The story.........


It is planet Earth, in the year 1963, and the famous wanderer in time and space- the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) and his companion Ace (Sophie Aldred), a wild and brave teenager from the 1980's have arrived. It seems The Doctor once left behind The Hand of Omega- a dangerous artifact from his home planet here and he has come to collect it.

However his old enemies- the ruthless cybernetic Dalek race have also come to this time period with intentions to appropriate the Gallifreyan artifact. Furthermore there is a civil war within the Dalek race with two separate Dalek factions battling each other for posession of the device.

The Doctor must prevent the Daleks from obtaining the Hand of Omega, or else they will be unstoppable in their conquest of the universe and their extermination of all other races. But he must simultaneously keep the human bystanders out of danger in this conflict. Is the Doctor doomed to fail or does he have a card up his sleeve?


For the casual viewer........


This isn't a very accessible serial for most non-fans of the series. There are about ten continuity references in this episode, since it was originally shown in 1988 in celebration of Doctor Who's 25th anniversary. The events of "Genesis of The Daleks" are summarised to explain what the Daleks are and how they were created. A few references are made to previous Dalek encounters and other unworldly events on Earth which the Doctor has witnessed and remarked at how easily the media hid it from the public.

In order to understand the action in this story it is necessary to at least see beforehand "Genesis of the Daleks" (review here ) to learn about the origins of the Daleks and their creator Davros. Essentially this story is the concluding piece in the 5-part Davros story arc- an indispensible collection of stories beginning with "Genesis". It is also recommended, but perhaps not essential that you see "An Unearthly Child" and "The Three Doctors" which describe the history of the Omega device and how the Doctor initially brought it to Earth, 1963.


Daleks....


The Daleks are not really up to their high scare factor as they were in previous Dalek stories. Sure they're still pretty deadly and quick to blast away anything that moves. But they've been redesigned and look decidedly plastic and decorated rather than armoured. They appear far too permeable and indeed they're destroyed too easily and too frequently throughout the serial- long before we engage in the climactic Dalek civil war. I don't think director. Andrew Morgan made enough effort to make the Daleks look imposing in the same way that Graeme Harper or David Maloney did in the previous Dalek stories.

Of course the Daleks still remain a deadly force to reckon with as the local military move in to neutralise the Dalek threat only to be scattered and massacred by the superior might and technology of the Daleks who wade through bullets and even grenade launchers mostly unscathed, whilst the soldiers are killed in rather brutal and helpless ways which stab at the morale of the viewer who wants to see the good guys win. Like all battles between good and evil, this is one that reminds you that the fight against evil is a very painful one, replete with death and losses.

And whilst director Andrew Morgan isn't quite the best choice for animating the Daleks, he does manage to capture the presence of the characters. Particularly the Doctor and his captivating eccentricities which he draws us into with intimidating proximity. Almost as if surrealism seems to surround him like an invisible cloud and disrupt everything he gets close to. The Doctor has an overwhelming size and wisdom in this arena of everyday life and common men. He is in control, his knowledge gives him authority to be grand and risque in his actions to save the day.

The director is also able to really milk the suspense out of the scenes. Such as the cliffhanger where the Doctor and Ace find a transmat console in a dark school cellar, and suddenly it becomes active and a Dalek starts to materialise, then the Doctor and Ace find out the Headmaster has locked the cellar door, trapping them here. There's another such scene where Ace wanders into the school later and finds out the school is now crawling with Daleks and she has only a baseball bat to defend herself as she is chased, smashing through windows and running for her life.


The Scripts the thing.....


Its the script which makes this episode such a classic. It makes us really appreciate the Dalek's alien mentality. It is a rare thing for science fiction to really do justic to the idea of alien life- not just describe their monstrous appearance or their advanced civilisation or their posession of the bigger guns, but to really discuss how psychologically alien they are. Your notions of fighting for a better world or of ties of equality and co-operation mean nothing to them. They consider themsleves unabashedly the master race and that every human being on Earth was born for the sole purpose of serving them. Their intolerance and ruthless drive to destroy that which does not conform absolutely to their genetic make-up is constantly at war with their sense of logic. They destroy each other over a few biological mutations which differentiate one Dalek faction from the other. And yet they are wise in their restraint of destructive urges.

Doctor: "The Daleks in the mothership up there are capable of eradicating this planet from space, but even they, ruthless though they are, would think twice before making such a radical alteration to the timeline."

They also know that they need the aid and alliance of humans in order to prevail without arousing suspicion from the military forces of Earth.

The Imperial Dalek faction, orbiting Earth's sratosphere in a gigantic mothership housing 400 Daleks are aided by Davros (Terry Molloy)- the evil Kaled scientist who originally created them and now has evolved to become their emperor. In his earlier story, "Genesis of the Daleks", Davros had described how if he had some means of engineering the destruction of all life in the universe, he would do it simply to demonstrate his power. Simply to be able to say he controlled the destiny of everything- that he could indeed enjoy the luxury of being God the Destroyer for one moment. In this story Davros clearly hasn't changed a bit and talks in hopes of of posessing the Hand of Omega as a doomsday device that he would use to destroy the lesser races simply because he can.

The Renegade Dalek faction is based in a scrap yard, where they are aided by a bunch of Neo Nazis who are unhappy with life in an integrated, democratic Britain, but who mainly want power for their own sake. The characters are actually well realised racists rather than stereotypes- they see themselves as the good guys, they see themselves as just like any other political activists with a noble cause, they talk bitterly about their years in prison for exercising their freedom of speech, talk of the poverty amidst them and question if the country can cope with an increasing population of immigrants. That for me defines the morally complex richness of Theatre- of how bad guys can take the audience into their confidence and make you almost feel on their side because their thoughts and knowledge engage you. It reminds you that there is a darkness and perverted intentions to certain activist groups and that people disillusioned with the government (and many British people were disillusioned during the Thatcherite 1980's) and looking for a better society can be led down the wrong path.

