Doctor Who: The Daleks - REVIEW - Dalekcember

[@davidguthary8147]

In my opinion, the cliffhanger to episode 1 of The Daleks is the best cliffhanger Doctor Who has ever had. It's simple, but effective. The fact that it's Barbara screaming makes it even more chilling, considering she's never been one to shy away from a threat.

[@ShamrockParticle]

❤

[@alicec1533]

The way the screen quickly fades to black, whilst the reverb tail of the screen just hangs there... and then the credits just roll. Incredibly chilling stuff.

[@ropecrewman36]

The best cliffhanger, for sure. The most cliffhanger to ever cliffhanger though is Part 1 of Dragonfire!😆

[@MinscFromBaldursGate92]

Even Barbara is afraid!

[@cillianennis9921]

@@ropecrewman36 what's funny is that wasn't even meant to be the cliff-hanger it was meant to be the point when the dragon attacked the Ace & what's her name. Also its so disjointed due to the fact they didn't have the budget to make the cliff look good & so we are left with the doctor climbing down for no reason? watch the directors commentary or is it special feature thing documentary whatever you call it.

[@RiainRamblez]

Move over Christmas, Dalekcember is here

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

If I know my Dalek logic, Their famous battle cry ‘Exterminate’ wasn’t included in their first appearance, Only the words ‘Exterminated’ & ‘Extermination’ until The Dalek Invasion of Earth when the word ‘Exterminate’ is said.

[@bcheeseey]

I checked the transcripts of those eps (chakoteya.net is a blessing) and yeah! That's true But even in Dalek Invasion of Earth "Exterminate" is only said a couple times, and more like "Exterminate him!" instead of just "Exterminate!" As a battle cry It's only in The Chase that the "Exterminate" count really jumps up. So The Daleks: 3 "Extermination", 2 "Exterminated" The Dalek Invasion of Earth: 2 "Extermination", 1 "Exterminated", 5 "Exterminate" The Chase: No "Extermination", 14 "Exterminated" and 5 "Exterminate" Now exterminate doesn't even look like a word, but there's the fun facts for you.

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

Brie Thompson It was a while since I watched that story.

[@ClumsyWolfy]

I was surprised too. I think it is in the later episodes of their first serial. Definitely in their second

[@fazbearking87]

I haven't watched this guy for ages and he's still as good as he was

[@MrTARDIS]

Thanks for coming back and enjoying the content!

[@spluff5]

The Ordeal is properly named

[@GrilloTheFlightless]

The Nazi parallel is an interesting thing. I’ve read more than one interview with Nation where he said that he never consciously intended the Daleks to be Nazis. He just felt that the idea of the Daleks would make an interesting adversary. It was later, when people pointed out to him the similarities, that he accepted that he was subconsciously influenced by the Nazis and his feelings about them from his experiences in the Blitz, and then later openly used them as a deliberate Nazi metaphor (which is why the Kaled elite all looked like the SS). But whether or not Nation was telling the truth about this is another matter.

[@SamyulDavis]

Unconscious influences are always a factor.

[@SvensktTroll]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/iGXIpJKwo6yFmtE pause at 2.57

[@Agos226]

Have you seen The Daleks? In one scene they're doing Nazi salutes with their plungers and repeatedly saying "The Daleks are the master race of Skaro"

[@gamerhoagy5998]

Then went on to do Genesis of the Daleks. Any pretence of there being no comparison was completely stripped away.

[@ShaneGallager]

If it was on purpose I don't think there is anything wrong with taking a political stance, I think its quite fitting to have the most infamous & evil villians in the show be modelled on the Nazis & SS, its a good introduction to the crimes of the Third Reich for children who would be finding out more about them when they go to school.

[@SamyulDavis]

Oh, I LOVE this idea of a series. An otherwise rough December is set to be a treat, thank you.

[@williamcurry4868]

In a way the Doctor here reminds me a lot of the way we see the Time Lords in the later series, where they are a bit detached from everything compared to the Doctor later on as he starts to become more open minded and getting more towards the Doctor we know.

