There has never been a Dalek more intimidating than the Emperor. There is something about the concept of a Dalek with a God complex that is inherently terrifying. The conviction with which he pontificates really sells the belief in his own divinity.
They're not just Daleks. They're Daleks driven to the point of absolute insanity, even the emperor himself here...no, especially the emperor. Falling through time, hiding in darkness, and then rebuilding...a god complex interwoven with a mostly unfulfilled need to exterminate any life that is not Dalek...creating Daleks built to hate themselves and worship him like a god... ...RTD did have at least one Dalek-related story in every season (save for the post-series 4 specials), but god, he sure knew how to use them effectively and make them threatening. Moffat's overuse sort of watered them down, didn't it?
@@Cool70sfreak Not to me, the daleks are already terrifying enough with their xenophobia and murderous instinct. Their delusion just makes their character more interesting imo.
The Daleks for the most part are beings of pure logic and a lack of most emotions. And yet faith in deities is something inherently emotional and illogical. The fact that a being created to be so rigidly Dalek could even conceive of being a deity shows how far off the deep end these ones were.
When he talks about how the fact that they hate their own existence makes them more deadly, that could very much apply to the Doctor (especially this one) himself. So, when he chooses to be a coward rather than a killer he accepts himself as the Doctor - so he dies content.
the way the emperor shouts "those words are blasphemy" makes for such a good internet weapon. just clip that and whenever someone says something controversial you just play this.
It's especially good because it is itself an in-joke: The Doctor Who movie made the Doctor half-human. This episode is RTD's answer: "Those words are BLASPHEMY!"
Despite being religious, the Daleks still act like Daleks. They undoubtedly in their maddened state saw that since the Emperor created them and before that, survived the Time War against all odds that it was logical to believe that he was the God of all Daleks and to worship him.
The doctor looks like hes gunna cry in this scene, it seems he feels pity for the daleks because as he pointed out they hate their own existence. Seems a part of him is driven to wipe them out just to put them out of their own misery. The doctor looks like hes gunna cry in this scene, it seems he feels pity for the daleks because as he pointed out they hate their own existence. Seems a part of him is driven to wipe them out just to put them out of their own misery.
Trapped inside a cold metal cage from birth to death...no wonder why you scream Yeah, the Daleks may think they're the pinnacle of the universe but in truth they're prisoners in mind and body, devoid of the freedom their Kaled ancestors once had. If anything, they've always hated themselves, and their superiority complex is all that keeps them (semi)-sane. Davros is an utter bastard for what he did to his own people, and the worst part is he think he saved them. War truly is Hell
And that's why I like daleks in Manhattan and evolution of the daleks, because it shows Dalek sec saying that they can't keep living like this they need to change what they are so they can survive and actually live
Chris Cryer I think he's was just upset that the time like reds and the time war was all for nothing and that the daleks always survive he would be pissed and to find out what the daleks were created from and how they are actually different
Yeah, the Doctor actually felt bad for the Daleks. He hated them for so long but by the end of this scene, he felt bad for them but knew that he couldn't help them out of their maddened state short of wiping them out. Being able to feel bad for his enemies is part of why the Doctor is a good person. As for the Daleks hating their own existence, they would deny it of course. These Daleks undoubtedly hate the Doctor for putting them in a position where they had to resort to harvesting Human tissue to create new Daleks. Even if their minds are pure Dalek, they owe the existence of their physical bodies to Humanity so yeah, they hate their current existence.
All hail the god of all Daleks! Worship him! Worship him! Where is the location of the new Dalek Empire? I wish to know so I may temporal shift to its location and time period.
Dalek Emperor ("The God of All Daleks"): "PURIFY THE EARTH WITH FIRE! THE PLANET SHALL BECOME MY TEMPLE AND WE SHALL RISE! THIS SHALL BE OUR PARADISE!" -from "Doctor Who" Series 1 episode "Parting of Ways"
Yeah they where turned into a joke when chibnal got his hands on them, I don't want to see them in disney who because ofc they will try to kill rose then get her pronouns wrong and then kill themselves after rose lectures them on the fact that they are bigots rather then killing her because Disney ESG armour.
