After Adrian Hodges left as showrunner at the end of the previous season, and with a thirteen episode season order, Franchise Executive, Mal Young decided to split the season up into three separate serials, to celebrate the 60th Anniversary, with two serials spanning six-episodes, and the thirteenth episode acting a special for the BBC’s Centenary. In collaboration with the Executive Supervisor of Television, Jane Espenson, he decided to air the first serial in the Spring 2022, followed by the Centenary Special in the Autumn 2022 and the third serial in Spring 2023, proceeding the 60th Anniversary movie, in the Autumn.
As the the new showrunner had yet to be picked, Espenson made the decision for each of the three serials to have a separate showrunner, namely a returning showrunner from the past. Espenson offered the first serial to, former showrunner of season 49, 50 and 51 as well as series 4 to 7 of spin-off Panopticon, Ronald D. Moore. Initially, Moore did say no. He had reservations about returning to Doctor Who, especially after what had happened in 2017, but he had maintained a friendship with Espenson over the years, so shrugged the offer off as her being very gracious. He was also busy with showrunning Apple TV+’s For All Mankind. However, upon discussing the offer with Ira Steven Behr, over dinner, Behr encouraged Moore to reconsider, telling him that he never got to finish his time on Doctor Who properly, and Espenson’s offer was one that probably wouldn’t come around again, especially as she was going to be leaving the franchise. After some consideration, Moore did eventually meet with Espenson again, where she discussed a list of possible things they could do for the serial, which, finally managed to win him round and Moore accepted the offer. Unbeknownst to Moore, Espenson had asked Ben Aaronovitch to fill his place, but Espenson terminated the agreement, following Moore accepting to come on board. The second serial was only a single feature-length special, and in-part due to it’s importance, and also because Espenson was departing the franchise the next year, she, herself, decided to handle the serial. For the third and final serial, Espenson gave the offer to, former showrunner, from seasons 35 to 40, David Renwick. Despite multiple showrunners handling the season, Espenson coordinated things so some story threads did continue throughout.
With Moore contracted as showrunner for the first six episodes of the season, he and Espenson sat down and pitched ideas that could be done for his serial and with this, Moore returned to an idea that he had originally planned for Season 53, which he’d first thought of during the production of The Martian Equinox. Initially, Moore had planned a pseudo-remake of the serial for the opening two-parter of Season 53, which would set up the season arc with someone tampering with the Doctor’s memories and timeline. Additionally, peppered throughout the season, but not every episode, would be additional reimaginings of missing serials. Moore’s original idea was for it to all tie into a time-hopping paradox created by the Ascended Daleks (from Panopticon), which would all collimate in his planned Season 53 finale. While in his early discussions with Espenson, Moore reminded her of his ideas for Season 53, and said that a full-on Battlestar Galactica style reimagining of The Daleks’ Master Plan could work well for a 6-episode serial format, and Espenson instantly enthusiastic.
As work began, Moore was bound to strict secrecy, as Mal Young, in his usual showman-like style, decided that everything would be kept confidential until late-November at the Official Doctor Who Convention, meaning that production would already be a month in at this point, let alone the amount of time it’d have to remain secret in pre-production. It was decided that until after the convention, Moore would work remotely for the United States on the show, in order to prevent fans connecting the dots, if he was sighted in Scotland. Moore also had to delay Season 3 of For All Mankind, but in order to prevent fans from being suspicious, it was officially cited as being because of “the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic”. Moore vowed to return to For All Mankind, as soon as his work on Doctor Who had wrapped.
As showrunner, Moore decided not to “go it alone”, instead calling up his back-catalogue of writers, from his era, to contribute to the serial. He also assembled them, once again, in a (zoom) writers’ room, to help with storylining. These writers were Bradley Thompson, David Weddle, Ira Steven Behr and Matthew B. Roberts. For two weeks, they storylined the serial, and worked out who would write which episode. They were once again given the credit of Co-Executive Producer – the first time Ira Steven Behr had held this credit on Doctor Who.
Moore similarly consulted directors he was used to working with, hiring Rachel Talalay, John Dahl and also Sergio Mimica-Gezzan, who he’d met on Battlestar Galactica and wanted to use on Doctor Who for years, but was always unavailable. After coordination with Mal Young and Jane Espenson it was decided that Block 1 would be handled by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan, and cover Episodes 2 and 3, while Block 2 would be handle by Rachel Talalay, and would shoot in Vancouver on the Pixomondo AR Wall. Additionally, this Block, for production reasons would cover the Centenary Special, as well. This meant Espenson would be shooting a Block of 3 episodes, covering Episodes 1, 5 and 7. After filming completed in America, the block wrapped with a day of filming on the TARDIS set in Scotland. Block 3 was handled by John Dahl, covering Episodes 4 and 6, and were both set entirely in Scotland. Producer wise, Moore hired Nikki Wilson for Block 1, Seth Edelstein for Block 2 and Brian Minchin for Block 3.
Casting wise, Moore was happy to work with Andy Pryor, again, especially while casting the returning legacy characters. Suranne Jones was suggested very early on, in discussions, and she was invited for a screen test for, a 6-episode Doctor Who recurring character, called Jean Morgan – a pseudonym (in order to keep the secret) created from Jean Marsh (Sara Kingdom’s original actor), and Morgaine (the character Marsh played in Battlefield). It was only after Jones accepted the role, that she was told the truth, and then forced to sign an NDA. In preparation for filming, Jones met with Jean Marsh to discuss the character of Sara Kingdom. It was during this meeting that the two came up with the idea of Marsh cameoing as an old Sara Kingdom in Episode 6. Jones presented this to Moore, who instantly loved the idea and wrote it into the script. Although wanting to keep it a surprise, Mal Young was told, in April, that news of Marsh’s appearance was likely to leak, so the upcoming trailer for the season was adjusted to include Marsh at the end, allowing for Young to officially reveal the news.
Moore had agreed, early on, with Pryor, that for Mavic Chen they wanted to cast a genuine Asian actor, as while Kevin Stoney’s performance was popular with Doctor Who fans, it would be simply racist to use a white actor in the role. Therefore Pryor set about auditioning Asian men between the ages of 60 and 80 for the role of Vaughn Chang, another pseudonym. Togo Igawa was eventually cast in the role, and then told exactly who he’d be playing. In 1995, Igawa had previously appeared in the Season 32 serial Saint Anthony’s Fire as the character, Hovv. Further recurring legacy characters were auditioned with pseudonyms, as well, in the months leading up to production.
Production officially began at BBC Scotland on 18 October 2021, the day after the broadcast of The Highland Beast, in complete secrecy. The production had been plagued with leaks recently, and the team at BBC Scotland were extremely nervous about more leaks travelling out of the set. As a precaution, all the call sheets, scripts and paperwork included false character names, with some scripts containing different scenes, as well, so if something did leak, it could be tracked back to who. Unfortunately for the production team, a call sheet did leak to the Mirror, however, due to the use of pseudonyms the surprise was (largely) kept. Although some fans on the internet had manage to crack the code, and work out what the pseudonyms were hiding, the theory wasn’t widespread, so most fans were genuinely surprised at ODWC, when it was announced.
