Daleks are, as they so often like to decree, the supreme beings in the universe. As we have seen on numerous occasions, they are expert killing machines, a race so corrupted, so evil that the usually fearless Doctor shudders every time he has to face one. Sometimes, however, Daleks can be very, very stupid. 1974's Death To the Daleks unfortunately displays some of the most inept Daleks ever seen in the show, demonstrated in a series of moments from which a single one can't be picked. On the planet Exxilon, which draws all power from whatever lands there, the Daleks are helplessly attacked by the native Exxilon tribes, screaming 'I am losing control!' like a hysteric on their first driving lesson. Upon finding its prisoner has escaped, one Dalek berates itself for its failure, spinning around and around until it self-destructs. Let's just say they were having an off day...
44. Daleks Versus Mechanoids The Chase
For a race as hate-filled as the Daleks, you would think that they have other enemies than just the Doctor. Well, in the final episode of 1965's The Chase we encounter a race of robots that really get the Daleks' wick up. Landing on the planet Mechanus to capture the Doctor, our favourite murderous cyborgs meet the Mechanoids, a race of robots, and instantly take a dislike to them. Forgetting their pursuit of the Doctor, the Daleks engage in a full-scale battle with the Mechanoids, allowing the Time Lord and his friends to escape. It's nice to see them having another hobby for a change.
43. The Doctor Visits 'Intensive Care' - Asylum Of The Daleks
Back to scary Daleks. Trawling through the Dalek Asylum in search of the trapped Oswin, the Doctor enters the 'intensive care' ward, home to the most-damaged, written-off Daleks in the Asylum, ever still and silent. Except these are the Doctor's Daleks, battle-scarred and driven mad from fighting him on such planets as Spiridon, Kembel and Exxilon (not that those Daleks needed much to scar them). Jolting awake, the Daleks surge forward, intent on finally destroying the man who is not only their greatest enemy but who also destroyed their lives. Trapped against a shut door, the Doctor cannot escape. The idea of insane Daleks is an intriguing one, the threat of which is very well realised in this scene. If a Dalek is too unhinged for the Daleks, a race not known for their level-headedness, then it must be a very insane creature indeed.
42. The Daleks Renounce Evil The Curse Of Fatal Death
Steven Moffat's 1998 spoof for Comic Relief is one of the great Doctor Who stories despite not actually being proper Doctor Who. Just about to retire and settle down with his fiancee, Emma, the Doctor (Rowan Atkinson) is called in on one final adventure by his old enemy, the Master, who has teamed up with the Daleks. In stopping them, the Doctor regenerates several times becoming Richard E Grant, Jim Broadbent and, finally, Hugh Grant before seemingly dying from a bout of zectronic energy. In honour of their fallen foe, the Daleks vow to retire from evil and live a peaceful existence. Although an unorthodox story, to say the least, this is a fun take on the Daleks and a rare (deliberately) humorous moment that features a Dalek. At one point in the adventure, the Daleks augment the Master with two very suspicious looking Dalek bumps on his chest. But that's a story for another time...
41. The Paradigm Daleks Are Revealed Victory Of The Daleks
Surely the most controversial issue to do with the Daleks is the complete design overhaul they received in 2010. From diminutive despotic tanks, they became towering shiny totems, painted in primary colours. Whatever, your opinion of these Daleks, however, the moment of their unveiling is a great one. The Doctor has fallen for the Daleks' ruse to get him to identify them (see more later) and so the Progenitor, a device which creates new batches of 'pure' Daleks, is reactivated and creates a new Dalek paradigm - who immediately exterminate the Daleks that brought them to life. Even if you didn't like this kaleidoscope of Kaled killers, then its hard to argue that, after the Daleks had always been the underdogs in the revived series, leftovers from the Time War, they were now back and stronger than ever. Albeit in the colours of the rainbow.