The Daleks going mad in the void of time and space just makes me think of the species in Star Wars that were lost in Hyperspace and Otherspace that went stark-raving mad and began worshipping Death itself and/or the Dark Side
3:54: I love that “Fuck you!” face the Doctor gives to the Daleks when they’re commanding him to stay as he goes back into the Tardis. Makes me laugh every time he mocks his enemies. 😂
I remember I was 4 years old when this aired and the part where the dalek emperor said "they survived through me" my uncle and cousin both somehow thought it was davros at first and they got really excited until they showed the dalek emperor which made them even more excited ps at the time I used to think the dalek emperor was a baby octopus that the other daleks were protecting
Mighty race of robots, with a tiny grasp on memory, still trying to blast the Doctor, even after they've seen their phasers won't penetrate his force field
I love these Daleks as an update. The Daleks were often used as parallels for the Nazi ideals of a “pure race.” But the problem is thanks to modern DNA testing: we know that everyone’s got a little heritage from everywhere. Or, in racist terms: there are no real “pure” people left. So, essentially, all racists in some degree hate their own flesh, but cover this up with religious fanaticism. I’m sure it wasn’t intentional, but I REALLY like that parallel.
@@analothor That kind of makes more sense than just breeding a Dalek Emperor. If (pure) Daleks are perfect, how could any of them be made to be more perfect? Makes more sense at that point to choose the most qualified Dalek individual for leadership
Mr_Quality97 you can feel the power and force he commands with how deep and booming it is. I imagine with a good surround sound system you could get the authentic experience
Mr_Quality97 He actually sounds like a demon more than an alien. It lives up to his glorification that he's the God of all Daleks. It's as if the Emperor is an outer space Caligula.
When i was a kid i had a Dalek voice changer, i found out how to make your voice come out as the Dalek Emperor. You do an impression of Palpatine from Star wars if i remember correctly. idk about you but i find the fact that Dalek voice-actors were told to do a voice for the Emperor and their go to was Palpatine, hilarious.
@@thedestiny326 He was. He was resurrected during the Time War by the Dalek Time Strategist - A Dalek with the Time Sensitive abilities of a Time Lord. (Sort of like what you'd get if you did the experiments the Silence performed on River Song, on a Dalek Embyro). The Time Strategist managed to resurrect him, to lead the Daleks after growing dissatisfied with Davros' rule, declaring "We do not need a Creator. We need a God." The Reborn Emperor proclaimed himself "God-Emperor of the Dalek's."
@@benlowe1701 well if he dead he died lots of times then, the first supreme Dalek (the original leader) in return to skaro died, so if this is true he died lots of times aaannnnddd with him living (weird since he was in a room with exploding daleks) that would make him become emperor I guess then died then rescued and then died, and the parting of the ways emperor and the evil emperor had a different personality and a completely different mutant, kind of weird.
He was the first supreme Dalek and then became the emperor and was defeated by the second doctor but survived and then made his own race of Daleks and aligned with the Davros Daleks to defeat the time lords in the time war because the emperor controlled the pure daleks
WTF, they're not even remotely terrifying. Never have been. They're great enemies, and their voices are incredibly memorable but I seriously don't believe for a second you find these terrifying.
@@fredh1720 you see It isnt about looking creepy. It isnt about the killcount. It is About power. Fear comes from power. An unstoppable genocidal ruthless killer. Machines that reshaped the earth in a matter of seconds or at most minutes. When you heard EXTERMINATE in the stolen earth. You probably celt something. The same thing most have felt. Fear. These were the days when people still thought to themselves OH SHIT. When the daleks were revealed
@@lurker4071 I don't agree. I grew up before this and watched this series first time around. The finale of Series 1, the only reason I thought "oh shit" was because I was hoping they wouldn't be back to turn up TWICE in one series. They could be replaced by absolutely anything in this finale, they're not powerful at all in my opinion. They're too small to be intimidating, and too cliché to be genuinely scary. They're not a lost cause, but I think (particularly under RTD) they were not used well at all.
@@fredh1720 i suppose the dalek design is very unorthodox but this in my opinion wad one of the best dalek stories in doctor who history. Yes they were used twice in the series but it was about the execution. They don't have to be be giants. The reaction from the characters and the horror movies style cinematography is what made them intimidating here. When they were silent they showed a feeling of dread in the air as the camera backed away from them. When they showed up in the window and destroyed it. Also the daleks are very powerful. A single one can time travel, is immune to almost all projectiles. And is an essential supertank. And their technology even built a bomb that would wipe out all existence. Even thanos and his stones couldn't do that.