Although Ruth Barrett had been Doctor Who’s composer for the past two seasons, Moore called upon Bear McCreary, once again, to handle the music, however, Jeff Russo’s theme did remain. The title sequence remained the same as Season 55 too, with the only change being the logo, which now remained on screen for less time before moving off the screen for The Daleks’ Master Plan logo, appearing on it’s own, after the main Doctor Who logo. Everything else, apart from cast credits, which now read “Ace Bhatti”, “Suranne Jones”, “and Togo Igawa”, remained the same as Season 55. The title cards remained the same, except above the episode title a smaller “Episode One” or “Episode Two” etc etc appeared.
EPISODE ONE: THE CARNIVOROUS JUNGLE
Season 56, Episode 1
Written by RONALD D. MOORE
Directed by RACHEL TALALAY
TX Date – 8 May 2022
The episode begins on a jungle, planet, Kembel, as we follow two astronauts, Gordon Lowery and Marc Cory, who are crashed on the planet. Their third crew member Jeff Garvey is pricked by a Varga plant, which sends his crazy and tries to kill the other two. In response, Cory, kills Garvey much to the shock of Lowery… before Cory reveals himself to be an agent of the Space Security Service and that he has a license to kill. As things proceed, they discover Daleks are on the planet, who kill Lowery. Cory moves to contact his commanders, but the transmission channels are weak… and Cory is unsure if it’s got through, so records it to tape, leaving it in the ship. However, when he goes out he is surrounded by Daleks who kill him and blow up the ship. We then cut to elsewhere in the jungle, as the end of Season 55 is reprised, with the Doctor stepping out of the TARDIS, which vanishes behind him… which leads us into the opening titles.
After the titles, we get a few scenes establishing Sara Kingdom, a Space Security Service officer on Earth in the year 4000. We additionally meet Mavic Chen, the Guardian of the Solar System, and the most loved man on the planet.
In space, we follow a Space Security Service ship trying to get in contact with Marc Cory, following his signal vanishing. The ship is crewed by two people, Bret Vyon and Kert Gantry. After a discussion, they decide to go to Kembel to search for Corey.
Meanwhile, the Doctor walks through the jungle on Kembel, trying to get his bearings and looking intensely at the plant life, curiously, not quite able to place what he’s seeing. Soon, the Doctor hears a massive sonic boom, as a space ship crashes. The Doctor moves through the jungle following the noise, but eventually comes to the clearing where Cory’s spaceship was, finding the body of Garvey, and the rubble of an explosion.
Vyon and Gantry lie in their crashed spaceship. Gantry is badly injured, but Vyon is just about okay, as he extinguishes the fires and performs first aid on Gantry, however, he’s still in a very bad way. Vyon decides to leave the ship to get supplies and help, after putting the distress beacon on.
The Doctor examines Garvey’s body where he finds a thorn in his hand, and states that there’s “no evidence of tissue damage… and a massive internal displacement”, before realising exactly what’s happened. However, Vyon finds the Doctor over Garvey’s body, assuming the Doctor was the cause of this. The Doctor tries to explain but Vyon holds him at gunpoint, taking him back to their ship.
Meanwhile, we go to the Space Security Service headquarters on Earth, where two workers are operating the communications board, which flashes Vyon’s distress signal, however they are distracted by watching a speech from Mavic Chen, and don’t see it.
While walking back, the Doctor talks to Vyon trying to plead his innocence, and that another force of evil is at work. Meanwhile, we see Gantry climb out of the ship, before he is surrounded by huge Varga plants, which prick him, and like Garvey at the beginning, his whole persona changes. The Doctor and Vyon reach the crashed ship, to find Gantry there, who initially seems normal, before trying to kill them. The Doctor notices the prick in his hand again and says that it’s the prick of a Varga plant… and that there only natural habitat is Skaro. As they begin fighting off, the Vargas surround all of them… but then, they are set alight by flames as the jungle is hit with flame throwers, and Daleks emerge… they exterminate Gantry and take the Doctor and Vyon prisoner.
Meanwhile, intercut with this, we get scenes on Earth, as Sara attempts to check in on the Cory mission, but finds nothing, raising alarms at headquarters. Sara decides to take her ship, with a skeleton crew of 3, to investigate. However, when Sara enters the destination of Kembel into her ship, a message comes up saying “restricted”. Sara then does some digging and finds out that someone at SSS HQ added a restriction onto Kembel, only a few hours ago, leading Sara to conclude that someone in the SSS is involved in some sort of conspiracy linking with the disappearance of Cory, Vyon and Gantry.
On Kembel, the Doctor and Vyon are taken to a city, as prisoners, where dozens of alien ships are coming into land. One of these seems especially important, and Vyon recognises it… as out steps Mavic Chen.
The Doctor and Vyon are taken to a cell, where Vyon explains who Mavic Chen is. He says Chen was the biggest phenomena in human history. He says he grew up on the streets on Taipei, without a mother or father, while Earth was in a pretty poor place, and through grassroots methods, he rose to President of Earth, and unified the planet for the first time since the fall of the Gaian Empire. Vyon explains he then went onto unify the solar system, arranging a historic peace treaty with Mars and Venus, bringing them under a single government, becoming the Guardian of the Solar System. Vyon says simply, everyone loves him… but it seems he’s negotiating with Daleks.
We then cut to a meeting of dozens of species and powers in the galaxy, which the Daleks chair. The Daleks share plans of a weapon called the Time Destructor, which will allow them to together conquer the rest of the universe, however, the power it the Daleks need resources from all of these species’ planets, but most of all from the Solar System, as the core must be made of Taranium, only found on Uranus. Mavic Chen says that he has prepared for this and presents a small block of pure Taranium, one of the rarest minerals in the history of the galaxy… everyone is in awe, as Mavic Chen negotiates with the Daleks… however, the others are less keen, but Chen manages to persuade everyone working together will unite them, give them all power.
The Doctor and Vyon break out of their cell and spy on the meeting, putting things together and realising what Chen is up to. They also hear a conversation from the Daleks, in another room, revealing they are planning double-crossing all the delegates, once the Time Destructor is working, including the fact they are planning to invade Earth, as soon as they can get their hands on the taranium which Chen is currently holding. In desperation to stop this, the Doctor apprehends a delegate, who has briefly left the room, and Vyon knocks him out, before the Doctor steals his clothes and takes his place.
Bret meanwhile sneaks aboard Mavic Chen’s ship in a bid to steal it, when the Doctor has completed stealing the Taranium. The Doctor does manage this, swiping the Taranium from under Chen’s nose, but as the Doctor is leaving the city, the alarm goes on, and a big chase scene ensues, with the Daleks, as the Doctor tries to get to Chen’s ship. Eventually, after a whole lot of action, the Doctor and Vyon reunite, with the core, on Chen’s ship and they take off. Chen tells the Daleks’ to activate the orbital barrier, which blocks the ship from getting through, but Bret manages to override it at the last minute, breaking through, for just a second and leaving Kembel.
Chen, then gets on a Dalek spaceship in anger, as he tells them to follow it, as the core is on there. But the Daleks tell Chen that this is his fault for allowing it to be so easily stolen. Chen has an argument with the Daleks but remains calm. He then says he’ll use his own resources and contacts SSS HQ, with Sara on the other end, who he orders to come to the the Deep Space outpost, 4 light-years from Kembel, for a special mission.
