Glad you enjoyed this story. Whilst I rate it very highly, my favourite Dalek story of all time is still The Power of the Daleks. The reason for that is the Daleks themselves. Both Power and Evil were both scripted by David Whittaker, who was the first ever Story/Script Editor when the series began, and I’ve always thought that he understood the psyche of the Daleks so much better than their creator, Terry Nation. It is only in Nation’s first Dalek story that we see the ruthless cunning of them. From The Dalek Invasion of Earth onwards, Nation never seemed able to duplicate their cunning and ruthlessness in his remaining 60s Dalek stories, and it took another writer, Whittaker, to come in and write two of the best Dalek stories ever, which restored them to their former glory. In Power, Whittaker uses the human rebels lust for power against them by having the Daleks manipulating them into thinking they are in charge, when all the while it is the Daleks themselves who are secretly controlling events. In Evil, Whittaker uses Maxtible’s greed for money to control him, and they are able to control Waterfield by threatening the life of his daughter if he doesn’t help them. Its all a far cry from the silliness of Nation’s ‘The Chase,’ which for a number of its episodes reduced the effectiveness of the Daleks to almost zero, where they become almost a parody of their once great selves.

So in doctor who magazine in 1998 they did a big poll of the readers to vote on their favourite stories and this one came 9th! I think it’s interesting how the doctor is actually super manipulative here by not only experimenting on Jamie, but convincing the humanised Daleks to take revolutionary action that eventually leads to their deaths! Obviously it’s for the greater good, but this big picture Doctor is a cool trope of the show that comes up now and again and is awesome cos it shows the darker side of the character.

@petersvillage7447

Ай бұрын

It was especially intriguing for me cos when the story first 'resurfaced' as an audio release in 1992, the idea of the Seventh Doctor as devious and manipulative, alienating the trust of his companion, was very much the fashion and very 'modern'. Yet here that all was, years earlier, in a Second Doctor story...

Good reaction and analysis. Great atmosphere in this story. Long before the official animation came out, I remember watching the orphan episode on my 'Lost in Time' box set and wishing more of it was available. I think the animation is practically essential viewing here. This is a very 'visual' story. In those action heavy scenes with little or no dialogue it really highlights the weaknesses of the photo-recons. Just using static images to represent long sequences such as when Jamie rescues Victoria, makes it a challenge to follow what is going on. I believe some of the recons of the story, even include extra footage (filmed at the location) and simple animations to help clarify things.

Great reaction! I really enjoyed watching along with you. "The Evil of the Daleks" was one of Patrick Troughton's favorite stories and he even proposed that the plot would make for a good feature film. The story holds the distinction for being the only serial repeated in full during the 1960s.

Originally this was intended to be the final ever end of the Daleks as it's creator and writer Terry Nation wanted to bring a Dalek spin-off to america which thankfully didn't happen they do not appear for another 5 years.

rip Kemel

RIP Kemel

I just love this story. It’s unique, the setting is a wonderful idea for the Daleks, the music is terrific, great atmosphere, brilliant characters and just builds so wonderfully. My favourite Dalek story of all time honestly.

rip kemel

This was originally meant to be the Daleks’ last ever appearance. ‘Dalekmania’ had pretty much ended around the time of ‘The Daleks’ Master Plan’ and people were now starting to get bored of them. Also, Terry Nation had planned to take the Daleks over to America and spin them off into their own series, but in order for that to happen they needed to be taken out of the series. Obviously, this never happened, but it will be a long time before we see the Daleks return to ‘Doctor Who’. Also, as a little production notice, the doors of the TARDIS had been placed in the wrong way and unfortunately, nobody would think to correct this, so you’re going to have an odd looking TARDIS for the majority of the next season.

Glad that you watch the surviving episodes with the animation. At the Coffee shop in Episode 1, originally music played was The Beatles "Paperback Writer" from 1966,...rights issues, with the surviving audio, had that music removed, replaced with more generic 60's Pop. Your comment on when Police Boxes still existed in the UK - one was intended for use in a 1981 Who episode, outside of London. I saw two Police Boxes in Glasgow Scotland. Visits to Glasgow in 1984, and 1990 (I'm American) - one in a pedestrian shopping area, with some pamphlets glued to its exterior. Another Box up by Kelvin Hall and the Art Museum, which-I have a photo of -a group of men and women wearing Tudor clothing, crossing the street, neat that Police Box. I mad the photo, yet laughed too, like The Doctor and friends had just landed in the wrong time.

So glad you enjoyed this adventure and can't wait to see your reaction to tomb of the Cybermen!! So far tomb of the Cybermen is the oldest completed 2nd doctor serial.

The final end? Yeah right...

Black men on tv in the 60s were not allowed to be heroes and go on to live.

Justice for Kemel. One of the best Dalek stories, with an excellent supporting cast. Theodore Maxitble wants gold and has a beard. You have a beard and want money. H’mm I wouldn’t partner with the Daleks, bit of free advice there. Long live the bro.

This is definitely one of the best, possibly even THE best, Dalek story, and your observations are spot on! The character of Kemel is great, and I think his sudden death feels too random. Wish he had become another companion really. RIP KEMEL