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“THE JUGGERNAUTS: DAVROS, DALEKS A CRASH LANDING INTO A FAMILIAR TERRITORY”

The Juggernauts opens like a modern Doctor Who episode – all chaos and high-stakes spectacle, with Six and Mel trapped on a crashing spaceship surrounded by alarms, fire and failing systems. It’s a punchy start that immediately grabs your attention and promises big things to come. The Doctor stays behind to stabilise the vessel while Mel escapes to safety in a pod, landing on the mining colony of Lethe. From here, the two leads are split for nearly half the story, and the plot sets up a double-pronged mystery as both separately try to uncover what’s going on – and eventually, how to reunite.

At first glance, this feels like a standard “Doctor and companion separated” setup, but what gives it its unique flavour is the fact that The Juggernauts is actually a Dalek story in (a thinly veiled) disguise – with Davros pulling the strings from the shadows and a reimagined take on the Mechanoids thrown into the mix. There’s also a certain dramatic irony baked in: we know more than the characters do, and that knowledge creates a simmering tension… at least, in theory.

DAVROS IN DISGUISE: PROFESSOR VASSO’S SHAKY SCIENTIFIC STINT

The core twist of the story – that Davros is alive, surviving the crash, and now hiding under the alias “Professor Vasso” – is blown by the cover and synopsis, so there’s little suspense in his true identity. That said, Terry Molloy plays the initial role with an unusually measured and benevolent tone, ditching the rasping megalomania for a calm, collected scientist voice that actually makes you wonder: is Davros faking this, or has he turned over a new leaf?

It’s a compelling idea, but one that the story doesn't fully commit to. The façade is dropped far too soon – as soon as the Doctor shows up, Davros reverts to his usual villainous posturing. A subtler reveal might have made for stronger drama, especially since the “what if Davros went good?” angle could’ve provided some juicy ethical ambiguity. Instead, the story treads familiar ground: Davros pretending to work for peace while secretly creating his own new race of war machines.

MEL GETS A JOB AND THE DOCTOR GETS A MISSION

One of the most interesting elements is Mel’s position on Lethe. She integrates into the colony, uses her programming skills, and unknowingly helps bring the Juggernauts to life – Mechanoids reengineered as part of a cutting-edge project. It’s a rare story that foregrounds Mel’s technical aptitude, and that’s genuinely refreshing. Her refusal to leave when the Doctor comes to “rescue” her also gives her some welcome autonomy. She thinks she’s doing good work under a reputable scientist – and why wouldn’t she? Davros’ mask hasn’t slipped yet.

Meanwhile, the Doctor’s storyline feels more by-the-numbers. Having been “rescued” by the Daleks, he’s conscripted to help prevent a disaster – an idea we've seen before in stories like Revelation of the Daleks and The Stolen Earth, and which doesn't hold much tension here because the Daleks' motives are so transparently sinister. There’s no real urgency to his predicament, and the story tends to forget about it until the script needs a jolt of drama.

PACING PROBLEMS AND A LACK OF ENERGY

For a story with so many moving parts – Daleks, Davros, Mechanoids, mining colonies, ethical dilemmas – The Juggernauts unfolds with a surprisingly sedate pace. The first half especially suffers from a lack of dramatic thrust. We spend a lot of time with Mel and her colleagues, but these supporting characters aren’t fleshed out enough to invest in. The day-to-day life of the Lethe colony is sketched in vague terms, with little in the way of world-building or tension.

Even when the Doctor and Mel are finally reunited midway through Part Two, there’s a strange lack of chemistry – not due to the performances, but due to the script. They share precious little time together until Part Three, and for a Doctor/companion pairing that’s still relatively new in the Big Finish range (this being only their second main range outing after The One Doctor), it feels like a missed opportunity. There’s very little spark or banter between them until the plot absolutely demands it.

DALEKS, MECHANOIDS, AND AN UNINSPIRED CONSPIRACY

There’s potential in the central conflict – Davros attempting to create a new species to surpass the Daleks, using the Mechanoids as a base. This recalls Genesis of the Daleks, with Davros positioning himself as a creator once again, tired of being betrayed by his own creations. The Mechanoids’ redesign as “Juggernauts” – partially organic, partially robotic – is an unsettling twist, especially when we learn they’re being built using harvested body parts.

But even this horror element feels undercooked. The idea of cyborg slaves, stitched together by a half-mad scientist, should be chilling – but the script only brushes against it. The Juggernauts never come across as fully realised threats. They’re clunky, slow-moving, and their climactic role lacks any real punch. For what’s meant to be the Mechanoids’ grand comeback after nearly 40 years, they’re surprisingly forgettable.

And of course, there’s the inevitable “twist” that the Daleks and Davros were working together all along to trap the Doctor. It’s meant to be shocking – but let’s be honest, would anyone be surprised if they weren’t conspiring? It’s such a familiar beat in Davros stories that it lands with a sigh rather than a gasp.

MEL’S MOMENT AND A MUDDLED ENDING

Despite the story’s many shortcomings, Mel does get one standout moment: when she uses her programming expertise to override and control the Juggernauts, turning them against Davros. It’s a great payoff for her arc and the one moment where she truly takes the lead. Even better is her moral challenge to the Doctor – asking why he didn’t destroy the Daleks when he had the chance back in Genesis of the Daleks. These are big questions, and it's a shame the story doesn’t do more with them.

Unfortunately, the ending feels overextended. The final act should wrap with the defeat of Davros and the Daleks, but the story lingers for a while afterwards, seemingly unsure of how to land. Mel’s guilt over having helped Davros – and her brief desire to leave the TARDIS – doesn’t feel earned, because the script never gives this theme of culpability any real depth. It’s just one more idea briefly raised and then discarded.

FAMILIAR FACES AND FORGOTTEN POTENTIAL

One quirky delight is the unexpected return of the stuttering Dalek from The Chase – a strange little Easter egg that long-time fans will appreciate, though it does little to impact the story. In general, The Juggernauts is full of good ideas that never quite cohere into a satisfying whole. The performances are solid across the board, especially from Colin Baker and Terry Molloy, who bring energy and gravitas to even the flattest scenes. But the plot beats are tired, the direction is flat, and the sense of menace never quite lands.

📝VERDICT: 6.3/10

The Juggernauts has all the ingredients for a tense, dramatic, and morally complex Dalek tale: a shady Davros, a divided Doctor/companion team, and a twisted new take on the Mechanoids. But it never quite cooks. The pacing is sluggish, the stakes never feel high, and most of the interesting ideas – Davros hiding in plain sight, Mel unknowingly aiding evil, the ethical cost of programming machines to kill – are skimmed over rather than explored in full. It’s a functional, competently made audio, but with Big Finish’s high bar for Dalek stories this one feels like a missed opportunity.