On Chen’s ship, the Doctor and Vyon discuss what they should do with the information they have. Vyon says he knows a woman on Earth, Sara Kingdom, who will help them. The Doctor agrees that’s where they should go.
On Earth, Kingdom sets off in her ship, towards the space station, not knowing what to expect… very worried about the whoever the traitor in the SSS is too.
The Dalek ship arrives at the space station, where Chen asks to be dropped off, but the Daleks say they will accompany him at all times until the Taranium Core is retrieved. Chen is unhappy with this, but eventually agrees, to two Daleks by his side.
Kingdom’s ship arrives, several hours later, and she meets Chen in his office. Kingdom presents Chen with the evidence she has about the traitor, putting a restriction on Kembel, to which Chen explains that there’s two fugitives who did it, one a stranger of immense power and the other Bret Vyon, the traitor… who Chen claims killed both Marc Cory and Kert Gantry. Kingdom agrees to apprehend them, applaud by the betrayal. As she leaves the room, the two Daleks emerge from the side (hidden during the meeting) as they close in on Chen and say that his plan better work.
Kingdom gets in her spaceship and sets a course for the transponder signal, which Chen’s ship is giving out…
Finally, the episode ends with a Dalek spaceship landing on the planets of one of the delegates, and invading, killing people left right and centre, before we cut to another planet of another delegate and the same thing happens, and again and again. Mavic Chen sits in his office, laughing, as he watches it on a screen…. As we cut to the end credits.
EPISODE TWO: THE GUARDIAN’S TALE
Season 56, Episode 2
Written by DAVID WEDDLE & BRADLEY THOMPSON
Directed by SERGIO MIMICA-GEZZAN
TX Date – 15 May 2022
While this episode moves the narrative across, it spends much of its running time flashing back to the past and exploring Mavic Chen’s backstory.
The episode begins with a previously recap before moving into the pre-title sequence, which sees Mavic Chen’s space ship, Earth One (who the Doctor and Bret have stolen), being shot at by Sara Kingdom’s ship. We get an intense space battle as Bret fights off the SSS ship (not knowing who’s piloting it) explaining that Mavic Chen must’ve ordered the SSS to deal with them, and that the core must be safeguarded. We see the battle from both Sara’s point of view and the Doctor and Bret’s. Eventually, Earth One, is shot in just the wrong place that the Doctor and Bret loose control and the ship begins to crash, into a miserable grey looking planet, as we cut to the opening titles.
After the titles we cut to a young boy, Mavic Chen, at the age of just 5, lying down on a cardboard box. We pan out and see Chen, homeless, and alone, living on the streets of a vibrant futuristic, but equally dystopian city. A caption reads: “Taipei, 3931”. We focus on just how alone Chen is. A child. Alone and homeless.
We then cut to Mavic Chen, in the present, as he sits down on the bridge of the Dalek spacehsip, thinking. He is suddenly snapped out of his thoughts, when a Dalek glides up to him and asks “when the female will retrieve the core”. Chen stands up and gives an overblown speech about the abilities of Sara Kingdom and the SSS, as well as human superiority… which the Dalek doesn’t take kindly too, so Chen adds “next to the mighty Dalek race, of course”. He assures the Dalek that the core will be retrieved and handed directly over to the Supreme Dalek.
We then cut to the Doctor and Bret in the crashed Earth One. While it’s beaten up on the outside, inside it’s relatively fine, as Bret explains that Mavic Chen has only the very best. The two of them then stop to have a conversation about Chen and the Space Security Service, and just what they’re going to do next. They decide to fix up the ship, and try and continue to get to Earth, in order to warn them. Bret does warn the Doctor that Chen is the most popular man on Earth and it’ll be very hard to get anyone to believe them. Bret instead suggests destroying the core, but the Doctor says that the trouble with Taranium is, while it’s very rare, the little of it there is, is virtually indestructible.
We then cut back to several flashbacks (we are interspersed throughout the rest of the runtime). The first shows Mavic Chen, aged 6, being beaten up and left for dead by two Bellonsion kids. The next shows Chen, aged 10, being approached by an older man, in the street, who asks if Chen would like to come along their group… Humanity First, as they think he is only homeless because of aliens on the planet, taking homes from humans, and says that they can help look after him. We then montage through five years of Chen being taken in by the group, and as he gets older, begins to speak at the meetings and share his own story. Chen also learns, from other members of the group, about the Great Gaian Empire, a period some 600 years ago when humanity ruled much of the quadrant, and that since it fell, Earth has fallen into destitution, despair and poverty. At the age of 15, the leader of the group takes Chen to a secret location where a very old and decrepit statue of Veronica Latimer stands. Chen undergoes some sort of initiation ritual, in front of the statue, as he pleads to continue her work. Chen is then told that he has been sworn in as a member of Gaia Forever. A further montage ensues where Chen is shown rising up, through different causes, rallying people around, through grassroots methods, to gain political power. He is successfully elected as the President of his country, and then we continue through several years as he rallies the planet, calling for a union between all countries and a single government, for the first time in over 600 years. This takes decades of campaigning from Chen, but eventually, this happens and Chen stands to be the first President of Earth (since the fall of the Gaians) and wins. We then see things continue through further decades as Chen does the same, harbouring a peace treaty with the Venusians and the Ice Warriors, which eventually becomes a political union, and then the whole of the solar system are united as a single entity and Chen is elected Guardian of the Solar System.
Meanwhile, throughout these flashbacks, we go to Sara Kingdom who lands on the grey planet, and searches for the crashed Earth One. She eventually finds it, after picking up it’s transponder, which happens once the Doctor and Bret begin fixing the ship, and inadvertently activate it. Sara firstly tries to shoot the ship, but the shields are up, so she lands and goes on foot. However, before she can get to the door of Earth One, the ship takes off, as the Doctor and Bret manage to fly it. Sara shoots at it with her gun, but no damage is caused. She then gets into her spaceship and, after a small action scene, shoots Earth One down again, as it crashes.
The ship is in a much worse way now and the Doctor and Bret just manage to crawl out alive. However, on their tails is Sara in her ship, as she shoots at the two of them, as they get on their feet and begin running. Sara flies as she keeps shooting at them, only narrowly missing them… However, the Doctor and Bret manage to get to a cave and take cover. Sara then leaves the ship and one again goes on foot, into the cave… but it’s a large system, and the Doctor and Bret are nowhere to be easily found.
We then get a sequence of cat and mouse as the Doctor and Bret try to avoid Sara, as he hunts them down through the caves. At this point, the Doctor and Bret still haven’t caught sight of Sara, herself, not knowing the identity of the Space Security Service agent who is hunting them. During the scene, Bret and the Doctor talk some more, between the action, as Bret speaks a bit about the deaths of his two colleagues and how that is actually emotionally affecting him.
The Doctor and Bret finally have nowhere to go, and have to leave the cave, as all their exits are blocked and get back onto the surface of the planet. Sara chases after them, and then… Bret pauses, as he looks back and sees, for the first time, that the SSS agent is Sara Kingdom. He looks like his world has been ripped into two. He calls for the two of them to speak. Sara agrees, but is angry at Bret, telling him he’s a traitor and that he killed Marc Cory and Kert Gantry. Bret tries to explain what actually happened, but Sara doesn’t believe it. The Doctor tries to back him up, but Sara maintains she is loyal to Mavic Chen and the Solar System. Bret says that Chen is working for the Daleks, but Sara doesn’t believe it. Bret tries to get closer to Sara, telling her that it’s good to see her and that he knows she knows that he’s telling the truth. Sara waits for Bret to get close to him, and then, with her gun pressed to his chest, she shoots and kills him, as we cut to the cliffhanger.
