In 2014 the Doctor went where no Doctor has gone before when he ventured inside the mind of a Dalek and examined his own conscience along the way. Fans knew they wouldn't have long to wait to see Peter Capaldi coming face to face with the show's most notorious and iconic adversary but he definitely didn't hang about as the fateful encounter arrived in the second episode of the new series. Talk about eager. This wasn't your ordinary, run of the mill 'Daleks attempt world domination and get themselves blown in the process' kind of episode, though. In fact, the rulebook of what makes a traditional Dalek adventure was ripped up (and thank God) to make way for this electrifying and claustrophobic insight into what really makes those persistent pepperpots tick. As you probably guessed, it isn't rainbows and bunnies. What's more, it really felt like the Daleks had a purpose in this episode, too. The only way to really get to know a man is to pit him against his greatest enemy so this episode was particularly vital in helping to establish what sort of hero this Doctor was going to be - if he was even going to be a hero at all. Suffice to say, if Peter Capaldi hadn't managed to make you fall in love with him in Deep Breath, he definitely would've done it in this one.
Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.
