Line #5 Characters/DoctorWhoSilurians


1	[[center:[[WMG:''Series/DoctorWho'' [[Characters/DoctorWho characters index]]\
2	[-'''Incarnations of [[Characters/DoctorWhoDoctors the Doctor]]'''\
3	[[Characters/DoctorWhoFirstDoctor 1]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoSecondDoctor 2]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoThirdDoctor 3]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoFourthDoctor 4]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoFifthDoctor 5]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoSixthDoctor 6]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoSeventhDoctor 7]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoEighthDoctor 8]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoWarDoctor War]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoNinthDoctor 9]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoTenthDoctor 10]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoEleventhDoctor 11]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoTwelfthDoctor 12]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoThirteenthDoctor 13]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoFourteenthandfifteenthDoctors 14 & 15]]\
4	'''[[Characters/DoctorWhoTheTARDIS The TARDIS]]'''\
5	'''[[Characters/DoctorWhoCompanionsAndSupportingCast Companions and Supporting Cast]]'''\
6	[[Characters/DoctorWhoClassicSeriesCompanions Classic Series Companions]] ([[Characters/DoctorWhoK9 K9]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoRomana Romana]]) \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoRevivalSeriesCompanions Revival Series Companions]] ([[Characters/DoctorWhoRoseTyler Rose Tyler]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoJackHarkness Captain Jack Harkness]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoThePonds The Ponds]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoRiverSong River Song]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoClaraOswald Clara Oswald]]) \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoOtherSupportingCast Other Supporting Cast]] ([[Characters/DoctorWhoThePaternosterGang The Paternoster Gang]]) \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoUNITStaff UNIT Staff]]\
7	'''[[Characters/DoctorWhoVillains Villains]]'''\
8	[[Characters/DoctorWhoImmortalsAndEldritchAbominations Immortals and Eldritch Abominations]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoMasters The Master]] ([[Characters/DoctorWhoJohnSimmsMaster John Simm's Master]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoMissy Missy]], [[Characters/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverseMasters Expanded Universe Masters]])\
9	'''[[Characters/DoctorWhoAliensAndMonsters Aliens and Monsters]]'''\
10	[[Characters/DoctorWhoDaleks Daleks]] ([[Characters/DoctorWhoDavros Davros]]) \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoCybermen Cybermen]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoRobots Robots]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoTheSilence The Silence]] \| '''Silurians''' \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoSontarans Sontarans]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoTimeLords Time Lords]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoWeepingAngels Weeping Angels]] \| [[Characters/DoctorWhoSlitheen Slitheen]]-]]]]]
11
12	!Homo reptilia, aka Silurians[[note]]Also known as (briefly) Eocenes. The aquatic variant are called Sea Devils. Collectively, they have been called Earth Reptiles.[[/note]](Third, Fifth, Eleventh, Twelfth, and Thirteenth Doctors)
13	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/silurians_6.jpg]]
14
15	->'''Silurians voiced by:''' Peter Halliday (1970)\
16	'''Silurians played by:''' Norman Comer, Stuart Blake and Vincent Brimble (1984), Creator/NeveMcIntosh[[note]]Did not appear in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E12ThePandoricaOpens "The Pandorica Opens"]][[/note]] (2010–2014) and Richard Hope (2010–12),[[note]]Did not appear in "The Pandorica Opens" or [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E7AGoodManGoesToWar "A Good Man Goes to War"]][[/note]] Stephen Moore (2010)\
17	'''Sea Devils played by:''' Pat Gorman and Peter Forbes-Robinson (1971), Christopher Farries (1984), Craige Els and several other actors (2022)
18
19	->''"This land is ours. We lived here long before the apes."''
