Post by burrunjor on Jan 30, 2024 14:40:01 GMT
Basically there are 4 Dalek arcs in all of DW, classic and New. Granted arc might be pushing it just a tad for some of these stories, but still you can at least in hindsight view them that way.
The 60s arc, which covers all of their appearances that decade. It shows the monsters advancing from a primitive race existing on a dead world, to a space faring race, to being capable of time travel, to being a full on intergalactic threat, to finally their attempts at conquest resulting in other species pushing them back to Skaro, where much like the first story they are seemingly killed on their own planet in a petty little war. It all kind of comes full circle in a way. Also their relationship with the Doctor is built up, where we see how his interactions with them advance their race somewhat, possibly letting them know aliens exist in the Daleks, which leads to them taking the fight beyond the Thals and to other races, to then discovering time travel as a result of their dealings with him, to then trying to use his own scientific genius to benefit them in Evil. We also see the Doctor become a better person over his dealings with the Daleks. In the first story he is a selfish git who is happy to let the Thals wander into the Daleks base, but then when he sees how far they're willing to go he becomes shocked and that helps motivate him to be a better man, as seen in his next battle with them and finally by the end of the Hartnell era he thinks nothing of sacrificing himself to stop them. At the same time however we also see a more ruthless side to the Doctor emerge, where he is willing to wipe out an entire race to save the rest of the universe.
We'll call this arc: The Rise and Fall of The Daleks.
The 70s arc, is definitely more slight and wasn't really intentional, but it is still kind of there. This arc deals with the monsters as a full blown intergalactic power, which the 60s only touched upon. In the first Dalek story they are simply monsters on their own planet and quite weak and primitive. In Daleks Invasion Earth they are akin to the Martians from War of the Worlds, or Treens from Dan Dare (both of which where their biggest inspiration along with Jadis from the Narnia books and obviously the Nazis.) IE alien invaders, but they don't have a full on empire. The Chase, well it's just about the Doctor, and Power and Evil only show them in conflict with humans. The Pertwee and Tom stories however show the Daleks as the biggest intergalactic threat the Doctor has to deal with.
Day of the Daleks, whilst another invasion earth story, also makes it clear that earth doesn't mean anything to the Daleks beyond simply using it as a factory to conquer other planets, and they also have another race of aliens they have conquered, the Ogrons helping them. Frontier in Space/Planet of the Daleks meanwhile are all about their war with other races, Draconians, Thals, Spirodons, Ogrons etc, whilst Death similarly shows them conquering an alien planet for the first time, and also shows the difficulties they run into when invading other planets, but ultimately how they are always able to triumph. It's the Pertwee era not the 60s that really sells the idea of the Dalek empire, and of them being a threat to the universe, not just humanity, as the 60s stories, Dalek Masterplan and first story aside, only ever really had them warring with humans.
Genesis meanwhile takes this to its logical conclusion and shows a future where the monsters have taken over the universe. In Pertwee's time they were this constant threat that unlike other monsters, he didn't completely vanquish by the end of each story. He knew they were still out there and he had only at most set them back a bit "We have been delayed, not defeated!" So Genesis shows you that, in the end those setbacks mean nothing unless he changes history itself! Destiny meanwhile takes this arc to its conclusion by showing the Dalek empire finally meet a foe beyond simply the Doctor that can stop it in its tracks (thanks to the Doctors meddling in their history, as him setting them back in Genesis is what gives the Movellans time to catch up to the Daleks,)
We'll call this arc: Heyday of the Dalek Empire.
The 80s arc I've covered already, so I'll just briefly restate it. This shows the Daleks split apart by a civil war, instigated by Davros, which eventually destroys them. In a way it's the logical end to a species like thee Daleks who would eventually turn in on each other. Also fitting as it is their creator that finally does them in. Also this deals with the fallout of the Doctor not destroying them in Genesis, and shows his numerous attempts to make up for it, that fail either due to not being ready like Davison, or being too cocky like Colin, before Sylv is finally ready to take them down for good. We also in the background see the monsters take the fight to the Time Lords for the first time, with Resurrection and Remembrance.
