Doctor Who Season 5 Episode 3 ‘Victory of the Daleks’ Recap
They say a Doctor isn’t a Doctor until he’s faced down his most famous enemy, the Daleks. Every Doctor has faced them (it’s even implied that Paul McGann fought them in the Time War). It’s best that newbie Matt Smith got it out of the way early otherwise children would be asking “when will he fight the Daleks?”
This episode could best be called a new beginning for our favorite pepperpots. In typical indirect and obscure fashion, they try to perpetuate their race and destroy the universe, in that order. And for once, they even claim a victory over our favorite Time Lord.
And how about those bright candy colors of the new Daleks? I’d say that Steve Jobs had a hand in their design except the new ones are kind of bulky and by no means sleek. Either they’ve gained weight or they’re intended to be more bad-ass somehow by being larger. Of course, it’s tough to be bad-ass when you’re bright orange or yellow. In the end, the purpose of the redesign is to sell more action figures and in that they will likely succeed quite admirably.
Obviously, this entire episode was intended to perpetuate the Doctor’s greatest enemy. When I said that they claimed a victory, I meant that they perpetuated themselves and escaped, which was their plan. Usually the audience is led to believe at the end of each confrontation that the Daleks are destroyed forever. However, despite the resources it involves like more Dalekanium alloy, Daleks breed like cockroaches and are similarly hard to kill.
While Ian McNeice is an excellent actor, it was difficult to buy him as Churchill. In other media versions of the former Prime Minister, the character is more of a mumbler and slurs his words. This opinion may be in the minority but I stand by it.
The Doctor and Amy were both excellent in this episode. The Jammie Dodger trick was particularly clever, since the Daleks probably have no concept of cookies. It is interesting how Amy had no memory of the Dalek invasion of the previous season. Is it just Amy, or is it the entire planet Earth? Does it have anything to do with the crack in time that seems to be following them around?
Bracewell being revealed as a robot (or whatever he was supposed to be) was another legitimate surprise of the episode. It is consistent with the modus operandi of the Daleks, who have used human-looking duplicates before. One can only conclude from his human behavior (and the presumed background check for Bracewell) that he was copied from an actual person.
The space battles were also rather impressive. It’s amazing what Steven Moffat has been able to do with a shrunken budget for the show.
Obviously, the Doctor and Churchill have met before. If you consider such things as canon, then they have met in the spin-off novels. If Big Finish is smart, they’ll make that into one of their audio plays, particularly since Ian McNeice has been in them before.
The episode was overall enjoyable. Next week: the return of River Song and the Weeping Angels.
Watch ‘Victory of the Daleks’ Episode Online
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- Doctor Who Season 5 Episode 3 – Victory of the Daleks – Details and Promo Photos
- Doctor Who Season 5 Episode 3 – Victory of the Daleks – Press Release
- Doctor Who Season 5 Episode 3 – Victory of the Daleks – Promo
- Doctor Who Season 5 Episode 3 – Victory of the Daleks – 10 Teasers
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