1.02 The Daleks

The First Doctor with Susan, Ian and Barbara

Follows on from An Unearthly Child

 Background

Only the second ever Doctor Who story to be aired, The Daleks can be quite a daunting serial to watch for the uninitiated – even hard-core fans of the classic era have been known to find it hard going, and I certainly did the first time I watched it. Re-watching it, however, having become more familiar with the First Doctor and his companions and the structure of their stories, I find it quite delightful, packed full of character insight and development.

This is one of those stories where the gulf between the old and the new is at its widest, so it is important to bear in mind the difference in structure between Doctor Who in 1963 and the 21st century rebooted show. When we modern viewers look back on classic serials like this one, we tend to think of each multi-episode adventure as the equivalent of a single episode of the rebooted show, and are therefore aghast at the thought of that single episode plot being stretched out across seven instalments. Yet taking that approach to this story does it a huge disservice because it was never intended to be viewed in that way– just as a marathon cannot be viewed in the same way as a sprint. A serial like The Daleks has more in common with a mini-series like Torchwood's Children of Earth, in fact, in that although the episodes are not standalone, they are self-contained, each telling its own smaller story which then feeds into the next, all adding together and building to form the larger whole; although the complete mini-series may be considered as one story, those episodes were made to be viewed individually, over a period of time.

When The Daleks began its run, in December 1963, it was not known by that name, nor was it known to viewers that this was going to be a seven-episode adventure that could later be known under that umbrella title, because every episode of the show had its own title and all formed part of one long ongoing story. So, for instance, what we now consider to be the opening episode of this serial, the episode titled 'The Dead Planet', was to viewers simply the fifth instalment of the ongoing story of the Doctor and his companions, picking up where the last episode, 'The Fire-maker', left off. When approached in that way, the structure and pace of the serial begin to make a lot more sense.

Bearing all of this in mind, therefore, The Daleks is best approached not as a single entity with one plot stretched thin across seven episodes, which it isn't – the primary story arc running through the serial in fact divides neatly into two main plotlines, the one laying the groundwork for and setting up the other – but rather as a series of individual episodes, each a discrete entity with its own story to tell while also adding up to a larger whole. The overall story is long and drags a bit in places, there's no doubt about that, but the focus is largely on the characters rather than the plot, which is always going to be the way to my heart. So, if you watch this serial expecting it to be one long exciting story all about Daleks from start to finish, you are going to be sorely disappointed and also rather bored, but if you watch it as it was intended, with each 25-minute episode viewed on its own terms as part of an ongoing story about the characters and their adventures, it is a lovely serial to watch.

That said, this is the Doctor's first encounter with the Daleks, and is well worth watching for that reason alone. Just think about it for a moment. That long and tangled history he has with them, all those furious confrontations and epic battles, the Time War and the destruction of Gallifrey…all of that can be traced back to this story, this first encounter, which set the tone for everything that has followed. For anyone who ever watched the Ninth Doctor adventure Dalek and wondered what the backstory was, well, that backstory begins right here, in The Daleks.

Overview

So if we break this serial down into its constituent parts, what are those individual episodes actually all about, then?

 The serial opens with 'The Dead Planet', which, when returned to its original context as the 5th episode in an ongoing series, functions as a kind of bridge between the danger our intrepid heroes have just escaped from and the new danger they are about to encounter. There is quite a lot going on here, once you have divorced yourself from expectations of Daleks to focus on what the episode is actually about, which is the characters. Landing on a strange new world following their escape from a tribe of savages in the previous episode, 'The Fire-maker', this is first opportunity the travellers have had to re-group and take stock since their fateful first encounter in Foreman's Scrap Yard, back in 'An Unearthly Child', and the episode therefore revolves around their reactions to everything they have been through over the last four episodes, and the way they relate to one another in the wake of that experience. We also learn a bit about the basic facts of life aboard the TARDIS, ponder the mystery of the strange dead planet our protagonists have landed on, and witness an explosive confrontation between Ian and the Doctor as the tension between them finally comes to a head, followed by the Doctor's blatant sabotage of his own ship purely to get his own way. There is also time to explore a mysterious, deserted alien city before the episode finally concludes with our very first ever glimpse of a Dalek, advancing toward a trapped Barbara.

Episode two is titled 'The Survivors', and although we meet the Daleks for the first time here, they are still not what the episode is all about. Again, this episode tells a story that is all about the characters, as they fall ill as a result of exposure to radiation and are captured by the Daleks, their weakened state leaving them absolutely helpless. Here we see the proud Doctor brought to his knees as he realises the potentially deadly consequences of his hubris, and we see him rally to face down the Daleks, his first ever confrontation with them, before being overwhelmed by his crippling radiation sickness. We see Ian, the action hero of the team, forced to deal with temporary paralysis after being shot by the Daleks – which he does not take well, since he identifies strongly as the protector of the group and struggles to come to terms with being physically unable to carry out that role. And we see sweet, timid little Susan forced to step beyond what she believes she is capable of to venture out on a dangerous solo mission when she is the last man standing, overcoming her fear to accomplish that task. In terms of character development, it's all great stuff.

In episode three, 'The Escape', Susan makes contact with a Thal named Alydon, immediately falls in lust with him, and learns a lot of backstory which she then shares with the rest of the captive TARDIS travellers on her return to the Dalek city. Buoyed with confidence by the success of her mission, her trusting nature allows the Daleks to manipulate her into setting a trap for her new friends, while the Thals' equally trusting nature sees them fall for that trap. A fair amount of time in this episode is spent introducing the Thals – the dynamics of their community and the various personalities in play, their peaceful nature and hopes for the future – while back in the Dalek city, the Doctor and his companions work together to devise a daring escape from their prison, with all four characters allowed to make valuable contributions to that effort, pulling together to function as a true team.

Episode four, 'The Ambush', is another of those bridging episodes, linking the two halves of the main story plot. In this episode the TARDIS travellers complete their perilous escape but are unable to prevent the Thals from walking into the ambush laid for them by the Daleks, although Ian gets there just in time to shout a warning that prevents even more loss of life. Again, every character has the opportunity to voice their very distinct opinions along the way, helping to develop their personalities and respective outlooks, while the dynamics within the group are also beginning to settle down now, their shared adventures bringing them closer together. This would be the natural end of the story, and indeed the travellers are all set to return to the TARDIS and leave, but then they realise that a crucial part from the TARDIS has been confiscated by the Daleks and must be retrieved before they can take off. This is another consequence of the Doctor's deliberate sabotage of his own ship, and so the second half of the plot is set in motion.