Also, dotted throughout the episode, although mainly toward the end, is several scenes of the Daleks occupying many of the planets, of the delegates from Episode 1, and we then see them execute said delegates, claiming Dalek superiority.
EPISODE THREE: THE FACE OF THE ENEMY
Season 56, Episode 3
Written by IRA STEVEN BEHR
Directed by SERGIO MIMICA-GEZZAN
TX Date – 22 May 2022
After a previously recap, we cut to Mavic Chen and the Daleks on the bridge of the Dalek space ship. They speak about the stranger who accompanied Vyon, with the Daleks concluding that the stranger maybe an enemy of there’s known as the Doctor. The Daleks ask Chen to capture the Doctor, but Chen tells them that he’s already given orders for Kingdom to execute him and Vyon. The Daleks repeat their order to Chen, who then establishes a communications link with Kingdom, telling her the order.
We then see Sara having just killed Bret, and pointing her gun at the Doctor, receive the order. She tells the Doctor to begin walking, as she keeps her gun on him, toward her spaceship. The Doctor speaks to Sara, during this walk, continuing to explain what’s actually going on, but Sara doesn’t take any notice, instead telling him to be quiet. The Doctor has already worked out she isn’t going to kill him, so he continues pushing and pushing her. Eventually they reach the spaceship, whereby Sara handcuffs the Doctor into his seat and sets off… for Earth, whereby we cut to the opening titles.
We see a slow blurry flashback of children, playing in a garden. The sound of laughter, the sound of joy. And then: into Sara Kingdom’s Space Ship. The Doctor is asleep. The ship comes into orbit of Earth, and a voice asks Sara to send her security codes across, to which the Doctor is woken up by. The Doctor asks what’s going on and Sara says that Mavic Chen has ordered his presence and she doesn’t think the Doctor will make it out alive. The Doctor gives her a look of “we’ll see about that” before the ship lands, outside a large skyscraper.
We then cut inside the skyscraper, to a lab where two scientists are carrying out an experiment on mice. It’s a huge white brightly lit lab, with futuristic chrome controls everywhere. The scientists shoot a ray at the mice, to which they vanish. They mention it’s a process called ‘Molecular dissemination’, ordered by Mavic Chen himself.
Elsewhere in the building, Sara leads the Doctor, alongside several other security agents, towards Mavic Chen’s office. The Doctor enters, with the guards remaining outside, as one-on-one the two confront each other. They speak, in a vicious verbal battle, about just what Chen is doing and how dangerous it is. Chen insists that he will bring humanity back up to the glory of the Gaian Empire… to which the Doctor responds: “Well meet the person who brought down the Gaian Empire…” Chen tells the Doctor that the Daleks have requested his audience, and her is merely but a middleman on his journey to extermination… but the Doctor instead tells Chen that he isn’t any such thing, but instead a naive fool. However, out of a concealed door, the Supreme Dalek appears, soon coming eye to eye with the Doctor.
Meanwhile, outside we see Sara guarding the door. She briefly speaks to a fellow SSS Agent, called Borkar, whereby she discusses Bret Vyon’s betrayal. Borkar shows discomfort at the fact, finding it difficult to believe. Sara then admits that she killed him, to which Borkar is incredibly shocked but understands that it’s her duty.
The Doctor speaks to the Supreme Dalek, as it requests the Taranium be returned, but the Doctor says that the Taranium isn’t in his possession, and that it is back on Kembel (a lie). The Dalek sees through the Doctor’s lie and scans him, finding the Taranium in his pocket. Thinking fast, the Doctor runs, pushing Mavic Chen to the floor, carefully dodging the Dalek rays, so that it disintegrates the door, and then runs into the corridor… where all the SSS Agents are. Mavic Chen screams “After Him!”, but they all see Chen with the Supreme Dalek. All of the SSS Agents obey Chen, but Sara stands still, processing the fact a Dalek is in Chen’s office. We flashback to what Bret said about the Daleks, and then focus on Sara some more. Sara walks over to Chen and the Supreme Dalek, asking what the deal of their partnership is, to which Chen smuggly tells her that he’s restoring glory to “Gaia”.
We then cut to a chase sequence, through the skyscraper, as SSS Agents and Daleks chase the Doctor. It’s action packed, involving several set pieces, throughout the building. Eventually, the Doctor is cornered by Sara… but, much to his surprise, when on the other side, he is surrounded, Sara shoots at the others, rescuing the Doctor, joining him. The two continue running and find themselves in the white Molecular dissemination room. However, nearly as soon as they enter, they are hit by rays of light, as their faces begin to twist and mould… and they begin to be transported across space… and after a very surreal sequence, they arrive on a barren planet… Mira.
Back on Earth, and Mavic Chen, and a thin imposing bald man, Karlton, enter the lab… seeing that the Doctor and Sara are gone. Chen shouts at Karlton, as he was the one who vouched for Kingdom, as their best agent. Karlton explains that revealing their plan to her must’ve changed her loyalties. Chen reinforces the fact that they need the Taranium now, or the Daleks will grow… “murderous”. Karlton then cooks up a plan for Chen to claim that he banished the Doctor and Kingdom to Mira on purpose, to strand them, without friends or protection, and that the Daleks are to dispatch a ship to apprehend them there. Chen likes this plan, before going into a rant about how he will have mastery over the galaxy, soon… and beyond. Chen thanks Karlton telling him that he’ll have a high place in history, and when Chen leaves the room, Karlton adds “the highest”, slyly.
On Mira, the Doctor and Sara are lying on the ground in a cave. They soon wake up and are disorientated, as he says they’ve experienced a very rough teleportation, and they are approximately 60 light years from Earth. Sara doesn’t understand how that’s possible, but the Doctor says the SSS must’ve have some help from the Daleks. As things quiet down, the Doctor and Sara talk about what’s happened. The Doctor mentions her killing Bret, coldly, but Sara snaps at him… incredibly upset. She eventually snaps, at the Doctor, shouting: “shut up, Bret Vyon… was my brother!”, much to the Doctor’s surprise. We then cut to a montage of blurry flashbacks of Sara and Bret as children (like the beginning) and then a replay of Sara killing Bret. On Sara: incredibly upset, crying. She repeats “he wasn’t a traitor, he wasn’t a traitor”… before running off deep into the cave.
A fleet of Dalek spaceships come into orbit around Earth. We see ordinary people on the streets seeing them in the sky and gossiping. In his office, Mavic Chen is furious. Three Daleks, alongside the Supreme, who is already there, arrive in Chen’s office, to tell him that he will be exterminated if the Taranium is not delivered. Chen then explains that it was a deliberate plan and that a Dalek Taskforce should be dispatched to Mira. The Daleks agree, but not before the Supreme simply tells Chen, catching onto his lie, “You make your incompetence sound like an achievement.” Chen looks slyly at the Dalek, embarrassed.
