Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks (Story 134)

Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks (Story 134)
by Matthew Robinson

Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks (Story 134)
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DVD details

Actor: Janet Fielding, Mark Strickson, Peter Davison, Rula Lenska, Terry Molloy
Director: Matthew Robinson
Brand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 100 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-07-01
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: BBC Video / Warner Bros.

DVD Reviews of Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks (Story 134)

DVD Review: The Daleks must liberate Davros
Summary: 5 Stars

While I am not a fan of Davros I find it amusing that the Daleks themselves were not really too happy about rescuing the mad scientist. Even if he was their creator they have finally started to understand that he is a few sandwiches short of a picnic basket. If you know what I mean.
Lots of action, clones, time travel and lots of bloody combat scenes. Also this DVD has some very interesting extras, some from 1984 and 1986 plus commentary from Peter Davison and Janet Fielding. Really enjoyed the deleted or extended scenes and always enjoy hearing about the events behind the scenes. It is always fun to know what they wanted and what they ended up with because of funding issues and bad luck.

DVD Review: Dr. Who
Summary: 5 Stars

This was a lot of fun to watch again. My brothers were over for the holidays with their families and we had a wonderful time remembering the old Dr. Who's we use to watch as children. Our children watch the new ones and enjoyed watching Peter Davison as the Doctor fighting the Daleks.

DVD Review: Evil Defined
Summary: 5 Stars

Davros may always be the ultimate
personification of evil for me.
This episode shows him as the true
father of the Daleks and his "death"
as one of them is horrifically
shocking.

ofs

DVD Review: Doctor #5 meets Davros
Summary: 4 Stars

It was great reliving this one. What more can you say when Davros and the daleks make an appearance with the fifth doctor, Peter Davison. Very classic episode that adds to the story of the doctor's greatest enemy.

DVD Review: "You hesitate, Doctor. If I were you, I would be dead."
Summary: 3 Stars

Whoa, there! Here we are nearly at the end of Peter Davison's last season as the Doctor, and he's never had a good proper Dalek story! Who's responsible for this oversight? Anyway, whip one up in a hurry before he's out the door!--I'm not sure if this indeed actually reflects the thinking behind "Resurrection of the Daleks" but I wouldn't be surprised, for it bears many of the telltale traces of a rush job. Whatever the case, mixed results are what we get: Some aspects of this story are truly spectacular, some are spectacularly awful, and these extremes kind of average out into a reasonably okay but admittedly mediocre tale of the Doctor and his trademark villains.

The story as a whole is overloaded with several different plotlines any one of which would've been great but mashed together they just make a bit of an inconsistent mess, leaving unclear just what precisely the Daleks are trying to accomplish here (Invade Earth? Rescue Davros? Use him to biologically engineer a new batch of Daleks? Strike back against the Movellans? Kill the Doctor? Use him to take over Gallifrey? Exterminate anything that moves? Boost BBC ratings?) As for Davros, he shouldn't be here at all. His death at the end of "Genesis of the Daleks" was one of the dramatic masterpieces of "Doctor Who" history, and having him survive (first in "Destiny of the Daleks" and now here) sort of cheapens that in retrospect, not to mention subjecting the character to the law of diminishing returns both in terms of acting (from Michael Wisher's subtle and convincing performance to Terry Molloy's almost unintentionally comical ranting fest) and special effects (the new mask looks rubbery and fake compared to the original--I don't demand great effects from this show, but they at least shouldn't be devolving on that score!). As for the Doctor, he's almost a superfluous character for much of the story (not good for a protagonist, usually), that is until close to the end when he resolves to assassinate Davros so as to prevent his effecting the Daleks' resurrection (?). Vowing not to make the mistake of hesitating again (like he did in "Genesis"), he sets off with laser rifle in hand to do the job right this time...and then hesitates!!! You almost have to agree with Davros that that's a pretty weak showing. Oh, but wait, then he gleefully kills off a bunch of Daleks in a clear act of germ warfare: So guns are bad but weapons of mass destruction are okay? Or the Doctor doesn't mind taking your life if you aren't recognizably humanoid? Hhmmm, we have some pretty muddled morality here, less characteristic of the Doctor's character than of careless and hurried writing.

