Resurrection of the Daleks [TV/1984.2.8 ~ 2.15]

★★★★☆

  Peter Davison is also on fire here. Imagine jumping from the fresh-faced, mostly timid Season 19 Fifth Doctor to this serial immediately and seeing this no-nonsense, ruthless man of action who uses biological weaponry to wipe out the Daleks in one fell swoop. This man points a gun at Davros for a good portion of the final episode and threatens to shoot him in cold blood -- and people have the gall to say that the Sixth Doctor, with his brashness, changed the Doctor fundamentally. Well, to be fair to Davison's incarnation, he was basically pushed over the edge and his hand was forced in taking a more hands-on approach, so to speak... I'm just such a fan of the Fifth Doctor whenever he's a cold-blooded bastard under the guise of a wise scholar pushed over the edge. Davison's natural actor instincts seem to gravitate towards that mode of Dr. Who.

  Well, this entire serial is sort of a justification of Eric Saward's approach to Who. It's a deliberate attempt to make the show a more action-oriented, tense affair, and to its credit, Resurrection of the Daleks is a resounding success. The Daleks are frightening, Davros (played to the hilt by Terry Molloy) is electrifying, and the leads are truly wonderful in their roles. I mentioned Davison before, but both Mark Strickson and Janet Fielding are terrific -- and in the case of the latter, she gives one fine swansong performance. There's so much to love here, with the incredible direction by Matthew Robinson (consider this the antithesis of Pennant Roberts' performance when it comes to action), the equally wonderful set design, Davros again, the heart and soul our leads put into their roles, Tegan's realisation that her adventures with the Doctor have become no fun anymore... all amazing stuff. The opening sequence to Resurrection says it all -- this is a relentless, heartless and absolutely brutal serial that comes massacring and crashing to your attention, and it's here to stay.