20	-->-- '''Alaya'''
21
22	A species of highly intelligent creatures that evolved during the age of dinosaurs, the Silurians were distantly related to their aquatic relatives, the Sea Devils. Both species went into hibernation upon thinking that the moon was about to collide with the earth. It didn't; the disaster never happened, but their disappearance cleared the way for humans to take over as the dominant sentient lifeform. Eons later, they awake, and fight the upstarts (read: us) for control of Earth. [[Recap/DoctorWhoS7E2DoctorWhoAndTheSilurians It]] [[Recap/DoctorWhoS9E3TheSeaDevils never]] [[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E1WarriorsOfTheDeep ends]] [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E8TheHungryEarth well.]] The 21st century series gave the Silurians a very heavy redesign, with only two eyes, a more generally humanoid appearance (their battle armour has a mask that looks closer to the original face), and a [[MultipurposeTongue multipurpose, venomous tongue]]. This is explained that the Silurians (unlike other species) showed an important intraspecific variation (vast differentiation between breeds), such as the number of eyes, the formation of their pupils or the colour of their skin with a wide range of subspecies (one of which is Sea Devils).
23	----
24	* AscendedExtra: Only appeared a few times in the classic series, and were fairly innocuous antagonists. The Moffat Era brought them back with a major redesign and expanded characterization, and since then they started appearing a little more frequently.
25	* TheArk: One of their many survival plans built was a space-faring version, containing a few thousand Silurians and a zoo's worth of dinosaurs. Unfortunately, a space pirate boarded the vessel and flushed them all out the airlock.
26	* AttackAnimal: The Silurians of Wenley Moor used a dinosaur like creature. In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E1WarriorsOfTheDeep "Warriors of the Deep"]], they used a Myrka (a genetically modified animal made by the Silurians from [[spoiler:a pantomime horse]] an unknown deep-sea creature).
27	* BeneathTheEarth: They have lain dormant there for millions of years, and possess very advanced technology.
28	* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Some express the desire to reclaim Earth and exterminate humanity with the justification that they came ''first'' and that humans are encroaching on "their" world. The Doctor politely points out that it doesn't work that way.
29	* TheBusCameBack: The Silurians reappeared after a long absence in series 5. The Sea Devils had to wait a bit longer, not making their return until 2022.
30	* TheCameo: In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E12ThePandoricaOpens "The Pandorica Opens"]] they are members of the Alliance, and watch as the Doctor is dragged to the Pandorica.
31	* ContinuitySnarl: Even by ''Doctor Who's'' standards, working out their timeline and exactly when they ruled the Earth is an exercise unto madness.
32	** Some stories have them claiming they went underground when the Moon first showed up (so four billion years-ish). The Silurian period was from 443 million years ago to 419 million years ago. Meanwhile, the Doctor has claimed they should really be called Eoceans (anywhere from 56 to 39 million years ago), and their occasional stories about having to drive off early homonids raiding their crops would back that up at least... but other stories claimed they were contemporaneous with ''dinosaurs'' (so anywhere from 223 million to 65 million years ago).
33	* EvilSoundsRaspy: The Sea Devils have much raspier voices than their land kin, and even more so on their reappearance in 2022.
34	* ExtraEyes: The Silurians have a third eye, which glows when they exercise psychic powers (in their first appearance) or when they talk (in their second). It has, however, utterly vanished from the newest incarnation of the species appearing in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E8TheHungryEarth "The Hungry Earth"]]/[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E9ColdBlood "Cold Blood"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E7AGoodManGoesToWar "A Good Man Goes to War"]], who are [[HandWave handwaved]] as being a different branch of the same species, somewhat analogous to the difference between Humans and Neanderthals.
35	* EverythingsBetterWithSamurai: An elite task force of Sea Devils called Elite Group One was dressed in secure, samurai-style armour.
36	** KatanasAreJustBetter: Perhaps as a subtle nod to the above, Madame Vastra wields one of these as her weapon.
37	* ExposedExtraterrestrials: Silurians in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS7E2DoctorWhoAndTheSilurians "Doctor Who and the Silurians"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E1WarriorsOfTheDeep "Warriors of the Deep"]]. Averted in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS9E3TheSeaDevils "The Sea Devils"]] due to a concern about "naked Sea Devils running around on telly at teatime".
38	* FantasticRacism:
39	** The average Silurian doesn't really have a high opinion of us "apes", and don't want to share the planet with us. For some of them, this applies to mammals in general. Even Madame Vastra has her moments.
40	** Sea Devils aren't any more fond of "land crawlers" than their kin.
41	* InsistentTerminology: They refer to Gene Lines rather than families, and some [[FantasticRacism other touches]].
