Planet of the Daleks
Previous: Frontier in Space
Planet of the Daleks
"Written by Terry Nation." Ah, good to know we've got the big man on board for this one.
Less than two minutes in and Three's already collapsed. Nice quick work on that bed button, Jo!
Aww, she gives him his cape as a blanket.
And on that note, Somewhat Cryptic Instructions Over a Rather Impressive Shot Up Jon Pertwee's Nose.
Huh, I'm digging the new suit, Jo. Might want to make sure Three isn't having a nightmare, though.
Okay I know Jo just said he was "icy to the touch" but I didn't think actual ice would be making an appearance.
ALSO JO I KNOW YOU'RE HAPPY THAT HE'S OPENED HIS EYES BUT IF HE WAS MAKING THAT FACE AT ME I WOULD BE BACKTRACKING VERY FAST
Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached IRL Terrifying Pertwee.
Checking the scanner...everything's in black and white. Have we traveled back to the Hartnell era?
and okay what is squirting ink at the screen with one of the creepiest squirting sounds I've ever heard
Eww, the local plant life seems pretty rude. Come on, Jo's got a perfectly nice coat, don't go messing it up with your plant spit.
also can we talk about JO'S GLOVES.
Please let this episode be a Jo Grant Solo Adventure, please let this episode be a Jo Grant Solo Adventure.
This planet seems exceptionally green. And not just Middle of the Jungle green, but Rave Party green.
Poor coat, abandoned already.
Wait, Three's up already. Maybe this won't be a Jo Grant Solo Adventure episode after all. Oh well...
This...might not be the best time to take those awesome gloves off, Jo. Somehow I don't think that plant spit goes well with bare skin.
Hang on, that one pilot in the landed ship is covered in cobwebs...but he's still moving slightly?
"Automatic Oxygen Supply Exhausted." Wait, really? You'd think the TARDIS would have some sort of converter for that or something.
Ah, there's the rest of the crew. Honestly not sure if they're clones or twin brothers.
Apparently they're far enough in the future that Earth is just a myth. That's...wow...that's unfortunate.
Now we have a third guy and SERIOUSLY HOW DO THEY ALL LOOK THE SAME. (Or at least they all have the exact same hair.)
Hang on, what's shaking up the entire ship and whY IS THAT GREEN INHALER FLOATING AROUND
Oh come on, invisible breather, now you're just making a mess.
Well, now we know what made those triangular footprints that Jo was following earlier...except not really.
"Cabin Atmosphere Unable to Sustain Life." THREE WAS THIS OXYGEN CRISIS REALLY THE BEST TIME FOR AN OUTFIT CHANGE.
Don't get me wrong, I love the crimson velvet ensemble but...I'd also love for you to be able to...you know...breathe and stuff.
Saved in the nick of time but nearly passed out again. Three, you're really not having a good time of it here so far, are you?
"Where are you from?"
"A planet, many systems from here."
"...Skaro! Yes, of course, you're Thals!"
WAIT HOW DID YOU DO THAT
AND DIRECT CALL-BACKS TO THE VERY FIRST DALEK SERIAL OKAY YOU HAVE MY ATTENTION
Soooo that's what the fungal spray does. Might want to find Jo and get that fixed before she, you know, dies or something.
Amazingly, the effect on Jo's hand still looks better than the bubblewrap from Ark in Space. #easytargets
Wait a sec...a jungle planet inhabited by invisible creatures...I wonder if this is...
Okay, Spiridon is a different planet. I thought it was the same place from The Daleks' Master Plan, but apparently that was called Mira.
Although considering the similar names and similar biodiversity, it wouldn't surprise me if they were in the same system.
"Liquid color spray." Spray-paint by numbers to reveal...a Dalek!
More Planet of the Daleks sometime in the next hour or so. Anyone got any fun Gally stories?
Alrighty, let's watch some more Daleks.
"I've never come across Daleks that've mastered invisibility before." Let's be real though, invisible Daleks would screw us all over *hard.*
There's a background noise identical to something we kept hearing constantly on Kembal in Daleks' Master Plan...
Makes me wonder if Kembal is in the same system along with Mira.
Jo, sorry but somehow I don't think covering your fungal arm with your coat is going to make things much better.
"Early warning system?" Yikes, wish you'd had that for whatever that big tentacle thing is.
THAT TENTACLE THING THAT SCREAMS OKAY WE'VE GOT SCREAMING PLANTS NOW
"If I have to die, I want it to be for a better reason than providing nourishment for a flesh-eating tentacle!" #illjustleavethishere
No no no Jo this is actually a really good time for you to really stay put because collapsing in the jungle would be rather problematic.
