Doctor Who: Why the Dalek wars needs to be explored more on television

Across the decades, Doctor Who has sometimes referenced the wars that humanity’s had with the Daleks. Is this something that should be explored on-screen?

This week, I’ve been listening to the Doctor Who audio spin-off series, Dalek Empire. It’s a very strong, dark and gritty series that explores one of several major wars that humanity has with the Daleks. It’s an excellent series, and the fact that it has an incredibly large timescale allows it to be more epic and ambitious than your regular Dalek story.

But this got me thinking: why don’t we get stories that explore something like this more often in the New Series? Usually, every time the Daleks show up, they’re working on some kind of grand scheme. The problem with that is that there are only so many “grand schemes” that can be thought of before it starts to get repetitive.

But a story set during one of humanity’s many conflicts against the Daleks could work. It would allow for a story that’s a little darker, and perhaps in some ways more lower stakes than usual.

It could focus more on the characters being caught in the middle of a battlefield and finding a way to escape it, allowing for some interesting character drama, rather than on the standard “save the day” scenario. Considering that Chris Chibnall’s era as show runner has generally focused on lower stakes plotlines overall, this kind of story would fit in quite nicely.

Getting to see humanity battling the Daleks would allow for a different kind of story than the usual Dalek grand schemes that we see on-screen.

(Image credit: Doctor Who/BBC.

Image obtained from: official Doctor Who website.)

Previous exploration

This wouldn’t exactly be the first time that the New Series has explored something like this. One thing I instantly liked about Into the Dalek is that the story is set during one of humanity’s conflicts against the Daleks. The episode essentially begins right in the middle of a battle. It was a really strong start to the episode.

The real problem is the main story itself. The Doctor, Clara and a few soldiers shrinking themselves down to literally get inside the Dalek is an interesting idea, but I can’t help but feel we would have had a stronger, more memorable Dalek episode if we had more of a “base under siege” story.

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The Doctor’s always an interesting character to explore in the middle of a battle because they never like to be there. Even when they are, they practically refuse to use weapons. So the Doctor forced to fight against the Daleks, not to save the universe, but just to save herself and her friends, could be an interesting story.

A really decent audio story that’s much along the same lines as this idea is Enemy of the Daleks. A very dark and action-packed story, the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Hex are caught in the middle of just one battle of the Dalek wars.

The Doctor does have to stop something major, but the story still feels low-stakes enough to allow for plenty of drama that explores the characters. Especially Hex, who meets the Daleks for the first time and is absolutely horrified by them.

So a story set during the Dalek wars, done properly, could work. It would allow the Daleks to be used effectively and not feel too overused by giving us a different flavor of Dalek story.

Next. How Big Finish made the Daleks threatening again. dark

Do you think the Dalek wars should be explored further on television? Do you think a story featuring such a conflict could work in the current era? Let us know in the comments below.

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