BOOK OF LISTS: TOP FIVE DALEK STORIES - NUMBER FOUR-A

PREFACE: 

Okay, full disclosure: Fave Dalek Story #4 is a bit of a cheat.

Technically, Resolution and Revolution of the Daleks are meant to be two separate stories. The plot in each episode is structured so that a complete narrative is executed. There is a proper beginning, middle and end to each tale. And, if you view them as standalones, they are still very strong. 

Both episodes also really illustrate the idea that, as far as New Who writers go, Chibnall does the best job with Classic Who Monsters and/or Villains. The other two Head Writers do well too (most of the time), but he seems to understand what we loved most about these characters. Particularly when it comes to the Daleks. All three of his Dalek stories are some of the best tales ever written involving this particular monster. 

Having said all that, one can't deny that the two New Year Specials are strongly linked to each other. Resolution has to happen so that Revolution can occur. We can say that about other Dalek Sagas, too, of course (What's a Dalek Saga?! Find out here: https://robtymec.blogspot.com/2021/09/review-overview-which-is-best-dalek-saga.html), but they don't tend to tie into each other quite as much as these two do. 

So, I'm going to do a little cheating, here. As I've said: Separately, these two stories are already very good. Put them together, however, and they're quite amazing. So, for Fave Dalek Story Number Four, I'm going to do exactly that. But I'm going to be even more convoluted by still reviewing the episodes in separate entries and then discussing them together at the end of the second. 

Just because I'm that over-complicated of a person! 

THE NITPICKS

Okay, let's get the few things I don't like about Resolution out of the way, first. They're fairly minor, so I'll cover them quickly and then get to the good stuff. 

While we do get some very epic pre-title scenes, some of them don't entirely make sense. 

One of the warriors carrying away a chunk of Kaled Mutant is felled by an arrow. Clearly, the people who took him out were thieves. Hastily, they check the corpse for valuables and take off. But they fail to take the pouch that he is clearly holding in his hand. Apparently, these are really awful thieves. Cause, really, if I was a robbing a corpse the first thing I'd take would be the pouch that he is clutching on to like it has something valuable and important in it. Not so, with these guys, though. 

It gets just a little bit sillier, though. We then watch the corpse just lying there as the years fly by and it is found by archaeologists. It would appear that the body stayed in the same place and even the exact same position for all that time. Are we expected to believe that the cadaver was just left on the road to rot away for a few centuries?! No one during Medieval Times thought: "Hey! We don't know who this guy is but let's get him off this road and throw him in a hole!" You'd also think they might say something like: "I wonder what's in that bag he's carrying. Let's check it out!"  

This is, perhaps, one of the only real complaints I have about Chibnall's writing. He does like to start a story with something that's a bit on the preposterous side. We'll see that again in Revolution of the Daleks. We can even say that The Halloween Apocalypse has a similar issue. 

The only other problem with Resolution is a weird one. I say it's odd because I'm not sure how to actually correct it! 

The scene in the cafe with Ryan and his Dad does go on a bit. Having said that, however, I can't think of anything in it that could have been cut. We needed to hear what's been going on in both characters. Particularly Ryan's Dad. His speech about how his guilt over what he'd done wrong seems to almost his crush his resolve to fix his mistakes is a crucial moment for his character. It is the first step in a process within the narrative that humanises him and gets us to like him a bit. So it needs to be in there. As does the speech Ryan gives about how much his father's absence in his life has damaged him. Ryan's Dad needs to hear this to motivate him to stay true to the changes he wants to make. Even the small talk at the beginning of the scene really can't be excised. There is nothing in there that I feel can be cut. However, it does feel like it drags ever-so-slightly. 

Okay, negative stuff out of the way. Let's start singing praises. 

FEAR FACTOR

Once more, we'll take a bit of time to look at the stuff in a story that genuinely chills us. As I've said before, this sort of thing is always a vital ingredient for a Dalek story. 