42	* LastOfTheirKind: Every named Silurian in the episodes they show up in will make this claim. It was more understandable in the original series (and subsequent expanded universe tales), where it was literally a few dozen at best who survived. When a captive Silurian tries to claim this on the Doctor in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E8TheHungryEarth "The Hungry Earth"]], [[BerserkButton he shuts her down pretty quickly]]. Likely, since the species seems to have had a variety of branches and different survival plans, they're simply wrong.
43	* LivingDinosaurs: They are sentient dinosaurs who evolved on Earth geological periods before humans did.
44	* LizardFolk: They are an ancient race of reptilian humanoids that predate humans.
45	* MoreDeadlyThanTheMale: Since their reappearance in 2010, the female Silurians have been portrayed as more aggressive than the males. Much like real-life lizards, then.
46	* MultipurposeTongue: Useful both for defending oneself and... [[PowerPerversionPotential um]]…
47	* NonIndicativeName: They're supposedly from the time of the dinosaurs, which is several hundred million years after the Silurian period. The Doctor at one point notes that the name is a misnomer, and they ''should'' be called the Eocenes. The Eocene era is a good 10 million years ''after'' the dinosaurs.[[note]] Given the dinosaurs we see around them, they're probably ''actually'' Cretaceoids [[/note]]
48	* NonMammalMammaries: Well... the modern ones have them, anyhow.
49	* NotEvilJustMisunderstood:
50	** The Sea Devils in their first appearance, who were duped into attacking humanity by the Master. The Doctor ''nearly'' managed to talk them out of it, until an idiotic civil servant ruined everything.
51	** Their portrayal in the revival series is this, as their "kidnapping" attempts were merely examinations in trying to find out more about the humans, except for the GeneralRipper and her equally vicious sister, who do just want to kill all humans.
52	* OverlyLongTongue: Which are capable of stunning an opponent upon contact.
53	* ProudWarriorRace:
54	** The Warrior Caste Silurians.
55	** Sea Devils may also fit this trope.
56	** The more recent versions of the Silurians avoid this trope. Yes, they have a military, but it's not the driving aspect of their culture, and they have a phenomenal grasp of science.
57	* PsychicPowers: Silurians who have the third eyes have shown the capability of harming organic beings, killing them or leaving them unconscious. Alternatively, they could revive a human (or Time Lord) that they had rendered unconscious with the third eye. Energies emanating from it allowed them to burn through walls and create tunnels. These Silurians also employed their third eye in less destructive tasks, such as activating their technology, opening passageways or creating force-fields to trap prisoners.
58	* RageHelm: The warrior caste Silurian faceplates are organic in appearance, and could easily be mistaken as a real (albeit scarier) face.
59	* RedScare: [[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E1WarriorsOfTheDeep "Warriors of the Deep"]] is largely ham-fisted, with Cold War metaphors up the wazoo. The Silurians were also a metaphor for the Soviets at the time, according to [[invoked]]WordOfGod. The Sea Devils may have been this as well, but it doesn't seem as likely.
60	* TalkingLightbulb:
61	** Like the Daleks, the original designs' third eye is a flashing light bulb to indicate which Silurian is talking.
62	** The Sea Devils in 2023 get necklaces that glow as they speak psychically.
63	* TaxonomicTermConfusion: The poor Reptiles can't catch a break. They were originally called "Silurian", a period in which reptiles hadn't yet evolved. Creator/MalcolmHulke's attempt to fix this with "Eocene" in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS9E3TheSeaDevils "The Sea Devils"]] was, unfortunately, ''still'' wrong. The new series then did it again with ''Homo reptilia''. (The ''Homo'' genus is mammalian, and they're simian-looking reptiles, not reptilian-looking mammals.) Some other [[Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse stories]] use ''Reptilia sapiens'', which while not perfect (''reptilia'' is a class, not a genus) is at least on the right lines. In the [[Literature/DoctorWhoNewAdventures New Adventures]], it's revealed that in the distant future they're referred to as "Earth Reptiles" or "Indigenous Terrans", which if not as poetic are at least accurate. (Though in-story the latter is also accused of being "[[PoliticalOvercorrectness overly politically-correct]]"!)
