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The Daleks |
Reviews
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The Daleks |
The Daleks: Still The Masters of Earth... by Antony Tomlinson 23/5/03
The other day I was walking through the streets of Brighton (UK) when I passed one of the gift shops that litter the town. In front of this shop stood a small boy of about seven, who was pointing excitedly through the window of the store.
"What's that?" he cried with glee.
His father wandered up and looked at the object indicated. It was a two foot tall, silver and blue toy, which looked like an upturned waste paper basket crossed with an Italian coffee maker. Its surface was covered in numerous odd lumps, domes and bizarre-looking sticks. It appeared very odd sandwiched between the teddy bears and Simpsons merchandise that made up the rest of the shop's display.
"That, son" replied the father, with a nostalgic gleam in his eye - "is a Dalek."
As a Doctor Who fan I was, of course, choked with pride. This child - born at least five years after the end of regular Doctor Who - had probably been exposed to all the high-tech wizardry of "The Phantom Menace", "Men in Black" and "X-Men". Despite this, however, he had taken one look at this odd looking alien from the 1960s and had fallen head over heels in love with it. And his dad - who I doubt had watched sci-fi for at least 20 years - had no trouble identifying the creature that was standing there in the shop before him.
Science fiction monsters are not usually very memorable. I can think of only three truly great science fiction monsters to have been developed in any medium over the last century or so. The first, I think, is the Martians of H.G.Wells' book, "The War of the Worlds". These odd blobby creatures used gigantic walking machines to conquer the Earth - an unstoppable force for terror that has influenced everything from "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Independence Day" to the BBC's "The Tripods".
Another great design is Giger's alien from the film "Alien". This savage, intelligent but unspeaking creature gave us a view of an utterly extraterrestrial killing machine. It's horrific life-cycle bears only the most grotesque resemblance to the human equivalent, as does its twisted body. At the same time its blood and teeth are made of materials rarely associated with life on Earth.
The third great alien concept, I feel, is the Daleks. They are utterly brilliant in every aspect of their realisation.
In terms of design, they share with Wells' and Giger's aliens the distinction of being completely inhuman in their appearance. Just as no animal on Earth exhibits the three-legged enormity of Wells' Martian machines, or the extended skull and dual mouths of Giger's alien, the Daleks have virtually no equivalent occupying this planet. They have no legs - instead these metal beings glide around like dodgems. And they have one stalked eye and two asymmetric limbs, unlike any being that I have ever encountered on this planet.
Raymond Cusick and Terry Nation's Dalek design is a masterpiece of imagination. Anyone can look at shop window dummies, ants or turtles and wonder how they would appear, were they to wander around like men. However, it takes real genius to picture a being that does not look like anything that we have ever associated with life on Earth. The Daleks were designed with just such a level of genius.
Their voices are also perfect. Their high-pitched electronic squawk is terrifying and alien while at the same time is capable of expressing the Daleksč numerous negative emotions. It is also adept at highlighting the rather pathetic nature of the organic form lurking deep within the Dalek machine.
However, the Daleks are not merely a masterpiece of design. Another aspect in which they are a success is their back-story - indeed, it was so good that they wrote it (at least) twice. The Daleks represent a twisted version of ourselves. They were once healthy organic beings who were able to live, love and enjoy as we can. However, their dependence on technology and their willingness to use it in war led to their mutation. Eventually they became feeble, shapeless, hate-filled lumps whose flesh was grafted into the diodes of their machines.
In telling this tale, Terry Nation presents a powerful lesson. In the story, The Daleks, Terry Nation asks us to remember that life is about more than technological efficiency. He contrasts the Daleks with the Thals. The Thals live in primitive conditions, but at least they can feel the air on their skin and can love and laugh. The Daleks, in contrast, may have be capable of almost anything using their technology, but there is nothing really positive that they can do with it. They have no reason to live it seems, except to increase their chances of survival for its own sake. So they acquire power without actually valuing any of the ends achievable by it - a tale familiar from the world of human politics and business.
