It is no secret to those who know me that Robert Shearman is my favourite Doctor Who writer of all time. Chimes of Midnight is probably my favourite Doctor Who story of any medium. Deadline is probably my favourite Big Finish script. Even Scherzo and Dalek (TV), my two lowest rated Shearman stories, I gave 4.5 stars to; with Dalek (TV) being one that I could arguably bump up to 5 stars. I feel like Shearman understands the show in ways few others do, and he is incredibly skilled as a storyteller, especially in his use of tone.

So of course, I was excited for the Target novelisation. And when I first read it a few years ago, I enjoyed it but didn't love it.

For its 20th anniversary, I rewatched Dalek (TV) and loved it, giving it aforementioned 4.5 stars. My only criticisms being that Adam Mitchell isn't a good character and wastes time and space; and that I wish Rose felt more guilt for her actions leading to the deaths of so many. After watching this episode and adoring it, I decided I'd give the novel another shake to see if I'd enjoy it more this time around, especially with the episode it's adapting still in my mind.

This is my least favourite Shearman by a large margin, and it frustrates me to no end that it is because so many of his best qualities shine throughout.

Let me start with the positives: this is an incredible read. As prose, it's easily a 4-4.5 star. The way that Shearman writes is beautiful, compelling and accessible. The story flows from one word to the next with ease, and I felt it was definitely a bit of a page turner. I also feel like that there two significant changes both work: Goddard becoming an FBI agent gives her so much more depth, and it makes her betrayal of Van Statten feel more fleshed out and real; and the Van Statten's fate not only adds a karmic justice, but also makes the titular Dalek feel more calculating, and cruel. To cause this fate not through physical violence or death, but purely psychologically hurting Van Statten. It's very Whittaker in the Dalek portrayal, and very Shearman in the psychological sense.

I will be talking more about the backstories in a moment, but there are two that stand out: the first and the last. The first is just a very good short story with great prose and character insights. The latter.... It's just spectacular, and the insight it gives into the Dalek's past is just absolutely stellar.

But here we get to the crux of the issue I have with this adaptation: there are only 2 significant changes to the narrative itself, and there are multiple new backstories with only one that truly gives me new insight into the story, with the other one I praised being great in and of itself, but in the context of Dalek the story? Why do I care? It didn't make me feel for the torturer more, nor did it make me feel for his death. I just thought it was a nice, unrelated short story that Shearman had glued into his Dalek novelisation.

For me, these backstories are just distracting. They interrupt the flow of the narrative and no matter how well written they are, it just makes the story feel bloated as they don't really make me feel more invested in the characters they're about, with exception of the final backstory character, and to an extent Goddard.

I also feel like because the rest of the book is a fairly straight adaptation and so much time is spent on these side characters, 9 and Rose almost feel sidelined in their own story... And it really does harm it for me. There are a few great small moments where added depth is given to both, but the breakneck pace at which the normal adaptation happens while the backstories get fleshed out and more time to breathe makes it feel like Shearman almost wasn't too interested in actually doing Dalek. It genuinely feels almost bizarre having the main characters rush along while side ones get so much focus.

And that's the other issue: the pacing. The start and end (especially the end) feel rushed, and scenes from the TV episode really are just in here almost verbatim with only minor changes for the most part, and we move on from them super quickly. But again, the backstories get very long, very dedicated sections. And it just emphasises the problem of them being distracting from the narrative.

2.5 may feel harsh when I loved the writing so much, but it's what I feel in my heart. Because while I think this is an amazing book, I don't think it's a good adaptation. I wish it fleshed out the actual scenes of the episode, instead of brushing past them. I wish it tied the backstories more into the narrative. I wish the backstories weren't given almost entirely to characters who die and we don't care about.

It's just a frustrating book because I know Shearman can do better! He has before, multiple times! He hopefully will come October with his next adaptations! Hell, he has in this very own book at points. But in my heart of hearts, I feel this is just a let down. Maybe it could one day be a 3 for me, but with how much it annoys me in the way it's done, I doubt it.

What a shame.

The phrase "this is your Lucky Day" was said multiple times so this story is a 5/5 and McTighe is certifiably not the hack I feared he would be going into this.

