The Daleks

The Dead Planet [Episode 1]

Hannah has no idea what's coming. Somehow I've managed to get this far without spoiling the surprise; I just need to restrain myself for the next 25 minutes.

Me: Here we go. The first sci-fi story.
Hannah: You're spoiling it!
Me: You already know it's a sci-fi story; the episode is called "The Dead Planet".

Incidentally, Hannah likes petrified wood. Her words, not mine.

She also likes Ian's observation that the Doctor seems to have a knack of getting himself into trouble (a strong contender for understatement of the year), but when Barbara asks "don't you ever think he deserves something to happen to him?" she's less convinced.

Hannah: Hmm. I'm trying to decide whether I feel the same way.

Evidently she's not finding him 100% unlikable, despite her reservations last time.

When Susan momentarily gets lost in the petrified forest, Hannah is distinctly unimpressed.

Hannah: She's very silly.
Me: Of course she is, she's a 15-year-old schoolgirl.
Hannah: Does she age normally?
Me: I don't know. She's definitely being played that way, but it's possible she ages at a different rate.
Hannah: So she could be 100?

The Doctor introduces Ian and Barbara to the TARDIS food dispenser.

Hannah: I wasn't expecting to see a replicator.
Me: A what?
Hannah: They call them replicators in Star Trek.
Me: Well, Star Trek is still three years away at this point.
Hannah: Yeah, it's weird. I want to know who came up with the idea for those.

Answers on a postcard, please.

The Doctor sabotages the TARDIS by removing the fluid link, pretending it's malfunctioned so that he has an excuse to explore the alien city. This is often cited as another example of the Doctor's early amoral characterisation, pretty much on the same level as his attempted murder of a wounded caveman in the previous story, but for some reason Hannah finds this a lot less objectionable. In fact she seems to find it delightfully cheeky.

Hannah: (grinning) He is the Doctor. He's definitely getting more Doctor-y.

In the city, Ian suggests they split up to cover more ground.

Hannah: Never, ever a good idea!
Me: You've been watching too much Scooby-Doo. I'm sure it'll be fine.

Barbara explores the city until she is eventually confronted by some unseen monster, advancing towards her wielding a horrifying plumbing tool. As the episode ends, Hannah turns and gives me a knowing smirk.

Hannah: Was that a plunger?
Me: Maybe.
Hannah: How many things could possibly have a plunger?
Me: I'm glad I don't need to keep that a secret anymore.
Hannah: I swear you once told me that they didn't turn up for ages.

I genuinely have no memory of this.

Me: Did I? I can only assume that was a cunning bluff because I knew we'd be doing this one day.
Hannah: There was a lot of suspense built and the episode was very scary, but I can't take a plunger by itself as particularly scary.
Me: Strictly speaking it's a sucker arm, not a plunger.
Hannah: It's a toilet plunger. The scary part is that she's stuck in a room with something coming towards her, but a cup on a stick is not intimidating. For all we knew it could just have been somebody holding a plunger.

The Survivors [Episode 2]

The appearance of the Daleks is turning out to be an unexpectedly odd sensation for Hannah; having spent twelve years watching the modern series and learning the main character's backstory, the experience of going back and actually seeing that backstory unfolding is turning out to be rather a surreal experience for her.

But back to the important stuff: Ian's wardrobe.

Hannah: I haven't mentioned it yet; I like his cardigan.
Me: Good.
Hannah: I'm surprised you don't have a cardigan.

When the Doctor decides to return to the ship without Barbara, Hannah seems a little surprised that he would leave one of his companions behind.

Me: You liked his trick last time, where he hid the fluid link?
Hannah: Yeah, I think he's fun when he does naughty little things like that.
Me: And you didn't see that as yet another example of his dubious morality? It's usually seen as pretty unacceptable behaviour.
Hannah: No, I know he's morally dubious and I wouldn't like it done to me, but I think it's representative of the Doctor.
Me: So you think that's in line with his actions today?
Hannah: Yes, for some things. Different Doctors have different levels of sneaky.

Meanwhile, the Doctor, Ian and Susan encounter the Daleks for the first time. One of them shoots Ian to stop him running away.

Hannah: They shot something and it didn't die?
Me: Yep. I think this is literally the only time they've ever paralysed someone instead of killing them.

Barbara suggests that there may be something inside the metal casings.

Hannah: Mutant squids. There you go.

In fact, there's an awful lot about these early Daleks that seems strange in retrospect. Hannah can't help but notice how eloquent they are.

Hannah: "A few questions will reduce the mystery." I like that.

