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|companions = [[Graham O'Brien|Graham]], [[Ryan Sinclair|Ryan]], [[Yasmin Khan|Yaz]], [[Jack Harkness|Jack]]
 
|companions = [[Graham O'Brien|Graham]], [[Ryan Sinclair|Ryan]], [[Yasmin Khan|Yaz]], [[Jack Harkness|Jack]]
 
|featuring = [[Jack Robertson]]
 
|featuring = [[Jack Robertson]]
|enemy = [[Reconnaissance Dalek|Reconnaissance scout Dalek]], [[Dalek leader (Revolution of the Daleks)|Death Squad Dalek leader]]
+
|enemy = [[Daleks]]
 
|setting = [[Earth]], [[1 January]] [[2021]]
 
|setting = [[Earth]], [[1 January]] [[2021]]
 
|writer = [[Chris Chibnall]]
 
|writer = [[Chris Chibnall]]

Revision as of 16:22, 28 January 2021

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You may be looking for Revelation of the Daleks.

Revolution of the Daleks was the 2021 New Year Special of Doctor Who. It featured the return of Jack Harkness, and marked the Thirteenth Doctor's reunion with her companions following the events of The Timeless Children. The episode also saw the departure of Bradley Walsh as Graham O'Brien and Tosin Cole as Ryan Sinclair.

Continuing the Recon Dalek storyline begun in Resolution, a new line of Daleks were introduced, cloned from a remnant of the original recon scout. Their new design is a variant on the Recon Dalek's own casing. It also saw the return of bronze Daleks, last seen in 2017's Twice Upon a Time, leading to a battle between both factions.

Synopsis

As the Thirteenth Doctor marks her days in prison, back on Earth the Daleks are presented on national television. They are the new Defence Drones, designed to protect the British public.

Left behind on Earth, Yaz, Graham and Ryan need their friend more than ever. Now with Daleks on the assembly line, and a familiar face behind their production... What would the Doctor do?

Plot

367 minutes after the Doctor melted the casing of the Reconnaissance scout, a lorry driver takes the empty casing from GCHQ to Depositary 23, stopping off at a kiosk for a cup of tea. Walking back to his vehicle, he starts to breathe heavily, drops his cup, and collapses. The woman who served him drags him inside the lorry with the casing and drives it away.

Jo Patterson - the technology secretary - drives to a breakfast meeting with Leo Rugazzi and Jack Robertson to see Leo’s new defence drones. They oversee a fake riot organised by Jack, where a defence drone effectively disperses the rioters with its water cannon and loud noise. Afterwards, Leo shows the pair how the drones are controlled by AI and are solar powered. Robertson and Jo talk in private, and Jo warns him not to tell anyone that she tipped him off about advanced technology being transported from GCHQ. Jack tells her that the drones will take around a year to develop, in time to help her win the upcoming general election.

In a maximum security facility located inside an asteroid, the Doctor wakes up. She scratches a mark on her cell wall, matching numerous other marks covering the two walls. It is clear she has been here for years. A monitor flashes on her wall instructing her to exercise. She does so. Later on, she is escorted to an exercise facility, saying hello to the cameras and her fellow inmates as she passes. Back in her cell, a monitor flashes again, instructing her to sleep. She begins to tell herself a bedtime story, but is interrupted by knocking from the other side of a wall. Recognising the four knocks, she wonders if she knows the individual.

Ryan Sinclair and Graham O'Brien walk towards the TARDIS disguised as a house. They go to knock on the door, but it opens for them. Inside the TARDIS control room they find Yasmin Khan surrounded by coloured paper and post it notes covered in writing stuck to almost every surface. She has been sleeping inside the TARDIS, and is desperately trying to find the Doctor. Ryan and Graham tell her that she needs to move on because the Doctor has been away for ten months, but she refuses to listen. Graham shows her footage of a prototype Defence Drone leaked from the fake riot Robertson organised. They recognise it as a Dalek, and see Robertson overseeing the riot. They believe that he is in league with the Dalek, and she agrees to help them investigate because it was what the Doctor would do.