In episode five, 'The Expedition', tempers fray as the travellers face up to their situation: trapped on Skaro unless they can persuade the Thals to help them fight the Daleks to retrieve the lost fluid link. Perhaps rather surprisingly, it is Barbara and the Doctor who argue most vehemently in favour of recruiting the Thals for battle, while Ian is reluctant to ask anyone to risk their life on his behalf. This heated moral debate eats up a lot of screen-time that would not be possible in a story restricted to just 45 minutes, but here is just another example of the rich character exploration and development that runs through the heart of this serial, which has both the time and the space to explore such issues in depth. Although Barbara and the Doctor are the ones insisting that the Thals be made to help them, it is Ian, the voice of reason, they expect to achieve this for them, and it is Ian who finally goads the pacifist aliens into realising that some things are worth fighting for. After her quarrel with Ian, Barbara strikes up a friendship with a Thal named Ganatus, while Alydon wrestles with his conscience before finally deciding to help the TARDIS travellers. They divide into two groups to attack the Dalek city in a pincer movement, but disaster strikes when a member of Ian and Barbara's team is attacked by a swamp monster. Meanwhile down in the city, the Daleks realise that falling radiation levels are a threat to their survival, since they are physically dependent on radiation for their survival, and they make plans to explode a neutron bomb that will wipe out all other life forms on the planet.

Episode six is titled 'The Ordeal', and an ordeal it certainly is for Ian and Barbara's team, as they struggle their way through a dank, dangerous cave system trying to reach the Dalek city in time to coordinate their stealth attack from the rear with the frontal assault being planned by the Doctor and Alydon. Along the way, Barbara grows ever closer to the Thal Ganatus, who flirts outrageously, teases her about her relationship with Ian, and squabbles with his timid brother Antodus, who wants to give up and go home, before disaster strikes again when Antodus falls down a chasm and almost takes Ian with him. The Doctor and Susan's team, meanwhile, are into the first phase of their plan of attack, sabotaging as many of the Dalek spy cameras and scanners as they can find. The Doctor is in his element, absolutely loving the opportunity to demonstrate his guile and ingenuity – but further disaster strikes when he and Susan are re-captured by the Daleks, who are now planning to flood the atmosphere with radiation from their nuclear power plants, rather than take the time to build a neutron bomb.

The serial concludes with 'The Rescue', which sees the captive Doctor pouring all his powers of persuasion into a vain attempt to convince the Daleks to call off their plans to poison the whole world with radiation, while down in the caves Ian and Barbara's team are at rock bottom following the death of Antodus, but rally when they realise they have found a way through into the city. They arrive just in time to join forces with Alydon's team, the multi-pronged attack throwing the Daleks into confusion. After a final battle that is about as epic as a sound stage, 1963 special effects, seven Dalek models and about five guest actors can achieve, the Thals emerge triumphant and the Doctor retrieves the lost fluid link, which means he and his companions can leave Skaro at last. It is a tense, busy, active episode that nonetheless finds time to let the characters react to ongoing events – there are some really good, strong character moments here, from Ganatus's grief at the loss of his brother to the Doctor's horror at the genocidal plans of the Daleks to the celebrations that come in the wake of victory. The Doctor also finds time to exchange a bit of philosophy with Alydon and drop a few tantalising hints about his mysterious past, a really lovely little exchange, while this episode also sees the very first kiss on Doctor Who, when Barbara gives Ganatus a goodbye snog!

 Overall, it's a long story that moves quite slowly, there's no getting away from that. There is also no getting away from the limitations of 1963/4 low budget television production, but those have been discussed at length elsewhere, so all I want to say about them here is that of course they exist and this serial suffers for them, but that they aren't the end of the world. It really doesn't matter that this dialogue-heavy serial was produced on a sound stage with shaky set dressing and static cameras, because the actors bring the material to life anyway and our imaginations are surely flexible enough to fill in the gaps for us, just as they would if we were reading a book or watching a stage play. We don't need to be spoon-fed every detail in high-definition 3D to be able to believe in this alien world, to understand the dilemmas faced by the characters, or to enjoy the evolving inter-personal relationships on display here. Doctor Who has always been an ambitious show, stretching the limits of what was technically possible to achieve at any given time. The producers and directors of the 1960s-70s did wonders with the resources available to them, their work was often cutting edge at the time, and, however crude the results may appear to our modern sensibilities, they should be applauded for their efforts rather than derided simply because we could do better today. Technology, cinematography and acting/directorial styles have evolved rapidly over the intervening half-century, but without the experiments of industry pioneers back then, we would not have some of the special effects we take for granted today. Despite being primitive, these 1960s adventures are eminently watchable and entirely enjoyable even today, and when each episode of The Daleks is viewed on its own terms as a 25-minute instalment of an ongoing story, when you focus on the characters and their journey instead of on the endgame and are willing to forgive the theatrical acting styles and shaky sets, it is a story stuffed full of adorable and meaningful character moments that I absolutely love.

Observations and Analysis

Random thoughts while watching:

My favourite thing about 'The Dead Planet', the opening episode of the serial, is how intensely character-centric it is. There are no guest characters here and only really two sets, the TARDIS interior and the forest on Skaro where the TARDIS lands, so the whole episode revolves around the regulars as they explore the planet and then re-group back in the TARDIS. I love that the characters talk to each other constantly throughout the episode, about everything from their impressions and interpretations of the strange dead forest they've landed in to how they feel about one another and their situation. Those conversations not only help to set the scene but also help us get to know the characters better, at the end of their first, unanticipated adventure together; as the characters slowly get to know and understand one another better, so do we.

 The Doctor is bullish, as the story opens. He knows that he did the wrong thing in abducting these humans (as seen in An Unearthly Child), but he can't take it back now and yet is too proud to admit fault, frustrated at being stuck with them and resentful of their attitude, their anger at his abduction of them a constant reminder both of his mistake and of his inability to steer the TARDIS accurately enough to take them back home. All of this makes him peevish, petulant and stubborn, determined to get his own way – scenes like these are where his reputation as a grumpy old man come from, and that he certainly is at times, especially in these early episodes where we are largely seeing him through the eyes of Ian and Barbara, who still don't trust or understand him at all. But we are already beginning to see that there is more to him than merely a grumpy old man. Here for almost the first time we see his absolute fascination with the newness and strangeness of an unfamiliar world he has landed on, and his insatiable scientific curiosity – he simply cannot resist the temptation to explore and experiment and learn as much as he can about this dead, deserted planet. That love of knowledge and exploration has remained a key facet of his character ever since.

Just as the First Doctor is often misrepresented by only one facet of his character, so Susan is often remembered only for her nervousness, but in this serial there are plenty of other aspects of her character on show. As the Doctor heads off to explore the strange petrified forest, Susan is quick to bound after him, sharing his enthusiasm to learn more about this new world they've landed on and full of youthful exuberance. While everyone else focuses on the larger issues, it is Susan whose eyes are sharp enough to spot what few signs of beauty remain in this dead landscape, picking out a single petrified flower and marvelling that it has kept some of its colour. This is one of the things I love about Susan, her ability to take delight in small beauties. Although her character may not be the strongest, she nonetheless plays an important role within the group, as her youth, vulnerability and desire for harmony among the people she cares about provides a common interest to unite her grandfather and their reluctant human companions. At this point, she is the only thing Ian and Barbara have in common with the Doctor, making her the glue that holds the group together.