The character traits of the Daleks are also masterfully developed. Their famous chants of "exterminate", "I obey" and "out of control" have stuck in the popular imagination in the UK long past their disappearance from our television sets. These cries are echoes of the very distinct behaviour specifications to which the makers of the Dalek stories stuck for most of the series. This helped them remain a highly recognisable force for evil (in contrast to rather changeable species like the Ice Warriors and Cybermen).
One of the Daleks' main character traits is their hive-like unity - they sacrifice themselves for the greater Dalek good (Destiny of the Daleks), they are utterly obedient to their superiors (to the extent that they commit suicide when they fail - see Death to the Daleks) and they are capable of acting with incredible coordination (just listen to The Genocide Machine). They are also utterly ruthless. A Dalek will always kill a non-Dalek being unless there is a very, very good reason for it not to do so.
It is true that the Cybermen and the Autons exhibit similar characteristics. However the Daleks are more interesting than these beings because they also have emotions. They are angered easily (particular the higher ranking Daleks such as the Dalek Supreme of Planet of the Daleks). They also feel fear and pain - they cry in genuine terror in response to danger, and when they are hurt or killed there is audible agony in their cries (an aspect which I believe is emphasised in Robert Shearman's Jubilee).
They are also made interesting by the fact that, although they are inhuman, they can still understand human thought processes and can adopt the point of view of other races. This allows them to lie and cheat to achieve their ends in a way that more straightforward beings could not - thus, they can backstab their allies (The Daleks Master Plan), pretend to be harmless (Power of the Daleks) and lure their enemies into cunning traps (Resurrection of the Daleks).
Thus, in every way - appearance, origins, behaviour - the Daleks are one of the most brilliantly conceived and fascinating alien races of all time. True, the passing of the years has made them figures of fun and nostalgia. However, there remains a continuing understanding of the deep nastiness that these wonderful creatures were designed to represent. Indeed, they are still often used as symbols of faceless bureaucracy and realpolitik in British political cartoons (a recent example is the May 14th 2003 Steve Bell cartoon for the UK Guardian newspaper - see the www.guardian.co.uk website). And despite everything that has changed in science fiction over the years, they can still fascinate children in a way that the Klingons or Jar Jar Binks could never, ever hope to do.
AFTERTHOUGHT: The only regrettable feature of the Daleks' history, I feel, is how badly the BBC treated their colour schemes. After six years in monochrome, Doctor Who goes colour - and what do the programme makers do? They paint the Daleks grey, for God's sake.
The Dalek stories by Joe Ford 3/3/07
I love the Daleks. Really, I do. I think they are one of the greatest inventions to spring from the original series, up there with the Doctor and the TARDIS. There is something wonderfully scary and yet totally absurd about them which extends to their appearance, their voices and their attitude. Outwardly they look like giant pepper pots with sink plunger and whisk attachments. They really do look like they have gotten dressed up out of the kitchen sink but that is joy of them; they are so different from us it makes their obvious silliness quite creepy. Especially when they go around blasting people to death. I remember giving my toy Dalek to my goddaughter and she spent hours and hours playing with it... .she was fascinated with its shape and bumps and sticks, it was something totally alien to her. The Second World War gives the Daleks that edge over the Cybermen that makes them truly work as they were clearly based on the Nazi's and their creed of extermination. We've all seen pictures of Nazi oppression during the World Wars and the idea of transplanting that hatred into the future and creating a race of evil robots that kill every other race to ensure they are the dominate species is inspired. It is what has made the Daleks an enduring force in the series and why it is hard to get bored with them. Unless the story is totally inadequate, the mere inclusion of the Daleks is a good enough reason to tune in because they are so brilliantly conceived (unlike the Cybermen who were well conceived but poorly executed)... it would take a really awful producer/writer to get the Daleks wrong.