Seriously though, this is a great episode. A great episode that I can't appreciate as much as I'd like to because of one thing: "Ruby gets a new boyfriend and he's secretly evil" is the most obvious twist of all time. It's no exaggeration to say that I rolled my eyes and groaned at the reveal. I didn't even see the leaks and I still went into the episode expecting this, so having it happen is a huge letdown and annoyance - especially when up until that point the episode had successfully set him up as a naïve toxically masculine buffoon who was maybe just a little too interested in The Doctor despite how small an impact 15 had on him as a kid. I thought that this was a more interesting interpretation of the character than just him being a flat baddie, so I was frustrated as hell. But I acknowledge entirely that this is an issue of my own creation; caused by my expectations alone.

I think the fact that I got so annoyed at the above though goes to show that the execution was really good. I was truly convinced by the first half of what was going on that when it happened I elicited a response, even if not necessarily the one McTighe wanted. And that's good! That's a great twist!! That's a great reveal!!! Even if it's one I didn't want to happen!!!

Okay. Fine. Let's move on and talk about everything else with the episode.

What did we do to deserve Millie Gibbo? She's such an incredible talent, as we learnt last year, and she further shows that here. While I did find her character flat in spite of her amazing performance in season 40, here we get a lot of depth and we get to examine something NuWho's done a few times: what happens to a companion after The Doctor leaves? What is their mental state? And I love love love what we get here. Yes, The Doctor improved Ruby's life significantly. But he also ruined it. She's got PTSD. She's paranoid. And she feels alone. Yes, she has 100 mums (great gag from Shirley btw), yes she has a great support network, but she feels alone with him. And like she's unable to have a normal life and process what's happening. It's a natural extension of 73 Yards and it's fab! It's fantastic character writing and development for her, played beautifully by Gibson.

This is Kate's best episode on TV by far. She has a lot of depth and so many layers to her, and Redgrave puts in her best performance in the role yet. I loved her in Legend of Ruby Sunday and everything I loved there is on display here in spades. She is cold. She is angry. And she is willing to go to any lengths to defend her duty, and her father's legacy. And what she's doing might not be morally correct, but have UNIT ever been truly the good guys? They have an important role in the universe, and they're fundamentally more good than bad, but they are still a military complex! They still have wrongdoings! And she plays that moral ambiguity and greyness perfectly. And I love that the script does go into this and explores that! I feel like sometimes Doctor Who forgets that UNIT aren't just 100% good guys.

I also love that this episode criticises the manosphere, and in such a real feeling way. Conrad was a truly believable villain, and I think it's fundamentally important he didn't learn his lesson. He didn't get a redemption. Sometimes people are just bad people. And brilliantly performed too! He felt so real.

But of course the stand out of the episode was the scene with 15. I've always wanted more angry 15 because the few glimpses we get have been amazing, and here it was: unsubtle and unafraid to call out toxic people. And fantastically performed by Gatwa. The sheer rage he felt towards Conrad was palpable. And the way it was shot! I loved the darker colours of the TARDIS to reflect the mood.

I came out of this episode immediately thinking it was the weakest of the series so far. But considering how much positive I have to say.... I think maybe it was actually kinda great, and I'm just mad that the premise was so predictable - even if the execution was brilliant and took it in a direction I never expected.

Fine. I'll give it to you. It's your Lucky Day, McTighe.

"Would you still love me, if I were a worm?" - Albert Einstein, 1932

What is there to say about The Daleks Chase Walter the Worm? Some art speaks for itself. And yet despite this, it is only human nature to dissect and analyse art under a microscope. To break it down both into its component parts and its artistic merits. It's never enough for The Daleks to only just Chase Walter the Worm. We must understand why. We must understand how.

Before I delve into this further, what I appreciate here is the ambiguity of the piece. We know that The Daleks are bad guys, this has been established over the past 62 years of this show, and we know that Walter the Worm is a worm. And we know that the Daleks are Chasing him. But why? Why would all powerful, all hating creatures such as the Daleks go after one measly worm? What did he do to them? Did he do something to upset them? Also there are multiple Daleks after one worm. We know that only one alone is enough to destroy a world. So what did he do? How powerful is this worm to be a threat to more than one Dalek? Did he ally himself with The Doctor? Let's table this for now. I have a theory.