When Susan returns to the TARDIS, the same production error from the previous story still rankles.

Hannah: Roundels on the outside of the doors! It still doesn't make sense. I like the humming sound of the TARDIS.

Over the end credits, I decide this is as good a time as any to dwell on what might have been.

Me: Ridley Scott was a trainee set designer with the BBC at this time and was originally scheduled to design this story, but there was a scheduling conflict and he was replaced shortly before they were due to start work. So if he hadn't been replaced, the Daleks would have been designed by Ridley Scott.
Hannah: Oh, so his plans and ideas might have been used?
Me: No, he never worked on the show at all. The Daleks were designed by Raymond Cusick.
Hannah: So why did you bring it up?
Me: I just thought it was interesting that they were almost designed by the same man who directed Alien and Gladiator.
Hannah: Would it have made a difference?
Me: They would have looked completely different. And probably the show wouldn't have been a success and wouldn't have lasted past William Hartnell, because Dalekmania was the thing that really made the show catch on with the viewing public in a massive way. After this episode the ratings jumped up by two and a half million the following week.
Hannah: So he might have designed the Daleks to look the same as the alien from Alien?
Me: I doubt it.

The Escape [Episode 3]

Terry Nation's penchant for prosaic episode titles is becoming obvious at this point.

Hannah: They're all called "The". I'm sure I've seen his name before somewhere, too.
Me: Most likely as creator of the Daleks, to be honest. That's pretty much what he's best known for, apart from Blake's 7 and Survivors.

The double entendre amongst the Thals ("we're all working towards the same end" / "now there's a double meaning for you") produces the dirtiest laugh I've heard since... well, since the end of the last story. At least the innuendo was intentional this time.

Hannah: What time of day was this shown?
Me: Quarter past five.
Hannah: Wow.

Hannah has issues with the Dalek machinery being labelled in English. In many ways the next 40 years are going to be a bumpy ride.

The Doctor deduces that the Daleks in the city are powered by drawing static electricity from the floors.

Hannah: I can't believe the Daleks are dodgems.

After going Dalek hunting, Ian and the Doctor remove the mutant from its armour and get rid of it.

Hannah: It's weird that they didn't let us see it. Ian and the Doctor are both scientists, surely they'd be interested in seeing it? It's not dangerous after they've taken it out of its metal tank.
Me: They're making an escape attempt, they haven't got time to cross-examine it.
Hannah: That's why I'd probably die. I'm far too curious.

The end of the episode feels like a good time to drop some more trivia.

Me: By the way, it may interest you to know that we're now in 1964.
Hannah: No, I don't care.
Me: Okay.

The Ambush [Episode 4]

Hannah is taking a keen interest in the practicalities of the Dalek control room.

Hannah: I like how they're operating dials and switches with a plunger.
Me: It's a sucker arm.
Hannah: It's a plunger. They're not even actually turning anything, he's just pressing it against things on the wall.
Me: Did you notice all the floor numbers on the lift are in binary?
Hannah: But it's all nonsense! None of the numbers are in sequence.
Me: It's an alien numerical system.

When the travellers finally escape and find their way back to the petrified forest, there's time for a history lesson about the evolution of the Daleks and the Thals. Hannah isn't convinced.

Hannah: So the Thals mutated into some kind of creatures, and then the mutation came back round again to turn them into humanoids with a different mindset? Evolution is caused by random mutations. You can't have something that turns into something else randomly and then turns back again, that's far too precise. It's really, really stupid!

At the end of the episode, the group prepare to set off on their travels again... until they realise that the Daleks took the fluid link and it's still down in the city.

Hannah: Oh tits. I wasn't expecting that!

The Expedition [Episode 5]

In this episode we are treated to one of the all-time great moments of the show: a Dalek experiments with the anti-radiation drugs and has an hallucinogenic fit. Hannah finds this absolutely adorable, and frankly it's hard to disagree.

Hannah: Aww, they took the drugs and now they've gone crazy! He's tripping out!

The Daleks realise they can't use the drugs to leave the city because they've become conditioned to radiation, so they decide to carry out their contingency plan: explode another neutron bomb.

Hannah: Er, alright.
Me: Sound reasonable?
Hannah: And they can only drive on metal floors, so good luck with that.

Hannah is still bothered that everyone on Skaro appears to speak fluent English.

