Dalek is a triumphant return of the titular monster. Dalek takes a single Dalek and makes it scary. Is Jubilee, the Big Finish audio this shares its roots with the superior story? Yes... and no. While the two stories share the same author and do share a backbone, they're both telling very different stories. *Jubilee* is focused on the desensitization and celebration of evil and how that often leads to a worse evil. In the audio, the Dalek/Nazi correlation is especially highlighted.

Dalek has a much different purpose. Dalek's purpose is to introduce a new generation to the Daleks and make them a credible threat again. It's also the midpoint (-ish) of the season and thus has the job of revealing more about the Time War which has thus far been just barely floating around the perifery of the season. And, I think it succeeds. Robert Shearman is an excellent writer, but a lot of the success falls to both Eccleston who's excellent and in top form here, and to Nick Briggs who gives an excellent performance as the Dalek. The scene in the cage where the Doctor and the Dalek meet for the first time is rivetting and so well done. The stairs scene is brilliantly done, and the scene where the Dalek uses the sprinkler system to kill everyone is brilliant.

In the end, this is a great episode. It's fun, effective, a great Dalek story, a really effective powerhouse performance from Christopher Eccleston and just the boost the show needed to keep people watching. Is it over-hyped? Maybe. And maybe as fans, there're better Dalek episodes and stories out there. But this is a story that you could use to show new fans how good this show can be. And that's a good thing. Within the context of Series 1, it's nearly perfect and boosts the season immensely.

Overall, Dalek is an extremely impressive episode. Knowing that it was possible the Daleks wouldn't have been in the rebooted series at all, and that this episode is what ultimately swayed the rights owners, is pretty interesting to have learned about. I quite like how thoughtful this story is, and how well it showcases the power of just one, single Dalek.

I wish I could give this a perfect 10/10 since so much of this episode is done well. The writing is tightly paced and builds up the Dalek well while also teaching fans, new and old, so much about these aliens and their history with the Doctor. I do have to say some of the writing, acting, and effects don't hold up perfectly after so many years and such a limited budget from this era, but I still think Dalek almost completely holds up and is a great introduction to some of the larger aspects of Doctor Who.

Definitely one of the stronger introductory episodes around series one, with a lot of memorable moments and a great showcase of Rose's character.

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

"DALEK: A TERRIFYING REINVENTION OF A CLASSIC FOE"

Robert Shearman’s Dalek is a gripping reintroduction of the Doctor’s most iconic foes, drawing inspiration from his earlier Big Finish audio play Jubilee. A classic base-under-siege tale at heart, the episode modernises the format, injecting it with relentless tension, psychological depth, and a haunting exploration of trauma. Set against the backdrop of the Time War, this is not just another Dalek story—it’s a meditation on survival, vengeance, and what it truly means to be a monster.

A DOCTOR PUSHED TO HIS LIMITS

From the moment the lone Dalek is revealed, the episode makes a powerful statement. The Ninth Doctor’s reaction—shock, fear, and then unfiltered rage—is electric. Christopher Eccleston delivers one of his strongest performances, his Doctor oscillating between fury and anguish as he confronts the creature. The episode draws unsettling parallels between the Doctor and the Dalek, framing them both as war-torn survivors. The more the Doctor succumbs to his anger, the more he mirrors the enemy he despises, creating a compelling moral dilemma.

Billie Piper’s Rose serves as the emotional counterpoint, her compassion driving the Dalek’s transformation. Though her role is more limited than in other episodes, her act of kindness is pivotal, leading to the Dalek’s existential crisis and eventual self-destruction. The DNA-feeding concept may stretch believability, but it remains essential to the episode’s emotional weight.

A SINGLE DALEK MORE TERRIFYING THAN AN ARMY

In a franchise known for overwhelming Dalek invasions, Dalek does something extraordinary: it makes a single Dalek utterly terrifying. Stripped of its fleet and support, the creature still wipes out entire squads with ruthless efficiency. The reveal of its ability to levitate up a staircase—a long-running joke among fans—is a triumphant moment that cements the Dalek’s unstoppable nature.

Yet Shearman subverts expectations, making the Dalek not just a killing machine but a tragic figure. Tortured and alone, it is as much a victim of the Time War as the Doctor himself. By the end, it is no longer seeking conquest, but purpose. Its inability to reconcile its newfound emotions leads to the haunting realisation that the most dangerous thing in the universe is a Dalek with no orders to follow.

A SATIRE OF POWER AND GREED

Beyond the Dalek, the episode takes aim at the human capacity for cruelty. Corey Johnson’s Henry van Statten is the epitome of the arrogant billionaire—collecting alien artefacts with no regard for ethics or consequences. He serves as a cautionary figure, a man so obsessed with power that he fails to see the real danger lurking in his basement. His comeuppance, while satisfying, is almost too easy—Harriet Jones would have sorted him out in seconds!