For all that, though, it's the Daleks after all, and there's just something about them that tends to make them great villains even when they're unconvincingly multitasking several masterplans. Certainly they're deadlier than ever here--or so it seems. Actually they've always been wickedly deadly, but that quality has always been indicated and portrayed according to the standards and tastes of the changing times, and here it's depicted in a gritty, realistic, mature manner more in line with contemporary sensibilities. They don't just screech "Exterminate!", they do exterminate, readily and ruthlessly--hardly any of the supporting cast survives, and several are taken out by some kind of disintegrative nerve gas of Dalek design in what must be one of the gruesomest effects I've ever seen on the show. "Doctor Who" has grown up a bit, gotten real, and in terms of dramatic impact it works. All of this also gives substance and depth to Tegan's emotional overload from all the senseless deaths and makes her tearful decision to leave the Tardis meaningful, and Janet Fielding's moving performance at the conclusion really brings this out perfectly. Overall the story benefits from fine acting by the regulars and excellent directing: individual scenes are very memorable (the part where the Doctor and some soldiers are poking about in an old warehouse trying to find a Dalek mutant out of its shell is superbly creepy and suspenseful), the battle scenes are excitingly dynamic, and the location shots are appropriately moody and atmospheric. So much so that it's mostly after the fact that you realize none of it really holds together very tightly storywise. Yes, it could've been a lot better and probably would've been if the script editor and the writer hadn't been one and the same person (it's not an easy or enviable task to try to edit oneself, and it seldom works, even for someone as talented as Eric Saward), but so it goes I suppose. For all the glaring imperfections here, though, I'd still never hesitate to sit down and enjoy the Doctor being "an enemy of the Daleks" yet again. And not a moment too soon!

Description of Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks (Story 134)

Trapped in a time corridor, the TARDIS veers off course, emerging in London's deserted docklands. In the far future, a prison ship in deep space comes under attack. These two remote events are linked by one terrible purpose. Davros, the ruthless creator of the Daleks, has been liberated after 90 years of imprisonment to assist in the resurrection of his Dalek army. He's their best hope for finding the antidote to the deadly anti-Dalek virus devised by their longtime robotic rivals, the Movellans. Davros sets about his appointed task with a secret agenda of his own - one that may force the Doctor to descend to Davros's level of evil.

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary:Actors Peter Davison and Janet Fielding and director Matthew Robinson
Deleted Scenes
Featurette:On Location; archive featurettes
Other:5.1 Sound Mix
Production Notes


Resurrection of the Daleks marked Doctor Who's first encounter with his most famous foe since 1979's Destiny of the Daleks five years earlier, and Peter Davison's only full-scale battle with the cybernetic aliens. Weakened by a Movellan virus, the Daleks assault a space station prison where Davros is being held. The Daleks plan to use duplicates of the Doctor and his companions to assassinate leading Time Lords, and further duplicates to take over the Earth. The action is split between the space station and abandoned London riverside warehouses, and is notable for its grim tone and high body count. The duplicate police-assassins recall the Autons from the Jon Pertwee Spearhead from Space adventure (1970) and proved controversial on original broadcast. Also notable is that although the show was designed as a four-part adventure, it was televised in two double-length episodes.

This edition presents the story in the original four parts. Meanwhile there are more than the usual number of name guest stars, including Rodney Bewes, Rula Lenska, and Lesley Grantham. The tale also marks Janet Fielding's final appearance as Tegan. In every respect this is a key adventure in the history of Doctor Who, even if the tense, incident-packed story is ultimately weighed down by too many elements to resolve them all satisfactorily. --Gary S. Dalkin

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