Why You Forgot About It:It's the 80's, the Doctor looks terrible and it's the guy they canned, the Daleks are the wrong colour, and the show had lost the plot. Why You Should See It (Again):This is something that really should be done again. To address the points I bring up above: Yes, it's the 80's all right. And the Doctor's outfit is pretty bad, at best an acquired taste. (Although Colin Baker himself might agree with the former.) Yes, he was fired. The Daleks are white, but after the blinged-up gold Daleks and the goofy multicolour Paradigm, that's not so bad. And often in this period the show did lose the plot. (It even bungled a multi-Doctor story with 2nd Doctor Patrick Troughton - and I'm being generous with that assessment.) But forget about that for a second - Consider the following: What if I told you... you could have a story where John Simm's Master came back? And it was told mostly from his setting and perspective, showing you his awareness of the impending Doctor arrival, and how he bided his (evil) time? What's that? "YES PLEASE?" I thought so. Of course you'd want to see that. Well, this is that story. But it's not The Master - It's Davros, creator of the Daleks who gets that treatment. "Revelation of the Daleks" has been criticized because the Doctor shows up to the pertinent events almost halfway through the story and then is more part of the events, rather than driving them. Um... sounds familiar. We've seen that here..... And here... Not to mention here, where he kinda just "isn't"... Now, I'll accept "Love and Monsters" isn't universally praised. (I'm not a big fan myself.) But just because the Doctor isn't in the narrative in the "Action Hero" or "Primary Protagonist" role doesn't make the story crap. It depends on what else is going on. "Blink" and "Turn Left" are proof of this. There's a LOT going on in "Revelation of the Daleks". It's pretty much a study of Davros, and given that he really seemed to die onscreen in his previous story, it makes his return that much more interesting. What has he been up to? How do you return from near death to the galactic conquest-villainy business? In this case, the answer is refreshingly original. Davros, rather than return in a pantomime villain "Here's-my-latest-destroy-the-Universe/Doctor/Maybe Both" plot as the Master had taken to doing, has quietly seeded himself at the center of a galactic mortuary. Here, he a) controls the mortuary, Tranquil Repose, b) Goes all "Soylent Green" with the corpses and makes a killing as the "Great Healer", feeding the hungry across the Universe, and lastly c) farms through the bodies in stasis awaiting medical cures, instead mutating them into his new species of Dalek. So, yes, indeed - "Revelation of the Daleks" is indeed a very '80s story, in the way that a company with good intentions is overcome by a "hostile takeover" (Ha!) and pushed into successful but morally questionable business that has selfish gains and agendas. Davros' actions are both a charming allegory for corporate business and allow the character to do something original - Have a plan that actually MAKES SENSE in terms of an Evil Genius Plan (tm) rather than something involving a Death Ray or a Dalek invasion. Of course he'd go this route - He's tried warfare and conquest with varying degrees of subterfuge, and they failed - A change in plan and strategy would be the FIRST thing a genius would arrive at.... This also allows us some insight on Davros' day-to-day - which, tellingly, sees him manipulate Tranquil Repose employees into murdering each other rather than doing the deed himself and playing a far more universal and world-spanning game of "The Apprentice" with Eleanor Bron. We haven't spent this much, er, quality time with Davros since "Genesis of the Daleks" - It's a welcome development to his character, showing him against other settings beyond Dalek-creating and Doctor-plotting. In the end, it's Davros' failure to recognize threats more conventional to his new role - to avoid spoiling things, he's prepared for assassins, betrayal, and the Doctor, but not employee complaints. And while I'm sure that an in-depth Davros examination may be enough to draw some fans in, let it be said - This story has some of the most unusual and interesting secondary characters and settings - "Doctor Who" hadn't had this kind of diversity in one story since the 70's, and wouldn't see it again until the show's relaunch in 2005. And one more thing - Colin Baker's quite good in this as the Doctor. And the moment where his companion Peri breaks his Fob Watch (and his resulting frustration) looks much more interesting now that "Human Nature/The Family of the Blood" has come and gone. Don't like his outfit? Turn the colour down and pretend you're watching a '60s episode or something. If anything, it might make all the Daleks in the catacombs that much creepier. What'd I miss? I thought people have pretty good ideas about Pertwee's stories, and so much Troughton is missing that it's hard to say. But is there a Smith, Baker, or Eccleston story you think deserves more? Comment below.
In a parallel universe where game shows' final jackpots and consequent fortunes depend on knowledge of obscure music trivia and Jon Pertwee/Tom Baker Doctor Who episodes, I've probably gone rich, insane, and am now a powermad despot. But happily we're not there, so I'm actually rather pleasant. Really.