Poor Susan, though – she was so delighted by her discovery of that petrified flower, and then Ian goes and accidentally destroys it just because Barbara screamed and she is where his priorities lie! Susan's disappointed face is a picture.

Ian and Barbara, unlike the others, are not keen to explore. After the frantic turmoil of their first adventure, into which they were flung headlong without any warning, the reaction is beginning to set in for them now, for Barbara especially, and I really love that this episode takes the time to allow them that very natural human reaction. The danger is over, but they still aren't home, Wonderland is real and they are stuck in it – the reality of their situation is really beginning to sink in now, and they cling to one another for comfort as the one familiar thing they have to remind them of the lives they have left behind and cannot return to. Barbara is openly tired, worried and homesick, while Ian strives to be strong for her sake and butts heads with the Doctor repeatedly as each attempts to assert his authority over the other, the Doctor as the captain of the ship who doesn't want to admit fault and Ian because he needs to feel in control of an out-of-control situation and is determined not to let that stubborn old man get them into any more trouble.

Complex interpersonal-dynamics, this serial has 'em!

I love the way Ian tells Barbara she can rely on him, when she despairs over the loss of everything familiar – and I also love that they both admit they half wish something bad would happen to the Doctor as punishment for what he's done to them! It's a valid reaction to feel toward their abductor, however close to him they may later become, and allowing themselves to feel that moment of vengefulness gets it off their chests before they set it aside to get on with things.

 Ian and Barbara are my all-time favourite relationship on Doctor Who. I love everything about them.

I kinda love the Doctor's binocular glasses! I wish he still had those.

It is Ian who first notices the Dalek city and points it out to the others. I bet he must feel like kicking himself later, when the Doctor's determination to explore the city ends up getting them all into such dreadful danger! They argue about it more than once, but the heated row when they first spot the city is the most explosive, with Ian winning the round – but not the battle.

Susan has a fright as they head back to the TARDIS – we later learn that it was one of the Thals trying to make contact with her, but at the time neither Ian nor the Doctor believe there was anyone there, assuming that she simply imagined it. This sets up two exchanges that I really enjoy. Firstly, the Doctor asks Barbara to talk to Susan for him, admitting that he struggles to understand his granddaughter at times – it's a very simple request, but significant for what it represents. Even just a couple of episodes ago, the Doctor would not have dreamed of asking a primitive human for help with anything, but already he has learned better, has come to recognise Ian and Barbara's finer qualities and is beginning to respect them for who they are. And secondly, I enjoy Barbara's exchange with Susan, who is sulking over not being believed and acts out what she experienced in an attempt to sway Barbara to her side. I love the way Barbara handles her. I also like about this scene that it shows us that Susan likes to sit and sketch as a way of taking her mind off things – it's a tiny, throwaway detail, but it helps to build up her character. Susan isn't a terribly popular character, but I think one of the reasons why is the same reason Dawn Summers suffers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer – she is a very young girl who often acts her age, and genre show audiences tend to prefer their characters to be a bit more straight-up heroic, perhaps not wanting to be reminded of their own teenage follies. To me, Susan comes across as a very believable and engaging teenage girl, with all the ups and downs and mood swings that entails. She can be annoying at times, especially in her more hysterical moments of panic, but she can also be absolutely delightful.

 In addition to this character material, 'The Dead Planet' also offers us our first real taste of life aboard the TARDIS, and while this attention to domestic details might not be the most exciting subject matter ever, I really enjoy it because it feels very real to me that Ian and Barbara would be concerned with such details of the strange new lives they've been caught up in. After the non-stop drama of their encounter with the cave people followed by their landing on this mysterious dead planet, of course they are going to be tired and hungry and wonder if the TARDIS can possibly be a real home to them. And those details are important, too, in terms of establishing the basic background rules of the show's internal universe, here in these early days – once we know that there are beds and medicines and food machines aboard the ship, those details won't need to be addressed again unless they come up as part of a plot. Plus, I just love the way the Doctor takes Ian's question about food as a suggestion that they all have something to eat and then goes and gets something for himself, and Susan has to elbow him in the ribs to remind him to offer their guests something as well. He is not used to having passengers – yet. How much has changed since then.

I really love the concept of that food machine and wish it had been used more over the years! I also love the way Ian teases the Doctor first about the food tasting of engine grease and then about the bacon being salty, and how the Doctor takes him so very seriously. Relations are thawing, they are all becoming more comfortable around one another now, after that first adventure together, but there is still a slight edge, they still aren't entirely at ease with one another, still don't know each other well enough for trust, never mind affection. All that is still to come.

I really like that we are shown that the characters are starting to be affected by the radiation long before they realise that they are in trouble. I like it when a story trusts its audience to be clever enough to put two and two together.

Ian and Barbara argue with the Doctor repeatedly over whether or not they should explore the city. Those heated debates feel really raw and real, with Ian and Barbara determined to protect themselves by not venturing away from the TARDIS while the Doctor becomes all the more determined to get his own way purely because they are opposing him. So he sabotages his own ship in order to force the issue, and although it is clear that Ian and Barbara know, or at least suspect, that he's pulling a fast one – he is so transparent – they can't prove it, and so must take him at his word and agree to venture into the city after all, which is how the whole of the rest of the serial comes about.

 Outside the TARDIS, the group find a strange metal box that someone has left just outside the door – proof that Susan wasn't imagining her encounter in the forest after all. I really like that Ian apologises to her for his disbelief without hesitation. The Doctor doesn't.

Down in the city, already beginning to weaken as a result of the radiation they don't yet know they've been exposed to, the group splits up to explore. The scenes of Barbara wandering around the corridors while bulkheads open and close to steer her route are really atmospheric, leading up to the iconic cliffhanger episode ending, as she is trapped in a dead end with an adversary advancing toward her, only partially visible – our first ever glimpse of a Dalek!

There are some more really tense scenes as Ian, the Doctor and Susan search for Barbara when she fails to make their pre-arranged rendezvous – dialogue-heavy scenes which offer still more insight into the characters. Discovering complex machinery, indicating that some kind of intelligent life exists in the seemingly-deserted city, Ian takes the time to wonder what those beings might use their intelligence for. The Doctor dismisses this remark as irrelevant, but in fact it is an excellent point and entirely relevant – as time and experience will prove, the Daleks certainly don't use their intelligence for anything good! Then the Doctor sees a Geiger counter and realises that the whole group has been exposed to deadly radiation and it is a shattering realisation. He owns up to his subterfuge immediately, rather than trying to hide his error, and rides out Ian's fury without wasting time or effort on self-defence. All points in his favour – and a scene well worth watching because it is so rare to see the proud Doctor so very humbled by his own error. But then a moment later he undoes the brownie points he has earned in taking responsibility for his error by announcing his intention to leave immediately, without taking the time to find Barbara. This is still the Doctor at the earliest stage of his evolution as a character, unpredictable and just as likely to be an antagonist as a hero at any given moment. Luckily for Barbara, Ian is there to argue on her behalf, with Susan playing peacemaker!