Watching The Daleks today is an interesting experience because it knocks spots off of the other SF-driven stories of the time, being the only story of season one and two that even approaches the quality of the historicals. It is certainly the best script written solely by Terry Nation for the series and a brilliant kick-start for the Daleks who are without a doubt the stars of the show. The story draws on some heavy themes for inspiration: nuclear holocausts, genocide, genetic mutations... With ideas like these being thrown about, it is easy to see how the Daleks were so popular. Encapsulated in their creepy city with its slanted corridors and an atmosphere of claustrophobia, they glide about scheming and plotting to wipe out their peaceful co-inhabitants of Skaro. Deviousness abounds; they offer the Thals food to tempt them into the city and they use the time travellers to write to the Thals and tell them it is safe. In one of the best sequences they hide away in shadowy alcoves whilst the Thal leader gives a grand speech about their reconciliation before they leap out and fry him to death. The feeling of fear they generate, especially in the scenes where the time travellers are trapped beneath the city and desperate to get out, is palpable and the cliffhanger to episode four where they have escaped the Daleks but realise they will have to return to the City for the fluid link is one of the best of the year.
It is a shame that the execution of The Dalek Invasion of Earth should be so poor because they idea at the heart of the story is fantastic and proves that the Daleks are here to stay. Their latest scheme, to invade the Earth, subjugate the humans and get them mining so they can drive the planet through space, is ingenious and ripe for excellent drama. Scenes such as the Daleks parading through Trafalgar Square and trundling past Westminster and their impressive mining operation might fool you into thinking the Daleks are at their peak, but there are some really daft mistakes made here. Their voices are shite, totally comical and unthreatening and they have daft-looking satellites strapped to their backs and they clank and wobble about, ineffectively directed by Richard Martin. Whose confession that his studio work for this story was poor says it all, really. The idea of humans being oppressed by the Daleks, abused and exhausted until their mining operation is complete is not exploited as well as it could have been and the whole story feels like something of a missed opportunity. Bizarrely Invasion Earth has dated terribly; the Robomen are something that could only have come out of the sixties and with a hurried, unfinished look about it and yet The Daleks remains quite timeless. Just goes to show what a good director can do. I would suggest you go and watch Daleks Invasion Earth 2150AD; it might be loud and brainless but it is much more exciting, has some lightning-fast and scary Daleks and looks genuinely epic. Everything the TV serial lacked.
There are certain cute Doctor Who stories that will you to hate them but somehow charm you in to the opposite reaction and The Chase fits that description very well. Somewhere out there there is a list of every inadequacy a television programme can achieve and The Chase would have a tick next to every box. It's not very good is it? The story is a pointless chase around bizarre locations dressed up as drama but played for laughs more often than not; the dialogue is risible, the production atrocious, the continuity appalling, etc, etc... but there is something there that keeps it afloat where Warriors of the Deep and Underworld sink without trace. It certainly does the Daleks no favours with Terry Nation bored shitless at having to keep writing for these creatures that made him famous and opting for a comedic approach that director Richard Martin amplifies with his static direction. It's silly moments ahoy as one Dalek rising out of sand for no reason but shock effect, one Dalek forgets his script and goes "um, er, um... ", one Dalek falls into a jumble sale trap that wouldn't fool a one year old and three Daleks sing a TARDIS song. The plot does them no favour either as we never learn why they are chasing the Doctor and co through time space... it appears to be a petty vendetta against them because they foiled their plans a couple of times. There is a certain warmth to the story as if nobody is taking it very seriously which gives the viewer a nostalgic buzz but on almost every professional level The Chase is a failure and the second Dalek story in a row that has failed to impress...
Which is why it is relief to report that their next appearance is one of their best in an epic thirteen-part tale (that's one cutaway episode which previews the main twelve part story) called The Daleks' Master Plan. The Daleks are at their all-time devious best, manipulating all the super powers of the galaxy into aiding their conquest of all known space. Their plan, to procure a terrarium powered time destructor and hold the galaxy to hostage in fear of its use, is wonderfully evil and inhumane. You could call this story The Chase part two because of its random nature, hopping from one time and space to another as the Daleks chase the Doctor who has nicked the time destructor, but the main difference is the quality of the direction by Douglas Camfield. He understands that the Daleks have to be a horrific menace and treats them with appropriate seriousness and we are never in doubt that the characters in this story live in mortal dread of the creatures. Scenes such as Garvey's hunt through the forest with the Daleks and their flamethrower attack on the Varga plants are gripping television and bring back happy memories of their first story. The nail-bitingly tense final episode allows us to see another side to the Daleks: their fear, as the time destructor is activated and they wither away and die. There are some awkward moments here and there but overall The Daleks' Master Plan is a dramatic space opera of the highest order and a perfect example of the Daleks really did have people cowering behind sofas.
