July 5: "Into the Dalek"

Stuart Manning's poster for "Into the Dalek"
(from Doctor Who: Exclusive Into the Dalek
poster revealed)

So "Deep Breath" was a bit of an oddball story just by virtue of its being a post-regeneration one.  That means that "Into the Dalek" is perhaps a clearer indication of who this new Doctor is and how things are going to go.  And that direction is certainly darker and more sombre than what we'd been generally used to with the eleventh Doctor.

But I think there's been a focus on those darker moments and not on the lighter ones sprinkled throughout.  Yes, there are things like the Doctor's brusque reaction to Blue's brother's death, and the question of "Am I a good man?" that's going to sort of be an undercurrent for this series -- and, rather infamously, his line describing Clara: "[She's] my carer.  She cares so I don't have to."  And there's the slightly odd prejudice that this Doctor has against soldiers, which (while he hasn't been their biggest fans up to this point) hasn't really been the case up to this point.  (Then again, he did just spend something like 800+ years fighting to defend Christmas from various soldiers, so maybe that's what caused him to sour on them.  Or they could just be setting up another series-long theme that's going to rear its head with Danny Pink, and they're just not terribly clever about it this time around.)  But there are also defter moments, elements that sparkle, like his initial interaction with Journey Blue's uncle Morgan ("Oh, it's a roller coaster with you, isn't it?"), or his compliments to Clara ("Do I really not pay you?"), or his promise to Gretchen Alison Carlisle ("I will do something amazing, I promise").  It is darker than before, yes, but it's not a total darkness.  (That said, I think I see what they're going for with the Doctor's comments on Clara's appearance -- that he genuinely doesn't understand humanity's quirks and doesn't realize that he's being insulting -- but hoo boy, we're perilously close to just straight-up sexism here, which is worrying in a show that's generally been reasonably good (albeit not perfect) about avoiding such things.)

Still, a character study of the new Doctor isn't the sole purpose of "Into the Dalek" (although it certainly forms a key part).  The main part of the story (the Doctor and company being miniaturized and put inside a Dalek to find out why it's become moral) is fairly interesting and taut, and the trip through the Dalek, while being rather daft, is handled with enough serious intent to paper over any major feelings of silliness.  There's a certain extent in which this is simply a sort of quest storyline -- first to find out what caused the Dalek to acquire a sense of morality, and then to try and get it to feel that way again, once the Doctor has repaired it.  And we get some exciting set pieces, such as our heroes fighting the Dalek's antibodies as they make their way through or sliding through the feeding tube.

The Doctor confronts Rusty. ("Into the Dalek") ©BBC

But no, this really is about examining the Doctor in the face of a Dalek, and while the idea of there being such a thing as a "good" Dalek is explored, what's interesting is the Doctor's reactions to this: first disbelief, then disappointed resignation when he learns that that sense of morality was the result of a damaged power cell, and finally determination to get the Dalek to feel that way again.  "See, all those years ago, when I began, I was just running," he says to the Dalek.  "I called myself the Doctor, but it was just a name.  And then I went to Skaro.  And then I met you lot and I understood who I was.  The Doctor was not the Daleks."  His determination to get Rusty the Dalek to see the beauty of the universe is interesting, but just as interesting is Rusty's twisting of the Doctor's intents.  "I see your mind, Doctor," Rusty says, after the Doctor plugs his memories into the Dalek.  "I see your universe. ... I see beauty. ... I see endless, divine perfection. ... I see into your soul, Doctor.  I see beauty.  I see divinity.  I see hatred. ... I see your hatred of the Daleks and it is good. ... Death to the Daleks."  Despite the Doctor's best efforts, Rusty takes away the wrong lesson (one which ties into "Asylum of the Daleks" and the Daleks' concept of hatred as beautiful) and goes away, convinced that the Daleks should be killed, when all the Doctor wanted was to introduce Rusty to the beauty and wonder of the universe.  (The "You are a good Dalek" bit just feels like a crib from "Dalek", rather than the more serious point I think they wanted to make, however.)

It's a bit of a melancholy note to end on, which is probably why we get a bit more of the initial stages of the relationship between Clara and fellow schoolteacher (and former soldier) Danny Pink, which does help a bit.  But overall "Into the Dalek", despite the premise, does a good, if not spectacular, job as they explore the character of the Doctor and what it means to be a "good" Dalek.  It's not brilliant, but it is solid.