The trio run into a group of Daleks and when Ian attempts to make a run for it, he is shot – the first person to ever be shot by a Dalek on-screen and one of only a very few ever to be seen to survive it, although his legs are temporarily paralysed by the energy ray. Although not explicitly explained on-screen, it is implicitly understood that the Daleks have chosen not to kill Ian outright because they wish to question the intruders, the first living beings to set foot in their domain in centuries.

The TARDIS travellers have quite a sombre reunion when they are all locked up together and spend some time swapping stories and brainstorming. Although Ian is the one who just got shot, the Doctor is in the worst condition, hit hard by the radiation, so the conversation is carried by the other three, whose concern for one another is very touching – I love so much the way Ian and Barbara constantly look to one another as their touchstone, as it were: each is always the other's first point of reference. Susan laughs, a nervous reaction, when Barbara first suggests there may be something inside the Dalek machines – but of course, as we all know, she is absolutely right.

Despite his weakness, the Doctor is interviewed separately by the Daleks – his first ever confrontation with them. It's a conversation largely designed to deliver a bit of backstory and move the plot along, with the decision taken that one of the travellers must return to the TARDIS to retrieve the box of drugs left there by the Thals, but what grips me about the conversation is watching the Doctor face down his captors with such tremendous dignity, despite his physical frailty. Stirring stuff.

So one of the travellers must return to the TARDIS – but who? The Doctor is deteriorating fast, and Barbara is almost as badly affected by the radiation as he is. That leaves Ian and Susan – but Ian's legs are still partially paralysed, he still can't walk, and the Daleks won't wait. The back and forth between Ian and Susan as they figure this out is one of my favourite debates in the story, from a character standpoint – it's electric. Ian at first automatically assumes that he will go – it isn't even a matter of debate, he just takes it for granted that he will take care of it, as the strong alpha male, and that's that, the Daleks will just have to wait until he can walk. Then Susan realise she will have to go with him because there is a defence mechanism on the lock and even if she gives him the key, he still won't be able to get inside, and she is terribly frightened but knows it has to be done, and anyway Ian will be there, she won't be alone…but then it becomes clear that the Daleks won't wait, and Ian still can't walk. It is beautifully done, all in the acting, that slow, terrible realisation on both their parts that Susan is going to have to do this alone; there is no way around it. Susan is horrified just at the thought of it, and you can see how much Ian hates the mere thought of having to ask her to do this alone, she's just a child, but there is no choice, all of their lives depend on it, so he does the only thing he can do, which is give her the best pep talk he can manage, in the circumstances, and try to talk her through it. It's a really strong scene.

The Doctor must change the lock on the TARDIS door in later years, when he is more in the habit of taking human companions along with him, to allow them to use it. Very welcoming of him – but it does leave the TARDIS a lot less secure!

Once Susan has left for her dangerous solo mission, Ian's frustration over his incapacity starts to bubble over, after he'd worked hard to keep a lid on it up till that point – for an alpha male personality type like Ian, there is nothing worse than being forced to just sit and rely on someone else, especially when that someone is a person he would consider to be fragile and vulnerable, someone he should be protecting instead of sending out into danger alone. He is furious with the Doctor for putting them in this position – but as Barbara points out, recriminations aren't going to help them now. By the time Ian regains the use of his legs, it is too late: Susan is already out there on her own, while the radiation sickness is taking such a heavy toll that he still can't walk or fight.

After being well and truly petrified by the Daleks and their talk of the Thals as terrible mutations, Susan makes it safely back to the TARDIS, and the success of her mission is a huge personal triumph for her. But the mission is still only half done – she still has to take the drugs back to the Dalek city if she wants to save the lives of the others, so she musters up all her courage to leave the safety of the ship she calls home and head back out into that dreaded forest once more. She immediately runs into one of the horribly mutated Thals, who turns out to not be horribly mutated after all. Alydon is tall, well-built and handsome, to say nothing of gentle and generous, and Susan is instantly smitten.

Very smitten. On her return to the Dalek city, she can't stop talking about him. Back in the cell with the others, every other sentence is Alydon says this or Alydon did that. It's such a realistic teenage behaviour, it's hilarious!

That the Thal anti-radiation drug has such a miraculous healing effect on both human physiology and the Doctor and Susan's alien physiology is an enormous plot device, but we'll just go with it and continue to enjoy the character story.

When the Daleks pull Susan back out of the cell for a private interview and tell her to write a message to the Thals, she doesn't suspect for a moment that they may be using her for nefarious purposes – she is full of confidence following her successful solo mission and encounter with Alydon, convinced she can negotiate for peace between the two groups. She is just too young and naïve to realise she is being used to set up her new friends – not until it is too late and the Daleks already have the message she has written, inviting the Thals into the city and promising their safety, signed with her name as pre-agreed proof of its validity. It's a powerful thing, using one of Susan's primary characteristics – her sweet, trusting nature – as a weapon against the very people she is trying to help.

Meanwhile in the woods, the Thals have gathered and set up camp around the TARDIS. There are quite a lot of them, and they all look very alike, so it can be hard to tell one from t'other, but the key players are Alydon, Temmosus, Ganatus, Dyoni and Antodus – all names I remember vividly from my repeated reading of the novelisation of this serial as a child. There isn't a great deal of time and space in the serial to flesh out so many guest characters, but they do a decent job of making them stand out as individuals anyway. Temmosus is the leader, a fair-minded, decent man absolutely devoted to their pacifist lifestyle. Alydon is his right-hand-man, stalwart and true but also a bit of a worrier. Dyoni is Alydon's sort-of girlfriend – or at least would like to be, if he'd just unwind enough to ask her, but he's too busy worrying about the future of their whole people and is all awkward and clumsy where personal matters are concerned. Both Temmosus and Ganatus tease him about that. Ganatus is a charmer, a real smoothie, laid-back and good-humoured – in striking contrast to his timid brother Antodus, who is even more of a worrier than Alydon and seems to be frightened of everything. Ganatus is equal parts frustrated with him and protective of him. See, you can extract a fair amount of personality out of an exposition-driven conversation when you pay attention to the characters, however unfamiliar they may be!

Back in the detention cell, with Susan having been alerted to the dastardly plans of the Daleks, the travellers stage a fake argument which is brilliant because it's so plausible, just to make it look accidental when they destroy the CCTV camera the Daleks are using to monitor them. I love it when they all work together. The Daleks realise it was a ruse immediately, but for now at least they can plan an escape in secret.

