Without seeing a single frame of this story it is a momentous proposition. It is the final Terry Nation script and the second and final Dalek story across Tom Baker's long tenure. The last time Terry Nation, the Daleks and Tom Baker collided we ended up with an all time classic, so in theory this has all the right ingredients.

The first episode is far and away the best one. A wonderful start to season 17. It is a small shame you don’t see Mary Tamm regenerate into Lalla Ward, though I loved the humour in the scene with Romana picking her new body! I LOVE the outfit she lands on, a much better than a lot of the looks that Tamm got stuck with - and very much in keeping with The Doctor's wonderful, well established outfit.

Across episode one Nation’s writing feels fresh. He isn’t defaulting to his usual beats. There is a lot more comedy than usual too. Especially like The Doctor criticizing the book ‘origins of the universe’. After an epic first part, part 2 is more standard fare Nation - albeit with wonderful performances from our leads. Ward and Baker are a match made in heaven. The Movellans look fabulous and add a lot of visual flare to what could be just a typical Who story. Hats off to whoever is dressed these actors!!

The further you slip into the story the more disappointing it gets. They’ve taken all the menace out of Davros, which is a tragedy given this is only his second ever appearance. He barely complains about being wheeled around by the doctor, a directorial mistake perhaps. The Daleks are made into a bit of a joke too. One has its vision impaired by the Doctor's hat then suddenly starts acting like a complete idiot. Why would it freak out in a non-threatening situation just because it can't see?

In the end, the Movellans don’t make a convincing match for the Daleks if they are incapacitated so easily, often just by someone removing something from their belt. Some of the law is a bit off too. Since when have Daleks been robots? I’m not sure robots would be any better or worse at rock paper scissors than humans either. I don't think it makes a great deal of sense.