We'll call this arc : Dalek Civil War
The final arc well is the RTD arc. I may not think RTD ever really understood the Doctor, but he did write for the Daleks, something I feel he really loved well. His arc obviously deals with the fall out of the Time War, with his Daleks being these desperate monsters, struggling to rebuild their power, with the threat being if they do ever rebuild, then nothing in the universe can stand against them. Unlike the Pertwee era Daleks who were this vast empire slowly building and building. Davies era Daleks are like the Old Ones in Buffy or HP Lovecraft. An ancient evil that was banished eons ago and is now threatening to return that our hero must stop. Finally in Journey's End we get to see what a proper Dalek empire can do and it is powerful enough to destroy all of reality! At the same time however this arc also takes us into the relationship between the Doctor and the Daleks in greater detail than ever before, and shows you how they are responsible for every tragedy in his life, from the Time War, to the death of the 9th Doctor, Rose leaving etc.
We'll call this arc: The Lovecraftian Daleks.
Funny thing is they all do kind of flow into each other quite neatly. There are some gaps, but still the end of the 60s era shows them becoming an intergalactic force, and the 70s picks up where that left off, whilst the 80s shows their empire falling, yet also shows them become aware of the Time Lords, and then the Davies arc shows the after effect of the Time War.
Question is, which is your favourite. Honestly I can't decide? They all have their strong points. The 60s arc is by far the most creative, due to it being at the beginning and also because of how unrestrained 60s who was, even with its meagre budget, back then its writers did see it as something where they could explore almost any type of story, from historicals, to the Edgar Rice Burroughs feel of something like The Web Planet, to comedy like The Romans to almost fantasy stories like The Toymaker. All of that is reflected in the sheer variety of 60s stories, unlike other arcs that tended to either repeat what had gone before, like the Pertwee era with both Day and Planet, or fell into formulas with the Dalek civil wars of the 80s and invasions of earth in the 21st century.
The 70s arc however refreshingly has the Daleks in combat with other races beyond humans more than any other. Even though a lot of their conflicts in that era, like Death to the Daleks are still centred around humans, at least we do see them invade and subjugate alien races all the time in the 70s (and not just races that look like humans either like the Thals. Seeing them mistreat and enslave the Exillons and the Spirodons really does sell them as being the masters of the universe.) Even though they threaten the universe, nay multiverse in the Davies era, they are still too earth centric for my liking in that time, only ever being shown invading us, and even calling the conquest of earth their ultimate destiny. Similarly all of the civil war stories revolve around earth and humanity.
The 80s is by far the most interesting in terms of their relationship with the Doctor, showing each Doctor learn from the previous ones mistakes, and also doesn't let dangling plot threads go like other arcs, with each story properly leading into the next whilst still being enjoyable in their own right. It also has arguably the best run. Whilst all the others have classics, and Genesis is probably the best. All the others also have clunkers in them, well clunkers by Dalek standards. I don't think there are any poor Dalek stories in classic who, but Destiny, the Chase and Planet are all weaker than the average Dalek adventure. Resurrection, Revelation and Remembrance however are all among the best of the decade.
Finally the 00s arc definitely has the Daleks at their most formidable. You can argue that they couldn't have been sustained in the show indefinitely at this level of power, but for the 4 years in the Davies era, they definitely seem worthy of being the Doctors archenemies more than any other era, are the biggest threat, cost him more dearly than any other villain. In other decades they fell behind in all other respects. In the 60s it is the Cybermen who cost him his first life, in the 70s the Delgado Master is the big cheese more than the Daleks, and in the 80s they are the only one of the big three not to kill a Doctor or companion. You got to give credit to RTD for recognizing that the Daleks can't just rely on their fame to be the biggest villain around, which some previous producers fell into.