Jo Patterson — running for the position of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom — summons Jack Robertson to a rainy forest. She tells him that she wants an immediate national roll-out of his drones, and him to pay rather than have her government tax the British people. He nervously laughs, telling her that they had only just started regional beta testing and that it was starting to sound like a "shakedown". She blackmails him by threatening to alert the treasury about how much tax his companies pay in the UK. He agrees to her proposal.

That night, as Robertson gets out of his car, telling Leo that he's arrived, Yaz, Ryan, and Graham approach him. He recognises them from the encounter he had with giant spiders. They confront him about the defence drone, believing it to be a Dalek, but he has no idea what they are talking about. Suddenly, people with guns surround them and Robertson tells them that he increased his security because of them, before walking away. After getting free from Jack's bodyguards, they discuss how hard it is to "see what's going on" without the Doctor, psychic paper, or a TARDIS.

Meanwhile, at the prison, the Doctor wakes up, scratches another mark on her cell wall, says hello to the cameras and proceeds to the exercise facility again. However, this time she finds Jack Harkness, also imprisoned there, in the fenced square next to her. Jack reveals he has been waiting nineteen years for the cell rotation to finally place him next to the Doctor. He then then shows her a temporal-freezing gateway disinhibitor bubble which he activates, joins the Doctor, and tells her to run. Now able to traverse through walls and the electric fence, they arrive at Jack's cell where he opens a little trap containing a vortex manipulator he smuggled. They then activate it to break out the prison just as the alarms sound.

Back on Earth, Leo talks to Robertson about the drones; he is worried about the speed of the production but Robertson reassures him, telling him to "live in the worry". Leo then talks to Robertson about the model casing, he explains that by examining it, he found out organic remnants in the machine and cloned them, growing a Dalek mutant, finding it beautiful and intelligent. Robertson, horrified by this discovery, demands that Leo incinerate the creature, and tortures Leo to keep it under wraps before leaving, angrily saying that this kind of science is why nobody likes experts. Leo brings the box containing the Dalek mutant to the incinerator, but when he opens it, the creature inside it grabs him and possesses him. He makes a final phone call to say goodbye to his family, before the Dalek completely takes control.

The Doctor and Captain Jack teleport into her TARDIS, where all the lights have been dimmed. Jack asks if she had listened to his message, and she says that she did give Ashad what it wanted, but fixed it, "sort of". She also tells him that she was imprisoned for evading the Judoon twice and '7000 other offences'. The Doctor then uses the TARDIS to find the others, on Earth. Yaz, Ryan and Graham talk about the Dalek they saw on the news, Graham tells the two that it's impossible that this one is the one they fought at GCHQ, as it was thrown in a supernova, Ryan suggest that the Daleks may have came to Earth and forced Robertson to work with them. Yaz then tells them to shut up, wanting to listen. The TARDIS then materialises in the living room, and the Doctor and Jack come out. After a brief discussion between Team TARDIS, Jack asks "What's new on planet Earth". The trio answers "Dalek", which horrifies the Doctor and Jack.

Meanwhile at Osaka, Japan, Leo, controlled by the Dalek he created, enters a building where the Dalek reveals what he was doing when he was in the box, connected to the network: building a Dalek clone farm.

In the TARDIS, the Doctor scans for Dalek DNA traces, and Jack explains to Team TARDIS that he is immortal. The screen on the wall beeps, revealing a DNA trace has been found in Osaka, but not an exact match. Jack and Yaz volunteer to investigate, whilst Graham, Ryan and the Doctor travel to talk to Robertson. The Doctor materialises the TARDIS in Robertson's office, and she asks him about the Daleks, having blocked his phone lines so he can't call security. Exasperated, Robertson decides to show them the "production line", where he is 3D printing "security drones", which are all modelled on the Recon Dalek from GCHQ. They fill the whole room, and he shows them how there is nothing inside the drones, and that the machines are run by Artificial intelligence. Graham asks about his facility in Osaka, and Robertson replies that he doesn't have one because he would know about it.

