Doctor Who: 10 Great Fourth Doctor Stories

1. Genesis of the Daleks (Story 078, 1975)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqg-HWztMWg This one was going to be on top. You knew it was. It€™s been at or near the top of almost every list of great Doctor Who stories since the lists were first made. It€™s basically like the Citizen Kane of Doctor Who, and like Kane, there€™s a good reason it€™s been at the top for so long: it€™s good. Damn good. To start with, it€™s a Dalek story. Those have a tendency to be hit and miss, but the good news is that when they hit, they hit hard. This one does. It also shows the often-neglected character of Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter) at his best. Plus you have what are essentially Nazis€in space!, and they come complete with their own version of Himmler in the form of a real €œboo, hiss€ villain known as Nyder. But of course the real greatness with this story comes with the character of Davros, the creator of the Daleks. Twisted and paralyzed in his chair, he channels all his pain into the creation of the Daleks. Ostensibly this is to win the war against the Thalls. In reality, it€™s because he€™s a twisted bastard who wants to have power over everything. One of the best scenes in all of sci-fi occurs when he€™s interrogating the Doctor and the Doctor asks him what Davros would do if he, Davros, had access to a virus that would wipe out every living creature in the universe. It€™s a chilling moment to watch how excited Davros gets at that possibility. Equally great is a scene where the Doctor hesitates over destroying the Daleks. He knows how horribly evil they are, but he also knows that good has come from their evil. It€™s a great moment that establishes firmly what the Doctor€™s sense of ethics is like. While not as accessible to new viewers as €œThe Talons of Weng-Chiang€, this remains the best story of the Fourth Doctor€™s era and very definitely the best Dalek story ever made. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aFza7xS7tU