Doctor Who: 10 Episodes That Should Have Changed Things Forever (But Didn't)

9. Genesis Of The Daleks (Tom Baker)

Perhaps one of THE most famous stories of the Classic Who era and one that, even now, stands the test of time. Granted, some of the scenes would be cut for pace, but as a piece of storytelling with relevance to modern society they don€™t come much better than this. As the Doctor stands outside the chamber with the two cables in his hand ready to destroy the Dalek embryos he asks himself €œhave I that right?€ As we now know, that decision and his refusal to commit genocide leads to his eventual downfall, the deaths of countless billions and him having to commit genocide on not just one but two races. The Daleks are the Universe€™s greatest enemy and he should have destroyed every last stinking one of them. Instead he trusted the Kaleds to heed his warning and alter the path of Dalek development. We know how that worked out for him. It should be noted that according to the BBC€™s slightly convoluted time-line this episode DID have a huge effect on the Dalek time-line and states that many of the later Dalek escapades, which took place with previous Doctors, either did not happen at all or were altered due to Davros€™ interventions after reading the Doctor€™s mind. This intervention, it is claimed, is responsible for the Daleks taking longer to become the ultimate force of evil in the Universe. Had the Doctor just touched those two wires together, though, the time war would never have happened and his people would have been saved. Then again, the Daleks are a huge ratings boost.