Probably the most horrifying content is the way this particular Kaled Mutant has the ability to latch on and control other sentient beings. The actor playing Ryan's Dad does a good job when he's meant to be under its influence. But the actress in the role of Lin really terrifies us. I have to award her the highest of compliments for her acting skills. We can really see that there are sequences where she is still in possession of her faculties and is trying to fight the will of the Kaled Mutant. But then, suddenly, her captor just completely takes her over for a bit. The smile that crosses her face when the police are about to pull her over is probably one of the scariest moments that illustrate this.We really do feel the transition, there. And it's quite disturbing. 

Even scenes where the Kaled Mutant is trying to get her to act like a normal human being for a moment have a very unsettling feel to them (ie: she's touched the "squid" on the wall and is trying to claim that it's only disappeared rather than wrapped itself around her). And, again, the acting here is fantastic. We get the sense that the monster is allowing just a bit of its victim's personality to come forward and create the necessary illusion. It's like Lin's consciousness is being, somehow, channeled and restrained. 

Considering so much of this is conveyed through reactions rather than words, we really do have to give Charlotte Ritchie some major props. All the stuff with Lin's possession is already some pretty disturbing Body Horror. But her acting skills enhance things massively 

The Reveal of the "junkyard chic" Dalek is an interesting mix of emotions. As it bursts through the door in the workshop and glides out in all its splendor, it is a bit scary. But it is also massively cool. The design it has cobbled together for itself is a great effect. I'm glad that we will see something similar in Revolution. 

That "mixed emotion effect" also happens during the battle it engages in against the military a short while later. It is a bit terrifying to see what this new casing is capable of. But I also have to admit that a Dalek equipped with missiles is wicked! There is a bit of the same vibe going on here that we get with the Special Weapons Dalek in Remembrance of the Daleks. 

THIRTEEN REALLY PULLING OUT THE PUNCHES

Another High Point in Resolution for me is witnessing the effect a Dalek seems to have on the Thirteenth Doctor's personality. Throughout Series Eleven, this incarnation of the Time Lord has been mainly fun-loving. While some fans complained of this, I quite enjoyed it. It gave the character somewhere to go in her later seasons. 

There were, of course, some harsh edges to Thirteen in her first season. She's definitely a bit outraged in The Witchfinders as she deals with Becka Savage and King James. She gets up a bit in Tim Shaw's face, too. Particularly in their second battle. 

But it's only when she finally has to face a Dalek that the moral indignation we love so much in the character truly emerges. She knows she is dealing with a creature that is truly beyond redemption. So she gives it a real good tell-off. It's great to see that. I love that she has the same backbone of any other incarnation before her as she confronts a Dalek.. 

Once more, I see a bit of a vibe going on here that reminds of another story that I love. It does feel a lot like the way the Fifth Doctor was very well-mannered throughout most of Season 19 until he gets into a fight with the Cyberleader about emotions. I do adore it when we see that level of long-range planning going on in the Doctor's character. And Resolution definitely seems to be doing the same thing.

Probably the best moment in the whole episode is when the Doctor manages to contact the Dalek through the TARDIS communication equipment with her massive tech skillz (spelt with a "z", of course). That's where we really see her stand strong for the first time. This is pure "Good telling off Evil" Stuff. The sort of scene that I know I love in Doctor Who. And I imagine most other fans, too. And, like Five and the Cyberleader, delaying a moment like this for so long makes it all-the-more poignant. 

I still remember that bit in New Earth where Ten is having a similar scene with the Cat Sisters. I mainly recall how it tends to fall a bit flat because it came waayy too soon in this new incarnation's reign. Chibnall assails that pitfall by delaying our gratification long enough that the Doctor now appears heroic rather than sanctimonious. 

(Oops! Did I just claim that Chibnall might actually be able to write a bit better than RTD in certain cases?! I am such a heretic!). 

Of course, construing things in such a manner not only makes the Doctor look good - but it's also a reflection on the Daleks, themselves. For a creature to have stirred such emotions in her must mean that this really is something truly horrible. The reactions of her companions as she acts this way really help to support this. They have seen how high-principled she is throughout an entire season. And now, suddenly, she seems without mercy as she faces a Dalek.  It truly shocks them. 