Ultimately however my love of Pertwee and the fact that Genesis is the best for me (narrowly beating out Remembrance.) Has to narrowly allow the 70s arc to be my favourite.
The 60s arc, which covers all of their appearances that decade. It shows the monsters advancing from a primitive race existing on a dead world, to a space faring race, to being capable of time travel, to being a full on intergalactic threat, to finally their attempts at conquest resulting in other species pushing them back to Skaro, where much like the first story they are seemingly killed on their own planet in a petty little war. It all kind of comes full circle in a way. Also their relationship with the Doctor is built up, where we see how his interactions with them advance their race somewhat, possibly letting them know aliens exist in the Daleks, which leads to them taking the fight beyond the Thals and to other races, to then discovering time travel as a result of their dealings with him, to then trying to use his own scientific genius to benefit them in Evil. We also see the Doctor become a better person over his dealings with the Daleks. In the first story he is a selfish git who is happy to let the Thals wander into the Daleks base, but then when he sees how far they're willing to go he becomes shocked and that helps motivate him to be a better man, as seen in his next battle with them and finally by the end of the Hartnell era he thinks nothing of sacrificing himself to stop them. At the same time however we also see a more ruthless side to the Doctor emerge, where he is willing to wipe out an entire race to save the rest of the universe.
We'll call this arc: The Rise and Fall of The Daleks.
The 70s arc, is definitely more slight and wasn't really intentional, but it is still kind of there. This arc deals with the monsters as a full blown intergalactic power, which the 60s only touched upon. In the first Dalek story they are simply monsters on their own planet and quite weak and primitive. In Daleks Invasion Earth they are akin to the Martians from War of the Worlds, or Treens from Dan Dare (both of which where their biggest inspiration along with Jadis from the Narnia books and obviously the Nazis.) IE alien invaders, but they don't have a full on empire. The Chase, well it's just about the Doctor, and Power and Evil only show them in conflict with humans. The Pertwee and Tom stories however show the Daleks as the biggest intergalactic threat the Doctor has to deal with.
Day of the Daleks, whilst another invasion earth story, also makes it clear that earth doesn't mean anything to the Daleks beyond simply using it as a factory to conquer other planets, and they also have another race of aliens they have conquered, the Ogrons helping them. Frontier in Space/Planet of the Daleks meanwhile are all about their war with other races, Draconians, Thals, Spirodons, Ogrons etc, whilst Death similarly shows them conquering an alien planet for the first time, and also shows the difficulties they run into when invading other planets, but ultimately how they are always able to triumph. It's the Pertwee era not the 60s that really sells the idea of the Dalek empire, and of them being a threat to the universe, not just humanity, as the 60s stories, Dalek Masterplan and first story aside, only ever really had them warring with humans.
Genesis meanwhile takes this to its logical conclusion and shows a future where the monsters have taken over the universe. In Pertwee's time they were this constant threat that unlike other monsters, he didn't completely vanquish by the end of each story. He knew they were still out there and he had only at most set them back a bit "We have been delayed, not defeated!" So Genesis shows you that, in the end those setbacks mean nothing unless he changes history itself! Destiny meanwhile takes this arc to its conclusion by showing the Dalek empire finally meet a foe beyond simply the Doctor that can stop it in its tracks (thanks to the Doctors meddling in their history, as him setting them back in Genesis is what gives the Movellans time to catch up to the Daleks,)
We'll call this arc: Heyday of the Dalek Empire.
The 80s arc I've covered already, so I'll just briefly restate it. This shows the Daleks split apart by a civil war, instigated by Davros, which eventually destroys them. In a way it's the logical end to a species like thee Daleks who would eventually turn in on each other. Also fitting as it is their creator that finally does them in. Also this deals with the fallout of the Doctor not destroying them in Genesis, and shows his numerous attempts to make up for it, that fail either due to not being ready like Davison, or being too cocky like Colin, before Sylv is finally ready to take them down for good. We also in the background see the monsters take the fight to the Time Lords for the first time, with Resurrection and Remembrance.
