The fact that none of this story exists is doubly tragic, given that it's also Patrick Troughton's debut. And what a debut it is, with a Doctor who may not be the Doctor (though he is), Daleks who may not be psychopathic conquerors (though they are), and a setting that sounds like it comes straight from Star Trek (though it doesn't). Apart from that last bit, it's a story that keeps the audience constantly guessing and wondering whether the status quo has entirely changed - and in one way, it has. It's also this story first and foremost that stories like Into The Dalek and Victory of the Daleks are paying homage to when they toy with the idea of Daleks that may not be as evil as we've always thought they were. True, it may be asking a lot for even the most ardent fan to sit through six episodes of audio, but it's lovely, creepy audio, especially the scene in which a Dalek is shouting over and over again "I am your servant!" while the Doctor tries, in vain, to shout it down. Both this and Evil of the Daleks also prove something that fans may have already suspected - Terry Nation may have created the Daleks, but no one wrote better for them than David Whitaker. At least, until 2005 rolled around...
Tony Whitt has previously written TV, DVD, and comic reviews for CINESCAPE, NOW PLAYING, and iF MAGAZINE. His weekly COMICSCAPE columns from the early 2000s can still be found archived on Mania.com. He has also written a book of gay-themed short stories titled CRESCENT CITY CONNECTIONS, available on Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle format. Whitt currently lives and works in Chicago, Illinois.