Ah, thank you. Hey there Mr. Spiridon, you might want to leave Jo alone. Unless you have a cure for that deadly fungus, which would be nice.
Aaaand just when I was about to ask if the Spiridons had actually been identified as hostile, one of them tries to break a dude in half.
NO GUYS DON'T GO BACK INTO THE JUNGLE GO INSIDE THE SHIP WHERE JO IS.
"COM-MAND. CEN-TER. OR-DERS. THE CRAFT. IS TO BE. DES-TROYED." Ah yes, that would make the ship a worse place to be right now, wouldn't it?
The Doctor: will literally stand between Dalek laser blasts and his companions in trouble.
I still have trouble wrapping my brain around the fact that Classic Who Daleks had non-lethal beam settings.
That said, considering the ship didn't actually explode or anything, I'd say Jo has a pretty good chance of making it out.
Three and an escort Dalek in a lift. Literally all that's missing from this scene is awkward elevator music.
Hello cell, we meet again. I thought you said you were going into counseling. Back to grovel at my doorstep in the middle of the night?
At least Three has company in there.
"They're used to living close to death." Speaking of which, Three seems to be taking Jo's plight frustratingly well.
"Courage isn't just a matter of not being frightened you know."
"What is it then?"
"It's being afraid and doing what you have to do anyway."
After that little pep talk, time to go pocket-diving! Huh, Three's got the sonic with him, that ought to come in handy soon.
Three found Jo's first recording device...please don't turn this into a preview of the tape player scene from the end of To The Death...
Three's face though...such a perfect mixture of grief and tranquil fury...aaaand cut to Jo resting in the most glam of furs.
Wow, okay, the Spiridons can talk after all. That's handy. Maybe you can tell us what that red stuff is before you feed it to Jo?
Oh, it goes directly on the skin. Thank you, Mr. Spiridon!
Although now it looks like Jo's arm is covered in blood.
Sonic doesn't work. Next challenge: checking out the stuff in your pockets and figuring out how to MacGyver your way around a Dalek.
Hey Thals, this probably isn't the best time to be turning your guns on each other.
I imagine Katy Manning must've had fun carrying this scene of just her talking to a floating bowl.
More Thals! And we finally have a female explorer on board now! Shame about that ship crash, though.
"Well somewhere on this planet there are ten THOUSAND Daleks!" ...OH. YEAH THAT'S A PROBLEM.
nO SERIOUSLY THE THALS ALL HAVE THE SAME HAIR
On a slightly related note, wow I really want one of those Spiridon fur blankets. They're so damn shiny...
"Instead of white-hot lava, this erupts with molten ice!" Wouldn't that be...boiling water?
Okay, I know they just said it's a form of ice "that never gets hard," but still. #SCIENCE!
the spiridons with the furs on are like glam rock yetis oh my god
Special delivery of one Jo in a basket!
("Terry Nation wrote this serial with a broken leg: he heroically continued working at the typewriter with the limb in plaster.")
I'm tempted to make a comment about that not being as bad as a broken arm, but I've broken my ankle before so I know how rough that is.
Riding the spinning Dalek: not as nauseating as the Disneyland teacups, but about a gagillion times more dangerous.
"You know, for a man who abhors violence, I took great satisfaction in doing that." It's okay, Three, we all have our guilty pleasures.
Prisoners' escape has been detected and the Thals in the ice vents are about to get blasted. Hope you're still well-hidden there, Jo.
I have to appreciate any Dalek story that shows them actually using their plungers for pushing buttons and opening doors and stuff.
Three, I'm beginning to think that NOT shouting "BACK!" every time you encounter a Dalek is the preferable course of action right now.
You have reached Level Dalek. Sorry, wrong floor.
"I know it's not the moment to ask how you got in there..." YES EXACTLY SO THREE LET THEM OUT OF THE SHAFT
Whew, okay that worked out. Although I'd like to see how that Dalek fixes the jammed ice shaft.
*SPLORT* or maybe not
Uh oh, there we go, our first Heroic Sacrifice of the serial.
Aaaaand now we're left to question exactly how the Daleks used their plungers to sort through hidden items on a dead body.
Oh come on Daleks why are you wasting time cutting through the door with that dinky-ass heat saw when you can just blast it or something.
Jo's lasted nearly this whole episode sneaking around without getting caught once. *muffled Metal Gear Solid theme in the distance*
"We're certainly not going to float out of here!"
"That's precisely what we ARE going to do!"
#MORESCIENCE!
Oh wow, that makeshift hot air balloon might actually work. On that note, THREE GET BACK TO YOUR ROPE.