I really enjoy watching the four TARDIS travellers plotting and scheming and debating as they try to figure out how to escape from their captors. So much of what they discuss seems so basic to us today, but this was made in 1964 when the kind of technology we take for granted today had yet to be invented, and a lot of what we consider basic science fiction principles had yet to be developed by the film and television industries. This was only the second ever serial of the show, the first ever appearance of the Daleks – none of the shortcuts and audience understanding that Doctor Who has since come to rely on existed when this serial was made. So every detail had to be laid out in painstaking detail, talked through by the characters at length. And what I love about those conversations is that all four characters have a part to play, they are all allowed to have bright ideas and make pertinent suggestions, rather than just one being brilliant while the others stand around and watch. The escape is a true team effort and it takes time to achieve, with lots of planning and strategizing involved – figuring out how Daleks operate and how to overcome a series of specific obstacles with the very limited resources available to them, then luring one of the Daleks into a trap and overpowering it without getting themselves shot. There are no shortcuts for them to take. They have to do it all using their own ingenuity and strength, working together as a team, pooling ideas and resources. I love it.

I like that we aren't shown the Dalek creature inside the machine casing, other than a quick glimpse of a claw. Seeing the reactions of Ian and the Doctor when they see it and leaving the rest to our imaginations is far more effective than actually showing us the creature.

Ian climbs inside the Dalek machine casing as part of the escape plan. That absolutely slays me, because it's something that just wouldn't be done in later years, when the name Dalek is so much more synonymous with the machine that it is easy to forget there is actually a creature inside. Dalek mythology has developed enormously over the years, seeing them evolve into ruthless, almost emotionless killing machines. The Daleks we meet here, though, are far more animated than their later descendants – still ruthless killers, but more alive, somehow, less machine.

It gives me chills to hear Ian's voice sounding Dalek-fied when he talks from inside the Dalek shell, more so when he is talking naturally than when he is attempting a proper Dalek monotone, because he sounds so recognisably himself and yet so very wrong and alien. Creepy.

Susan is on good form in this serial, which makes use of her somewhat hysteria-prone personality and gives it a good twist during the escape sequence, when the group is confronted by a suspicious Dalek who wants to check out Dalek-Ian's story about taking the prisoners for questioning. Where in some stories Susan might fall apart completely, here she keeps her head and only pretends to pitch a fit of hysteria, successfully distracting the Dalek from radioing for confirmation as it hurries to help Dalek-Ian regain control over the recalcitrant prisoner and usher her toward the lift. Nice one, Susan.

When Ian gets stuck inside the Dalek shell and the others have to go on into the lift without him, Barbara argues fiercely against leaving him, which does my little shippy heart a power of good. I love those two.

Of course, Ian manages to escape and make it up to the next level to join the others before the Daleks can cut through the door – it's only episode four out of seven, after all! Watch the way Barbara practically drags him out of that lift car for a huge hug of relief. Those two, eh.

As they escape, the travellers see the Thals heading into the trap the Daleks have laid for them, the trap Susan was manipulated into inviting them to, but they are too far away to shout a warning. Another debate ensues over what to do, but this is the most calm, rational debate the group have had yet. Everyone gets to voice their opinion and consensus on how to proceed is easily reached. Susan wants to help the Thals, feeling responsible for the danger they are in. The Doctor feels strongly that they should not endanger themselves by getting involved in a local dispute that is none of their business – he still believes in non-intervention at this stage of his life. Barbara points out that they owe it to the Thals to help, since the Thals saved their lives by giving them the anti-radiation drugs. And Ian agrees with everyone – he agrees that they must help the Thals, but also agrees with the Doctor that they shouldn't risk the whole party. So he proposes that he go alone to warn the Thals while the others head for the TARDIS. Compromise reached – motion carried. They really are beginning to bond as a group now.

It frustrates me immensely that having volunteered to go and warn the Thals, Ian then stands around and waits for them to walk right into the trap before he shouts a warning, by which time it is too late – the Daleks have already started shooting, killing their leader Temmosus and wounding several others. I'm not sure what the director was aiming for there, but whatever it was, it didn't work and just makes Ian look bad.

Back at the Thal camp, near the TARDIS, everyone regroups. The TARDIS travellers get to know the Thals, the wounded are tended, the Doctor studies the Thal records and deciphers the history of Skaro, and so on – this is the bridging episode, the calm between two halves of plot storm. I enjoy watching the Doctor's conversation with Dyoni about the star charts and historical records – this is the Doctor's love of knowledge coming to the fore, once again, as well as his practicality, wanting to get a fix on their position to help him steer the TARDIS.

The Thals can't understand why the Daleks attacked them when they came in peace, and Ian demonstrates how insightful he is by very neatly putting his finger on the rationale behind just about everything the Daleks have ever done, both in this serial and every other appearance they have made since, over 50 years of the show – 'a dislike for the unlike.' The Daleks cannot abide anything that is not a Dalek, and so they seek to destroy all other forms of life. They cannot be reasoned with, so Ian and Barbara both try to persuade the Thals to stand up for themselves if they wish to save their race, but the pacifist Thals won't have any of it. Coming less than 20 years after the end of the Second World War, it's an interesting approach to the subject of war and pacifism versus self-defence.

Meanwhile back in the city, the Daleks have experimented with the Thal anti-radiation drug, for reasons of their own, and this is another reason to love this serial – it gives us hallucinating Daleks wailing plaintively for help! What's not to love about that?

Episode five of this serial, episode nine of the show overall, and Susan is still calling Ian and Barbara 'Mr Chesterton' and 'Miss Wright' – they are becoming close, thrown together like this, but that formality still remains. They are still her teachers, not yet family – although moments like the one where Ian sees Susan climbing a tree and calls for her to be careful are beginning to blur the lines between schoolmasterly authority over her and assuming more of a parental role.

I kinda love that Susan does things like climb trees, just because. It's probably part of the reason she isn't a very popular character: she's very young in her ways, even for a 15-year-old (or alien equivalent thereof), but I find that to be part of her charm. I love how bouncy and playful she can be. She's just a kid and she sees a lot of trauma on her travels; she's entitled to have a bit of fun wherever she can find it!

The realisation that the fluid link is still in the city with the Daleks means that our intrepid TARDIS travellers are trapped on Skaro unless they can retrieve it. The Doctor and Barbara both feel that they have no option but to persuade the Thals to help them get it back – and it is strange to see the usually gentle Barbara so vehement about something like this, perhaps a sign that she is fast approaching the end of her tether – while Ian argues vehemently against asking these peaceful people to risk their lives for the sake of a fluid link. The arguments are really well done, the actors really get their teeth into the material and go for it, but it's a bit uncomfortable to watch. I suppose the more usual trope for this genre would be for our protagonists to heroically announce their intention of going after the quest object alone, not wanting to endanger anyone else, and for the natives to then rise up and volunteer to join them on that quest, all very noble. The way it plays out is probably a more realistic depiction of human nature, though. Oh, but it hurts to see Ian and Barbara so much at odds – it's so rare for them to really fight like this.

It is Susan, as usual, who plays peacemaker, agreeing with Ian that the Thals shouldn't sacrifice themselves just for the sake of repairing the TARDIS, but that there has to be something in it for them, too – and that something has already been discussed: the Daleks are never going to let the Thals live in peace and they will starve if they carry on like this, which means the only way to guarantee the future of their race is to fight for that future, attack as the best means of defence, and all that.