There's something really quite unpleasant in hearing the Emperor describe what he did to those humans. It's like they chose just the right words to make us cringe. I think the only word that's missing is 'moist'
That's likely what the Emperor was going for, he wanted to make the Doctor, Rose and Jack cringe in disgust and play mind games with them. It's also meant to make the viewers cringe in disgust too in order to show how sick and twisted the Daleks are.
ryan macdonald So not only can we get the impression that the Daleks themselves are outer space Nazis and Davros is Terry Nation's equivalent of Adolf Hitler, but maybe we could even believe that the Emperor is a representation of Caligula.
Plus he was the first Dalek leader to actually "beat" the Doctor only to be foiled by Rose Tyler who had to tap into the powers of time and space to become godlike and erase the Emperor and his followers from existence.
The parallel is brilliant. The Doctor, the last remnant of the Time Lords, was horribly changed by the Time War. He was traumatised, angry, afraid. He hated his own existence and had become a bitter, broken man, never even leaving the security and safety of Earth throughout that regeneration. The Daleks, themselves a tiny remnant of the once mighty Dalek Empire, were also changed. They became corrupted by desperation, perverting themselves with human flesh, driven mad. Both the last Time Lord and the last Daleks were broken by the war. Everybody lost. Superb writing.
Damn, you cut out the best part of the scene! When the TARDIS doors close and the Doctor's mask of bravery and defiance falls away, he slumps against the handle in despair knowing that his sacrifice in the Time War was for nothing and the battle cry of his worst enemy engulfs the scene.
That's a difference between Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat. Without casting judgement on either man's writing ability, RTD was much stronger on emotions and relationships than Moffat is, so current Doctor Who just doesn't in my opinion have the same emotional depth as these older episodes. Though in other ways, Moffat's Who is stronger than RTD's (the plots for one), and presumably Chris Chibnall will change things up yet again. All just my opinion, of course :-)
His sacrifice wasn't in vain for the batch of Daleks that he encountered were as far as he knew, the last Daleks in existence so he had just one more battle to fight to rid the universe of the Daleks forever in his mind. Still, I get why he was in despair, he had to deal with an overwhelming enemy that he thought that he'd beaten already.
Theoretically it was in vain for a short time because it wasn't just one final battle. If the Daleks escaped, they could've multiplied using other races like they used the humans to repopulate. THEN it would've definately been in vain.
I really love the detail they gave to the actual Dalek creatures. Before the reveal that they're made from human cells, the Dalek mutants look like human faces. As for the Dalek Emperor, he's not just a copy of the Metaltron mutant. He's probably the most developed mutant, possessing a semi-developed "face". The eye isn't in the center, but on the left. The right seems to be an undeveloped eye socket, and below is a primitive, malformed jaw covered by flesh. It distinguishes him, as if he's the least degraded Kaled mutant
John Porteous which is interesting, as when this story was made, the last time we saw Davros was when his multiple personality disorder escalated to the point where his body was taken over by his Dalek Emperor personality... Of course, we later see Davros intact and alive, so this Emperor can’t be Davros. Unless they perverted history, which happened all the time during the Time War.
@@analothor I suppose, but it's difficult to tell what that would even mean considering how far they're from their original Kaled form. Also, I like the Doctor's reaction when he learns of the Daleks' newfound messianic belief and self-loathing. It's a mix of horror and pity
The emperor mutant is actually the exact same mutant animatronic used for the metaltron. If you look closely you can see the exact same facial structures in that episode too.
The Metaltron mutant also had all those features. What makes the two mutants look distinct to me is the angles on their features, specifically the eyes - the low-angle view of the Metaltron mutant makes its eye look sombre and sad, compared to the cold-blooded and cruel glare of the Emperor mutant's eye in high-angle, plus the darker lighting around the Emperor mutant compared to when the Metaltron mutant was in the sunlight.
Back when everything was solved by deus ex machinas. Just kidding, but you can't say that RTD is leagues above Moffat. Moffat has written some very good arcs before, though not as much as RTD. I personally think Series 9 is one of the best series in NuWho. Except Hell Bent, I'll rather think that doesn't exist.