MORE ECHOES FROM THE PAST

I've mentioned a few things about Resolution, already, that remind me of other great Doctor Who stories. But there is one very obvious link to the past that I still haven't brought up. 

There are quite a few similarities between Resolution and Dalek from Series One. We have a single Dalek in a state of disrepair that manages to re-build itself and cause all sorts of mayhem. And, in this process, we get to witness just how destructive a lone Dalek can be. This type of story structure really illustrates the deadliness of these monsters. Even alone and wounded, they represent a serious danger.

It's interesting to try to understand why Chibnall chose to strip the Daleks back down like this. Clearly, RTD did it as a form of introduction to new fans. Let them see the monster on its own first and then throw a full army of them at an audience. It makes them all-the-more menacing when we do see them in greater numbers. I'm not exactly sure why Chibnall repeated the process, though. 

It may have been the simple fact that we, as an audience, were starting to take the Daleks for granted. We might even have been seeing them as a bit too frail. After all, the Doctor does seem quite amazing at beating them. So, maybe, it needed to be re-established to us just what kind of threat they could be. And repeating the formula of Dalek was a good way to do it. 

The big difference between these two stories, however, is that the plot to Dalek does get very clunky, in places. And, aside from a Dalek just trundling along and killing a lot of people - there's not much else to the whole adventure. Resolution is a much slicker tale with some nice subplots. It is, essentially, a superior story. Which is why it makes it onto my Top Five but Dalek won't. 

A SPECIAL KIND OF DALEK 

While I have certainly flattered Resolution to the point of making it blush, I still need to discuss my favorite thing about it: Not only do I love that Chibnall has created for us a new type of Dalek, but I actually love how he did it. 

A different kind of Dalek is nothing new. We've seen quite a few over the years. Usually it's just a change of livery to designate a different rank. Or a new attachment replaces the sucker arm so it can cut through doors or what-have-you. In extreme cases, we got something like the Special Weapons Dalek. 

In all these instances, though, this new modification is external. Something about the casing is altered. Chibnall is the first writer to realise: "Hey! Why don't we actually do something to the Kaled Mutant, itself?!!"

I still remember the first time I watched the episode. When the Kaled Mutant started re-assembling itself my inner fanboy was  practically screaming: "A Dalek can't do do that!!!"

But then, of course, I learnt that this one could. And it made perfect sense, too. A Dalek Scout would be operating all by itself and would need enhancements to help ensure its survival to complete its mission. So, yes, it can get split up into pieces and still be able to put itself back together with a little bit of UV light. That was actually quite cool.

Of course, when we see how it can also attach itself to Lin or Ryan's Dad (I know he has an actual name but I prefer "Ryan's Dad"!) and use them like puppets we learn that it has another special ability. This one makes it uniquely terrifying. Daleks are no strangers to mind control techniques but this is a whole new way to dominate the will of another being. And the fact that is is so hands-on causes it to seem so much more disturbing.  It really was quite clever of Chbnall to give us something new and different about the Daleks in the way that he did. 

Essentially, Dalek Scouts are pretty cool. Almost as cool as a Special Weapons Dalek. Which says a lot. Cause Special Weapons Daleks are still the coolest thing ever! 

FINAL VERDICT: 

Resolution is a very solid little yarn that adds an interesting new dimension to the Dalek Race. It also signposts the idea that Chibnall is going to do something different with this monster. Over the last few seasons, they had, perhaps, strayed a bit too far from their foundations. In so doing, they had become less interesting. Even less scary. With Resolution, Chibnall restores them to their former glory. 

Admittedly, though, I don't think Resolution would make it onto this list all on its own. It's very good. But it's not that good. However, as it bridges into Revolution of the Daleks and tells us a bigger story, I find myself unable to resist putting these two episodes into my Top Five. 

Even if it is a bit of a cheat!