Having reluctantly agreed to try to recruit the Thals to their cause, Ian is the one who finds a way of convincing them that some things are worth fighting for after all – and he uses very dirty tactics to do it, threatening to sell Dyoni to the Daleks in exchange for the fluid link, thus provoking Alydon to defend his wannabe-girlfriend. Maybe not exactly honourable, but very effective! Ian is still very much the hero of the show at this point, which is why this sort of job falls on his shoulders – in later years, it would be the Doctor who handled such tricky negotiations.

The Doctor getting Ian's name wrong goes on to become a fabulous running gag and here makes for a really cute little exchange between them: one of Ian's finer qualities is that he doesn't bear grudges, and the Doctor has already learned to appreciate that about him…but Ian is quick to quip that he will if the Doctor doesn't get his name right! Also, making it a running joke that the Doctor keeps getting Ian's name wrong also helps ease the way for all the times William Hartnell gets his lines slightly wrong, making such slips part of the character.

Poor Alydon is really worried about this whole having to take over as leader thing. He just wants someone else to make the big decisions for him, to not have to take on the responsibility for all of their safety and be the one to break a centuries old tradition of pacifism. He does it, though. He steps up and makes the tough call. He asks the TARDIS team what they would do if his people don't help them, and they announce their intention of going back to the Dalek city anyway, just the four of them, to retrieve their fluid link – which is an option you'd think would have come up in that heated debate they had earlier – and then decides that he can't possibly let them take on such a dangerous task alone, and since his people are going to die anyway if they can't gain access to the food supplies in the city, they might as well go for it. Attack on the Dalek city it is.

Once Alydon has committed himself, his men are quick to follow – including Ganatus, who has struck up a promising friendship with Barbara, which is really cute to watch but also alarms my little shippy heart!

Antodus volunteers as well, and then proceeds to whinge about it constantly, whenever he and his brother are alone. Poor Antodus, he just isn't as brave as he wants to be.

So, the group splits up into two parties, to attack the Daleks on two fronts. Ian and Barbara go with Ganatus and Antodus, and a couple of other Thals called Elyon and Kristas, their mission being to find a way into the city from behind, which means a dangerous journey through swamps and mountains. And that brings up another point that I love about this serial: the timescale. There's none of that zipping around from point A to point B in ten seconds flat, not in this story. In real life it takes a long time to travel long distances on foot, and this story reflects that in its timescale. The two teams coordinate their two-pronged approach to the city very carefully, agreeing that the Doctor and Alydon's team will not make their attack for three days, allowing the others time to make their long journey.

I love that Barbara has borrowed some clothes from the Thals for the journey, but has opted not for an impractical tunic like the Thal women are all wearing, but instead donning a pair of practical leather trousers like the men. You go, girl. I'm not sure what all the slits up the side of the legs are about, though!

I also really love that when Ganatus expresses surprise at Ian allowing Barbara to come on such a dangerous journey, Ian simply dismisses it by saying he'd be more surprised if he could have stopped her! He knows he has no say over anything Barbara chooses to do or not do; she's very much her own woman.

Barbara really does have a cosy little holiday romance going with Ganatus in these later episodes of the serial – when they make camp for the night, he even uses her leg as a pillow!

 So, for Ian and Barbara's team, it's all picnics and camping out in the swamps, team members getting sucked underwater by tentacle monsters – alas poor Elyon, we barely knew you – and crawling through dank, dangerous tunnels trying to avoid having their skulls staved in by rockfalls. The Doctor and Susan, meanwhile, have a much cushier time of it back in the forest, strategizing with Alydon and figuring out how to disable the Daleks' CCTV system – which isn't called a CCTV system, it's all about the scopes, rangerscopes and laserscopes and vibrascopes and goodness-knows-what-else-scopes, but what they mean is basically CCTV, a city-wide surveillance system which has to be disabled if they are to stand any hope of being stealthy. If they'd known anything about computer hacking in the 1960s, the Doctor could have done it that way, perhaps, but since such a thing had yet to be invented, the writers can be forgiven for not being prescient and instead going about it the old-fashioned way: physical sabotage.

Well, it's a much cushier time of it for the Doctor and Susan until they are captured, that is, which is entirely the Doctor's fault for hanging around gloating over his own cleverness instead of getting the hell out of dodge after sabotaging one of the Dalek surveillance systems. Oh, but he and Susan are as cute as all heck, giggling together over their clever naughtiness as they do it, and explaining the science for the kids at home the whole time. Show was meant to be educational, back in these days, you see.

Down in the caves behind the city, the group has split up to explore different tunnels, which gives Barbara some quality alone time with Ganatus. He's already talked to Ian about Barbara; this is the other side of that same conversation. Ian told him he has no authority over Barbara, now Barbara turns around and says much the same thing – that's a green light for Ganatus. Of course, they are all far too mission-focused for serious flirting, but the flirting is there nonetheless; the two are very noticeably growing closer as they explore, and are very concerned for one another. Now, I love Ian and Barbara together, but that doesn't stop me thinking Barbara's holiday romance with Ganatus is also cute!

 

The underground team reach a deep chasm in the tunnel they are travelling through. They can't turn around because a rockfall has blocked the path they came along. Rather a lot of time is devoted to watching the group risk their lives jumping across the chasm onto a narrow ledge on the other side – if a viewer's main focus is on getting to the final battle with the Daleks, all this time spent messing around in tunnels is going to feel like padding, but it has a purpose within the context of the story being told in this episode. These scenes show us how physically arduous this journey is for the characters and the terrible ordeal that they go through in their efforts to reach the Dalek city in time for their scheduled rendezvous with the other group. It's a story about endurance and perseverance, about battling against the odds. This is character building, showing us what Ian and Barbara are capable of when pressed. Unlike the timid Antodus, who breaks down in panic and asks to go back more than once – a character designed as a contrast to the others, perhaps – they both dig deep into their reserves of strength to make it through without complaint, supporting one another and working well as a team with their alien allies. Ian especially has to work very hard to help the others through, more than pulling his weight with the Thal men, who are far more accustomed to hard physical labour than a science teacher from London 1963 would be.

Okay, so the tunnels are mocked up on a soundstage. That doesn't matter. The characters sell their ordeal anyway.

The journey through the tunnels takes a turn for the tragic when timid little Antodus mistimes his jump across the chasm and falls – almost taking Ian with him, since they are roped together. When Ganatus is unable to pull the pair of them back up, and Kristas doesn't seem likely to get there in time to help – there isn't room on the ledge for anyone else anyway – Antodus sacrifices his own life to save Ian's by cutting the rope and plummeting to his death. It is a sombre moment, and we have got to know the brothers just well enough to feel Ganatus's grief as he sinks into despair. Finding their way forward blocked, the whole group is despondent – and this is where Ian really shows his mettle, by both refusing to give in and refusing to let the others give in, keeping them all going when all hope seems lost. At last they find another way through – and realise they have reached their destination at last.