+Wings of Darkness I belive that while Moffat is superior in individual chapters, RTD has made far more solid seasonal arcs. Moffat always has ups and downs whilst RTD is more reliable as showrunner. At least in my opinion.
Comparing this Doctor Who to the Doctor Who we have now saddens my heart. The magic this show once had is all but long gone now. It will never be the same for me again...
Honestly I compare this Doctor Who to what we had in 1989 and I am so thankful we don't have it anymore I feel like I should clarify that *this* Doctor Who that I'm glad we don't have anymore, 1989 Doctor Who is incredible
Spaceboomer Darkchaser hey, you never know, he might decide to come back one day. Yes, he might decide to come back. Until then there must be no fears, no regrets, no anxieties. Let us just go forwards in all our beliefs, and prove to him that he is not mistaken in his.
Alonne - I recall in that episode, the Tardis is left on Earth so does not translate. The Jadoon use their own method of translation, and speak English.
0:56 So tell me, how did you survive the time war? THEY SURVIVED THROUGH ME Such a great opening line for the Emperor. To me that line shows just how good Nick is at Dalek voices
This is what we need back. The Emperor. I would love if we had different Dalek factions that came up in different stories. You had the Parliament of the Daleks with more of a controlled reasoning. They controlled things like the Dalek camps and were the ones known throughout the universe. Then you had Davros's Daleks who controlled Skaro. They are a smaller group but have Davros behind them and answer to him. They went out every so often to control a planet and used their puppets to bring the Doctor to them. Finally you have the Emperor's Daleks. Controlled by the Emperor they hide out to make sure they aren't seen but more so influence events behind the scenes BUT they worship the emperor as a god and are actually insane, pretty much created through science experiments. Can you imagine three different Dalek factions that had a different purpose behind them?
/scoffs/ Like I care what the Dalek Emperor thinks of Humanity. At least we don't screech out dialogue, travel about in garbage cans and at least we try to enjoy life instead of hating everything around us.
I love the dialogue in this scene. It's literally just people talking but it still comes off as absolutely terrifying. "The bodies were _filleted_ - _pulped_ - _SIFTED_ ..." Still gives me the creeps.
The Dalek Emperor really personifies himself as a God, and that’s what makes him more terrifying than any other Dalek. He believes that death and destruction is “Perfection”. He wants the Doctor to sink down to become like himself, to prove that his will is contagious and will never die.
It's a shame looking back on these episodes and the usual junk we get on Who now. Back here in the earlier seasons with Eccliston and Tennant you had a lot of interesting places still to cover with the Daleks. A new storyline, a 'time war', the Doctor had committed genocide. There was a lot more moral dilemas and the Daleks suddenly were more developed. Every time the Dalek Emperor is revealed in this scene I shiver. Every time I watch the episode 'Dalek' I fall in love with it. It's so deliciously evil and at the time it was so massive and dramatic. The show doesn't know what to do with the Daleks now and the darker tones here are largely gone. It's a damn shame. I get Moffat wanted to carve his own universe in Who but Davies revitalised universe was so much more morally interesting and diverse. I still watch Who to this day, a die hard fan, but I can't help but prefer this era.
Raymondo The episode Dalek showed the true power of a single Dalek and truly made you fear them, but now the doctor defeats them on bigger and bigger scales and it's just kind of a joke
Yeah I really liked how Daleks were potrayed in RTD's who. But I disagree that it means Moffat's who can't do that. Look at Cybermen in the finale, now that's something.
Simon Henry "but now The Doctor defeats them on a bigger and bigger scale" Seriously? That's just not true, especially when compared to RTD's Dalek story resolutions. Two out of five Dalek stories ended on a HUGE deus ex machina and had huge "there's no coming back" while Moffat doesn't have that, Victory of The Dalek he doesn't defeat them, In Asylum of The Dalek, he doesn't defeat them, same with Into the Dalek and Witch's Familiar, daleks are not destroyed. I liked Daleks in RTD's era more but the thing you just wrote is wrong.
Spaceboomer Darkchaser I think the BBC have a contract with the estate of Terry Nation (the real life 'creator' of the Daleks) which dictates that the Daleks have to appear at least once per series, which might explain their increasingly forced appearances
Marcus280898 which is ironic really, given that Terry Nation wanted the Daleks to be taken out of DW so they could have their own show (and he could make more money).