Breaking in a new Doctor is always tough but Power of the Daleks has the difficult job of being the first of its kind and it makes perfect sense for David Whitaker to use the Daleks to help smooth over the transition. After all, everybody knows that the Daleks are the Doctor's sworn enemy so who else could the scruffy hobo who dances from the TARDIS be? Whitaker proves to be an excellent choice to continue the Daleks' story as he allows the creatures much more depth and character than Terry Nation and David Spooner ever did. What he understands that their creator did not is that the metal meanies work much better as creatures of intelligence than muscle and their handling of the base staff in this story is a superb example. After the eerie discovery of two Daleks in a crashed shuttle they are activated by Lesterson who wants to use them as slaves for the colony needs. However things are not as orderly as they seem in the colony and security chief Bragg wants to use the Daleks as his army to frighten the people into obeying him. The Daleks prey on these roles, pretending to help both causes but secretly build their own army to take over and wipe out the colony. The scene where Lesterson discovers the Dalek production line and realises that the creatures are much more intelligent than they let on is one of the scariest featuring the Daleks. That numbing fear that the Daleks are evil and powerful and going to kill you is captured so beautifully in Lesterson's hysterical reaction.
It has been pointed out recently that The Evil of the Daleks is an extremely flawed story plotwise and indeed when the cards are laid on that table they do seem to have their "evil plan conceivers" on overdrive. There are a number of blatant plot holes that are easy to mock but that would take away the gorgeous atmosphere and beautiful dialogue from the serial, both of which are at the top of their game. The Daleks might be a little confused in the plot department but they are still an entertaining menace and never more incongruous than when they are gliding through the hallways of a Victorian house. The story has three equally good segments with the Daleks masterfully turning up in each: gliding quietly from their time machine into 1966, smashing through the hall of mirrors in 1867 and a return visit to Skaro in the future sees their army ready to be unleashed on the universe. The Daleks are attempting to discover how humans tick in order to brainwash them with Dalek personalities and make them brainless killers, an idea that sounds silly but is treated very seriously on screen with some marvellous scenes of the Doctor explaining Jamie's heroic and emotional behaviour. In the lack of emotion stakes they push the Cybermen into the second league. Plus, the Dalek Emperor is a vision of beauty, a giant Dalek hooked into the wall like a screaming brain and his presence adds much to the Dalek mythos. This was an extremely worthy end for the Daleks; I cannot think of a better end to the creatures than the Doctor causing a civil war between them by implanting three 'humanised' Daleks in their midst and asking questions rather than blindly obeying. Alas their popularity ensured their continued presence in the series...
After an absence of four seasons the Daleks were back and in another superior story that takes a clever look at the complexities of time travel. Time travelling guerrillas from a future timeline where the Daleks rule the Earth travel back to the past in which time changed for the worst, at a peace conference between the world's most powerful parties. It's an extremely well plotted story that unfolds at good pace with the awesome twist in the last episode that the guerrillas have not changed the past for the better, that they were the ones who created the Dalek-ruled timeline. Unfortunately there are only three Dalek props available for this story so their depleted force is apparent but the electric oppressive atmosphere in the future where they rule the Earth almost makes up for that. It is annoying to have to keep popping back to the Daleks in their base bullying the Controller because what we want is some action; the gorgeous mist-swathed battle in episode four as they emerge over the lawn of Styles' house with their ape-like slaves the Ogrons gives the story the spectacular finish it deserved.
The Time Lords direct the Doctor to the planet of Spiridon in Planet of the Daleks where they have built a massive army of Daleks, a force that numbers in the thousands to unleash on the universe. Sounds exciting, doesn't it? Unfortunately Terry Nation has picked up his pen again and barely disguises the fact that this is a complete rehash of the original Dalek story with only half the atmosphere. It's overlong at six episodes and suffers from some stagey studio work but I could imagine a twelve-year-old finding this wonderfully exciting... Doctor Who destroying the Dalek army! After the reason this tale is called a cliche is because it is a formula that works. The Daleks are as horrible as ever, trying to drop poison bombs and plans to invade the galaxy (yadda yadda yadda) and there is lots of action but ultimately this is a waste of their potential, particularly when you see what they could achieve in the next two stories. The Thals are re-introduced here but their original strength of character is replaced by a new militaristic creed, warriors who carry bombs and guns and have actively waged war on the Daleks.