On the other hand, locating a huge underground cavern full of Daleks is still pretty handy.
"There's not enough lift to take all our weight!" Which, unfortunately, is exactly what I suspected was going to happen.
Oh wow, that impromptu hot-air balloon seems to be working after all. Also, everyone has really nice-looking shoes.
There's a "how many Daleks does it take to break down a door?" joke in here somewhere, but I guess it writes itself.
"Any idea how far to the surface?"
"Miles, I should think."
THAT IS ACTUALLY SUPER-HORRIFYING.
Frankly I'm not too keen on dangling above Daleks in a tight vent supported only by plastic, some rope, and a lot of hot air.
And now we move on from Dalek Maneuvering 101: Opening Doors to Dalek Maneuvering 102: Moving Rocks.
FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY JO GRANT IS AWESOME 401: BOMB DISPOSAL.
Although that was a highly inconveniently-timed falling rock. Wake up quickly, Jo!
"Just you hang on tight, we're perfectly safe." Cue shot of an ominous tear developing in the plastic. #dundunduuuun
Antigrav disks, ascension, liftoff...oh lovely, now they're being pursued up a narrow space by *flying Daleks.*
And yes, I know flying Daleks are nothing new to us now, but I imagine that wouldn't be so true when this aired.
Jo...Jo get up...JO GET UP...
Ah, that worked out surprisingly weOH MY GOD JO DIDN'T JUST FIX THE BOMBS SHE BLEW UP THOSE DALEKS
Yikes, looks like the plastic balloon picked the perfect time to break. At least they're back on the surface now.
...Oh. Scratch that, at least the Thals are back on the surface now. Three is still clinging onto the access ladder for dear life.
WOAH GUYS HE NEEDS AN ESCAPE ROPE NOT A NOOSE
Rocks fall, Dalek dies.
THREE AND JO REUNITED AT LAST. Hug time!
"We've got to destroy the Daleks!"
"And how does my being here change that?"
"Because...because I love you!"
Aww, Thal-love. <3
The Daleks' biological weapon appears to be a lot of moldy cheese in a box. That...actually seems just gross enough to work.
Got the whole team back together...and I still can't tell most of the Thals apart :/
On the other hand, awwww Jo teaching them about handshakes :)
Alright gang, time to hang out by some geothermal rocks for the night.
Woah woah woah boys BOYS this is no time to be trying to kill each other, now cut that out.
Aaaand so the resident hothead decides to nab the bombs and go blow up the Daleks by himself. At least he had the courtesy to leave a note.
Ah. Now that's more unblinking glowing eyes in one place than I'm comfortable with.
Only two shots left... (insert Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow joke here)
NONONO I KNOW THE SPIRIDONS TOOK YOUR FRIEND AND YOUR BOMBS BUT DON'T HIT THEM THEY'RE LIKE BIG PURPLE YETI D:
My weakness for big fluffy things may be my downfall one of these days.
But seriously though, Glam Rock Yetis.
And now we come to the slightly awkward choose-your-definition-of-the-word-torch scene.
In this case, "everybody grab torches" does in fact mean "everybody grab a big flaming stick to ward off the monsters."
Oh neat, the Spiridons have names after all! The one who saved Jo is apparently called Wester. Oddly British for an invisible alien.
"Doctor, what shall we do?"
"Well first of all we've got to stop the Daleks releasing their bacteria. Second we've got to make sure that their army stays inactive, and third, we've got to generally put an end to their chances of invasion of other planets."
"Well how're we going to do all that?"
"......I haven't the faintest idea."
#goodtoknowthen
Oh Daleks, bless you and your inconsistent firepower and aiming abilities.
Looks like their moldy cheese weapon has upgraded to Deadly Lemon-Lime Slushie since we last saw it.
Ah, a quarry. Nice to see you again! And you've even got hot springs! How thoughtful of you.
("Filming wrapped that day at 3:20, with little more than a half an hour to go before sunset.") That sounds nuts...
...although having spent an autumn in the Midlands, I can attest (to my American followers) that it's legit. Never got used to it, though.
(For the benefit of my British followers, us New Yorkers are used to end-of-year sunsets being around 5 PM at the latest.)
("And that's why winter location work just wasn't efficient!") You said it, InfoText.
"AD-VISE. THAT. NO. PRI-SO-NERS. ARE. TO BE TA-KEN. THEY ARE. TO. BE. EX-TER-MIN-A-TED." #TAKENOPRISONERS
"A bit winded?" Jo, I'd think you'd be used to all this running by now. Then again, you WERE just outrunning a patrol of Daleks.
