Serial B, in seven parts:
- The Dead Planet - 12/21/63, 6.9m viewers
- The Survivors - 12/28/63, 6.4m
- The Escape - 1/4/64, 8.9m
- The Ambush - 1/11/64, 9.9m
- The Expedition - 1/18/64, 9.9m
- The Ordeal - 1/25/64, 10.4m
- The Rescue - 2/1/64, 10.4m
Sound Bytes:
"Certain people at the BBC thought the Daleks were puerile and would drag the show down. And, as one of our prime intentions was to keep an educational slant to the program, they were not felt to be in the right mold at all. Actually, of course, The Daleks was educational and in a rather subtle way -- it showed the dangers of war, pacifism, and racial hatred, as well as containing many admirable and idealistic truths. The show was also a jolly good adventure story!" - David Whitaker, quoted in The Doctor Who File by Peter Haining (W.H. Allen, 1986)
"The admission that the appearance of the Daleks is no longer frightening to audiences is in no way a degradation of Terry Nation's and Raymond Cusick's accomplishment. In 1963, long before Star Trek and Lost in Space, a gliding, inhuman entity with a sinister mechanical voice was nothing less than an inspiration." - John Kenneth Muir, A Critical History of Doctor Who on Television (McFarland & Company, 1999)
Comments:
Doctor Who's creator, Sydney Newman, initially hated the Daleks and the whole concept of this serial. He wanted no corny BEMs (Bug-Eyed Monsters) in his "serious" science fiction series. But producer Verity Lambert disagreed with him, and pushed Terry Nation's script for The Daleks into production.
From an artistic standpoint, Newman had a good point. In terms of realism and overall intelligence, The Daleks is a drop down from An Unearthly Child, an excursion into the realm of Flash Gordon-style serial adventure complete with thrilling cliffhangers and over-the-top villainy.
But you can't argue with the viewing figures, can you? The Daleks virtually doubled Doctor Who's audience and turned the show into a bizarre variety of national sensation. Assuming that mediocrity is not a prerequisite for popularity, this serial had to have something good going for it...
And that something is the Daleks, of course, probably the most famous aliens in TV history. Raymond Cusick's design for the creatures, though dated today, was awesome in its time (keep in mind that Star Trek, made some years later, chose to represent aliens in a much blander and safer way, with tiny nubbins of makeup on the ears or the nose or whatever). Cusick's achievement is all the more impressive when you consider the budgetary restrictions that he worked under. Originally, the BBC brass advised him to make the Daleks cheaply out of cardboard tubes spray-painted silver, because the budget was so tight, but he exceeded his orders and came up with a pretty damn cool alien design.
Furthermore, believe it or not, the Daleks are actually characters in this story. Far from the shrieking space soldiers they would become later, the original Daleks are smart, scheming and even a bit tragic. Ravaged by radiation, trapped in survival suits and entombed in their city, these Daleks are as pathetic as they are frightening. In this story, their goal is not to conquer the Universe, but simply to survive. The Daleks must raise the radiation level on Skaro -- and destroy the Thals in the process -- or they will perish.
In his own way, Hartnell's Doctor is more evil than the Daleks. He is perfectly willing to exploit the Thals for his own advantage by turning them into a "ready-made army" to retrieve his lost fluid link. Ian is quick to attack the Doctor's dubious moral stance, and their recurring arguments are charged and compelling. Only near the end of the story, when the Daleks become really ruthless, does the Doctor start to develop a sense of moral outrage toward the creatures.
Another strong point of the serial is the Thal society, which is populated by fairly well-developed and sympathetic characters. Their pacifism presents an interesting obstacle (if that's the right word) for the Doctor to overcome. Alydon, their leader, genuinely wants to make friends with the Daleks, and he regards their destruction as tragic. The various moral conflicts and gray areas add texture to what could have been a very standard adventure yarn.
For a long serial, The Daleks hardly ever drags (except for the aptly named episode six, The Ordeal, with its interminable chasm-crossing segment!) The production values are fine for their time -- I like the moody swamp set, and there are some good effects shots, including a neat moment when a Dalek ray-beam melts a wall that Ian is hiding behind. Even the model Dalek city works, if you can forgive its fakeness; the background mountains, smoke, and details on the buildings help to make it credible.
There's no denying that this is the story that put Doctor Who on the map, and became the model for twenty-five years worth of future adventures. It inspired a cheesy but fun movie and a classic novelisation by Whitaker (read it if you can find it). And I'm glad to say that The Daleks is not only influential, it's actually good; it's still my favorite clash between the Doctor and his mortal enemies.
Grade: A
Next Serial: The Edge of Destruction