Doctor Who: Journey to the Center of a Dalek

Into Darkness or “Rehabbing a Dalek”

As Clara befriends a new teacher at her school, she’s pulled into an extreme counseling session between the Doctor and a supposed “good” Dalek. It still kills—but for good!

We open in the middle of a battle as two soldiers try to fend off an attack. But it’s a futile task as their enemies are Daleks. You knew they would pop up soon, right. As one soldier falls to the Daleks, the other finds herself on the TARDIS bridge with the Doctor. She demands to know where her brother is but the Doctor reveals he could only save her. Pointing her gun at him, she identifies herself as Journey Blue and demands to be taken back to her ship, the Aristotle. But the Doctor keeps interrupting her and saying she’s doing it wrong. Finally, she asks politely.


The TARDIS doors open to let her back on her ship. The other soldiers welcome her and Journey reveals to the Doctor the ship used to be a hospital. But there wasn’t a need for them since Daleks don’t leave people alive. Her superior officer…and uncle…is not thrilled to see who she’s brought along. But she tells him that she brought a Doctor. For their patient.

Their patient? A shot up Dalek. It starts declaring “Doc-tor! Doc-tor!” This confuses the Doctor and me as Oswin Oswald, Junior Entertainment Officer, wiped the Dalek hive mind of the Doctor. But the soldiers reveal they had told the Dalek they would get it medical attention. The Doctor is not keen on helping the Daleks, but this one starts declaring that the Daleks are evil.

(Welcome this season's Dalek appearance)

Well that’s new.

CREDITS!

Ladies and gentlemen, a new cast member! This is Danny Pink and get used to him. 

(Hello, Mr. Pink)

Which I don’t think will be a problem. He seems to run some sort of ROTC program and puts the teens through their paces before school. Inside, he chats with the school secretary, who seems to think everything he says is a double entendre. The HR person in me thinks she needs some retraining.

In his class, his students are more interested in his past as a soldier than their homework. One kid asks if he ever killed somebody. Danny explains he was a soldier in combat and yes, people died. The kid asks if he ever killed somebody who wasn’t a soldier. Danny dismisses the class. Something tells me the answer is yes.

(It's the single tear)

After class, Clara is introduced to Danny—who teaches math. They banter a bit and it was all so quick. Clara asks Danny if he’s going to something after work but he’s not. Except we see him in his classroom, wishing he had said yes. She presses a bit but he doesn’t back down. Except in his classroom. Clara witnesses it all, to his embarrassment. They agree to go for coffee.


<>tr>

(Always watching)

Clara returns to her classroom to find the TARDIS and the Doctor there. She asks him where’s he’s been and he holds up his coffee tray. Clara points out that she sent him for coffee…three weeks ago. In Glasgow. The Doctor’s response is pretty much: “Oops.” He’s then like: “Got a mystery, need companion. You coming?” And she’s like, “Okay. Got a date though so have to be back in time. Mean it.” She joins him in the TARDIS.

In the TARDIS, they have a heart-to-heart moment. He asks her if he’s a good man. Clara doesn’t know the answer. She’s still getting used to the new Doctor. They then arrive at their destination.

Anyway, there’s a good Dalek. The Doctor doesn’t believe one can exist. Nor do the soldiers. Clara can, though. Anyway, the Doctor agrees to go inside the Dalek to figure out what’s going on. And to talk with the creature inside the soldiers didn’t know about when they tried to open it up.

To do so, they have to be shrunk. The Doctor, Clara and Journey pile into a capsule with other soldiers. Journey reminds them to keep breathing as they are shrunk or else POP! Clara’s amazed by everything while the Doctor is less than thrilled to be going inside a nemesis. Now tiny, the capsule is shot inside the Dalek.

(Honey, I Shrunk the Cast)

Everyone treks around as the Doctor reveals more about the Dalek anatomy. And circuitry. It is still part machine, after all. A soldier fires something at the Dalek’s inside and the Doctor reminds them that the Dalek is a living thing. It’s been attacked by a foreign body, so what is it going to do? A soldier with understanding of biology realizes that its immune system is about to send antibodies their way.

The antibodies look like Doris (DOR-15) from “Meet the Robinsons” sans robot hands. They can the soldier that shot into the Dalek. The Doctor gives him something to swallow and tells him to remain calm. And then the antibodies destroy him. Goodbye, soldier. We hardly knew ye.

