Doctor Who: "Warriors of the Deep" (Ep. 131)

The year: 1984. I was still working on being born, but the venerable British sci-fi series "Doctor Who" was working on a Cold War commentary called "Warriors of the Deep." Here's the NetFlix summary:

With Earth locked in a nuclear stalemate, Dr. Who (Peter Davison) again faces the Silurians and the Sea Devils when the creatures attack an underwater military complex, intent on sparking a devastating war between nations in this four-part story. Meanwhile, enemy spies have infiltrated the base and pose a further threat. Can Dr. Who help the Navy battle the aquatic beasties and unravel a web of intrigue among the ranks of the military?

This is currently my favorite story of Peter Davison's Doctor (the Doctor's fifth regeneration). Not least because the Silurians have a great monster-pet to unleash called the Myrka, in production a cross between a Pantomime Horse and Godzilla. (Very deadly, but only when it can lumber close enough.) The other draw, of course, is that unsubtle "nuclear stalemate" business.

Set in 2084, the tale pits two unnamed power blocs against one another in a general sort of hostility that's gone on far too long, then blows the perspective wide open as a race of aquatic warriors decides man's time of ruling the earth has come to an end. The Silurians ruled the Earth long before humanity evolved, and persist in referring to humans as "ape-descended primitives." It's not clear why or when they went into hibernation at the bottom of the ocean, but they're certainly ready to be done with it. Their strategy? Not genocide, exactly. They move to take over the underwater sea base so that they can launch a proton missile or two and provoke Power Bloc Alpha's human enemy into starting a nuclear war: basically, let the humans kill themselves, then reclaim the earth and restore the Silurian race to its former glory. "And these human beings will die as they have lived," observes the Silurian leader, "in a sea of their own blood."

So that's why we all had that sinking feeling we shouldn't have been building bigger and bigger nuclear weapons, knew there was something we were forgetting... Silurians. Biding their time. Right. Incidentally, everyone in the episode (Silurians, Sea Devils, navy officers -- everyone but the Doctor and his two companions) ends up dead. The last shot is of the Doctor, tired, spent, announcing, "There should have been another way." Nice moral, aaaand -- cut to theme music and end credits!

Like The Butter Battle Book, except complete with sticky end. I love this show.