Death to the Daleks [TV/1974.2.23 ~ 3.16]

★★★☆☆

  Death to the Daleks is a loving tribute to adventure serials of the 1930s, in a similar vein to blockbuster Hollywood films such as the Indiana Jones and Star Wars series. Don't believe me? The Exxilon city is one giant archeological site that acts as your typical temple from another civilisation, full of traps and tests of skill. The eluded war that humans and Daleks face is space opera 101. Even the Doctor taking the role of explorer/man on a mission can be seen as adhering to such tropes. What I'm saying is that this serial is quite packed with lovely little elements and big set pieces designed for adventure serial nuts like me. Just check out that Exxilon city, and gasp in awe at the imagination (the city is sentient, and its guards are antibodies)! I adore the way Terry Nation's imagination works sometimes; this is a vividly written and executed world, and certainly one of the most memorable. A distinct culture, full of cultural curios and "monsters" living underneath... trust me, I can never have enough of this.

  On the other hand, it does feel to me that after the superbly directed first episode, the rest of the four-parter loses a bit of steam and throws in set piece after set peice to keep the audience engaged. This isn't normally a problem, except when the haphazard nature of it all actively takes you out of the immersion... as Death to the Daleks sometimes did. Still, those moments were very few and far between, and Jon Pertwee having a fun time is more than enough to keep a viewer interested. Sarah Jane doesn't get to do all that much, and the eponymous Daleks have quite frankly a laughable role as the supposed "antagonists", but all's well and good when the serial as a whole is jam-packed with so much excitement and dedication to the craft.