64	* {{Ultraterrestrials}}: The first native sentient species on Earth, millions of years before humanity.
65	* UndergroundCity: Have made a very impressive one where they remain in hibernation.
66	* UnderwaterBase: Sea Devils had thousands of underwater colonies dotted across the globe, each filled with millions of their kind. These bases were carved out of rocks and were generally covered in algae and seaweed. The colonies could be awoken en masse through the use of a sonic signal.
67	* VocalEvolution: Forty years of development in budgeting means on their return the Sea Devils have much deeper voices, while still being pretty sibilant.
68
69	!Individual Silurians
70	[[folder:Alaya]]
71	!!Alaya
72	-->'''Played by:''' Creator/NeveMcIntosh (2010)
73	A Silurian scout from a colony underneath a Welsh mining operation. Upon being awoken, she is sent to the service to take the humans hostage.
74	----
75	* CoolMask: Wears a mask [[MythologyGag which resembles the original look of the Silurians]] while on the field.
76	* LastOfHerKind: Claims to be this when she first meets the Doctor. The Doctor sees through her lie.
77	* ThanatosGambit: Goads Ambrose into killing her so her death will give the Silurians the PretextForWar they need to attack humanity.
78	[[/folder]]
79	[[folder:Commander Restac]]
80	!!Commander Restac
81	-->'''Played by:''' Creator/NeveMcIntosh (2010)
82	The military leader of the Silurian colony below Cwmtaff.
83	----
84	* ArcVillain: The main antagonist of the "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E8TheHungryEarth The Hungry Earth]]"/"[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E9ColdBlood Cold Blood]]" two-parter.
85	* DistaffCounterpart: Comes off as one to General Staal, another warmongering antagonist who was the ArcVillain of a two-parter.
86	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: While she doesn't show it, she does care about her gene chain sister, Alaya.
87	* FacelessGoons: Her soldiers all wear masks.
88	* FantasticRacism: Views humans as "stinking apes" and wants to wipe them off the face off the planet.
89	* GeneralRipper: To protect her people from the perceived threat of humanity, she's willing to make war on the surface and even start a coup against her government and kill one of her own kind if they don't go along with it.
90	* LastBreathBullet: Even while dying of poison gas, she's able to muster up the strength to shoot at the Doctor.
91	* RedIsViolent: Clad in red and the most war-hungry of her Silurian colony.
92	[[/folder]]
93	[[folder:Malohkeh]]
94	!!Malohkeh
95	-->'''Played by:''' Richard Hope (2010)
96	A scientist in the Silurian colony below Cwmtaff.
97	----
98	* IntriguedByHumanity: Has spent his time studying Humanity and how they managed to evolve over millions of years, developing a fascination with them that he was willing to awaken Eldane from hibernation in order to prevent Restac from starting a war with the surface.
99	* MadScientist: Zig-zagged. He enjoys PlayingWithSyringes and isn't above experimenting on humans, but he's also reasonably sympathetic to their plight.
100	[[/folder]]
101	[[folder:Eldane]]
102	!!Eldane
103	-->'''Played by:''' Stephen Moore (2010)
104	The ruler of the Silurian colony below Cwmtaff.
105	----
106	* LightIsGood: Clad in white and the BigGood among the Silurians.
107	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Upon being awoken he immediately tries to negotiate peace with humanity and a way for them to coexist peacefully. When Restac's warmongering renders that solution unlikely, he agrees to force his people back into hibernation so they can try again some time in the future.
108	[[/folder]]
109	[[folder:Vastra]]
110	See her entry under Characters/DoctorWhoThePaternosterGang.
111	[[/folder]]
112
113	!Individual Sea Devils
114	[[folder:Chief Sea Devil]]
115	!!Chief Sea Devil
116	-->'''Played by:''' Peter Forbes-Robinson (1972)
117	The leader of the Sea Devils who form an alliance with the Master.
118	----
119	* GreenAndMean: Green unlike the rest of his species, although the "mean" part is zig-zagged as he turns out to be more of an AntiVillain.
120	* KingMook: Leader of the Sea Devils.
121	* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Betrays the Master once he believes the hibernation activation machine has been completed.
122	[[/folder]]

Context Characters / DoctorWhoSilurians