There are some Doctor Who stories that receive a lot of flak and I just cannot understand why and Death to the Daleks is one such story. Okay, it isn't perfect but it certainly shows more imagination than Nation's last attempt and rattles along at a far old pace and uses the Daleks brilliantly. For too long now the Daleks have felt like gliding blasters with little of the depth of their early stories so it is great fun to see them stripped of their firepower and forced to think their way out of the hostile situation on Exillon. Rather wonderfully, they turn on their captors (and their word) as their firepower is restored, gunning down a pair of Exillons for fun and subjugating the entire race as they mining slaves. Admittedly Pertwee barely disguises his boredom with the creatures and the guest cast is rather wooden but the direction is imaginative and features one or two stunning set pieces (the fight in the quarry is rather good).
All change for Dalek history when Terry Nation goes back to their roots and exploits the drama of giving the moral dilemma of being able to wipe them out. For a Dalek story it really doesn't feature them much at all, concentrating instead on their chilling Hitleresque creator Davros. Doctor Who scripting was rarely this powerful, featuring some charged ethical discussion between the Doctor and Davros about the security of the future and the nature of power. The story lavishes time on the smaller characters too, each of them having their own small moment in a story packed full of small, wonderful moments. The deadline of the Daleks' mass production looms and gives the story a tense atmosphere, which it needs in the later episodes, stuck underground in the claustrophobic bunker, and climaxes on a rousing Nazi speech from the Daleks threatening to break free and destroy everything in the universe! Effortlessly put together by David Maloney and offering Tom Baker some of his best ever material in his first season, this is one of the best Dalek stories and one of the best Doctor Who stories too.
So it comes to Destiny of the Daleks, which some fans will lead you to believe is the nadir of all Doctor Who stories. It's not, it's nowhere near and although the production does lack a certain finesse, it is still a perfectly serviceable action adventure. The central idea, that the Daleks have attracted the attention of an equally conquest-salivating race of robots, is classic and they are trapped in a war of logic with two great battle fleets locked in deadlock, not willing to make a move because the other side can predict the move straight away and combat it. It's a perfect excuse to re-introduce Davros, as the Daleks seek out their disabled creator in order to break the deadlock and beat their foe. There are some lovely effects here and the script rattles along but the story is let down severely by the performances and characterisation, especially of Davros who was pure ice in Genesis but comes across as a ranting madman here with no motive whatsoever. Still, with scenes such as the Daleks heading towards the Movellan ship with explosives strapped to their casings and Romana trapped in a plastic shell with a nuclear device about to go off, who needs sophistication?
You go from the childish to the painfully adult with Resurrection of the Daleks featuring an astonishing death count and upsetting some quarters. The Daleks are desperately in search of something to do here and have their fingers in every pie; they're attempting to conquer Gallifrey, putting duplicates in key places on Earth, trying to find a cure for a virus the Movellan have created (which has proven very efficient at wiping them out), kidnapping Davros from Earth custody and torturing the Doctor. It's non-stop! Whilst I think this is easily the sloppiest Dalek script, there are a wealth of great set pieces throughout the book and the production is helped immeasurably by some stylish and dynamic direction from Matthew Robinson. Peter Davison gets one of his all-time best moments when he attempts to assassinate Davros but finds he is a moral coward and cannot go through with it. It's moments like this that raise Resurrection from its lousy plotting and make it something altogether more interesting.
From the ridiculous to the sublime, Revelation of the Daleks oxymoronically manages to be the best and the worst Dalek story rolled into one. It is a masterpiece of television, superbly written (that's Eric Saward?), imaginatively directed with what looks like a huge budget, exquisitely performed and characterised. It's just that the Daleks themselves hardly appear, the story instead preferring to have an intimate look inside the perverse and dangerous mind of their creator who is a far more interesting character than them these days. The story features some astonishing death scenes and some laugh-out-loud moments, but the biggest surprise is left until the end where we discover Davros has been using the cryogenic remains of people to breed his new race of Daleks. It's a gleefully sick end to a gleefully sick story and one of the all-time classics in the Doctor Who canon. The ending sees Davros finally getting his comeuppance as the rival faction of Daleks swoop in an take him away to stand trial for his crimes.
