Here we are The Daleks, it broadcast from 21st of December too the 1st of February. The story has 7 parts a much bigger story then the last
We start with the dead planet again setting up an amazing atmosphere with just our regular 4 though out the 1st part. We are reminded of the radiation gage from the last cliffhanger. It seems to be a forest planet, but the plants seem petrified, everything having a molecular change. I love how Ian and Barbara are so human, they take the travelling in their stride but have amazing 1 to 1 moments about it. Barbara sees an animal from the planet but Ian points out it’s turned to stone, but the Doctor points out how this creature isn’t stone it’s metal. Susan has an amazing moment with Barbara talking about the Tardis and her grandfather with her, I really like the gradual drops of development the group have, the writers know how to split the group up. The 4 reach a clearing and spot a city, the Doctor wanting to go and adventure. The group decide to go back to the Tardis, Susan however feels a presents and gets grabbed. She runs to the ship trying to convince the others what happened, we have a good moment with her and Barbara again talking bout how Susan wishes others believed her more, which nicely parallels how the two teachers didn’t believe her in the first story. While that’s happening the Doctor and Ian talk, I love how Ian balances the line of hating the Doctor and being extremely fascinated by him. I also love how they answer the question of how the crew can eat and drink too. After that scene the crew hear a noice out side, Susan feeling some sort of vindication for being right. They rush to the scanner but nothing is there, again the atmosphere of this story is on point. The crew try to take off however the Doctor sabotages the fluid link so he could explore the city. I love how the Doctor makes it sound like Ian’s idea. They wait till day to head out, they notice a metal box with vials inside the thing outside must have left them. I love how the crew mention head aches and feeling ill through out the story as we know the radiation status but they don’t. They get to the city and split up to explore, we follow Barbara as she’s trying to explore but the city sort of closes her in leading to the best cliffhanger in the show. Barbara screams as an unseen thing approaches.

Thoughts on the dead planet, it’s an amazing set up episode you really feel tense watching it, I hope survivors can do the same.

Survivors starts with the crew looking for Barbara, Ian leading the charge. In their search they find out the radiation levels are extremely high, they also reveal the fluid link is fine not needing mercury. They turn the corner and boom daleks, amazing reveal. Ian tried to run but the daleks paralyse him showing their strength. There put into a cell with Barbara and discuss what they found out, they also reveal to Barbara they have radiation sickness. The Daleks discuss the prisoners speaking of the Thals, we learn about a war between the thals and the Kaleds. the Doctor is then questioned amazing scene, managing to convince them to let one of the group go to get the metal box which they believe has the radiation cure. Susan being the one least effected is the one to go, Ian’s legs still numb try’s to protest but it’s not use. I love how brave Susan is it really feels like they’re building on her character. The Daleks keep an eye on Susan’s movements their goal is to not let the Tardis crew use the cure but to use it themselves. We then follow Susan through the jungle, seeing something move in the background. We cut back and forth between Susan and the other 3 in the cell, amazing atmosphere and you really start to feel the desperation. Susan finally makes it to the Tardis to grab the cure, hearing Ian’s voice in her head heading back out again. A solid cliffhanger but it followed up the best one in the show so I give it some slack.

Survivors is a good follow up to the dead planet keeping that atmosphere dead plant set up perfectly.

The escape is next, Susan runs into the man who gave the cure and the man who frightened Susan by accident. This man being a Thal Susan reveals the Daleks are alive. Susan trust the Thal named Alydon giving her a further supply of drugs and his cape just in case. He helps walk Susan back, In the cell they take the cure and Susan talks about the knowledge the she has learnt the Daleks listening in planning their next move. Meanwhile we meet more Thals Temmosus being the leader, he wonders if the daleks have changed, hoping the daleks can be the key to their future. I love how innocent the Thals are from being an ultimate warrior race to just plain farmers. They also plan their next move, the Daleks use Susan as a writer for a letter signing it with her name. While Susan is there she realises the Daleks could hear them, going back to the cell staging a fight to dismantle the camera. They group decide to spring a trap on the Daleks, realising the Daleks only work on metal floor. They decide to use the Thal cape to inculcate the floor from the Dalek to get away. The Thals revive the letter as the crew study there escape plans. I love how each one of them have a key role in the plan it really unifies the team, the plan works they open up the head of the dalek and see the creature inside, Ian gets in the casing to have an alibi. The cliffhanger being us seeing a glimpse of the dalek creature.

