Creators and Cast:
- Written by Helen Raynor
- Directed by James Hawes
- Episode Cast:
- David Tennant ... The Doctor
- Freema Agyeman ... Martha Jones
- Miranda Raison ... Tallulah
- Ryan Carnes ... Laszlo
- Hugh Quarshie ... Solomon
- Andrew Garfield ... Frank
- Eric Loren ... Mr. Diagoras
- Felix Schwinn ... Myrna
- Alexis Caley ... Lois
Official Summary:
The TARDIS lands in 1930s New York. In the midst of the Depression, people are disappearing off the streets. Savage Pig Men hide in the sewers and, at the very top of the Empire State Building, the Doctor's oldest enemies are at work, preparing their most audacious plan yet.
Key Moments:
The Doctor's breezy "just-passing-through" manner is brought up cold when Frank tells him, "I'm not an idiot, Doctor." Tallulah (
Spooks star Miranda Raison) is a scream, yet comes across as a savvy, flesh-and-blood woman. The follies production number is a pleasant diversion, and it's nice that the show spent some time showing it. The Daleks have sought the "human factor" before, but the human-Dalek hybrid Dalek Sec is the most striking (and literal) evocation of the
Doctor Who premise than human nature contains both a "genius for war" and the capacity for compassion, and that the latter can be stronger.
Doctor Backstory Revelation:
The Daleks reveal that their planet, Skaro, was destroyed in "a great war" -- presumably the Time War, which also wiped out the Time Lords (and other worlds). Nonetheless the Daleks lived, prompting the Doctor's line, "They always survive, while I lose everything."
Fun Guest Alien Factoid:
Apparently there's enough space inside a Dalek for a fully grown man to crawl inside. I'm not sure why that would be exactly, since it would make the supposedly invincible Daleks rather top-heavy, right? Or did Dalek Sec have to empty out his trunk before attempting to accommodate Mr. Diagoras?
Season 3 Mister Saxon Reference:
None.
Bottom Line: Worth Watching?:
This is a beautiful story, featuring an interesting assortment of colorful but real people whom the Doctor is in many ways powerless to help. The idea of the Dalek-human hybrid is kind of goofy, especially as realized by a guy in a business suit with his head stuffed into a big rubber turkey; but what's done with the character and how the Daleks react to him in this episode and the next wins out.