How evocative is this piece though? In only 10 seconds, it communicates this ambiguity and leaves you wondering these questions. It doesn't just start en media res. It ends that way too. And yet in this vertical slice, we understand that The Daleks are mad. They are yelling Exterminate. We understand that they are chasing Walter the Worm. We understand that he is a worm.

What's interesting though is that they are only chasing him. Despite yelling Exterminate, they are not shooting at him. Maybe Walter needs to be captured? Perhaps the Daleks are chasing not only He, but somebody else who is shown off screen?

There are so many ways to interpret this.

It fascinates me that the sun is smiling. It wants this chase. It wants Walter dead. Is it an ally to The Daleks? How did The Daleks get the sun on side? How can humanity survive if even the sun is against us? Frightening existential questions are raised.

I also appreciate that the 10s loop clues us, the viewers, into the fact that this is a time loop. Walter will never be caught. The Daleks will never exterminate him. There's a safety and comfort to that. I also interpret this as being a metaphor for the art of art itself. You can chase your dreams but you should never reach your final goal, if you want to keep your passion. The true passion is in the chase, the process, the improvement. Never stop chasing. Never stop improving. Never catch Walter the Worm.

On a more literal level though my theory is that Walter the Worm is the 17th Doctor, having regenerated from David Tennant.

I'll be thinking of this piece for a long time. There are so many layers to it. Will Walter ever escape? If he dies, will be turn into two worms? Was this foreshadowing for the bigeneration? What is art? Why do we analyse it? Who am I? Who are you? Why are you in my house?

All important questions raised by this pinnacle of the art form. The most important story in Doctor Who history.

This is incredibly fun and incredibly silly and made me laugh a couple times. Love the Megaloss gag especially.Perfect for what it was trying to do!

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

Every watch I think this cannot get any better.

On third watch, as part of a double bill with The Well, I've realised this might be my favourite episode of NuWho, and a contender for my favourite DW story ever.

Perfect in every way.

Molto bene.

This is my favourite episode this series, and my second favourite of the RTD2 era (after Wild Blue Yonder). Wild to say because I had this exact thought with Lux! Are we 3/3 for this series so far!?

I absolutely adored the building tension throughout this episode, and while I'm not one for jump scares they really worked for me too once we reached them. I do admit that the throwing across the room stuff got a little silly by the 4th or 5th person with how over the top it was, but it didn't seriously affect my enjoyment.But genuinely the horror stuff worked so well for me. Fear of the unknown is such a common thing to have, and I loooove when DW explores it so much!!!

All the performances were great, and the side cast were fantastic! It's nice having an RTD2 side cast that I care about and feel invested in. Obviously, Ayling-Ellis steals the show with an incredible performance as Allis, who's such an amazing character in her own right. And Shaya's character development from the start (where she was pragmatic and uncaring) to the end (where she remembered she got into this job to bring hope to the people, and was optimistic about saving folks) was so great! With an amazing performance too! I also love that the Slow Horses guy continues to only play smug assholes lol

Gatwa and Sethu continue to be outstanding, and this is a contender for my favourite Gatwa performance as 15 yet. He nails both the gravitas of stepping into a scene and taking control, and the sheer fear and terror perfectly. Plus the empathy he shows Aliss, while still not fully trusting her. Just such a great nuanced performance!

I also absolutely adored the world building and the fact that they explicitly say that the world is more accessible to deaf people, and how that's been taken into account. But then on top of that, the squadron still often forget/choose not to turn on their communicators. Even when directly addressing Allis! Even with all the accessibility options in the world, and the law being made for more accessible people, that sadly doesn't mean people will always take advantage of that to help those that need it. It's a good dose of very depressing realism in what's otherwise optimistic worldbuilding. 

Oh, and no long paragraph about this; but I thought the episode was gorgeous! I love how great the visual direction consistently has been this era.

Only reason this is a 4.5-4.75 star story and not a full 5 is because I really don't think it needed to be a sequel to Midnight. While it tackles similar themes, and thankfully doesn't actually show us the entity, I don't think I gained anything from it being a sequel? It's very much standalone as is and works well enough being so. But this really doesn't majorly take away from my enjoyment.

Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.

Got sold on Hand on Fear again, mostly by just how much stronger it became when it essentially became a four hander (and then 3 hander by end of part 3). Genuinely believe that this is one of Baker’s best performances, where he nails the alienness and the gravitas while also switching to perfect gentleness and affection whenever he’s with Sarah Jane. He also has such great contempt for Eldrad until they reach the planet, where he starts to have a little bit more trust and like … Until he learns Eldrad was lying any way. And the contempt and menace returns.

And Sladen!! As often as Sarah Jane gets possessed or hypnotised, this is easily the best interpretation of it imo. And she’s so confident and fun here. These two really are my TARDIS Team (along with 10/Donna) - they genuinely just feel like real best friends travelling the universe together.

I still think the script is only okay overall and I didn’t super vibe with most of it but it’s a fun story and a good time!

Wait. I feel like I’ve forgotten something to talk about. Hmmm…

Oh! One of the best companion exits of all time! Hard to choose between this and Jo’s really; both are so beautiful and emotional, and played and written to perfection. I’m so glad Sladen and Baker wrote this, as you can see their chemistry and understanding of the characters shine through the dialogue. What a pitch perfect ending to an otherwise pretty good story.

4/5, would be 3.5/5 but the performances and the ending are just too damned good to dock it that much

I loved 99% of that, and this is soooo close to a 5 star. We will get back to the 1% shortly.

This is a rare RTD2 episode with perfect pacing. It didn't feel too rushed, nor too slow. Just right. The first 10-15 minutes are gripping tension, and once the action starts it is so wild and kinetic! Love it!

All performances are electric here, with Gatwa occasionally adding menace to the role, and having plenty of gravitas. When he spoke to Belinda in the diner, it felt like his 7, or his 11 was showing and I got minor chills.And of course, Sethu was still amazing as Belinda; playing her distrust of The Doctor super well while still showing heart and enjoyment in the adventure and the mystery. What a fantastic companion! I'm loving her dynamic with The Doctor so much.

But the star of the show was, of course, Alan Cumming. He puts in a fantastically fun, campy, and at points even chilling, performance as my favourite RTD2 villain yet. I was so excited for Mr Ring-A-Ding and I'm happy to say they nailed it between his performance and the effects.

And oh, those effects! What a love letter to rubberhose cartoons, and I love how his "human" form was essentially a parody of "realistic" cartoon characters and that ugly artstyle. The special effects team deserve so much credit and props for their hard work here in how well they did the mixed media.

The dialogue was also golden throughout, and other than the 1%, I think all of it flowed beautifully and was fun!

Final positive: think they found the perfect balance for having segregation in the setting. Present enough to not be brushed aside, but not so present it distracts from the main story with Lux, or makes the episode too dark. Great balance!

So, we come onto the one thing I don't like.

I'm glad some folks got enjoyment from the meta scene with the fans but to me that felt indulgent and fan-wanky. I didn't really find it as mean spirited as I feared, so I appreciate that. But something about Doctor Who referencing itself being a TV show (past the brief tease in Remembrance of the Daleks) just feels like a little too much for me. I don't mind meta stuff or poking the fourth wall but this just felt a step too far for me and took me out of the episode. 

But thankfully, not enough to ruin it. I loved this so much otherwise that I'll give it a 9/10.

Stunning!

Jameson and Baker are both incredible actors; able to play their traditional roles but with an added menace and in Leela's case, cruelty. Not to say there isn't a cruelty to Burner, but it's more subtle and almost scary just how close to our Doctor he is while being despicable.

What a great episode for Brax, where we learn even more about his backstory and get more depth to him! The more we learn, the more fascinated by him I am. What the hell is his relationship to The Doctor!? And his sacrifice, while not making me tear up, did make me emotional.

Interesting that Benny makes an appearance here at the end! Does this mean he has a relationship with her? I've never heard her stuff so never knew!

Literally my only criticism of this audio is that Romana got almost nothing to do; which is totally fine when she got so much in series 2 and in the last episode.

Not quite Mindbomb but damn was this amazing stuff!