"I see your long rest has done nothing to cure your megalomania"

DVDs:


	• Doctor Who - Destiny of the Daleks (Episode 104) Tom Baker BBC Warner, 2008 average customer review:based on 12 reviews
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highly recommended

The return of Davros

The Docotr & Romana go to Skaro to learn that Davros is still alive and that the Daleks have a new and more deadly adversary.

Mark Thomann destiny of the daleks

The Doctor and Romana go to skaro and see the daleks are cooming to do somthing bad with davros and I do like the daleks and davros.
age 9 Mark Thomann

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"I see your long rest has done nothing to cure your megalomania"

I got my first Doctor who novelizations on Super Bowl Sunday in 1985 -- just weeks after I'd found the show on PBS -- and Doctor Who and the Destiny of the Daleks was one of the three. I was eleven. I didn't watch the game, but I read about the Daleks as they returned home to resurrect their creator and win a war. I've loved the story ever since.

Sure, "Destiny of the Daleks" has got flaws, and those are lovingly displayed on DVD. The production values are vintage 1979... which, in terms of TV sci-fi, was more of a table year (to quote the Doctor from Doctor Who - City of Death (Episode 105), the following story). Michael Wisher, the original Davros from Doctor Who - Genesis of the Daleks (Episode 78), was unavailable to reprise the role, and his replacement for this story, David Gooderson, fit neither the role nor the costume. Gooderson's performance lacked any sort of nuance or terror, and his head was too big for the original mask so they just cut the mask into pieces and glued it back onto his head. Later on, the director didn't have enough Dalek props for an outdoor sequence set in a sandpit (Daleks don't like uneven terrain), so he had a bunch of extras carry hollow props around and shot them from low angles so you couldn't see their feet underneath. Yes sir, if Ken Grieve had a nickname it would be "Captain Shoestring".

The DVD release of "Destiny" works in part because it celebrates the technical flaws in the story, and allows gentle criticism on both of its extra documentaries. That said, the addition of CGI effects to replace the dodgy spaceships and death rays is kind of superfluous, but fortunately that's an optional feature.

Meanwhile the script itself, which seems to be about 40% Terry Nation and 60% Douglas Adams, is a winner. The Doctor rattles off dozens of great lines, as does Romana when describing her two hearts: "One for casual, one for best!". The dialogue between the Doctor and Davros during their two main confrontations is snappy and sparkly. And what's not to love about the hilarious Tom Baker/Lalla Ward byplay during the lengthy opening TARDIS scene? No wonder they got married (and, to hear Lalla critique Tom's performance on the DVD commentary, no wonder they got divorced...).

Other highlights from the DVD include the Baker/Ward Prime Computer commercials, evidently shot during the couple's very brief marriage. "Clever Prime," murmurs Romana. The commentary track is also terrific: Episode One is just Ward and Grieve, fondly remembering the late Douglas Adams, and comparing their 5,000 pound budget to the more visually glossy "Who" of the 21st century. David Gooderson shows up for the final two episodes and displays more charm and wit than he was ever allowed to show as Davros. Ward also says some complimentary things about her ex-husband, for the first time ever in her several DVD commentaries thus far.

"Destiny of the Daleks" is never going to be highly regarded in fan circles; even the official BBC "Doctor Who" website describes it as "tacky and inconsequential". But whether they're meant to be frightening, or just played for unintentional laughs (some of us here had to live through "Evolution of the Daleks" last season), the Daleks always work. The heavy use of ethnic actors is a plus, and prefigures the more diverse casting policies of modern "Doctor Who". Even if most of the great stories have already been mined, the classic series DVD releases are still showing strong as they descend dangerously closer to the bottom tier of stories.

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My favorite Daleks-Davors story

When Davros was introduced in Doctor Who during "Genesis of the Daleks," I assumed that this would be the only time we ever saw him. But a few short years later, Davros returned after thousands of years in limbo in "Destiny of the Daleks." I like this one because the Daleks are fighting another robot race called the Movellans, although we don't learn that right away.

The concept of two totally logical species trying to outdo each other is still a classic. One of the things I like about this is seeing the justapositions between the Doctor and Davros and how they approach the final solution. Quite frankly I was always disappointed that the Movellans never returned to the series.

This is an important story in that it was the one in which (for better or for worse), Davros became a permanent fixture in the classic series. It was Romana #2's first story and the start of one of the best Doctor-Companion teams in the series' history.

My favorite part about this DVD are the extras with the Prime Computer ads that Tom Baker and Lalla Ward recorded during the late '70's. I knew they did them but had never seen them and it was a great treat for me. The Terry Nation tribute was a fascinating trek through Dalek history during the '60's and '70's.

This is released as part of a Davros box set, but I already owned all the Davros stories so I didn't need the box set. But in my opinion, the BBC saved the best for last.

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One of my Favorites!!

This was actually the first full Doctor Who episode I saw back in the day on PBS. Not bad to start off with a Dalek episode. It's a great story...two robot warring factions stuck in a deadlock...looking for human intervention. Lalla Ward as Romana II is great (she's my favorite companion). This is a definite must for any Dr Who fan.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3

The newly regenerated Romana and the Doctor land on an unidentified planet to investigate evidence of drilling deep underground.Running Time: 99 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/BBC UPC: 883929004874 Manufacturer No: 1000036282

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