[@GrilloTheFlightless]

william curry I agree with that. Not only is he detached, he is positively selfish (to the point that he considers killing an injured man in the previous story with the cave-men). The new series has stated that he chose the title Doctor as a sort of promise - never be cruel or cowardly etc. The fact is, however, that it is the time spent with human companions, particularly Ian and Barbara, who teach the Doctor about morality and make him into the character we know and love today.

[@jetfire931]

One little detail I loved about this story (even though it comes from a retcon 12 years later) is when the thals show the doctor and his companions images of how their society use to be. But as we see in Genesis, it was far cry from what was shown. In hindsight, it's nice demonstration of how portions of history can be lost through centuries of war.

[@benw4409]

I honestly think this story is WAY too long but it's still great. Haunting direction and atmosphere and I adore the writing of the Daleks as more well rounded intelligent beings than later interpretations sometimes had them be. Still could have cut a lot out though.

[@bucwhovian8305]

I feel that way about a lot of classic Who stories, almost all them drag in the middle episodes. Maybe part of that is because they were written as a weekly program, but I often feel like entire episodes could have been cut. The War Games for example, great story, but ten fucking episodes, really?!

[@MichaelHickerson]

@@bucwhovian8305 Classic Doctor Who isn't built to be binged really. It's like a fine wine -- you have to sip it. A lot of the longer serials have a good bit of summing up what's happened up until now because it was a week between installments and viewers might not have caught all the episodes. I find that for Who up to the Tom Baker era that watching an episode or two at a time and then taking a break works best. But that's just me.

[@ThePhantomLK]

Pretty much all Classic Who episodes are too long.

[@Monocheto1]

I think its just one episode too long, all the cave bits were unnecesary transition

[@theultimateomelette]

Looks like you've put a lot of hard work into this, I don't believe reviewing all Dalek stories was an easy (& un stressful) task and I look forward to the rest of the series. Keep up the good content.

[@theevildalek5425]

Fantastic video Mr TARDIS, looking forward to the next one. The music in this story by Tristam Cary is also amazing. One of the best soundtracks in the entire show (that includes Murray Gold.) It’s just so alien, artificial and creepy. When I was younger and had the VHS tapes of “The Daleks,” “The Rescue” and “The Ark,” I was scared to watch them as the music in those stories with the scary black and white images of the Daleks, Koquillion and the Monoids terrified me. It’s use in “Power of the Daleks” (along with some tracks from “The Daleks’ Master Plan”) is fantastic and I think is one of the main factors to why both “The Daleks” and “Power of the Daleks” are creepy stories.

[@ftumschk]

Glad to find another fan who appreciates Tristram Cary's wonderful soundtrack.

[@calumbrown9790]

Love this! Pretty much agree with everything you said. That first cliff-hanger sent shivers down my spine when I first watched this story. I really like the sets and the way the Daleks were shot was fantastic - very imaginative camera work going on there. Looking forward to the rest of Dalekcember :D

[@justanormalhumanbeing1903]

When i originally decided i wanted to watch doctor who i thought id skip the black and white era to go straight to Pertwee bc i thought itd all be such a low budget mess. But then, im so glad that i decided to start from the very beginning bc the early Hartnell serials were absolutely incredible i was blown away by them.

[@josephryan362]

I really enjoyed watching doctor who over and over again because It is just what I like doing because I enjoy it

[@anonagain]

Love the creepy background music from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in these early episodes! Thanks for the video - time to re-watch classic Who :)

[@SamyulDavis]

Somehow I always forget that "What will they die for? You'll hold up a fluid link and thank them for their lives?" My god, this is excellent post-WW2 art. No wonder Ben and I lost to this. That line is just as haunting and revealing as the Nation line in Planet about War not being some great game. Everytime I watch a war movie and tanks storm trenches, I just see Daleks. I love that Britain can claim this sort of sci-fi. Serials like The Daleks makes me honestly proud. That orgasming dalek is still odd, mind.

[@josephryan362]

I love the daleks first doctor who story and the daleks episode one has got one of the best cliffhangers from the first doctor era

[@omegawilliam95s36]

6:25 That one Dalek the 9th Doctor found was like:

[@abravenewclockworkorange.7875]

The expedition part of the story is something I love a lot because it's so rare and naturalistic, when I rewatched this I really followed them and Ian's interractions with the less brave Thal and that Thal's later death was moving, it's something that shows and movies would never do nowadays for understandable reasons but with a bit of a stronger attention span I was completely engaged in it

[@gamerhoagy5998]

Brian Cox as Sydney Newman in that last clip (from An Adventure in Space and Time).

