The Aztecs by: John Lucarotti

 

The Aztecs was written by John Lucarotti, based on his story of the same name.  It was the 88^th story to be novelized by Target Books.

 

It seems that all three of John Lucarotti’s novelizations were intent on the chance to enhance things that 1960s television wouldn’t allow.  In the televised version of The Aztecs, Lucarotti’s scripts were written specifically to reflect the research Lucarotti had done into Aztec culture but simplified for a 1960s white, British audience.  The Aztecs in print is a novelization that, at least partially due to being published in 1984 as the VHS range was beginning and reruns were beginning to occur, there is a sense that Lucarotti isn’t just attempting to recreate the story but add some depth for the reader.  It is interesting to note that the original televised story does not mention Aztec gods outside of Tlaloc, the god responsible for rain, but the novelization sees Lucarotti delighting in taking moments to explore the Aztec religions and gods.  There is also this added sense that Lucarotti’s understanding of the conquest and destruction of Aztec civilization to be more accurate to the television story fully scapegoating the human sacrifice element as the reason for this aspect of history.  The prose itself is also quite interesting, as it feels quite different from the television scripts despite hitting all of the same beats and containing much of the same dialogue.

 

Lucarotti is writing with the knowledge that by this point people reading these novelizations are most likely people who are actively watching Doctor Who on television, and there are decisions in the prose that reflect this.  What stood out to me was that despite doing an excellent job of characterizing the TARDIS team, the main characters don’t actually get much physical description when they are introduced.  The Aztec characters are afforded more description, especially since it is clear Lucarotti is working off his scripts and not the televised story, adding descriptors to the supporting cast as a way for the reader to realize just who they are.  Each supporting character is given at least some expansion to their backstory: the relationship between Ixta and his father is greatly expanded upon while the manipulations of Tlotoxl are made more insidious.  Cameca and the Doctor’s relationship is also expanded upon with the Doctor sharing in the reflections of falling in love, something made somehow slightly more explicit.  Ian is also quite well served by the novelization, being given his own reflections on Barbara’s decisions without taking away from Barbara being the center of the book.  This is still Barbara’s story after all, and the translation of what is one of her finest outings works quite well in novel form.  Lucarotti is also just a different voice from the usual Terrance Dicks fare and clearly has talent for writing these novels.

 

Overall, The Aztecs is an early example of a 1980s novelization for Doctor Who that while not actively changing much about the televised story adds interesting character depth and comes from an author who has the potential to be a novelist in his own right.  9/10.