Finally this strips sees the return of the Mechanoids but primarily the story is concerned with Robot 2K sent from the planet Zeros to avert war between the Daleks and Mechanoids.

It is an interesting twist to have a race of apparently benign and benevolent aliens attempting to prevent a war which could have potentially deadly consequences for themselves. A quick picture of this society is painted when a young boy comments that he cannot see their leaders any more. Apparently, the Zerovian government meet in a transparent dome where all people can see them. Only when something of such terrible import as the threat from the Dalek/Mechanoid war occurs do they debate in secret (although I don’t quite understand why they have to debate this particular situation in secret unless all their conversations are broadcast as well, as just being able to see their leaders doesn’t mean the populous know what they are discussing).

Robot 2K is a fun creation. He’s a 60s version of Inspector Gadget, with rocket pack and drill head, and manages to outwit the Daleks fairly easily. What’s very interesting is how he deals with the Daleks and Mechanoids differently. He allows the Daleks to believe they have succeeded whereas he appeals to the Mechanoids’ better nature in making them believe the Daleks have offered an olive branch of peace. The Mechanoids accept this, at least temporarily, with the caveat that they are still the sworn enemies of the Daleks.

What is the most disappointing is that, after the Mechanoids were introduced to the strip seemingly as recurring adversaries for the Daleks, they have been absent for two whole ‘stories’ and in this, their last appearance in the strip, they barely appear, let alone do anything. So why were they even introduced in the first place to feature so fleetingly? The answer would seem to be in their depiction. Ron Turner’s illustrations of the Mechanoids are clearly based not on the TV version but on the toys! The Mechanoids arrival in the strip seems like a rather cynical marketing ploy. Maybe, when the Mechanoids failed to set the world alight, it was quietly decided to remove them from the script. Had they been more of a success, who knows how much presence they would have had in the strip (and perhaps beyond).

It’s been a lot of fun revisiting the Dalek strips. They are something I’d read when published in DWM and Classic Comics but hadn’t ever really enjoyed. This more focussed reading has allowed me to appreciate them much more and to spot some really weird story themes, most notably oddly camp comedy (particularly from the Golden Emperor) and terrible tragedy. The fact the Daleks fail to succeed in practically every one of the schemes depicted in this strip is fascinating. I wonder if it was a deliberate decision not to show characters who are basically evil to the core, achieving their despicable aims. What’s more interesting though, is that many of their combatants aren’t shown to be victorious either. The plants of Alvega, the Archivists of Phryne, the Monstrons and even the Mechanoids, are all shown to be defeated and in some cases destroyed.

It’s all oddly downbeat for what is, essentially, a children’s comic strip.