Hannah:  I know it gets explained in the new series, but it's annoying that it hasn't been established here. I don't want you to tell me how long it goes on until some writer finally decides "hang on a second, how does that work?" though.
Me: Okay, I won't tell you. I'll let you find out.
Hannah: Will it be long?
Me: I'm not going to tell you!
Hannah: That's my favourite bits of sci-fi, the bits that explain how it all works.
Me: Like earlier, when they explained how mutation works?
Hannah: I like that they were trying to come up with some backstory, even if it was bollocks. I do like the idea that the peaceful race are now the warriors and the warrior race are now peaceful, but the idea that there's some kind of cyclical mutation is just silly. Why are most aliens humanoid, anyway?
Me: Can you name a single modern episode without any humanoid aliens?
Hannah: (after pausing for thought) The Christmas spider thingy.

This doesn't really feel like the time to start discussing why the aliens don't all look like giant butterflies. We'll get to that later.

Hannah: I know the real answer is that it makes things easier. In Stargate they have an explanation as to why all the aliens looks human.
Me: What is it?
Hannah: They are human.
Me: Genius.
Hannah: But here they go to a random planet where everyone looks human and speaks English. They even understood the cavemen. The whole thing is just silly. But a lot of sci-fi is.

Meanwhile, at the swamp...

Hannah: Mmm, all bubbly. It's like my IBS after a curry. Betcha won't put that in your blog.

The Ordeal [Episode 6]

Hannah isn't at all impressed that the Doctor gets himself caught by the Daleks when he infiltrates the city. When he hears their plans shortly afterwards, we see his first proper display of moral outrage.

Me: Do you think the Doctor's objection to murder indicates that his personality is changing?
Hannah: I think he's changed a bit. He's also still an idiot.

Meanwhile in the caverns, Ian makes a tricky jump between ledges. Hannah dutifully gives her acting notes.

Hannah: That's believable.
Me: I think that's called damning with faint praise.
Hannah: No, I'm saying he did very well for what they could do.

To her credit, Hannah has been very understanding and accepting of 1960s BBC production values, but she still finds it hilarious when Barbara accidentally breaks off a piece of the polystyrene cave wall.

Next up to make the jump is the reluctant Antodus. He ties the rope around his waist.

Hannah: I think he's going to die because he's not going to try hard enough.
Me: You're very pessimistic, aren't you?
Hannah: Well, what happens to real people in these situations is that they snap their spines by putting all their weight on the rope.
Me: Great, thanks for that.

The episode ends with Antodus dangling from the ledge as Ian tries to hang onto him.

Hannah: A literal cliffhanger!
Me: Yes, very droll.
Hannah: Hey, I didn't write this.

The Rescue [Episode 7]

Hannah: There's too much to happen in this episode, how can it be the last one?
Me: Like what?
Hannah: Ends to tie up!
Me: You thought the ends were tied up three episodes ago.

As the Daleks put their plans into action... I'm sorry, I can't let this go.

Me: They're clearly not plungers, they've got telescopic arms and everything. They're suckers.
Hannah: It's a rubber dome on the end of a stick; it's a plunger.

The Thals' attack strategy also raises some questions.

Hannah: I didn't think the Daleks would be taken down by hand.
Me: Strength in numbers.
Hannah: I like the guy who dropped down out of the ceiling.

Still, you can't argue with results.

Me: And that's it. The end of the Daleks.
Hannah: I'm sure that'll last.
Me: Well, it was supposed to be at the time, anyway.

Time to wrap things up; the Doctor gives the Thals an impassioned speech about rebuilding their world, the TARDIS travellers say their goodbyes, and Ganatus gives Barbara a parting kiss.

Hannah: The first romance in the whole thing!

The lead-in cliffhanger to the next story sees the TARDIS in flight. Suddenly there's a bang, knocking everyone over, and the lights go out.

Hannah: Nothing's ever easy.

During the credits, it's obvious that Hannah is still dwelling on the Doctor's speech from five minutes earlier.

Hannah: "I never give advice"?!

The Score

Hannah: I liked it a lot. There was a lot more character development and team-building, and they're actually working together. I think this one was better directed, with more suspense and a nice balance between action and dialogue, and the small romance with Barbara was very sweet and understated. The science was dubious at best; science fiction works as long as it all vaguely feels plausible, but the cyclical mutation was bollocks. It's certainly better than the previous one; I don't see much room for improvement, except in the series as a whole. It starts to show all the characters off, it's engaging, and I like the false end in the middle.

9/10

In the past Hannah has expressed interest in watching the DVD documentaries as we go, so I suggest watching the documentary about the creation of the Daleks. We get about six minutes into it before the inevitable happens.

Hannah: See, I told you it was a plunger.