Who Review Round 1: The Dalek Invasion of Earth

I'm going to get this blog started proper by reviewing one story from each of the eleven Doctors.

First up is The Dalek Invasion Of Earth, the last serial to feature the original TARDIS ensemble of First Doctor (William Hartnell), Susan Foreman, Ian Chesterton, and Barbara Wright.

I'm not going into a full-fledged recap of the plot, since you can easily find that yourself online. Instead I want to talk about why this was story was significant, both for the character of the Doctor and for the show going forward.

First, we have a sort of coming of age of the Doctor's iconic enemies, the Daleks. Invasion was the first story to feature them since their debut a year earlier in the story titled, appropriately, The Daleks. Feeling pressure to make the Daleks a regular feature of the show due the sudden wild popularity of the creatures, the producers wanted to establish them as a significant threat to the Doctor and the universe he inhabits. Which they did, in a big way- The Doctor and company travel to Earth in the year 2150 to find humanity utterly subjugated by the Daleks, with the few survivors forced into hard labor building a massive doomsday machine. One of the best ways to establish an antagonist as a compelling threat is to show what the world would be like if they won, and Invasion exploits that trope to show the Daleks as menacing and unstoppable.

Second, we have a significant turning point in the development of the Doctor's character. Up until this story, he was portrayed mainly as cantankerous, self-absorbed, and morally dubious, with little regard for the well-being of bystanders he encountered in his travels (or even his Companions when they got in the way). Whereas in previous stories (such as An Unearthly Child/100,000 B.C.) he was prepared to let innocent people suffer or die so long as it didn't stop him from escaping, in Invasion we start seeing the Doctor take greater care for the well-being of bystanders he encounters. This concern for the innocent will, over the coming decades, come to define the character of the Doctor.

Finally, we see the departure of Susan Foreman, ostensibly the First Companion and the Doctor's granddaughter. With the exception of a brief appearance in the 20th Anniversary special The Five Doctors, Susan never returns to the TARDIS, and a major chapter of the Doctor's life closes. (This separation becomes even more poignant in the wake of the Time War.) Continuing the theme of the Doctor's growing compassion, we see the him going all soft on Susan during their parting and giving a speech (starting at 4:35) that is, quite possibly, the defining moment of the First Doctor era.



One of the best qualities of Doctor Who has been the poignant, heart-wrenching emotion behind the stories, and the unshakable bonds of affection between the Doctor and the Companions. The Dalek Invasion of Earth is one of the first examples of how the show can break your heart.