Doctor Who news: The Daleks will return in festive special
By James Aggas
The Thirteenth Doctor will be facing Doctor Who’s most iconic villains once more in festive special episode Revolution of the Daleks!
The Timeless Children left a huge impact on Doctor Who. The epic finale not only featured some major revelations about the Doctor, but also included classic enemies the Master and the Cybermen.
However, while the end of the episode essentially dealt with those enemies, the Doctor’s not done facing familiar foes just yet. As announced at the very end of the episode, the Doctor will be battling her most iconic enemies once more in Revolution of the Daleks, a festive special episode due to be broadcast in late 2020 or early 2021.
It’s also got quite the cliffhanger to resolve too (and if you haven’t seen The Timeless Children yet, be warned: spoilers follow). After previously pursuing the Doctor’s earlier incarnation, the Judoon finally catch up with their target and imprison the Doctor. With her friends back home – safe, but having no idea about the Doctor’s imprisonment – how will she escape? And what will happen when she faces the Daleks next?
Revolution of the Daleks will continue directly from where The Timeless Children left off.
Photo Credit: James Pardon/BBC Studios/BBC America
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What to expect
Showrunner Chris Chibnall acknowledges how evil that ending is, although he does promise a lot for the upcoming special episode. Even if he’s not sure when it will be.
"We can’t leave the Doctor there! On that cliffhanger! Well, we did. But rest assured, the Doctor and her friends will be back for a one-off extended special around Christmas and New Year. (I don’t know when they’re going to put it on yet, otherwise we’d tell you!). There will be Daleks. There will be exterminations. Thrills, laughter, tears. You know. The usual. See you at the end of the year."
Sounds like there’s a lot to look forward to with this special. While it wasn’t perfect, Resolution was at least a strong way of making the Daleks – or in this case, a single Dalek – a serious threat once again.
It’s also great that we’ll only be seeing them either at the end of this year or the beginning of the next, and that we didn’t see them at all in Series 12. Plenty of major monsters and enemies returned this year, including the Master, the Cybermen and the Judoon. Combined with the major twists and shocks that Chibnall included in this series, and there was hardly any room left for a Dalek story.
By the time Revolution of the Daleks broadcasts, it’ll have been at least close to if not exactly two years since they last appeared, so it’d be the right time for them. And the fact that we’ll be seeing more of them than last time is definitely exciting. It’s going to be a long wait for the return of the Daleks, but I’m eager to see what they’ll get up to next.
Spoiler review: The Timeless Children. dark. Next
Are you looking forward to the return of the Daleks? Do you think it’s the right time for them to come back? Let us know in the comments below.