Deep into the cave, the Doctor is searching for Sara, but instead he comes across some cave drawings. It shocks the Doctor, as it shows a police box… with the First Doctor, Steven and Sara next to it. A flash of memory: just a flash of the Doctor, Steven and Sara on Mira… Only for a second. The Doctor is confused. And then: a whispered female voice… “The restoration… the restoration… the restoration is coming…” The Doctor is even more confused now. Then another flash of memory: Sara, a withered old woman, dying amongst the sands.
Elsewhere in the cave, Sara sits and contemplates… crying and crying. She then hears a voice: “I’m sorry.” Sara looks across and sees a blonde woman sitting on the rock next to her… it’s Phaedra, played by Emma Caulfield. She tells Sara that only she can see her, and that the whole universe’s survival depends on what she does next. The Doctor then runs in and finds Sara (not seeing Phaedra) telling her that they need to move now. Sara nods and joins the Doctor as they run out of the cave entrance. Above them they see a Dalek ship descending, as they run.
We then cut to Earth, as Mavic Chen makes a huge speech to the crowd announcing his patnership with the Daleks, to bring the Gaian peacekeeping force back to the galaxy. This is received with applause and cheering from everyone, as people shout “Gaia Reborn” over and over again.
The Doctor and Sara stand looking up with Daleks beginning to fly out onto the surface, beginning to shoot. The Doctor starts to beg: “please, please, please”. Phaedra looks at Sara and then winks, before the TARDIS slowly appears, materialising into view. Sara is shocked, but there is no time to explain, as the Doctor quickly pushes her inside and the TARDIS dematerialises.
Then, from a distance, as the Daleks swarm the planet… in the cave’s entrance another TARDIS arrives, disguised as a boulder. Out steps a woman, played by Jo Brand, who looks over at Phaedra… standing next to her. She says that the plan is dangerously close to falling apart. Phaedra says not to worry, and that the Restoration will go ahead, despite the Intendant’s interference. Phaedra then refers to the woman as “the Monk”, before the end credits roll.
EPISODE FOUR: THE CRY OF THE PAST
Season 56, Episode 4
Written by MATTHEW B. ROBERTS
Directed by JOHN DAHL
TX Date – 29 May 2022
After a previously recap, we cut to footage of someone screaming in pain. Then we cut to Phaedra’s face, which morphs into the face of the Eleventh Doctor, which morphs back into Phaedra’s face. We get a few quick flashes of scenes from Panopticon’s Put Your Dreams Away, showing the Doctor becoming Phaedra. And then… we cut to Phaedra, sitting in the TARDIS, next to Sara, who is sitting quietly in her own thoughts, at the back of the console room. Phaedra startles Sara when she begins speaking, as she reiterates that no-one but her can she her. Sara questions who she is and why she is her, but Phaedra remains vague, only explaining that she is dead, and it’s all because of the man over there… pointing to the Doctor at the console. Just then, the Doctor walks over to Sara (as Phaedra vanishes) and says simply “There weren’t any Visians… where were the Visians?”… Sara is confused before asking what he’s talking about, whereby the Doctor explains that the Visians are the indigenous population of Mira… but they weren’t there. Then the Doctor thinks to himself, almost in doubt, unsure how he even knows that.
We then cut to the Monk’s TARDIS, where she is watching events on her scanner. She looks over at Phaedra, who is standing next to her, and says that “the Doctor is getting too close to the past”, to which Phaedra replies by stating that Sara Kingdom is the key to everything… she must not die… as we cut to the opening titles.
Following the titles, we find ourselves on Earth, as a crowd of people, inside some sort of pub, watch back Mavic Chen’s speech. They are all shouting and jeering in anger, before a woman stands up to quieten them all down… Raleigh Baker-Mitchell. She tells the group of a world far away, where she saw a man, not to dissimilar from Mavic Chen, become corrupted by all that is evil, and that the only way to fight against it, is to rise up, for every single person, no matter how unimportant they are, to take arms, and to say no to the Daleks, say no to the Gaian regime, and no to Mavic Chen. The crowd cheer, as chant Raleigh’s name, as she winks at the camera.
In the TARDIS, the Doctor tells Sara that he thinks someone has messed with time. He says that he’s sure he’s experienced these events before, long ago, but differently. He then sees a flash, again, of the original adventure… of Steven and Sara and Katarina… before shaking his head and telling Sara that there’s a higher power at plan, some sort of plan, and he doesn’t know if that’s for good or for evil.
Mavic Chen speaks with the Supreme Dalek, on the Dalek mothership. He explains that the Taranium Core will be recovered momentarily, but the Supreme Dalek tells Mavic Chen that he has had enough chances and excuses and that the Daleks will exclusively be taking control of the operation. The Supreme Dalek then informs Chen that he is to restart mining efforts on Uranus for more Taranium. Chen explains that it will take over a decade to mine enough Taranium again, to which the Supreme simply says “You better make sure you stay in power for ‘over a decade’ then”.
Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor sets the coordinates for Earth in the 1960s, as that’s where he’s sure he went next, originally. Sara asks if that’s wise, saying that their energies are better spent stopping Chen and the Daleks, instead of chasing through the Doctor’s past. The Doctor tells Sara that potentially the universe is as stake, and it’s something they must do. Sara looks to her side and Phaedra is standing there, as she tells Sara that the original course of events will lead to her death… Sara gulps, before asking Phaedra again who she is and why she is there… and then she vanishes.
We then cut to Raleigh in a spaceship, a much older and battered looking Flagship, from the Elysium… It’s landed in a port on Earth. She looks around, solemnly, as she comes to a photo frame with a picture of her alongside several other characters from the Elysium. She looks down and smiles. We then get a flashback, from False Prophets, as Raleigh runs after the Doctor in tears, pleading for the Doctor to help her, to take her back. But before the Doctor can say anything, Pete shoves her to the floor, pushing her over, and saying that she’s not coming anywhere near him again. The three of them go back into the TARDIS as it dematerialises and leaves Raleigh there on Taoter III, stranded. Raleigh, back in the present, turns around… to see the Monk standing behind her, watching her. The Monk tells Raleigh that she’s done a good job since the Doctor abandoned her, but now the Doctor needs her help. Raleigh seems to almost light up at the mention of the Doctor’s name, asking the Monk who she is and how she knows the Doctor. The Monk says they shouldn’t get ahead of themselves, just stating that she’s a fellow Time Lord, like the Doctor, and that something is approaching, something that will right a wrong that the Doctor committed. Raleigh says “whatever you need, I’ll help…”
The TARDIS lands in the 1960s, on Christmas Day. The Doctor and Sara step out to see a police station opposite, and another police box close by. The Doctor excitedly says that it’s his TARDIS, from the past… meaning that whatever happened to time, he was still here, proving the everything he’s thinking is true. They go up to the police box and open it… but inside they find only the interior of a police box. They turn around to find a policeman, who questions why they are loitering about a police box on Christmas Day, before they run, evading him, and get back into the TARDIS. Inside, Sara tells the Doctor that they need to focus on stopping the Daleks, to which the Doctor reluctantly agrees, saying that he’s not sure what’s going on with his timeline, but that Sara is right and the priority is stopping Mavic Chen and the Daleks.