 

Meanwhile in the city, the Doctor and Susan are being held captive by the Daleks – in the control room this time, rather than a detention cell, which means they have a front row seat for the countdown to the Daleks' plan to flood the world with radiation. And this is where we truly begin to see the Doctor that we recognise from his more heroic later incarnations as he rails furiously against the evil of this murderous plan. He tries reasoning with the Daleks, he tries appealing to what better nature they may have, and he tries bargaining with them – even going so far as to offer them the TARDIS in exchange for the lives of the Thals and his friends. That is how committed he is to preventing this act of genocide. Suddenly he is the Doctor we all know and love, standing up for the oppressed, and that moment, right here, is where his life-long enmity with the Daleks is truly born. Awesome. Except that Daleks are having none of it. The Doctor is still a prisoner, unable to save himself, never mind anyone else. He is not yet the hero of his own story. There is nothing he can do – he is reliant on outside intervention to save the day.

 

That intervention comes in the form of the double-pronged attack that has already been planned and which arrives just in the nick of time. Alydon's team attack the city from the front, while the very small party led by Ian attacks from the back. The Daleks are thrown into confusion and battle commences. Now, the direction does this battle no favours, and neither does the very limited number of both Daleks and Thals – it's hard to make a battle look epic when there are only about half a dozen on either side and you are filming 'as live' on a sound stage with heavy, static cameras and no post-production. They did the best they could. Our imaginations are capable of filling in the rest.

The combined forces of Thal and human attack the Daleks with rocks and their bare hands! Talk about battling against the odds! And they win! What they lack in weaponry, they make up for in guile and determination. They are all absolutely fabulous.

Having had their power system shut down, the defeated Daleks all die inside their metal shells. How this is reconciled with later encounters with other Daleks is a matter of retcon and rationalisation and really isn't important to this story. The victory is what counts here.

Back in the forest, there is a post-battle celebration, muted by sorrow over those who died, but a celebration nonetheless. Susan is impossibly cute, running around having fun – and throwing herself at Alydon for a quick goodbye hug, one last hurrah for her crush on him. The Doctor has a fabulous conversation with Alydon in which he drops some tantalising hints about his past, saying that he was once a pioneer among his own people and that he envies the Thals this opportunity to rebuild a whole world – but not enough to want to stay and help them. "You wanted advice you said. I never give it. Never," he says, "But I might just say this to you. Always search for truth. My truth is in the stars and yours is here." That's a lovely little speech, and William Hartnell really sells it beautifully.

 

Ian, meanwhile, keeps getting in the way of Barbara's farewell to Ganatus, which, when they finally get him out from under their feet, is really tender and romantic – Ganatus kisses her hand, and Barbara promptly throws caution to the wind and gives him a full on snog! That's racy for a teatime show made in 1964! Aww, it's just all really adorable – poor Ganatus is never going to meet anyone who matches up to Barbara, not ever!

And then, because Doctor Who in the 1960s was one long continuous story, the serial concludes with a cliffhanger ending, as the travellers re-board the TARDIS and take off – only for the console to blow up, knocking them all out! This is the set-up for the next adventure, The Edge of Destruction.

Quotable Quotes

SUSAN: "What could have caused it, Grandfather?"
DOCTOR: "I don't know, I don't know, but I intend to find out."

IAN: "We'd better keep an eye on him. He seems to have a knack of getting himself into trouble."

BARBARA: "Well, I suppose we'd better make sure he doesn't fall down and break a leg. Don't you ever think he deserves something to happen to him?"
IAN: "Yes."

IAN: "Try not to be too upset."
BARBARA: "I counted so much on just going back to things I recognise and trust. But here there's nothing to rely on. Nothing."
IAN: "Well, there's me. Barbara, all I ask you to do is believe, really believe, we'll go back. We will, you know."
BARBARA: "I wish I was more like you. I'm afraid I'm a very unwilling adventurer."
IAN: "I'm not exactly revelling in it myself."

BARBARA: "Susan. Don't you have anything in the ship that records the journeys?"
SUSAN: "Oh, yes. There's a meter fixed to a great big bank of computers. If you feed it with the right sort of information, it can take over the controls of the ship and deliver you to any place you want to go."
BARBARA: "Then why don't we know where we are?"
SUSAN: "Well, it's a question of the right information, you see. I don't say that Grandfather doesn't know how to work the ship, but he's so forgetful, and then he will go off and…well, he likes to work on his own."
BARBARA: "So I've noticed."

DOCTOR: "I'm determined to study that place."
IAN: "You can do what you like, as long as you don't endanger the rest of us."
DOCTOR: "Very well then. I shall look at it myself, alone."
IAN: "You're the only one who can operate the ship. I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Doctor."

IAN: "Now listen, Doctor, I don't want to argue with you. We're fellow travellers whether we like it or not. But for heaven's sake try and see it from our point of view. You've uprooted us violently from our own lives. You…"
DOCTOR: "You pushed your way into the ship, young man."
IAN: "All right, all right, I admit it. A small part of the blame is ours."
DOCTOR: "Oh, small?"
IAN: "But naturally we're anxious. What are we going to do? Can we live here? What do we eat? There are millions of questions."
DOCTOR: "A very good idea. I'm hungry."

DOCTOR: "I will not be questioned. Uninvited passengers. I didn't invite them to the ship. I shall do what I want to do."

BARBARA: "Stone trees are all very well, but the next forest I walk through I want them all to be made of wood."

IAN: "Yes. Hard to imagine what sort of people these are."
DOCTOR: "They're intelligent, anyway. Very intelligent."
IAN: "Yes, but how do they use their intelligence? What form does it take?"

IAN: "But don't you remember? We can't move the ship until we find the mercury for the fluid link!"
DOCTOR: "For the fluid link, yes. Yes, I'm afraid I cheated a little on that. I was determined to see the city, but everybody wanted to go on and, well, to avoid arguments, in short, there's nothing wrong with the fluid link."
SUSAN: "What? Grandfather, do you mean to say that you risked leaving the ship just to see this place?"
IAN: "You fool. You old fool!"
DOCTOR: "Abuse me as much as you like, Chesterton."

IAN: "It's time you faced up to your responsibilities. You got us here. Now I'm going to make sure that you get us back."

BARBARA: "Ian, do you think they really are just machines?"
IAN: "What do you mean?"
BARBARA: "Well, I was going to say, do you think there's someone inside them?"
IAN: "That's a point. We haven't any idea what's inside them."

SUSAN: "It's not just a question of turning the key. The whole lock comes away from the door."
IAN: "Susan, supposing these Daleks insist that only one of us goes. Then I'll have to take the key and I'll have to go on trying until the door opens."
SUSAN: "No, you'd jam the lock. Look, it's a defence mechanism. There are twenty one different holes inside the lock. There's one right place and twenty wrong ones. If you make a mistake, you'll. Well, the whole inside of the lock will melt."

