Doctor Who 1x06 "Dalek" rewatch-review

[arabian]

As I've stated elsewhere, once I finished season two of New Who, I was going to rewatch and review what I call my "Her Name was Rose" collection (click here for the full list of episodes).

Comments

[prynne12]

That's absolutely fantastic! I love the idea of "Utah" seeming exotic--Cardiff seems exotic to me! I have to admit, I do like the idea of the series branching off and exploring different locations. After all, the TARDIS does theoretically travel through time and space and is not limited to the British Isles.

As noted above, this episode was the first episode of New Who that I'd seen (I'd been flipping channels while I should have been studying Contracts law on a random afternoon),
and I remember being completely shocked that Skiffy was airing an episode it had obviously imported from the U.K.--all the "Yanks" sounded off and the male lead was *clearly* from the north of England. I recognized the accent as one of my coworkers the year before had hailed from a village not too far off from Mr. Eccleston's native hamlet.

Admittedly, I really didn't quite understand what was going on while watching the episode (I'd caught it half way through and really had no idea how significant the Dalek was), but I did pick up on the Bill Gatesian (hah, I've made an adjective) reference in the person of Mr. Van Statten and wondered what that necessarily added to the story. I wondered if perhaps the suggested setting was meant to reflect the consumerism that seems to characterize American culture--at least as it's viewed overseas...

However, it must be said that I've warmed up much more to Dalek on subsequent viewings--now having figured out what a "Dalek" actually is and having developed an appreciation for the significance of them to NuWho. I frequently go back to the episode because I think it's clearly the turning point for Nine and ultimately foreshadows the sacrifice he makes in Parting of the Ways--which I suppose is a roundabout way of saying "Props to *you*, Mr. Shearman."

I'm really intrigued, though, by the concept of the Big Finish story now, what with the concept of the Dalek being trotted out of the White Tower. What's the title on that?