Dalekmania takes to the cinema in this the first of two Dr. Who movies. Simon and Eugene discuss Peter Cushing's first outing as Dr. Who.
Movie Synopsis
It’s just another quiet evening at the home the home of Doctor Who and his two granddaughters, Susan and Barbara. Barbara’s young man, Ian Chesterton, is coming to call on her this evening.
It may be a quiet evening at home reading books and comics, but it’s also a momentous evening. Just sitting in one of the chairs is a the last piece of equipment that Doctor Who needs to complete years of his life’s work: TARDIS - a time and space machine that he has built, curiously in the shape of a London Police Public Call Box.
Since Ian, who is a bit of a klutz, almost sits on that piece of equipment, Dr. Who decides maybe tonight he should complete TARDIS. He shows Chesterton his fabulous machine, but Klutz-man Ian manages to launch them into space and time without a clue to their destination.
They find themselves on a burnt out planet in a petrified forest. Soon they discover a fabulous city, which Doctor Who and his precocious granddaughter Susan want to explore. Ian is scared and wants to go home. Doctor Who fakes that the fluid link is broken, forcing them to investigate the city for needed mercury to replace the fluid in said fluid link. But not before there’s a mysterious knock at TARDIS’ door. Outside they find no one but a mysterious box filled with chemicals. Doctor Who decides they have time to investigate that later, and leaves the box inside TARDIS.
In the city, they are captured by creatures enclosed in metal machines. These creatures are called Daleks. They are the descendants of the survivors of the war that destroyed the planet. They live in their city, encased in their machines, to protect them from the radiation outside. Outside are their ancient enemies, the Thals, horribly mutated creatures that wander the barren land.
In their cell, the gang are getting ill, and Doctor Who realizes that they have radiation sickness. The outside environment has been lethally radioactive and is killing them. He realizes that the box must have been radiation medicine given to them by the Thals.
The Daleks realize that if they could get the medicine, they could leave their machines and their city. They force Susan, the only one well enough, to return to TARDIS and get the medicine. The Daleks plan to take the medicine and let the travelers die. It seems The Daleks may not be entirely nice guys.
Along the way, Susan encounters the Thals, beautiful, kindly, golden people who not only help her, but also given her even more medicine, just in case The Daleks don’t hand over the first batch to her family and friends.
The Daleks immediately discover the extra drugs but… they decide to let Susan give them to the gang, curing them from this plot complication.
The Daleks also have Susan write a nice letter to the Thals asking them over for afternoon tea. It is, of course, a trap, because, as previously mentioned, The Daleks aren’t entirely nice guys.
The travelers escape and warn the Thals, just in the nick of time, and they all escape the city. Problem solved. It’s time to return to TARDIS and go home. Just one problem, Doctor Who left the fluid link back with The Daleks.
In the city, The Daleks begin to test the medicine. It turns out, the medicine kills them, presumably because they now rely on the radiation. They decide to explode a massive neutronic bomb and completely irradiate the planet, killing all the Thals and finally winning the war!
The Thals are pacifists and will not fight the Daleks, but Doctor Who, desperate to setback to get that fluid link, makes the leader of the Thals mad enough to beat up Ian. Having shown him that he can get mad and fight, it’s easy to convince the Thals to attack the Dalek city.
While Ian, Barbara and a team of Thals travel around the city, through a swamp of death, Doctor Who, Susan and the remaining Thals use mirrors to attack the front of the city. Both groups arriving just in time to battle the Daleks and stop the bomb.
With the fluid link returned, Doctor Who, Barbara, Susan and Ian bid a tearful farewell to the Thals and return to Earth. Just in time for the Roman legions to attack them.
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