The serial emphasises repeatedly that in humanity's first contact with the Daleks, most humans are too stupid to realise what they're dealing with. Similarly Captain Gilmore (Simon Williams) of the secret military is arrogant enough to believe him and all his men and their weapons can beat the Daleks, and it takes the Doctor's scolding guidance to make him realise how small he is.

Gilmore: "Shouldn't we send for reinforcements and armoured units?"

Doctor: "Hey listen to me group Captain- that mothership up there has surveilance equipment capable of spotting a sparrow fall at fifteen-thousand kilometers! Any sign of a massive military build up and they might decide to simply sterilise the area!"

Gilmore: "And we have no defence?"

Doctor: "Frightening isn't it- to find there are others better versed at death than human beings."

There plenty of wonderful little moments in the story. The Doctor makes a brief stop off in a deserted cafe and orders a mug of tea with sugar, and then gets into a discourse with the Jamaican Cafe owner about the history of sugar and from there discusses the history of the slave trade and the huge consequences and responsibilities that come from grand decisions. To the cafe owner its an idle chat over the counter and a chance to share a bit of his own history with someone, but to the Doctor, his mind is very much working up to something- a choice that could be devastating.

There's another scene where the Doctor meets his old friend- a blind vicar and asks him to perform a burial. He is actually burying the Hand of Omega in its hovering casket, but the vicar thinks its a deceased friend carried by very quiet pawbearers. The blind vicar can't see that the casket is defying gravity or that the Doctor has changed his appearance since their last meeting. Its a lovely calm moment in the safe company of good friends who trust one another- a moment of ignorant bliss. Like the rest of humanity, the vicar can't see what grand forces are happening around him, and he believes if he can't see it, it isn't there- and if the Doctor succeeds and Earth is saved, he need never know the difference.


Burying the Hatchet......


There is a strong sense in the story of something coming to an end, something cosmic- something grand coming to fruitation, a long millenia of war being settled here and now. Its partly in the title sequence where we see the vastness and scope of the universe unfold before us and the menacing cosmic music and haze remind us that its a very dark universe tainted by death and evil and cruelty, that the universe started with a big bang and its been complete chaos ever since- sometimes the Doctor will be our hero, but sometimes the chaos overwhelms him and he has to settle for simply being his own zen master.

Here we are in a seemingly safe and ordinary corner of the universe we take for granted. Our setting is in all things Earthy and gritty- in cafes, school classrooms, playgrounds, scrapyards- nothing is glitzed up and even the wallpaper is dull and old fashioned, and yet surrounding us in this universe is alien civilisations, ruthless killer cyborgs, interstellar travel and time machines and doomsday devices, and this ordinary corner will be the battleground. Not just between the Daleks and the Doctor, but of Daleks versus Daleks. In the final episode of the story we are treated to some superb battles between the Daleks- its furious, devastating, relentless and clears the aggression out of the air, with explosions which completely blow you away. We also never loose sight of which Dalek faction is which.

We're reminded that though the events of "Genesis of the Daleks", like the wars and genocide are ancient history- that the thousand years of war between the Thals and Kaleds is over, that the Thals and Kaleds who met their deaths at the hands of the Daleks and their insane creator Davros have been dead and decayed for several millenia, the universe still is a very threatening place. Where everyday life seems to go on in human society, but that the Doctor's personal little war with the Daleks will be finally settled for better or worse- he's determined to beat them. It will be a vicious and vengeful last battle. The Doctor has faced the Daleks and their creator Davros before, and he knows how they think- he knows negotiations are futile, but he also knows how to manipulate them, provoke them into doing something self defeating. Many fans agree the best Dalek stories are ones in which things between the Doctor and the Daleks almost become personal. In one such scene, the Doctor sneaks in and out of the Dalek base on Earth, but out of sheer cheek, he leaves behind his calling card to let the Daleks know he was there- just to aggravate them, and next thing you know, a furious Dalek Supreme is shrieking demands to see the Doctor exterminated one and for all.

The Doctor's face-to-face confrontation with Davros is classic- it draws heavily on the past moments of negotiation the Doctor has had with Davros. But by now the previous respect they shared as fellow scientists in those old discussions has gone- now all that's left is hatred and mutual desire to destroy each other. For this new Doctor its no longer about negotiating with the enemy and using violence as a last resort and safeguarding the innocent- its now him meeting the enemy on their own terms- both have the same intentions all of a sudden because for both of them its about destroying the enemy at all costs- the innocent have suddenly become expendible! For fans who've seen the Daleks in ruthless action before, this ruthless mentality of the Doctor can be understood, and marks a perfect conclusion to their struggle!

Writer's background

"Remembrance of the Daleks" was written by Ben Aaronovitch- it was his first piece of scriptwriting for Television, and apart from the following year's Doctor Who adventure "Battlefield", it was his only piece. A shame really because he could have gone on to join the ranks of the great Doctor Who scriptwriters like Robert Holmes, Malcolm Hulke, Terry Nation and David Whitaker.

He also wrote novels and novelisations of the series, including "Transit" and "The Also People" as part of the New Adventures novels which continued the adventures of the Seventh Doctor and Ace after the TV series was cancelled in 1989. He also wrote the novelisation of "Remembrance of the Daleks" which is generally regarded as the best Doctor Who novelisation ever written, and which I would highly recommend for its excellent literary quality (if you can ever find a copy, its extremely rare!).

Recommended suitable for family viewing with Parental Guidance. Contains mild violence which may upset younger viewers.

Recommended: Yes