History Recap / DoctorWhoNSS4E2TheFiresofPompeii

* AccidentalArt: Caecilius is sold the TARDIS as a work of modern art.

* Fainting Seer: The daughter, who faints after telling the Doctor that he is a "Lord of Time".

* ImMrFuturePopCultureReference with bonus IAmSpartacus joke included absolutely free.

** Or a [[LethalJokeItem water pistol]]

* MeaningfulName: lots, but particularly Lucius Petrus Dextrus (translating as stone right arm). Apparently these were all deliberate - RussellTDavies was channelling'' {{Asterix}}'' and asked James Moran to put them in.
* MistakenForExhibit: Not only is the TARDIS mistaken for a modern art installation, but an enterprising street trader has sold it to a wealthy marble merchant, kicking off the plot.

* CreatorInJoke: Latin students everywhere stand a chance of recognizing Caecillius and his family. They feature in the Cambridge Latin Course, a widely used Latin textbook series.

* ShoutOut to ''FawltyTowers'' when the Doctor explains away some of Donna's remarks with "she's from Barcelona".

** Caecilius, Metella and Quintus come from "CambridgeLatinCourse", the most popular Latin textbook in the UK and US (not Evelina, though - she was created especially for the episode).
*** There's also a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shout-out to Caecilius, Metella and Quintus being from the "CambridgeLatinCourse" books when the Doctor tells Caecilius that "[he] will be remembered." He is indeed remembered, and is read about by almost every English-speaking Latin student for the past 45 years.

* LivingLieDetector: Both augers/soothsayers visibly unnerve the Doctor and Donna by seeing right through their stories and telling them things about them they couldn't have possibly known.

-->Evalina: And you, you call yourself Noble...You are a lord sir, a lord of time."

** Or a water pistol

** Caecilius, Metella and Quintus come from "CambridgeLatinCourse", the most popular Latin textbook in the UK and US.

Except they land in Pompeii, 23 August of 79 A.D., which means that Pompeii's streets are about to get re-paved with lava. The Doctor claims to be unable to do anything about this: he doesn't ''say'' "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS1E6TheAztecs You can't change history, Barbara; not one line]]", but he is probably thinking it.

So they go for the ''other'' secret Time Lord maneuver: running away. Unfortunately, the TARDIS is missing; it's been sold to a local marble merchant with a taste for avant-garde art. It's not the first time [[Recap/DoctorWhoS17E2CityOfDeath the TARDIS has been mistaken for an art installation.]]

The marble-worker who bought it is then attacked by a massive magma-thing (which is stopped by a bucket of water) and it is revealed that his oracle daughter is turning to stone. Also, a local prophet claims that there's something on Donna's back. This will be important later. And he says that a planet has apparently gone missing. This will be ''very'' important later. Meanwhile, the marble-worker has a freaking computer circuit made of stone, so the Doctor decides to stick around a bit longer.

The Doctor finds out that Vesuvius isn't going to erupt if he just leaves; he needs to ''make'' it erupt. If Pompeii doesn't erupt, then since the [[MonsterOfTheWeek alien menace of the week]] hasn't been destroyed, a race of lava golems will turn humans into more golems, boil the ocean, and go conquer the world. Donna realizes for the first time that travelling with the Doctor can be very morally disturbing. They make the volcano erupt, both fully expecting to die, but it turns out the explosion device was inside an escape pod. Donna convinces the Doctor to go back and save the marble-worker and his family. Because not everyone is an über-depressed near-suicidal Time Lord, and sometimes the Doctor forgets that. Six months later, Caecilius and his family have their lives back on track, the daughter is finally socialising like a (in our time, anyways) normal teenager, and that wastrel son is making good of himself, studying to be a doctor too (not that kind). And their new house gods altar, with a box flanked by this man and this woman, look suspiciously familiar...

The Doctor finds out that Vesuvius isn't going to erupt if he just leaves; he needs to ''make'' it erupt. If Pompeii doesn't erupt, then since the [[MonsterOfTheWeek alien menace of the week]] hasn't been destroyed, a race of lava golems will turn humans into more golems, boil the ocean, and go conquer the world. Donna realizes for the first time that travelling with the Doctor can be very morally disturbing. They make the volcano erupt, both fully expecting to die, but it turns out the explosion device was inside an escape pod. Donna convinces the Doctor to go back and save the marble-worker and his family. Because not everyone is an über-depressed near-suicidal Time Lord, and sometimes the Doctor forgets that.

* AboveTheRuins: the Doctor and Donna watch from the hillside as Pompeii is destroyed.

* Tearjerker: "...All those people..."

** Caecilius, Metella and Quintus come from "CambridgeLatinCourse", the most popular Latin textbook in the UK.

**** Actually, the TARDIS probably made it Welsh rather than the [[GeniusBonus period language of the Anglo-Saxons]] because Donna is from [[BilingualBonus Londinium]]. If she were to say so, [[Fridge Brilliance the TARDIS just made it plausible.]]

* TheCretaceousIsAlwaysDoomed

The marble-worker who bought it is then attacked by a massive magma-thing (which is stopped by a bucket of water) and it is revealed that his oracle daughter is turning to stone. Also, a local prophet claims that there's something on Donna's back. This will be important later. And he says that a planet has apparently gone missing. This will be ''very'' important later. Meanwhile, the marble-worker has a circuit made of stone, so the Doctor decides to stick around a bit longer.

** The scene of the marble worker's family rushing to their positions during the pre-eruption earthquakes could be one to a similar scene in ''MaryPoppins''.

So they go for the ''other'' Secret Time Lord maneuver: running away. Unfortunately, the TARDIS is missing; it's been sold to a local marble merchant with a taste for avant-garde art. It's not the first time [[Recap/DoctorWhoS17E2CityOfDeath the TARDIS has been mistaken for an art installation.]]