[@DomoftheDoctor]

A really fair overview of this debut story; I had forgotten just how impassioned Ian was during this one. It may be overlong, sure, but thanks to this, I’ll probably revisit it once I’ve seen/heard the rest of the Classic Series.

[@chin70]

“You see all those years ago, when I began, I was just running. I called myself the Doctor, but it was just a name. And then I went to Skaro, and then I met you lot. And then I understood who I was” 12 does confirm here that this is where the Doctor truly began. This is the story that marked the shift from the character we met in An Unearthly Child to the one we know today.

[@diskgrinder]

The cowardice of the daleks is a key character trait that should be emphasised

[@josephryan362]

I binge watch mr tardis alot but my favourite series of his is daleks December and cyberman December and the first doctor era you forgot that terry nashion crated Blake seven terry nashion is one of my favourite writers in doctor who

[@JamesBrophy]

I'm starting the callendar late, really looking forward to watching a bunch of these in one go. Very cool opening. Interesting recap. Great points on politics in who. Loved the use of an Adventure in Space and Time at the end.

[@DalekTheSupreme]

Excellent review. I do agree that the one major flaw with The Daleks is the pacing. I do remember watching the two movies based on the original Dalek serials more than the actual serials when I was a kid, but the problem is evident in both the movie and the series. The expedition isn't bad and does make for decent world building, but it does feel suspiciously like padding. Other than that, it's a solid introduction to the Daleks, and probably my favorite story with the First Doctor. Certainly a classic story that still holds up.

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

I will say this, They have a good start since Dr Who back then didn’t exactly had a Excellent start, For me the best parts are the late Peter Hawkins and David Graham as the voices of the Daleks.

[@robertdoherty2001]

That thing waving around at Barbara frightened the piss out of me (I was 8). Still scary at 67.

[@MrPaulMorris]

One design element of the Daleks that I really liked but which, for whatever reason, was later dropped was the use of an 'iris' on the lens in close up shots. I seem to recall it was an adapted camera part but was quite effective in giving more 'life' to the Daleks. Incidentally, I blame the Doctor here for the later problems with the Daleks. If he hadn't stumbled in and immediately offered to barter his space/time vessel for his release, the Daleks might have continued to huddle in their city ignorant of the possibility of space and time travel!

[@joesSONICBOOM]

I really do like this story of the original Daleks, but I do agree that it is too long about 7 parts. I know I'm going to get some flack, but that is the reason why I prefer the movie version being Dr. Who and the Daleks 1965, it's a lot shorter and it is much better paced, but that is my opinion. Which one do you prefer, the TV version or the movie version of the Daleks?

[@MrTARDIS]

You will find out my thoughts and possible preferences for the Cushing movies on December 25th :)

[@joesSONICBOOM]

@@MrTARDIS Thanks very much, looking forward to it and also have a Merry Christmas mate.

[@josephryan362]

Every story of series 1 of classic doctor who holds up and Every story of series 2 of classic doctor who holds up as well in fact every first doctor story holds up very well

[@nicksaso3795]

I’m glad you’re doing this

[@spectralmoovian]

That was a fantastic intro!

[@DCSMedia]

This is now a year old 😱

[@toadtv4389]

This is now 2 years old

[@professorcurious]

2:00 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, came up with the exact concept a year later. Now that is one hell of a coincidence but to make it more exciting, I'm going to say Roald Dahl stole the idea in an act of Industrial Espionage. Can't prove it but nobody can disprove it.

[@who-time]

Spot on review! Look forward to watching the other 24 🤗

[@josephryan362]

In my opinion the daleks episode 1 has got to be my favourite episode of this story and my favourite cliffhanger is episode one because it still is an amazing cliffhanger and one of doctors best cliffhanger in classic doctor who

[@suttercane6]

I love this story but prefer the Dr Who and the Daleks movie version with Peter Cushing. Half the runtime, twice the fun!

[@gamerhoagy5998]

Both good.

[@V1nce_man]

4:20 You were talking about sending innocent people dying for you.... So I don’t wanna here you talk DOCTOR!