Meanwhile, Bruno Langley’s Adam is introduced as a prospective companion, but his self-serving nature is already evident. Unlike Rose, who sees wonder in the universe, Adam only sees opportunity—setting up his inevitable downfall in The Long Game.

STRONG DIRECTION AND ATMOSPHERE

Visually, Dalek makes the most of its confined setting. The underground bunker’s claustrophobic design amplifies the tension, trapping the characters in an escalating nightmare. The Dalek itself has never looked more menacing—sleek, polished, and utterly lethal.

Murray Gold’s score enhances the drama without overpowering it. The episode’s best moments, however, are often defined by silence—the eerie hum of the Dalek’s eyestalk, the Doctor’s trembling breath as he faces his old enemy, and the quiet devastation of the Dalek’s final moments.

📝VERDICT: 9/10

A masterclass in reinvention, Dalek takes the show’s most famous monster and makes it scarier—and sadder—than ever before. Eccleston delivers a powerhouse performance, the tension is relentless, and the themes of trauma and identity elevate the episode beyond a simple action thriller. While some elements—like the Dalek’s emotional awakening—may divide purists, there’s no denying the impact of this story. This is Doctor Who at its most intense, intelligent, and unforgettable.

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS:

• When the first season of a series takes place in a future that has long since passed in real life, you know it has been going on for a while. Here it is the wonderful year of 2012.
• A nice bit of fan service here: the Utah museum has the head of a Mondasian Cyberman on display. That remains the only onscreen encounter between the Ninth Doctor and a Cyberman.
• Davros is indirectly mentioned here by the Doctor.
• Following their latest appearance in Remembrance of the Daleks (1988), the Dalek is capable of levitating up a staircase, effectively ripping off the famous cliffhanger from the previously mentioned story.

I wake up in the middle of the night after drinking a little too much in a Paris cocktail bar. I’m on holiday. Dehydrated and unable to sleep for a little bit I stuck on Dalek, unaware that it was the 17th anniversary of this very story.

I was blown away by how subversive a way to bring back the Daleks it was. Dr Who gets to be the baddie and the (individual) Dalek gets to be the goodie, reflecting a shared trauma. As a result you get genuine character development and insight for both. The Time War has changed The Doctor.

It wasn’t just good on this level. I watched it go out live in 2005 with a group of school friends on a trip - we were 11/12. We thought it was the coolest thing we’d ever seen. Even a skeptical parent was won over “bloody hell, it never used to be this good!”

So many people were watching to see what the Daleks would be like in the 21st century and possibly would have been satisfied with a runaround. They were given so much more than that, an era defining story with a convincing portrayal of a damaged man meeting his old torturer.

Watched again for the anniversary.

This one’s incredible and lives up to its reputation for me. Eccleston gives easily his best performance yet. van Staten plays an incredibly hateable Musk like character who gets his commuppence. While I have a couple issues with Rose’s character at the end, Piper brings her A-game too.

The way it reintroduces the Daleks is perfect. Having only Dalek instead of loads for the introduction really establishes them as a threat, which leads to the oh sh*t moment we get in the finale. It also does what I’ve repeatedly said I like most when the Daleks are done well: it makes it a manipulative schemer. It’s not a yelling shouty robot, it’s a living creature trying its best to survive and do its mission. It’s efficient and it knows how to use people like Rose to get what it wants.

The score is one of Gold’s best. It’s purely atmospheric and it hits perfectly.

I love 9’s characterisation here. It’s so much darker, and the first time we truly see him wanting something dead whatever the cost. Which further establishes the threat. And as I already said, Eccleston puts in an all-timer nuanced performance that sells the fear, rage, trauma and guilt perfectly.

Is it Jubilee? No! But I think despite being loosely based on it, and having some of the same core ideas, it’s tackling totally different themes and has the different missions statement of reintroducing Daleks to a new generation. And I think it succeeds on all fronts. It and Jubilee are both great, even if I do prefer the latter for sure.

Unfortunately. Adam exists. He’s annoying, and his actor uh… Doesn’t put in a good performance to put it very gently. And also as some folks alluded to earlier in the thread, Rose doesn’t show any guilt at all about what she caused and almost seems more concerned about the Daleks than she does human lives.

But I love that ending, whatever folks say. The idea of a Dalek scheming to absorb human DNA to recover itself but due to decades of isolation, years of torture, and the existential discovery that it’s the last of its kind when it thought otherwise all that time made it miscalculate and not realise it too would become a little more human. And that isn’t pure. And to not be pure is a fate worse than death for a Dalek.

In the end I have one word to describe this story…

Fantastic!

4.5-4.75 stars