In Osaka, Yaz tells Jack how it was hard for her in the ten months that the Doctor had been away, almost wishing that she had never met her if it had to stop so abruptly. Jack told her that the Doctor had abandoned him, but that they should 'remember the journey while [they were] on it', because 'the joy is worth the pain.' They explore the building with torches, and realise that they are inside a Dalek clone farm.

Meanwhile, Jo Patterson makes an address outside 10 Downing Street, promising that she will make Britain 'more secure', so that they can enter an "age of security", and introduces the new "Defence Drones" whilst four of them surround her. She declares they will be placed on streets, as well as at borders and national landmarks.

In the Dalek clone farm, Yaz asks Jack to help her take a sample of a liquid inside the tubes feeding the new Daleks, in the hope that they may find a way to stop them. Jack sets bombs on the walkways and railings, but the creatures surrounding them start to climb out of their buckets. One of them falls onto his face, and another latches on to Yaz as she tries to help him. Yaz manages to rip the mutant from Jack, who proceeds to shoot the two mutants with his blaster, vapourising them.

The TARDIS flies through the time vortex, four minutes away from Osaka. Ryan is sitting on the stairs, putting on his beanie. The Doctor approaches him, remembering the yellow one he was wearing when they met, and apologises for being away for ten months. Ryan says that although he did miss her, he had time to reconnect to his family and friends. He asks about Gallifrey, and stops the Doctor trying to change the subject. The Doctor tells him how her entire life story has been changed, and how she doesn't know who she is anymore, or how much of her life she doesn't know. Ryan tells her that, although they are both different to how they were when they met, it is a good thing that they are, and after they have finished with the Daleks, she needs to find out about herself. The Doctor promises that she will.

The TARDIS materialises in the Dalek clone farm, causing Jack to exclaim how much he missed the sound. The Doctor, Robertson, Ryan and Graham exit the TARDIS. The Doctor asks who built the farm, and Leo Rugazzi walks down the stairs, the Reconnaissance scout's clone speaking through him. The Doctor then says to Rugazzi that he created a Dalek without understanding what it was, that Dalek consciousness could live within the tiniest fragment of their DNA and that she came to save him, the Dalek then says that she is giving Rugazzi false hope, she responds by asking him how he made the farm, it explains how it used Robertson's companies to pay for the farm, liquidising the workers once they had finished and feeding them to the new Daleks.

The Doctor then says that something is bugging her, Yaz tells her that if it was the light, who was slowly changing ever since they've been in the clone farm, the Doctor then asks the Dalek how it and the other Daleks will get out of the planet, it says that they will not, wanting to convert the Earth into a base from which to conquer the Earth's sector of the universe, the Doctor remarks about the fact that the Daleks have a long way to subjugate humanity because they don't have bodies and asked the Dalek if they were going to order people from their tanks, even if they made it to the Defence Drones, they aren't weaponised casings, being built by Robertson.

The Dalek then smiles and tells the Doctor that the Drones were built from Robertson's factories and that he modified the designs to weaponize them, the Doctor panics and wants to turn off the light, Jack asks why, she says that it is ultraviolet light, the same light that the original Recon Dalek used to reconstitute itself, the Recon Dalek's clone then orders his new Daleks to activate, teleporting themselves in the Defence Drones, controlling them and beginning to exterminate humanity, including Jo Patterson. They then declare earth to be the property of the Daleks.

In Osaka, the Doctor questions Robertson on how many drones he built, and he answers that he built thousands. Leo is killed by the Dalek controlling him, and the Doctor rushes everyone back into the TARDIS. She tells them that she has only one option - the nuclear option. Jack tries to stop her, but none of them have any better ideas, so she sends the Reconnaissance Dalek's signal through the Time Vortex to the Death Squad Daleks. The signal is received by the ship and they prepare to attack Earth. The Doctor tells Robertson what she has done and that she has done it anonymously, because if she had told them who she was, they would have come to kill her.