("Prepare to see the second Dalek hit the rock as it enters. Rather lightweight for a rock, isn't it?") Sassy InfoText is the best InfoText.
("The two Daleks used on location were not BBC property.") ...How?
Ah, they were made by a separate effects company, that's how.
"AS-SIST!! AS-ASIST!!!" Daleks sounding honestly panicked give me joy in a way I can't quite describe.
As does watching Three and a Thal attempting to *pick it up and drag it around.*
Death by ice-bath. Huh, can't say I've seen a Dalek killed that way before.
Oh...oh no, please don't tell me Wester's a traitor, I liked him!
ON ANOTHER NOTE CAN WE PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO APPRECIATE JON PERTWEE IN A SPIRIDON COAT. OR MANY MOMENTS.
"Well Jo, do I pass?"
"You'll do, in a pinch."
#cuties
Oh my god. Wester wasn't a traitor...actually, I think he just saved the whole world at the cost of his own life.
Rest well, Wester. You were a noble soul. A shame we get to see your face only in death.
Uh oh, apparently a single glimpse of boot was all that Dalek needed to blow our heroes' cover.
Hey Daleks, suggestion: if you want your vision to be impaired less often, maybe you should have more than one eyestalk or something.
...said the human who only has one vision center that can't be much larger than a Dalek eyestalk and no laser gun to discourage attackers.
(To clarify, yes I do have full use of both my eyes, but humans don't have eyes in the back of our heads any more than Daleks do.)
That was an odd tangent...anyway, back to giggling at the Thals trying to run under the cover of the Spiridon glam rock coats.
My heart is seriously sinking into my chair at the prospect of Rebec getting burned alive inside that Dalek casing just now.
"Well Rebec, it seems you stopped being a Dalek just in time." Whew!
Incoming ship...and it looks like...ah, I bet that's Dalek Supreme. Looks good in gold.
Wow. Round of applause to Terry Nation for such a great dual-sided analysis of how hope can mean the difference between success and failure.
It cracks me up how Daleks "trying to break in" is literally just them ramming against the door repeatedly.
This is the first time in a good while that I've seen a Dalek go full-on "YOU HAVE FUCKED UP NOW" on another Dalek.
Uh-oh, the Dalek have started to move! *insert MGS alert signal here*
Also, war flashbacks to Licegate 2013.
...Dare I ask why you put the bomb right on an open ledge?
On the other hand, Three climbing into a nest of half-awake Daleks is pretty damn ballsy.
Aaaand boom goes the Dalekmite.
The group's back together, the bomb is set...but there's still about 10 minutes left, so there's time for one more thing to go wrong.
Somehow I sense a Heroic Sacrifice coming up in the next few minutes or so.
Since I feel obligated to comment on this, no it doesn't bother me that the hibernation chamber is full of toy Daleks and not "real" ones.
Frankly, they achieve the sense of scale well enough for me. Their movement is a little jerky, but not a real problem.
"...It failed." ...Okay, I'll admit I didn't see that coming.
Oh wait, never mind, here we go. ICE VOLCANO TO THE RESCUE!
"When you get back to Skaro, you'll all be national heroes. Everybody'll want to hear about your adventures."
"Of course!"
"So be careful how you tell that story, will you? Don't glamorize it. Don't make war sound like an exciting and thrilling game."
Oh Jo, the next time an adventurous young man asks you to go with him is going to come along much sooner than you think. And you'll say yes.
(Guess who still hasn't quite processed that The Green Death is the next story?)
INCOMING DALEKS. And amazingly they made it back inside the TARDIS just fine, despite the acid plants and the crust all over the doors.
"WE. HAVE. BEEN. DE-LAYED. NOT DE-FEAT-ED. THE DA-LEKS. ARE. NE-VER. DE-FEAT-ED."
"But Jo, that's only one little world! There's so many hundreds of others to see!"
"There's only one little world I want to see right now."
THAT WAS IT. THAT WAS THE LINE. THAT WAS THE THING I SAW IN THAT ONE CLIP AND KEPT WAITING FOR IT TO COME UP AND NOW IT'S HERE WHEN I'M DONE
"That one."
"That one? But Jo, that's Earth."
"That's right, Doctor. Home."
"...Home it is, Miss Grant :)"
excuse me while I feels everywhere
guys I just finished up all of jo grant's serials what do I do now #help
@ManningOfficial Just reached the last scene of Planet of the Daleks and you and Jon are melting my heart right out of my chest.
@WhoBlogLiveFeed aw ! Loved doing that one ! Xxxxx
Next: The Green Death