We'll call this arc : Dalek Civil War
The final arc well is the RTD arc. I may not think RTD ever really understood the Doctor, but he did write for the Daleks, something I feel he really loved well. His arc obviously deals with the fall out of the Time War, with his Daleks being these desperate monsters, struggling to rebuild their power, with the threat being if they do ever rebuild, then nothing in the universe can stand against them. Unlike the Pertwee era Daleks who were this vast empire slowly building and building. Davies era Daleks are like the Old Ones in Buffy or HP Lovecraft. An ancient evil that was banished eons ago and is now threatening to return that our hero must stop. Finally in Journey's End we get to see what a proper Dalek empire can do and it is powerful enough to destroy all of reality! At the same time however this arc also takes us into the relationship between the Doctor and the Daleks in greater detail than ever before, and shows you how they are responsible for every tragedy in his life, from the Time War, to the death of the 9th Doctor, Rose leaving etc.
We'll call this arc: The Lovecraftian Daleks.
Funny thing is they all do kind of flow into each other quite neatly. There are some gaps, but still the end of the 60s era shows them becoming an intergalactic force, and the 70s picks up where that left off, whilst the 80s shows their empire falling, yet also shows them become aware of the Time Lords, and then the Davies arc shows the after effect of the Time War.
Question is, which is your favourite. Honestly I can't decide? They all have their strong points. The 60s arc is by far the most creative, due to it being at the beginning and also because of how unrestrained 60s who was, even with its meagre budget, back then its writers did see it as something where they could explore almost any type of story, from historicals, to the Edgar Rice Burroughs feel of something like The Web Planet, to comedy like The Romans to almost fantasy stories like The Toymaker. All of that is reflected in the sheer variety of 60s stories, unlike other arcs that tended to either repeat what had gone before, like the Pertwee era with both Day and Planet, or fell into formulas with the Dalek civil wars of the 80s and invasions of earth in the 21st century.
The 70s arc however refreshingly has the Daleks in combat with other races beyond humans more than any other. Even though a lot of their conflicts in that era, like Death to the Daleks are still centred around humans, at least we do see them invade and subjugate alien races all the time in the 70s (and not just races that look like humans either like the Thals. Seeing them mistreat and enslave the Exillons and the Spirodons really does sell them as being the masters of the universe.) Even though they threaten the universe, nay multiverse in the Davies era, they are still too earth centric for my liking in that time, only ever being shown invading us, and even calling the conquest of earth their ultimate destiny. Similarly all of the civil war stories revolve around earth and humanity.
The 80s is by far the most interesting in terms of their relationship with the Doctor, showing each Doctor learn from the previous ones mistakes, and also doesn't let dangling plot threads go like other arcs, with each story properly leading into the next whilst still being enjoyable in their own right. It also has arguably the best run. Whilst all the others have classics, and Genesis is probably the best. All the others also have clunkers in them, well clunkers by Dalek standards. I don't think there are any poor Dalek stories in classic who, but Destiny, the Chase and Planet are all weaker than the average Dalek adventure. Resurrection, Revelation and Remembrance however are all among the best of the decade.
Finally the 00s arc definitely has the Daleks at their most formidable. You can argue that they couldn't have been sustained in the show indefinitely at this level of power, but for the 4 years in the Davies era, they definitely seem worthy of being the Doctors archenemies more than any other era, are the biggest threat, cost him more dearly than any other villain. In other decades they fell behind in all other respects. In the 60s it is the Cybermen who cost him his first life, in the 70s the Delgado Master is the big cheese more than the Daleks, and in the 80s they are the only one of the big three not to kill a Doctor or companion. You got to give credit to RTD for recognizing that the Daleks can't just rely on their fame to be the biggest villain around, which some previous producers fell into.
Ultimately however my love of Pertwee and the fact that Genesis is the best for me (narrowly beating out Remembrance.) Has to narrowly allow the 70s arc to be my favourite.