I’d say this part was a little slow it was good, but with it being set mainly in the cell it kind of lacks that atmosphere the first two parts had. I would also say it’s hard to remember the Thal names too, as they’re all in the same outfit so it’s hard to work out who’s who.

The next part the ambush starts with the crew trying to navigate the Dalek city, lead by Susan a great way to have her sort of confidence built up, she even has a cool moment of distracting a Dalek to not let there plan fail. Ian also manages to take control of the Dalek Shell and manoeuvre it. However when they get to the lift they try to get Ian out but they can’t just as the Daleks realise they have escaped. The Daleks start to cut through the door to the lift the tension is really well handled here as the group have to leave Ian behind in the Dalek shell. The Daleks get in and have us believe Ian’s dead a good fake out as Ian got into the lift. At the top of the city they crew look out a window and see the Thals approaching following that letter they received, to make matters worse the Daleks start coming up the building but the crew manage to destroy the lift. At the bottom of the city the Thals have arrived Alydon thinking it’s a trap but Temmosus just wanting to negotiate walls in leading to his death. Before that happens though we have a good moment where Susan and Barbara want to help the Thals and Ian and the Doctor want to go back to the Tardis. I love how they truly have a agreement between Ian and the Doctor. Ian tells the others to escape as he goes to warn the Thals. Again another gripping scene. At the Tardis the Thals have set up camp there, the Doctor looking into the history of Skaro. Ian also makes it back there with Alydon pointing out to the Thals that the Daleks, have a distaste for anything not like them and telling they they need to fight, the Thals disagree. The Doctor finding some old documents on the Thals history that they used to be warriors. The crew now escaped decide for there safety to leave but the fluid link was taken off Ian so they can’t leave. Again a solid cliffhanger moment and really helps with letting the audience know why they can’t leave.

This episode really picks up after the escape, but kind of wonder if you could merge the two together. Anyway I enjoy how the doctor isn’t at that stage yet of staying till the problem is solved, it’s a small notice but I like how it’s this early on.

Time for the next part expedition. Back at the Dalek city, the Daleks have duplicated the radiation drug and are spying on the Tardis crew preparing for defence. Ian still struggling to get the Thals to fight, he realises why should he convince them to sacrifice themselves for the crew. We get a good moment too where the doctors always mispronounces Ian’s name and Ian corrects him, you really get a sense of bonding between the pair. Barbara also has a good moment agreeing with the Doctor on getting the Thals to fight the Daleks. Ian has an idea grabbing the Thal history box trying to rial up the Thals first using the box but then a woman, Alydon fully rialed up hits Ian proofing to him that they can fight. It’s the moment I realise everyone in the Tardis team has a role to play in this story, it’s nice to see that as it’s showing the unity of the group. At the Dalek city, the test Dalek subject of the radiation cure is having a negative reaction meaning, the Dalek race have been conditioned to radiation surviving with it. planning to get more radiation the Daleks plan to explode another neutron bomb. I love how now the Thals not knowing it yet have a reason to fight, and that the Daleks have more of a threat level for outside the city. Alydon discusses with the girl Ian used as a fake hostage how they feel about fighting the daleks, a really good scene developing the Thals a bit more as characters and not just plot devices. Barbara also gets close to a Thal, they talk about how the lake is full of mutations at the back of the city the perfect defence system. Back at the city, the Daleks purge the other Daleks that took the radiation cure, the main goal now is to change the environment outside to suit them. Back outside the city, Alydon finally makes a decision on standing with the Tardis crew. He actually says a really nice quote about being afraid to live too a good moment. The Thals stand with Alydons decision and help plan, planning a route through the lake as it’s undefended only the mutations being the issue. The Thals head to the lake, two Thals discuss what happened at the lake last time one seeming to be traumatised by it, Ian and Barbara also follow. The group decide to set up a small camp near the swamp, Ian seeing one of the creatures and running back to the camp. A lot of good character moments in this story, which makes me wish the side characters where more unique clothing wise to make it easier to distinguish them. I also just noticed how much the back and forth throughout this part is. One of the Thals goes to the lake but a swirling vortex starts to form we hear a scream, and cliffhanger. I would say this is one of the weakest cliffhangers so far sadly.