On Earth, the TARDIS lands, as the Doctor and Sara exit, finding themselves in the middle of a huge protest against Mavic Chen. The Doctor says that he thinks the people of Earth are doing the job themselves, and that Mavic Chen will fall… Sara tries to explain just how universally popular Chen is, and that small subversive groups won’t make an impact on overall opinion. However, Raleigh then steps up to speak to the crowd, and the Doctor is shocked… shocked to see her. But then, he smiles, and tells Sara if anyone can take down Mavic Chen, it’s Raleigh Baker-Mitchell.
Just then, however, the Daleks begin flying in from above, exterminating randomly into the crowd. They order “The Doctor will come forward and hand over the Taranium Core”… The Doctor reveals himself to the Daleks… shocking an onlooking Raleigh, who screams out “Doctor!”. The Daleks then close in on Raleigh, pointing their weapons at her, telling the Doctor that he will hand over the Taranium core or Raleigh will die. The Doctor quickly says “hi” to Raleigh, who comments that she’s “digging” the Doctor’s new body. The Doctor asks her if she’s still fast, to which she nods. The Doctor then holds out the Taranium core, about to pass it to the Daleks, and then shouts “now”, to which he tosses it over to Raleigh, who catches it and runs. The Daleks chase after her, before the Doctor and Sara, use the distraction to get back to the TARDIS. The Daleks close in on Raleigh, who is cornered, but the TARDIS then materialises over Raleigh, rescuing her. The Doctor smiles and says that they are quite a team, to which Raleigh laughs but then coldly says “you left me”. The Doctor looks solemn before moving on, saying that they need to get rid of the Taranium. Sara reminds the Doctor it’s indestructible but the Doctor says that they can simply lock it away, somewhere in the TARDIS. Phaedra appears next to Sara, who says that the core must remain in the hands of Raleigh, if Sara is to avoid death. Sara interrupts the Doctor, saying that there’s no point hiding the core, as the Daleks have time travel and can just wait until more Taranium is mined. The Doctor ponders this, telling Sara that she is right. Raleigh says that regime change on Earth is the only way to ensure the Daleks don’t get anymore Taranium once it’s mined. The Doctor agrees.
On the Dalek spaceship, the Monk’s TARDIS arrives, whereby she steps out, to dozens of Daleks pointing their weapons at her. The Monk holds her hands up and says that she proposes an alliance, and alliance which will rid the universe of… the Doctor. The Daleks confer for a moment, before turning to the Monk and agreeing. The Monk smiles and says “What do you know of the Restoration?”.
Inside the TARDIS, Sara says that Cory tried to get a message to Earth, before he died. She suggests that perhaps there might be a way of receiving that message, if they returned to Kembel. Raleigh leaps on the idea, saying that the message could be the solid evidence they need to take down Mavic Chen. The Doctor smiles and sets the controls for Kembel. Raleigh interrupts the Doctor and says that she should stay on Earth, help lead the fight. The Doctor lands the TARDIS on Earth, as a result, and Raleigh leaves. However, outside the TARDIS, the Monk stands, as the TARDIS dematerialises. The Monk asks for the Taranium Core, and Raleigh takes it out of her pocket, giving it to her. Raleigh says that this better help the Doctor and that she doesn’t like the secrecy. The Monk assures Raleigh that it will right one of the Doctor’s biggest wrongs.
We then cut to the Monk arriving on the Dalek ship, with the core. She presents it and says that it is not for the Time Destructor but a much greater purpose… “The Restoration”. The Daleks begin chanting “The Restoration” over and over again, as we cut to London, and see the Daleks beginning an invasion… as they chant and chant.
Mavic Chen sits in his office, in the skyscraper, and looks outside and sees what’s happening. He looks horrified at the Daleks double-crossing him.
Raleigh continues to lead protests against Chen, as as the Daleks invade, they fight back against them, with all the weaponry they can find.
The TARDIS comes in to land on Kembel, but as the Doctor and Sara get ready to leave, the Doctor notices the Taranium Core is gone. Sara looks over and sees Phaedra smiling. The Doctor steps out of the TARDIS, to find the Monk standing there, winking at him as she asks what he thinks of her new female body…
Then we cut to Phaedra, in an unknown location, sitting on a throne welcoming in the “glorious restoration”, as energy seems to feed into her and she seems to get stronger. She then says “the biggest mistake ever made… was killing me”… as she lets out a huge evil laugh, and we cut to the end credits.
EPISODE FIVE: THE SECRET OF KEMBEL
Season 56, Episode 5
Written by RONALD D. MOORE & IRA STEVEN BEHR
Directed by RACHEL TALALAY
TX Date – 5 June 2022
After a previously recap, we cut to Russia… 1915. A group of guards carry a figure into a tent. Inside the tent, sits a large man with a big beard… the figure is then revealed to us as the Monk. She looks towards the man and says “Ah yes, Rasputin, hello!”. Rasputin growls and spits on the Monk. The Monk tries to charm Rasputin, before telling him that she can show him his legacy. Rasputin is interested, and tells the guards to leave, before the Monk takes out a smartphone and shows Rasputin a recording of Boney M performing, their 1978 hit, Rasputin. Rasputin raises an eyebrow, and is speechless, before suddenly he bellows out “Guards!”. The Monk laughs and begins running, as guards chase after her. She quickly manages to get into her TARDIS and dematerialises. Then we linger on Rasputin as his gently hums the tune to Rasputin. Inside the Monk’s TARDIS, she notices a strange blue glow appear. The Monk studies it, curiously. She then fiddles with some equipment and instruments managing to amplify it, eventually helping it form… into the body of Phaedra. Phaedra looks towards the Monk and says “help me”… as we cut to the opening titles.
After the titles, we cut to the present, on Kembel as the Monk confronts the Doctor and Sara. The Doctor says that he should’ve known, if someone was messing with history, his history, it would be the Monk. The Monk says that she’s honoured, but that she has the best of intentions, she’s not merely diverting history for kicks and giggles. The Doctor curiously asks why and the Monk says that she “had a crisis of conscience”.
On Earth, the Dalek invasion is in full swing. Mavic Chen looks over at London, horrified, at what the Daleks have done. He speaks to Karlton, asking him why the Daleks have done this, why is Earth being invaded. Karlton suggests that the Daleks saw weakness and never saw him as an equal, they just needed something from him. Chen breathes in and then says that he’s not going to take this, and that he’s going to seek an audience with the Daleks. He then tells Karlton to withdraw the SSS, the Army and all other means of defence from fighting the Daleks. He must appear peaceful. Karlton questions whether that’s a good idea, in the midst of a full-on invasion, but Chen threatens Karlton, saying he’s happy to employ just one defence and stick him out in the middle of Trafalgar Square, against a thousand Daleks. Karlton nods and then sternly says “consider it done, Guardian”.
On Kembel, the Monk explains that the Doctor has killed many people over the years, which the Doctor looks confused apart, but the worst amongst them, the tale of how he killed Will Adams and Phaedra. The Doctor asks how it’s relevant, but the Monk tells the Doctor that he killed two innocent people to save his own life. The Doctor says it wasn’t his choice, but the Monk says it was unforgivable. Sara is confused, so the Doctor quickly gets her up-to-speed through a bit of exposition about who Phaedra and Will are. During this, Sara begins to realise that Phaedra is the woman she has been seeing.