[@ThePonderer]

Single file lines must make screen viewing real inconvenient.

[@rtex2020]

Thanks! Interesting insights here.

[@SamStuffz]

This is my favorite episode of Doctor Who!

[@samuelbarber6177]

Honestly, if you showed me this story, cutting out opening and ending credits, and told me it was only five parts, I would believe you.

[@59rlmccormack]

Great review, I saw the serial and it was fun!

[@nigeldepledge3790]

Good stuff indeed!

[@dragonzilla6482]

If it weren’t for the Daleks, Dr Who would never have taken off.

[@jaa954]

How do you find your footage for the video

[@MrTARDIS]

Ripped straight from the DVD releases (except for Planet and Genesis where I used Blu-Ray).

[@jaa954]

@@MrTARDIS thanks

[@scl1332]

Some really well thought out points about the story. I personally find it hard to take all of it completely seriously but I find it to be an enjoyable journey with a nice political commentary. Good review

[@silverstarlight9395]

How come the Thals are speaking in English even when they are on their own without any time travellers nearby?

[@kcuhc84]

Who could be sad that the Sheriff of Nottingham got killed by Daleks? good riddance.

[@Adam-nb6im]

Great review, are you not giving it a score like you usually do though?

[@martianpudding9522]

I've never seen the original seriea to know the context but is it weird that I find them oddly cute?

[@bassmastervan9391]

Great video!

[@Mr_Bunk]

Fantastic review, very nice to have a fresh perspective on the first Dalek story and the one that kick-started the show's popularity. I'm not so sure about the comparison with Antifa in the description though. From what I've heard, their decentralised nature and vague definition of 'fascist' in terms of who they target for beat-downs do not make them a movement to be commended in any way.

[@RykerTC1]

1.50 haw!

[@matthewbolitho-jones]

I like The Daleks

[@tomimpala]

Oof, that "Our battle-cry" speech is way more cringe than I remember...

[@ftumschk]

I know what you mean, but it could have been worse. TV acting was much more theatrical back in the 1970s, and Guy Siner (Ravon) was rather young at the time.

[@ftumschk]

@Rebecca Woolf As would another _Genesis of the Daleks_ cast members, Hilary Minster, who played a Thal guard.

[@keelanbarron928]

Ehh, i think it's fine.

[@stephjovi]

I always felt like that the first story is already political. Talking about how scared the cavemen are off the fire I think that's a, comment on people fearing change and progress.

[@ThereIsAlwaysaWay2]

Do you mean, 2024 Dr Who is a Daleks? 10:40 "They used to be like us ..... and now they ate everything that is not like them and all they know to do is lash out" Looks like Who's writers of today.

[@MrTARDIS]

Nah, definitely more in line with those who lean on the Conservative side of the political spectrum.

[@ThereIsAlwaysaWay2]

@@MrTARDIS Most Dr. Who fans where Liberals, and I did not see them shitting on the fans, destroying the Lore, destroying Dr Who, and imposing their sexual preferences on viewers. Those are all facts. ESG, DEI agenda is not liberal and not conservative, it's a cancer that destroys all it touches for EVERYONE.

[@sverian4011]

Jesus you’ve been doing reviews and stuff for 10 years

[@ShamrockParticle]

This story does lose steam with "The Ordeal" but it's hilarious how the Doctor mentions the Thals were the original warriors and thus played a big part of the neutronic war, if not starting it. The contrasts are so multi-layered in this story that it's a work of art. A shame most Dalek stories aren't as good, but as introductions go this one is The best.

[@ShamrockParticle]

Didn't Verity do documentaries where she talked of the Daleks? The recreation at the end comes across a bit overdramatized and not how she worded it.

[@dawn1110uk]

Exactly! 2nd story, nazi parallel. These haters have obviously no interest in the history of the show whatsoever! We have always been political, the dullards!

[@SwfanredLotr]

I don't think people complain about the politics, they probably complain that the writers use an agenda simply as an excuse to cover poor writing decisions that they have been making these last years or just for the sake of it.

[@keelanbarron928]

Didn't terry nation say that he made the daleks as just a dangerous adversary and only later said that they were based off of the nazis?

[@pinchofcourage33]

A dislike for the unlike.