I have long since leant that I don't enjoy Terry Nation stories, nor do I enjoy Dalek stories, so this was a very pleasant surprise. It's a charming little story with a lot of humour that never drags overmuch.

Honestly, I think this story would be a perfect candidate for colourisation. You could cut out most of the middle episodes without losing much of its charm. Almost every place we visited stuck just a bit too long in the aftermath.

I think this story's greatest problem, which is somehow also it's best quality, is how unthreatening the Daleks are. It allows for a very fun and lighthearted story, but that sort of story doesn't really work with the way the Daleks have been set up up to this point.

There's a lot to love in this story. The Beatles cameo, terrible American accents, an explanation for the mystery of the Mary Celeste (what a waste, we could have spent an entire serial on that at some point), Dracula and Frankenstein fighting Daleks, Vicki mimicking the Mechanoid, and, of course, Ian and Barbara's send-off. They haven't overstayed their welcome, but I can't say I'm particularly sad to see them go. I'm looking forward to some fresh blood on the show with how much I've been enjoying Vicki, and they seem happier to be off the TARDIS, anyway. It's a really sweet and fun scene. I wish more companions could have such fantastic, non-lethal send-offs.