We then return to a flashback, as Phaedra lays on a bed in the Monk’s TARDIS. The Monk questions Phaedra about who she is, and Phaedra tries to explain. The Monk doesn’t understand how she is here and how she is alive, but then the Monk scans her and she gets a bizarre reading, saying Phaedra both exists and doesn’t exist. The Monk says that it looks like Phaedra has been somehow, at least in part, restored.
On Earth, we cut to Raleigh smashing up a Dalek, among thousands of civilians fighting back. They are mostly losing, being exterminated left, right and centre, but Raleigh keeps on fighting.
In the Dalek mothership, Mavic Chen comes face to face with the Supreme Dalek. Chen asks why they’ve invaded the Earth, why have they gone back on their word. The Supreme says that the Daleks keep allies as long as they need them. He says that every other delegate world was invaded following them receiving the parts they needed. Mavic Chen says that they still need the Taranium, though, but the Supreme says “no we don’t”, as he presents the Taranium core to Chen. Chen is shocked, having not accounted for this, as he says that Earth aren’t attacking the Daleks back, and he’s withdrawn all defence. He says that Earth can still be strong allies. The Daleks confer, before the Supreme looks back at Chen and says “then you are all fool”, Chen looks angry, for a moment, before the Supreme bellows “exterminate!” and kills Mavic Chen. The Supreme Dalek then says “set course for Kembel”.
On Kembel, the Doctor asks what this is all for, but the Monk says she must leave now, but it’s been so nice catching up. She says that she has to help the Daleks with the Restoration. The Doctor is speechless. He repeats “what did you say?”, but the Monk vanishes into the jungle.
On Earth, Karlton meets with Raleigh. Raleigh looks down on Karlton throughout the meeting, as Karlton offers an alliance. He says that Mavic Chen has ordered all official defence to stand down, and that together, with her political power, and his military strength, he believes they can defeat the Daleks. Reluctantly, and distrusting of Karlton, Raleigh agrees, as Karlton calls back the withdrawn troops.
Back on Kembel, the Doctor and Sara walk through the jungle, as they search for the site of Cory’s exploded spaceship. They have a discussion about what just happened, as Sara tries to understand just what the Restoration is. The Doctor says that he’s not entirely sure, himself, but it’s something bad enough for his future self to do everything, in his power, to prevent it. Sara looks sheepish, before admitting that she’s been seeing Phaedra. The Doctor stops walking, and looks back at Sara, asking how long. Sara says since they were on Mira. The Doctor thinks, for a moment, but he says that they should continue walking on, as he believes the crash site is just over that mountain.
The Monk’s TARDIS arrives on the Dalek mothership, as the Daleks present the Time Destructor and the Taranium Core to her. The Monk says that once they land on Kembel, they must insert the Taranium into the Destructor, and begin the first trial run. The Supreme Dalek asks “what of the Restoration?”, to which the Monk says that she’ll use her instruments in her TARDIS to enact it, at the same time. She says with the combined power, the deceased of Kembel shall return to life… to which the Supreme says “and we shall exterminate them, yet again!”. The Monk claps and says “we have a deal!”.
The Doctor and Sara reach the top of the mountain on Kembel, as they look over, and see the Dalek mothership coming into orbit. The Doctor says that he can feel the restoration coming and that the Monk has a plan. Phaedra lingers over Sara’s shoulder and says “I have a plan too” with a wink, before vanishing. The Doctor then points towards the crash site and says that they’ll be there in 10 minutes, if they’re fast.
The Dalek spaceship comes into land, next to the city on Kembel. The Monk steps into her TARDIS, and tells the Daleks to insert the core. The Daleks do so, and then turn the Time Destructor on. Inside her TARDIS, the Monk activates her instruments. Phaedra stands in her console room, and blue energy runs from Phaedra into the machines, and begins to continue amplifying, more and more. In the Dalek control room, Mavic Chen’s body on the floor, begins to see a blue glow appear. And then – Chen opens his eyes. He looks around, as the Daleks don’t notice, too focused on the destructor, and quietly sneaks out.
The Doctor and Sara reach the site of Cory’s spaceship and they have a look around. Finding, the remnants of a tape. Just then, the Doctor feels something. He then tells Sara that it’s been, the Time Destructor has been activated and the Restoration has begun. They then watch, as they see blue glows begin to appear all over… as before long, from the rubble, Marc Cory stumbles out.
Phaedra stands in the Monk’s TARDIS, as she looks around and feels herself, saying that she’s whole again. She is alive. The Monk smiles. The Monk and Phaedra enter the Dalek control room, as the Supreme asks how long until the process is complete on Kembel, to which the Monk estimates about 6000 rels.
The Doctor speaks to Cory, who is confused as he thought he died. The Doctor is just as confused, but putting pieces together. Cory tells the Doctor that Mavic Chen must be stopped and that he’s allied with the Daleks. However, before the Doctor can respond, a voice says “Oh, I know”, as they look and see Mavic Chen, with his gun pointed at them. Sara looks at Chen, and says “you made me kill my brother”… Chen chuckles softly and then Sara repeats herself. Chen tells Sara that she loses, every time, and that she is a traitor to Earth. Sara then looks straight at Chen and punches him in the face. The Doctor sheepishly comments “I can’t condone that”, before winking.
The Monk and Phaedra speak to the Supreme Dalek, as they explain that when the Destructor is activated all over the universe, not only will every planet become a barren wasteland, but they will be able to resurrect and kill every life form, over and over again. The Monk also says, that with all living beings resurrected, over the universe, even the places they don’t reach will begin killing each other, as overpopulation becomes rife. Phaedra comments that the dead always outnumber the living.
Chen, getting back up, says that as much as he enjoys toying with them, he needs their help if they are to stop the Daleks. He says that they’ve got a weapon of immense destruction and they have to stop them. Cory asks how they can trust him, but Chen says that they have no other choice. The Doctor, Sara, Cory and Chen journey through the jungle, coming to an underground tunnel to take them into the city, and to the main landing pad.
Outside the Dalek spaceship, the Daleks assemble a transmitter onto the front of their ship, to amplify the effects of the Destructor. In the close vicinity around the spaceship, the trees appear to be dying and withering away.
As the Doctor and his team approach the city, they notice that they feel fatigued. The Doctor then notices that Sara’s hair seems to have a few grey streaks, appearing. First Sara is offended, but then she realises that the Destructor is affecting them.
Eventually, they reach the spaceship, but before they can get onto it, the Doctor is slammed into a wall by the Monk and Phaedra who confront him. The Doctor looks straight at Phaedra and just says “I’m so sorry”. The Daleks roll out of the spaceship to face the group, as the Monk and Phaedra let go and leave it to the Daleks. The Daleks them aim, and say “exterminate!”, as we cut to the end credits.
EPISODE SIX: THE MUTATION OF TIME
Season 56, Episode 6
Written by RONALD D. MOORE
Directed by JOHN DAHL
TX Date – 12 June 2022
After a previously recap, we return to the action as the Daleks aim their weapons at the Doctor, Sara and Mavic Chen, and say “exterminate”… but Chen then walks in front of the others and tells the Daleks that there is no need to fire, because he is immortal, and that when they killed him before, he just came back alive. The Daleks confer, before they tell Chen that he is only immortal at their prerogative and he is not special in anyway, before they aim and fire… “Exterminate”… Mavic Chen dies again.