Chilliard2000 I think your forgetting something I'm the doctor and as only one thing I can do is talk I've got 5 billion languages inside my head got one way of stopping me so if anyone is going to shut up ITS YOU!!!!
Sadly this ends during one of the most emotional moments, The Doctor leaning silently against the TARDIS door in pain and grief as Daleks shoot and scream.
Ah man. Remember when the Doctor’s decision to eliminate both sides of the time war wasn’t completely pointless, making it a morally gray point in his life? Yeah, 300,000 daleks that survived later, and the punch is just sort of gone.
@@thesparduck117 There were like several dozen episodes since we found out about what the doctor did, where the Daleks are just back, for various reasons.
Man the 9th Doctor absolutely hated the Daleks with a severe passion. I know all the doctors disliked and fought them but this one absolutely hated them. Just the way he talks to them. They always go quiet aswell when he’s roasting them
Really cool bit of detail visible at 1:27. Notice how the Daleks surrounding the emperor have black domes instead of golden ones. This is consistent with the last appearance of the Dalek Emperor in Evil of the Daleks, where his personal elite guard had black domes instead of silver ones.
2:23 onwards is excellent, this show used to be adult, the grotesque description of how the new daleks came to be. Billie Pipers look of disgust was excellent acting, god I miss this shows excellence
How this scene would end in 2017 Doctor Who: Empirer Dalek hands over control of the entire Dalek fleet just to prove that "We aren't so very different". Doctor decides he doesn't want an army and makes them all self destruct. End of series.
Alex Curr no, that was Missy handing over an army of Cybermen she’d created just to hand over to the Doctor, because she wanted to make him more like her. Missy is not the Dalek Emperor, and Cybermen aren’t Daleks. The closest episode to what the OP described was EotD, when the Dalek Emperor allowed the Doctor to isolate the Human factor and introduce it to three Daleks, which was just a part of the Emperor’s plan to give the Dalek factor to Humanity. And then the Doctor really did make his own Dalek army and killed the Emperor with it.
1:52 David Tennant’s silence in Fury of the Time Lord is chilling, but the Doctor’s yell here is straight up terrifying. Even the Daleks, backed up by their mighty Emperor and full of confidence, stripped of pity and emotion (save that speck of fear), RECOIL and backpedal in fear of him.
Man I forget sometimes how interesting the Daleks were in this phase. So desperate, clinging to life in a lot of ways. Every time they showed up it was a massive, worrying event. Nowadays they’re just a constant background threat again, much less exciting
You can almost see a look of remorse on the Doctors face when he realizes the Daleks are insane. That's the difference between the Doctor and the Daleks. The Doctor has pity for his enemies. Even in war, he is never cruel or cowardly.
You know, after watching clips of Genesis of the Daleks, I love the theory/idea that the first Dalek ever created became this insane Dalek Emperor with a god complex, especially after listening to its speech after being entombed
Yeah that theory is impossible the doctor destroyed the daleks power destroyed an invasion force and a squad to kill him then destroyed and destroyed 3 daleks which made loads then destroyed Skaro with its emperor and loads of destruction
@@thedestiny326I’m pretty sure the original dalek emperor got resurrected in restoration of the daleks by the dalek time strategist to lead the daleks in the time war.
The Dalek Emperor is probably the most sophisticated Dalek if we’re talking mannerisms and dialect. All the other Daleks are so emotionless to the point of being just robots, constantly shouting words one at a time and constantly shouting “EXTERMINATE!!!” While the Dalek Emperor speaks more in a manner of characters like Emperor Palpatine. He’s thoughtful, he chooses his words, he speaks in a way where he doesn’t sound completely robotic. He sounds more like he’s just speaking through a robotic audio filter than he does a cold, mindless machine.
As horrible as the Dalek Emperor is, even he isn't as evil as Palpatine because at least the Dalek Emperor actually cares about his people and would do anything to help them succeed while Palpatine only cares about himself and would gleefully sacrifice all of Creation for power.
"Pulped, sifted, sautéed, fried, blended, grated, grilled, simmered on a medium heat for 40 minutes until golden-brown!" "So you created an army of Daleks out of the dead" "That makes them... half human!" "If you want to be black and white about it yes."
