 | Doctor Who - Destiny of the Daleks |
Story 104
1-22 September 1979
In the distant future, the Daleks make their last stand on their home planet. Fought nearly to the last by the Movellans, they hope to find an answer to their problem by consulting their creator whom they had abandoned eons ago. In the decayed ruins of Skaro, the Doctor and Romana are pawns in a galactic battle of wits in which the future of the universe is decided.
In reading Peter Haining's Doctor Who File, I found that the classic BBC program was in a regular conflict with the press regarding the reuse of the Daleks. When they were not featured on the screen, editorials demanded their return, but nearly every time the Daleks came back was met with derision (and this is long before they were blandly recycled in the BBC Wales series). When incoming producer Graham Williams took over after Philip Hinchcliffe, he stated that he had no intentions on bringing the Daleks back unless a suitable story presented itself. I can't help but find that condition ironic as the series 17 opening adventure Destiny of the Daleks is little more than a poor excuse to march Terry Nation's creations across the screen once again.
During the 60's, the Daleks appeared as crafty tacticians, brilliant and ruthless in their evil machinations. After a long departure from the program, the Daleks returned in three adventures during the 1970's that saw them reduced to cardboard alien menaces armed with rayguns. After a triumphant return to form in Genesis of the Daleks by Terry Nation and Robert Holmes in 1975, it seemed that the next appearance of the Daleks would be an impressive one. Surprisingly, a four year gap preceded their next outing in a script hammered together by Nation and script editor Douglas Adams (of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fame).
The adventure begins with yet another 'fixing K-9' sequence perhaps because having a robot dog and the Daleks in the same story would be downright impossible. What follows is a weird scene that has confused fans ever since in which Romana spontaneously decides to regenerate and cycles through different bodies as if she were trying on outfits. It's obviously played for laughs but goes on for far too long and culminates in the new incarnation being based on Princess Astra. It raises all kinds of logistical questions for die-hard Whovians desperate to make sense of the program's logic and eats up precious screen time. In short, it's unfunny and makes no sense. The TARDIS then decides to arrive on Skaro, where deadly radiation still hangs about in the atmosphere but apparently the Doctor could care less. He and Romana are soon involved in a deadly war between the Movellans and the Daleks that has reached a stalemate.
In the distant future, long after the events of the 60's and 70's stories, the Daleks have amassed a vast empire threatening the lives of all other races (just as the Time Lords had predicted in Genesis of the Daleks). Pooling their resources, the surviving alien races create a robot army known as the Movellans to fight for them. The ploy works and the Daleks are evenly matched by the tireless android enemies. One strange point in this story involves the notion that the Daleks are entirely mechanical rather than mutant blobs housed inside a personal tank, an idea that Nation wanted included in the script but got vetoed by Williams and Adams. Unfortunately, much of the script relies on the Daleks being restricted by their computerized minds and being incapable of imaginative thought. Nearing extinction, the Daleks return to Skaro to unearth their creator Davros who has remained sealed in a bunker for roughly 10,000 years. With his help, the Daleks hope to break the impasse and conquer the universe.
An expert in robotics and on Daleks, the Doctor becomes a commodity to the Movellans who wish to wipe out the Daleks once and for all. However, in their long war with the survivors of Skaro, the Movellans have become cold inhuman soldiers, almost as deadly as the foes that they are fighting. Faced with a moral decision mirroring a similar choice that he made during their birth, the Doctor must decide the destiny of the Daleks.
A humorous and often contemplative plot is marred not only by a less than impressive outing by the Daleks but a lack of dedication to the material by Tom Baker. Acting opposite Daleks has been said to be a challenge for any actor that I find easy to believe. However, when Baker is faced with a Dalek, he treats it with jovial charm as if he is talking to a child dressed in a Halloween costume, not a deadly alien menace. This is not helped by the embarrassing condition of the props. A quartet of shabby Dalek props, many with missing parts replaced with hastily remade panels or packing tape along with several hollow prop shells make up the Dalek army in this one. They also barely make an appearance in this four-parter, but maybe that's for the best.
The special effects seem thrown together as extras are bathed in a negative glow before languidly falling to the studio floor, apparently being struck by a Dalek death ray is the most pleasant way to go. Part of the problem in these star-faring Doctor Who adventures often sits in the lack of resources. The Dalek army consists of four Dalek props threatening to fall to pieces at any moment. An army of slaves from across the universe is represented by a small group of dusty extras dressed in random left over costumes who apparently can't be bothered to act.
Even though this story is only four parts long, vast portions of screen time are taken up by reused scenes showing Daleks wheeling by the screen looking for Davros, the Doctor... the director?
The story goes that Nation would often submit very loose scripts that script editors would have to rework in order to create a finished product. A clever and skillful writer in his own right, Adams attempts to make some sense of the story but it never really comes together. Add to this that not only was Michael Wisher unavailable to reprise the role of Davros but even the original mask had to be butchered to fit David Gooderson who also performed a noble effort in attempting to follow Wisher's act. Even so, Nation was dissatisfied with the end result, citing moments where the Doctor sends up the Daleks as impotent or just hurling them down hallways.
One of the strong points of Destiny of the Daleks is the chemistry between Tom Baker (who was getting a bit too comfortable in the part of the Doctor and seemed bored at times) and newcomer Lalla Ward. Given the option, I'd prefer Mary Tamm's regal and snooty Romana I, but the second incarnation has her own unique appeal. The pair certainly carry the story and attempt to gloss over a program that seems rushed and created solely to bring the Daleks back into the headlines and boost ratings.
Guest star Tim Barlow who plays Tysson is a welcome addition to the script. He plays an escaped Dalek slave who works with the Doctor in outsmarting both the Daleks and Movellans while Romana plays the damsel in distress (twice). While I dislike the characters, the Movellans are well acted by Peter Straker, Suzanne Danielle and Tony Osoba. Aside from the afore-mentioned extras who were hired just to fall down, the cast is up to the usual high standards the classic Doctor Who is known for.
Producer Graham Williams' Key to Time series was experimental, jocular and clever, equal parts rollicking adventure and wild fantasy. What a disappointment to follow up such a body of work with what appears to be a contractual obligation. I shouldn't be too harsh on this one as it does retain a certain kind of nostalgic value. It also has some inspired things to say about warfare and the notion of self-sacrifice to win a war. But in the end, it's a sad successor to the 1975 classic Genesis of the Daleks and undoes almost all of the work that program accomplished in returning a real sense of threat to the creatures. It would be several years until the Daleks made an impact on viewers again in 1984's Resurrection of the Daleks... but that is another story altogether.
Recreated in miniature, a special set of action figures based on Destiny of the Daleks has been scheduled for release by Character Options. The Fourth Doctor is presented in his trademark series 17 costume, a dressed down affair of contemporary clothes, boots and his long characteristic scarf. A re-sculpt of Davros based on David Gooderson's the slightly different appearance as the evil scientist is also included. Filling out the set are a pair of grey soldier Daleks along with a data sphere. It's an attractive set and certainly appeals to anyone with fond memories of the classic program.
Pre-order the Doctor Who - Destiny of the Daleks set
Pre-order in the US from Mike's Comics.
Pre-order in the UK from Forbidden Planet.
In addition, the latest in a series of deluxe maxi-busts has just been announced based on the 4th Doctor as seen in series 17's follow-up adventure, City of Death.
Pre-order Doctor Who Masterpiece Collection Maxi Bust: 4th Doctor
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