Monsters of Television

“What does hate look like?”

As I’ve said, I’m not the biggest Dalek fan. I couldn’t totally explain why if prompted. Maybe it has something to do with their near-invulnerability. In any case, I was pleased that the Dalek episode was taken care of sooner rather than later.

“Victory of the Daleks” isn’t a great episode (which is fine since next week’s episode is superb). It essentially serves as the pilot episode for the new Daleks that will plague this Doctor during his tenure. The upside is that the episode affords us some more insight into the Doctor ever developing personality.

And, you know, Amy in a denim mini-skirt and cowboy boots. During the London Blitz.

The Daleks, as this episode makes clear for new viewers (as do any Dalek episode with a new companion) that they are the Doctor’s oldest, most dangerous enemy. Re-introducing Daleks has become a sort of rite of passage since the relaunch, a way to test the mettle of a Doctor and/or a Companion.

The 9th’s first encounter with a Dalek was by far my favorite. His absolute rage and fear of the chained up Dalek sold the threat of this funny looking lifeform, especially for a newcomer to the series, like I was at the time. (“A plunger and a tiny telescopic rod? That’s dangerous?”)  The 11th reacts in a similar manner, though with more rage than fear, and promptly tries to beat up a Dalek using a giant wrench. The aggression this Doctor has makes for some very exciting possibilities.

Indeed, the more I see of the 11th, the more I feel he is a marriage of the 9th and 10th: Fairly abrupt mood swings mixed with techno babble and varying degrees of arrogance and pouting. Which should only make sense as they are the two most immediate personalities and faces of the Doctor  (I’m told that there are other incarnations slipping in, but I haven’t the history.)

But then this episode is all about history, isn’t it? Just not traveling to London during the Blitz and have a stogie with Winston Churchill, but about it is history that defines us, makes us who we are.

The Doctor’s long long long history with the Daleks informs his perspective and his behavior toward them. Fear, yes, but cautious arrogance since he knows he’s beaten time and time before, and can do it again. Sadly, the episode’s title leaves little room for doubt, as the Daleks count not only the Doctor’s appearance, but on his insistence to be right all the time. And the new line of iDaleks can rely on the Doctor’s love of the Earth to allow them to escape and grow stronger (but hopefully not before next season).

A sense and memory of history is what also saves Professor Edwin Bracewell from his fate as a walking time bomb. Even if the memories are fake, they make him human, not a Dalek-created android. He has a free will of his own after the Daleks leave the Moon’s orbit, a will that the Doctor does not deny, as he allows Bracewell to live his life and make a new history.

Finally, there’s Amy Pond. A girl, it would appear, without a history outside of the Doctor. She has no memory of the Daleks essentially teleporting the entire planet of Earth to the edges of the universe and wreaking havoc just last season. That she doesn’t recall this event is, as the Doctor notes, troubling. Indeed, it makes me wonder if our fairy tale princess isn’t exactly who or what she says she is (and if she is even aware of it). It adds a bit of depth to Amy beyond her desire for high adventure before her wedding, but calls attention to her unknown martial status mentioned in the previous episode.

The crack appears at the end of the episode, as it seems to be following the Doctor and Amy around time and space. Two thoughts on the crack. #1: It looks an awful lot like a smile. A sinister, shimmering smile, and I don’t trust smiles. #2: I contend that it is following Amy, not the Doctor. Perhaps connected to the memory gap Amy has?

FINAL THOUGHTS

• I didn’t really care about the iDaleks having different voices. I mean, would I have preferred the same tinny voice they have had, change is not necessarily a bad thing. (Though, as my girlfriend pointed out, that they have different colors may mean different personalities, and Daleks aren’t terribly individualistic except in rare cases.)
• Happy to see that Amy is also more than just a pretty face. She’s a clever one she is.
• Space dogfight was kind of cool even if it felt a little bit like The Phantom Menace for me.
• Were the bunker phones the same color as the iDaleks? I think they were.