Definitely a character focused part, you have all these Thal side characters and you need the audience to connect with them but it’s hard to tell who is who unfortunately. It can also feel a lot like we are just sitting and waiting in this part.

The ordeal is the next part, the lake crew rush to the lake but unfortunately one of the Thals, (Elton?) has died. While that’s going on Susan gets another amazing moment helping the Doctor and Alydon plot the map of the city. In the city the neutron bomb seemingly taking too long to construct the Daleks change their plan. In the caves Barbara and the Thal she was talking with earlier Ganatus have a really good bond joking about Ian as they find a path leading to a cliff. Ganatus decides to descend leading to more branching paths in the cave system. Outside the city the Thals have used the map they made to blind the city cameras to stop the Daleks seeing them as the Doctor, Susan and Alydon try to enter the city unnoticed. In the cave which is amazingly shot Ganatus brother Antonus having doubts about there plan, but before I can run the cave collapses. Ganatus protecting his brother saying he took a falling rock for him. At the city the Doctor and Susan find a power supply, I love how William and Carol play the Doctor and Susan like giddy children. After the two send Alydon away the Daleks capture the pair. Again very good way at showing the tension especially in the next scene, where the cave crew have found a pit they have to jump across. Ian gets prepared to go first making it only just, Ganatus follows also making it exploring that side of the cave together. This scene really makes you question what is in the dark as you never know if a mutation will come out of nowhere. At the city the Doctor and Susan are now captives of the Daleks, they explain there plan to blow up there nuclear reactors to whips out the Thals. A very creative plan but there plan changes a lot it’s like terry had loads of ideas about what the daleks could do that he didn’t know what he wanted to do for his climax. Anyway down the cave everyone starts to jump over, but antonus is last and sort of freezes I feel the actor shows his fear very well throughout the last few episodes. This leads to him not making the jump the rope being tied round Ian’s waist pulling him over the edge too. Another cliffhanger that’s quite strong I feel a strong cliffhanger can make or break the next episode sometimes.

This episode the tension is at an all time high. I love how it’s up to Barbara and Ian to save the Doctor and Susan with out them knowing it yet and I’m really enjoying the filmography of the sets. On to the final part.

The rescue is the final part of The Daleks, picking up where we left off, Ganatus grabs Ian but Antonus cuts the rope sealing his fate. In the city we learn more of the Daleks plans putting them into motion, Hartnell having some amazing moments here. Back down the cave Ganatus greaves his brother as the crew reach a dead end, however Ian notices a ray of light leading them into the city. The Thals begin to get ready to fight, in the city the Doctor has started to talk with the daleks about the fluid link bargaining to try and get free, but the Daleks don’t fall for it and wait till there plan works. now the cave crew have made it into the city Ian and Barbara taking out cameras on there way through and the Thals out side are beginning to attack, the Daleks are cornered, they begin to start there plan. Ian’s crew and Alydons crew meet up but the doors start to seal them in but manage to get through the doors just in time. Ian and Barbara’s group make it closer to the main control room, Ian getting to the Doctor and Susan while Barbara and the others distract some Daleks. They all have a go pushing and bashing the Daleks around, the power to the city stopping leading to the Daleks being defeated. Thinking back I always forget how lame the Daleks first defeat is, of course some Thals still die in the attack but yeah it feels rather lame, also why did the Daleks grow there own food? How do Daleks eat? Someone answer me please!!!! The Tardis crew and the Thals make it out of the city with the fluid link, the teams say there goodbyes some really good moments with the Doctor and the Thals and even a kiss on the hand with Ganatus and Barbara, I hate that Ian and Barbara are the ship. The Tardis flys away with the crew but the Tardis seems to have gone wrong as it looks like it crashed. A really good clifhanger into the next story The Edge of Destruction

The rescue was a rather lacklustre final episode to The Daleks, after a really strong start too which is quite a shame.

Over all The Daleks is a good story, amazing little character moments and has the most iconic monster on screen for the first time. Controversially I do think the Daleks are the weakest part in the second half, But it’s all worth it for the character moments they are so strong honestly.