Well, that was fun! I just rewatched the 10th Doctor episode 'The Fires of Pompeii'. One of my favorite scenes comes right at the beginning, while the Doctor still thinks they're in Rome. He says "Oh, and before you ask, I had nothing to do with that fire...well, just a bit." This refers to the 1st Doctor, Season 2, when they vacation in Rome in A.D. 64. The Doctor at one point is having a private laugh on Nero, while the sun focusing through his glasses held behind his back set Nero's map for his new Rome on fire. This gives Nero the idea to burn down part of the old city so he can convince the Senate to let him build the new one.
Fun bit 2: When the householder who has purchased the TARDIS asks his name, The Doctor says "I'm...Spartacus." Quickly his companion Donna says "So am I." Of course younger viewers might relate this to
Monty Python's Life Of Brian, but that movie stole the idea from the original
Spartacus. When the Romans want to crucify the ringleader of the failed rebellion, they ask for him by name. Kirk Douglas says "I'm Spartacus!" Tony Curtis quickly says the same, followed by pretty much all the rebels. Of course the Romans then proceeded to crucify six thousand of them.
Fun bit 3: Lots of in-jokes from both history and the series itself. It wasn't until season 14 of the original series that they even tackled the question of how they could talk to all sorts of Romans and Chinese and be understood. When it happens in this episode Donna wonders what would happen if she spoke real Latin. When a street salesman asks what she would like to see, she says "Veni, Vedi, Vici!" The man loudly and slowly replies "Sorry. Me no speak Celtic!"
Fun bit 4: There is a sisterhood of prophetesses involved. At the beginning one of them sees the TARDIS and runs back to tell the High Priestess that she has seen the prophesied Blue Box. At the end of the episode she dies with her sisters as Vesuvius erupts. When the closing credits rolled it turns out the actress was Karen Gillan - the Doctor's next companion, Amy Pond!
Too much fun!