Pedestrians scream and run through the streets as the Defence Drones, flying, slaughter them all. A woman hdes behind a car and watches in wonder as the Dalek ship flies above her. The Death Squad Daleks have detected mutated DNA and prepare for maximum extermination.

More to be added here...

Cast

Crew

Executive Producers   Matt Strevens and Chris Chibnall
Written by Chris Chibnall Produced by Alex Mercer Directed by Lee Haven Jones Director of Photography Sam Heasman Production Designer Dafydd Shurmer

Casting DirectorAndy Pryor Composer Segun Akinola
General production staff

Script department

Camera and lighting department

Art department

Costume department

Make-up and prosthetics

General post-production staff

Special and visual effects

Sound

Not every person who worked on this adventure was credited. The absence of a credit for a position doesn't necessarily mean the job wasn't required. The information above is based solely on observations of the actual end credits of the episodes as broadcast, and does not relay information from IMDB or other sources.

References

Species

Popular culture

Individuals

Technology

Locations

  • The prison where the Doctor is being held is 79 billion light-years away from Earth.
  • Ryan reads a story online about a village in Finland that is supposedly dealing with a troll invasion.
  • Graham mentions having heard a story about a quarry in Korea that has been shut down due to reports of "gravel creatures coming to life."

Miscellaneous

  • The Doctor is given a food cube to eat every morning in prison.

Story notes

  • This was the first episode of Doctor Who to be simultaneously broadcast in 4K UHD with HDR colour grading, and the second episode ever made available in this format, Since the BBC doesn't broadcast in 4K UHD on its television channels, it was instead made available on BBC iPlayer, with a red button prompt appearing during its BBC One broadcast. Twice Upon a Time remains the first episode to be released in 4K UHD, as it was remastered in the format after broadcast for its re-release on UHD Blu-ray.
  • This was the first televised story of the parent Doctor Who series to be originally released to a streaming service, making its debut on BBC iPlayer around 10 minutes before its BBC One broadcast, rather than shortly afterwards or live and concurrently, as is the norm. However, Series 1 of Class had previously debuted on the same service. (Perhaps coincidentally, the episodes of Class had also debuted on the iPlayer service earlier than the time that they were advertised to be released.)
  • The opening title card ("A LONG TIME AGO... FAR, FAR AWAY...") is a reference to the famous Star Wars opening title, "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...".
  • The "Defence Drones" have voices similar to those used by the Imperial Daleks in Remembrance of the Daleks, the last televised instance of a Dalek Civil War.
  • Chris Noth (Jack Robertson) is credited as "Robertson" on BBC iPlayer, and erroneously as "Alan Robertson" in Radio Times. Nathan Armarkwei-Laryea (Armen), Helen Anderson (Rachel), Nicholas Briggs (Voice of the Daleks), Barnaby Edwards (Dalek Operator 1), Nicholas Pegg (Dalek Operator 2) and Sharon D Clarke (Grace) are credited on-screen but not in Radio Times or on BBC iPlayer.

Ratings

  • 4.69 million (UK overnight)[1]
  • 6.25 million (UK final)[2]

Filming locations

to be added

Myths

  • Davros would return. This was proven false.
  • The prison the Doctor was in would be revealed to be Shada. This is unknown as this was neither confirmed nor denied.
  • Graham or Ryan would die at the end of the episode. This theory was incorrect as they would both leave the TARDIS alive at the end of the episode and given an open ending.
  • David Tennant would make a cameo as the Tenth Doctor. This was proven false.
  • The Special Weapons Dalek was to return. This was proven false.
  • This story would be a two-parter. This was proven false.
  • This story would continue the war between the Renegade Daleks and the Imperial Daleks. Although not entirely true, it does contain a similar plot element.

Production errors

If you'd like to talk about narrative problems with this story — like plot holes and things that seem to contradict other stories — please go to this episode's discontinuity discussion.

to be added

Continuity

Home video releases

DVD releases

to be added

Blu-ray releases

to be added

Digital releases

to be added

External links

Footnotes