Proving the Dalek stories are where it's at in the 1980's, you have another classic in the shape of Remembrance of the Daleks. It's a story that wants to restore some of the Daleks' original menace and they are sporting some serious hardware here. The Special Weapons Dalek is a fine innovation and the Imperials look extremely (cough) sexy (well, for a Dalek) in their stylish white and gold casings. The story takes a close look at the original motivation of the Daleks, which has been somewhat glossed over in recent times, their facism and racism. You've got a double whammy of a climax with the Imperials finally wiping out the Renegade faction of Daleks and the Doctor tricking Davros into wiping out their home planet of Skaro with a Stellar Manipulator. It's another production with some fine effects and direction, it has the look of a movie in places, with some high-flying action set pieces.
Skipping ahead to the new series you have the re-introduction of the Daleks for the first time in 16 years and thanks to the talents of Rob Shearman and Joe Ahearne it is a total success, the Daleks once again proving the winning formula to make the show work. Whilst I have some issues with how sloppy this production gets at the end, with the Dalek being contaminated by Rose and opening up its casing to feel the sunshine on itself before committing suicide, I do have to admit it is the best characterised Dalek we have ever met and many scenes with the Doctor and Rose reach a level of psychological intensity we are not used to. Big things have been happening off screen: there has been a devastating Time War between the Daleks and the Time Lords, leaving Gallifrey in ruins and the Daleks wiped out. It is a shame that we will never see this massive shift in continuity on screen but certainly shows some a fascinating side of both the Doctor and the Dalek.
In a shock twist it turns out the Emperor of the Daleks has survived the time war and has been secretly using the population of the Earth to create a new race of Daleks. In the most spectacular production to feature the Daleks, we get to gawp in awe as an army of thousands of Daleks launches a devastating attack on the Earth. It is breathtaking, with the Daleks sporting some mean weaponry and scenes of them swarming in space like insects suggesting the overwhelming force they possess like no other. The Emperor is preaching some frightening religious dogma, proclaiming himself the God of all Daleks. Fortunately Rose absorbs the power of the Daleks and obliterates the entire army, finally wiping the Daleks out for good. Or has she...?
To be frank, the Daleks bring out the best in Doctor Who, I find the idea of these absurd-looking creatures plaguing the universe with their evil as wonderful and imaginative as a time traveling police box. It strikes me that whatever the production team, they always raise their game when they are bringing the Daleks. Certainly the original Dalek story, Evil, Day, Genesis, Revelation and The Parting of the Ways represent the best of their respective eras and can be held up as prime examples of what Doctor Who can offer.
The delightful thing about the Daleks is how little they have changed over the years. Their creed, their appearance, their voices...all pretty much identical in 2005 as they were in 1963. It's that sort of timeless quality that has kept the show on the air for 40 odd years. They are a total success story too, boosting the ratings whenever they appear.
Moving away from the telly a second, they are so successful they even managed to hold up three sets of their own audio series; Dalek Empire, Dalek War and Dalek Empire III. The one man who I feel recognizes the Daleks potential like no other, Nicholas Briggs and has gone to some lengths to prove how versatile they can be, writes these mini series and proves how much presence they have with just their voices. Like all the best stories, Briggs concentrates on the psychology of the creatures, but this time with how their evil can have a profound effect of the humans they are enslaving and killing. There are some truly chilling sequences in these series, such as a Dalek having its casing torn open and the mutant tortured inside and some spine-tingling scenes between the leader, the Supreme Dalek and his captive, Susan Mendez. Production and sound design is great and the overall story arc is full of some great twists and turns. Once again, it is perhaps the best the production team (Big Finish) can offer.
So raise your glass and toast to the success of the Daleks, the best monsters any series could hope for and the ultimate Doctor Who baddies. They are one of a few very monsters I find it a pleasure to re-visit again and again.
Exterminate!