So for you sci-fi fans out there, I've just started to get into Doctor Who (the new version). I've finished the first season, and I must confess that I'm conflicted. I really enjoy the premise, and the episodes have been very good so far, but what really bothers me is the Daleks. Without giving away too much, the problem with season 1 is that the Daleks were (temporarily) defeated by a storm of ass-kicking from the TARDIS. And when you do that so early on in a villain's development, it severely detracts from their credibility as a villain. It's sort of like the Borg from Star Trek: in TNG they were amazing villains, because you didn't beat them, you just barely survived encounters with them. And then Voyager came along, and showed us that really big guns were enough to kick the Borg's collective ass. And they were never scary again. I'm afraid the Daleks are going along the "Voyager Borg" route: the villains which are supposedly scary, but which are regularly on the receiving end of a can of whoop-ass. Without giving away specific spoilers, can anyone assuage my fears on this subject?
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Doctor Who (spoilers ahoy)
- Thread starter Kunzite
- Start date
That''s good to know. The fact that they introduced a very good villainous race, an then immediately gave them a "Borg Queen" was a bit much.
You have nothing to worry about. Trust me. I watched the new series of Doctor Who 3 times all the way up to the current episode this summer. It's just that good.
Whoviantrekkie
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I'll admit that the Eccelston season is a far cry from my favorite (Though it had its gems in there) but it will get better and the Daleks get better too. I mean they've been around for almost fifty years for a reason you know. 😉
Interrogator
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I agree with you frankly, the Daleks have never really seemed convincing as an enemy for exactly the reason you mentioned. They've popped up on many occasions during the revamped series, and no matter how bad it gets or how arseholed the world/universe appears, the Doctor will have sorted it out in 1-2 episodes. What I like about the new series with Matt Smith (whom many dislike) is that the Doctor he portrays seems much more vulnerable, seemingly making it up on the fly. I prefer this to the god-like character of David Tennant's Doctor, with Smith theres a real sense of danger, that all may not turn out well in the end. Its much more engaging and far less predictable. The writers have said they are resting the traditional bad guys (specifically the Daleks and Cybermen) for a bit, which is good news as far as I'm concerned. When the Daleks make their comeback, assuming Smith is still the Doctor, I bet it will be more fun.
People dislike Matt Smith? O_O Damn, that's news to me. I love the Eleventh Doctor, pretty much from his first appearance. A part of me will always miss David Tennant's Doctor a little, but Matt Smith's is easily just as awesome.
I think if the Daleks had been lame from the beginning, I wouldn't have minded so much. But they were truly compelling villains. And imagine how disappointed I was when the first season ended like this:
Rose: I will defeat you all, and your centuries-old plan, with my seconds-old magic powers!
The Doctor: Don't do it, Rose! You'll kick too much ass! No one was meant to be that awesome!
Rose: Then I will proceed to kick ass, and then give you my awesomeness! With absolutely no consequences whatsoever!
Rose: I will defeat you all, and your centuries-old plan, with my seconds-old magic powers!
The Doctor: Don't do it, Rose! You'll kick too much ass! No one was meant to be that awesome!
Rose: Then I will proceed to kick ass, and then give you my awesomeness! With absolutely no consequences whatsoever!
Except, y'know, the Ninth Doctor's death.
Say what you will, but even if you didn't like that resolution, the Daleks are a far cry from lame. The series never stops getting better. Just stick with it, trust me.
Artoo
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Stick with it - the Daleks are a little overused until the Matt Smith series' (5 & 6) but there are some awesome villains out there.
Also;
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Also;
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Artoo
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Also.
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Filthyweasel
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None of the Doctor Who villains are ever beaten. They are always just "stopped". He says that on the show...most of his threats to the villains end with "...or I'll have to stop you." Daleks have been around since the second Doctor Who story way back in the 60's. They're the most iconic BBC villain ever to exist. I'm sorta pissed that they screwed around with the design to make 'new' ones, but I'll get over it.
Filthyweasel
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Agreed. I think Matt Smith's great. He brings a sorta Willy Wonka quality to the Doctor that the others lacked, except for the second one (the one after William Hartnell that played the recorder, I forget his name). And he has the best one-liners out of all of them.
That's true with most TV villains, but what matters is the way they're stopped. We know the villains aren't going to win in the end, but when it comes to making villains scary, the rule is, "show, don't tell". Good storytelling will demonstrate how dangerous a villain is (think the TNG Borg, the Cylons, the Galactic Empire). Poor storytelling relies on informing the audience, "These people are dangerous!", and then never bother to show you why (think the Voyager Borg, the Peacekeepers, those stupid Jango Fett clonetroopers). When you establish a race as a huge threat to the galaxy and then let them lose in a humiliatingly stupid fashion, you're breaking the cardinal rule. I'm not saying any Doctor Who villains have done that yet, and I'm really hoping they don't. But the prognosis looks good 🙂