(Freaky looking antibody)

Journey demands to know why the Doctor gave her comrade a pill if it wasn’t to save him. The Doctor says it’s to help track where the Daleks put the bodies. His sonic starts to pick up the signal and they follow it to their destination, using the Dalek’s nutrient system to avoid further run ins from Dalek antibodies.

The small group arrives at the site of the problem: Radiation is leaking into the very core of the Dalek, caused by the injuries sustained during the fight. The Doctor talks with the Dalek, dubbing him Rusty. He wants to know more about why Rusty came to eschew the Dalek way of life. The simple answer? He saw beauty. Namely, the beauty of birth. He saw a star being born. The Doctor doesn’t seem impressed. He’s still trying to figure out if Rusty really is good or if it’s the radiation.

(Meet Rusty)

So the Doctor, Clara and Journey set about fixing the radiation leak. And once they do, guess what? The Dalek returns to “Daleks are the best. Everyone else must die” mode. 

(The Doctor's "I made a big mistake" face)

As it starts blowing up the station outside, Journey and the soldiers rush to help their comrades. The Doctor gloats that he was right about the true nature of Daleks. Clara slaps him. She yells at him for being more focused on being right than on the fact that there’s a rampaging Dalek killing people outside.

(Beware this look)

The Doctor decides to see if he can recreate the moment that first turned the Dalek good—and see if it really was the radiation. He sends Clara to go climbing around the Dalek’s memory ports to find the memory of the star being born. He stays with Rusty.

Clara and the soldiers realize that they need to climb up into the memory banks. But the only way to do that will trigger the antibodies. So one soldier asks if the Doctor can be trusted. Clara says he can be. She tells them her name is Gretchen Allison Carlisle and asks them to remember her. 

(Gretchen Allison Carlyle)

With that, she fires a rope line into the Dalek and sends Clara with Journey as the antibodies vaporize her. She then ends up at a tea table with our favorite madwoman, Missy. Missy welcomes her to heaven.

(I think I prefer St. Peter)

Outside, the Dalek ship descends and is ready to destroy the Aristotle. The soldiers try to hold them off while waiting for the Doctor to do whatever he plans to do.

Clara crawls around and manages to reactive the memory. The Doctor also plugs his consciousness into the Dalek’s. His memories become the Dalek’s. And Rusty sees the beauty. He sees the universe as the Doctor sees it. But he can also see how much the Doctor hates the Daleks, how the Doctor sees the Daleks, and he reverts to the “All Daleks are bad” but now he’s on mission to destroy them all.

(The Cosmos with The Doctor)

Rusty goes on a killing spree and takes out all the Daleks. The soldiers don’t care as long as they aren’t under attack anymore. But the Doctor is disappointed. He proved to himself that death and destruction lie at the very heart of a Dalek, no matter what their cause is. He, Clara and Journey return outside as Rusty reveals he’s leaving with the other Daleks. Before he goes, he tells the Doctor he is a good Dalek. This disturbs the Doctor.

The threat neutralized, the Doctor and Clara prepare to leave. Journey kisses her CO—and uncle—on the cheek and runs after them. She wants to travel with the Doctor. He says she’s a sweet person but it’s a shame she’s a soldier. Apparently he now has a no soldier rule. Clara and the Doctor leave a confused Journey behind as the TARDIS dematerializes.

(Journey is very confused)

Clara changes her outfit in the TARDIS and asks the Doctor if she looks all right. But he’s distracted by something else. And Clara knows what it is. Before she leaves, she tells the Doctor that she doesn’t know if he’s a good person. What she does know is that he tries to be and she believes that counts for something. They share a smile as she leaves, only seconds after the Doctor picked her up. Seems he’s gotten better at landing the TARDIS. Danny spots her and asks if she’s changed. She says she has and asks if he’s ready for those drinks. Danny admits he was worried she’d change her mind and implement a no soldier policy. As he walks off screen, Clara mutters that she doesn’t have a no soldier policy.

(I think there's love in the air)

Sorry for the delay! I was out of town when this episode aired and I suffered from what I call DVRistis—procrastinating watching something because it’s on the DVR and you can watch anytime. But I caught up and hopefully my “Robot of Sherwood” recap isn’t too far delayed.

Next time: Robin Hood!

Screencaps from here.