the Great Martian God". Similarly, he considered Sutekh's mask to have been modelled on a statue of a bearded man dating from c.3500 BCE that had been excavated at [[Gebelein]] by [[:fr:Louis Charles Émile Lortet|Louis Lortet]] in 1908.<ref name="Cardin">{{cite book|last1=Johnston|first1=John J|title=Mummies around the World: An Encyclopedia of Mummies in History, Religion, and Popular Culture|date=2014|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781610694209|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AWJhBQAAQBAJ&q=pyramids%20of%20mars%20the%20mummy%201932&pg=PA90|access-date=9 November 2016|language=en|chapter=Doctor Who: Pyramids of Mars|editor1-last=Cardin|editor1-first=Matt}}</ref>