TEMMOSUS: "I believe the Daleks hold the key to our future. Whatever that future may be, we must accept it gracefully and without regret."
ALYDON: "I wish I could be as objective as you. We've lived for so long a time."
TEMMOSUS: "Perhaps we have lived too long. I've never struggled against the inevitable. It's a vain occupation. But I should always advise you to examine very closely what you think to be inevitable. It's surprising how often apparent defeat can be turned to victory."

TEMMOSUS: "These Daleks must have believed that they were the only survivors on this planet."
ALYDON: "And are they relieved to find they aren't? Or are they shocked and horrified, perhaps insanely jealous?"
TEMMOSUS: "You've no reason to say that. I think you misjudge them."
ALYDON: "Well, yes, I'm being illogical, unfair if you like, but I just have an instinct."

SUSAN: "I must warn the Thals."
DOCTOR: "Susan."
SUSAN: "We can't let them walk into a trap."
DOCTOR: "The Thals are no concern of ours. We cannot jeopardise our lives getting involved in an affair which is none of our business."
BARBARA: "Of course it's our business. The Thals gave us the anti-radiation drug. Without that, we'd be dead!"
IAN: "Yes, but the Doctor's got a point. There's no sense in risking our whole party. You go back to the ship and I'll stay and warn the Thals."
SUSAN: "No, we're all in this together."

GANATUS: "But why destroy without any apparent thought or reason? That's what I don't understand."
IAN: "Oh, there's a reason. Explanation might be better. It's stupid and ridiculous, but it's the only one that fits."
ALYDON: "What?"
IAN: "A dislike for the unlike."
ALYDON: "I don't follow you."
IAN: "They're afraid of you because you're different from them."

IAN: "Alydon, you can't go on running away. There are some things worth preserving."
GANATUS: "We're not afraid to die. Temmosus proved that."
IAN: "I am not talking about dying."

SUSAN: "Oh, Grandfather, couldn't we stay a bit longer? The Thals are such nice people."
DOCTOR: "And the Daleks are not, which is more important, my child."

IAN: "What argument can you use to make a man sacrifice himself for you?"

IAN: "Look, even supposing you're right, I will not ask the Thals to sacrifice themselves for us. I'm sorry, Barbara, I just can't do it."

DOCTOR: "I'm afraid my little trick has rather rebounded on me. What you might call tempting providence, Chesserman."
IAN: "Well, don't worry about it now, Doctor. It's happened."
DOCTOR: "Yes, well, at least you're not vindictive."
IAN: "Well I will be if you don't get my name right."
DOCTOR: "Hmm?"
IAN: "It's Chesterton."

DOCTOR: "We have a ready-made army here. The Thals. They're strong, and they have one great advantage against the Daleks. They can move so much more quickly."
IAN: "They have one great disadvantage. They have no arms or ammunition."
DOCTOR: "Well, that's all right, young man. The mind will always triumph. With me to lead them, the Thals are bound to succeed."

BARBARA: "The Doctor's right. Ian, can't you see? If only we can get the Thals to attack the city, we could beat the Daleks and get the link back."
DOCTOR: "It's just common sense. Young lady, I've been underestimating you."
IAN: "I will not allow you to use the Thals to fight for us."
DOCTOR: "Are you challenging me?"
IAN: "Yes, I am."
BARBARA: "Do I have any say in this?"
IAN: "Of course you do."
BARBARA: "Well I think the Doctor's right and I want to get out of here."
IAN: "I am sorry, I'm not having anyone's death on my conscience."
BARBARA: "Except mine and Susan's and the Doctor's?"
DOCTOR: "Quite so."
IAN: "The only way the Thals can fight is if they themselves want to. It must have nothing whatsoever to do with us."
SUSAN: "I know what you mean. We must help the Thals to save themselves and not just them help us."
IAN: "Exactly."

DYONI: "Are you angry with yourself for striking the young man?"
ALYDON: "No, I knew he was trying to make me do it. I still couldn't stop myself. Do you despise me for hitting him?"
DYONI: "If you hadn't fought him, I think I would have hated you."
ALYDON: "I knew he wouldn't really take you and give you to the Daleks. But I fought him. Oh, I wish Temmosus were here. What would he have said, Dyoni? Which is the most important? To fight and live, or to die without fighting."

ALYDON: "My conclusion is this: there is no indignity in being afraid to die. But there is a terrible shame in being afraid to live."

GANATUS: "I'm surprised you let [Barbara] come."
IAN: "I'd be more surprised if I could have stopped her."

BARBARA: "Remember what Ian said. We're not to take any chances."
GANATUS: "Do you always do what Ian says?"
BARBARA: "No, I don't."

IAN: "So far, so good. [The tunnel] seems to be broadening out a bit."
GANATUS: "Who knows, it may stop being impossible."
BARBARA: "Just become unbearable."

DALEK: "The only interest we have in the Thals is their total extermination."
SUSAN: "What do you mean?"
DALEK: "Tomorrow the atmosphere will be bombarded by the radiation from our nuclear reactors."
SUSAN: "Why are you doing this?"
DOCTOR: "That's sheer murder."
DALEK: "No, extermination."

GANATUS: "Oh, why don't we just give up?"
IAN: "Because your brother died, for one thing. He gave us a chance."

DOCTOR: "What if we show you the ship? Explain it to you. Help you to build another?"
DALEK: "A bargain for your lives?"
DOCTOR: "Yes."

IAN: "Now where are we?"
BARBARA: "I have no idea. I have some experience in these corridors. They all look alike."

ALYDON: "Where do you get your knowledge, Doctor? You know, there never seems to have been time to ask, but we don't really know where you come from, or why."
DOCTOR: "To rebuild a whole new world. How I envy you."
ALYDON: "But you must stay and help us. We could learn from you."
DOCTOR: "Oh, no, no. I'm afraid I'm much too old to be a pioneer. Although I was once amongst my own people."
ALYDON: "Well then, stay and advise us. Please."
DOCTOR: "No, no, thank you. We're much too far away from home, my granddaughter and I. Thank you all the same. It's a nice gesture on your part. You know, this soil is not quite so barren as you think. I've been making tests, and even you might live to see and hear the birds amongst the trees. You wanted advice you said. I never give it. Never. But I might just say this to you. Always search for truth. My truth is in the stars and yours is here."

DYONI: "Don't be sad, Ganatus."
GANATUS: "I won't be. But I don't think I'll ever forget her."

The Verdict

Well, overall and taken as a whole, the fact that I have written as much as this tells its own story about how much I love these characters and what we learn about them in this story. The Daleks isn't an easy serial to watch for anyone who is unfamiliar with Classic Who and the First Doctor era in particular. But this was the story that really launched Doctor Who and gave the show the legs it has been running on ever since, for almost 50 years now, and there are good reasons for that. It's a long story, it's a slow story, and it is theatrical in both the acting and directorial styles, but once you have acclimated to that style and structure and have engaged with the characters and their story, it really is a wonderful adventure to watch.