During all this, the Doctor and Sara manage to escape as they enter the Dalek spaceship. They look around and see Daleks everywhere, with the Time Destructor right in the centre. The Doctor tells Sara that they need to deactivate it and destroy it. He mentions that it’s only effecting Kembel, at the moment, and very slowly, but once it joins the Dalek fleet, it will be universe wide. However, when the Doctor looks back to see Sara, she is gone. The Doctor panics, but before long, he is found by the Daleks, who take him as a prisoner… and we cut to the opening titles.
On Earth, the battle continues. Thousands and thousands of ordinary humans are fighting back against the Daleks, alongside the forces of the SSS and Earth’s other militaries. Raleigh is amongst them, on the front line, continuing to kill Daleks… We then cut to some time a bit later, as the battle still goes on outside, of Raleigh in an aircraft hangar, standing in front of some very old looking Gaian space fighters. Karlton stands beside her and says this is all they have, at the moment. Raleigh smiles and says that they need Earth’s best pilots, because there’s a whole fleet of Daleks, in orbit, ready to be blown up.
In the jungle, on Kembel, Phaedra slaps Sara Kingdom to wake her up. Phaedra explains that she drugged her and kidnapped her, because she needs to tell her just how vital her next actions are. Sara is completely confused, but reluctantly agrees to hear Phaedra out. Phaedra explains that Sara Kingdom’s destiny is to die. In the correct timeline, before the Monk’s interference, she dies. Phaedra says that, according to her models, if Sara lives however, the course of history changes most fundamentally. Phaedra says that due to micro-differences in the Doctor’s behaviour, the beings known as Will Adams and Phaedra are not sacrificed to save his life.
In the Doctor’s cell, he waits and looks around, for a way out. However, he’s cut short, when the Monk arrives. Through the bars, she speaks to the Doctor. She tells the Doctor that they are at a crossroads and that they can rid the universe of death. The Doctor then asks why she has partnered with the Daleks, and the Monk replies that she was bored and “they’re a good laugh”. The Doctor tells the Monk that this is serious and that she can’t just change the universe so freely at her own will. The Monk points out that the Doctor has on many occasions to which the Doctor retorts that he is responsible. The Monk then asks the Doctor about how responsible he was when he left Raleigh Baker-Mitchell for dead in the vacuum of space or when he allowed Pete Fletcher to blow himself up, to save the Doctor from… just regenerating. The Doctor sternly looks at the Monk. The Monk chuckles and says that the most horrible crime the Doctor committed was the murder of poor Will Adams and Phaedra, and then she adds, “and of course our entire civilisation”… The Doctor says it wasn’t his fault. The Monk says that they’re all coming back. Every single one of them. The Doctor says he can’t let that happen, even if they do miss them. The Doctor reiterates “dead is dead”, but the Monk walks away as she mutters “you know all about that”…
On Earth, Raleigh stands around with three pilots as she briefs them on the mission… simply saying “destroy as many Dalek ships as possible”. Upon a little laughter, she elaborates telling them that to focus on attacking one ship at a time together, especially the Portside, as that’s the weakest part. She tells them that they have a mission to complete, as they get into the cockpits, and get ready for takeoff. We then cut to the ships taking off and we follow one of them, in one single shot, as it travels out of the hangar into space, surrounded by Dalek ships. We see the ongoing battle on the ground, behind it, as the ship travels further upwards.
In the jungle, Sara begins walking back towards the Dalek ship, as Phaedra follows behind. Phaedra tells Sara to go back to the TARDIS, desperately, saying that if she does that she won’t die. Sara doesn’t listen to her, saying that it’s all lies. Phaedra reiterates if she goes to the Dalek spaceship, she is walking to her death. Sara stops still for a moment. She looks back into the jungle and then toward where the spaceship is… She contemplates for a moment. Then she asks Phaedra if she were in her position, would she be able to live with herself if she let this happen, and then travelled with the Doctor, ignoring the fact that she was directly responsible for the universe becoming such a rotten place. Phaedra tries to speak but then is cut off, as Sara says that the Doctor probably wouldn’t even travel with her, if she did what Phaedra wants, so no subtle changes in the Doctor’s character are going to happen there. Phaedra tries to plead with her, but Sara walks on, toward the spaceship.
We cut to the Doctor, where he manages to break out of his cell, as he ducks and dives, evading Daleks, walking through the corridor, toward the control room.
Sara and Phaedra return to the outside of the spaceship to find Mavic Chen’s body gone.
The Doctor continues walking through the corridors, before he feels a gun to his head. He turns and sees Mavic Chen at the other end. Chen tells the Doctor that while everyone on Kembel may be immortal, he can confirm that death still hurts a lot. The Doctor asks what Chen wants, and Chen says to stop the Daleks… and stop the invasion of his planet. The Doctor puts his hand on Chen’s gun, pushing it down, and replacing it with a handshake, saying that they, for all their differences, can work together.
Sara and Phaedra enter the Dalek spaceship, making their way to the control room. From one corridor, Sara and Phaedra look on at the room, hiding… while from another corridor, at the opposite end, the Doctor and Mavic Chen look on, hiding. Neither knows the others are there. In the centre of the room, the Monk works on some controls around the Time Destructor. The Supreme Dalek glides up to her, asking when they will be able to leave Kembel and begin the Restoration. The Monk says that they just need to get Phaedra strapped into the machine, and then her life-force will allow for the Restoration to be implemented on a universe-wide scale. Throughout this exchange, we see the reactions of everyone, including Phaedra, who can’t help herself but jump in. The Monk fights back, telling Phaedra that she was only ever a tool in her plan. Phaedra asks if any of it was true, saving her and Will, to which the Monk says it was all a falsehood, created to dupe her into this very moment. The Monk explains that the two of them could never be saved, and if Sara Kingdom had lived, the Doctor would’ve died instead, just meaning that being known as Phaedra would never have been created in the first place. Phaedra says “oh, well played” before punching the Monk square in the face. Phaedra is then grabbed by two Daleks and strapped into the machine.
In orbit of Earth, a space battle takes place as the three Gaian space fighters attack the Dalek fleet. Raleigh is in a command centre with Karlton, on the planet, on comms with the fighters. We cut between the battle and the command centre as they coordinate the battle. Throughout reports keep coming in of victories and loses on the ground. Karlton tells Raleigh that they are winning, but she isn’t so sure…
Back on Kembel, Phaedra screams as blue energy moves into the Time Destructor. The Doctor and Mavic Chen watch on. Chen asks how they stop the Daleks. The Doctor says that this spaceship is the command centre of the entire fleet, and that he has a plan.
Sara watches on from the other side, almost in tears, seeing what’s happening to Phaedra. She sees a flash of a memory, herself lying in the sand, and then a skeleton lying in the sand. She snaps back to it, before hearing Phaedra’s voice echo “It is Sara Kingdom’s destiny to die”. She then looks at her hair, and sees it has gotten even greyer than before.
Phaedra continues screaming and screaming as she seems to get older and older… She skin wrinkles and thins, her hair becomes greyer and greyer… Just then, Sara runs out, as Daleks begin shooting at her. Sara evades there fire, before pulling the cables off Phaedra but it’s too late, Phaedra is now a skeleton. Phaedra is dead. The Monk tells Sara that it’s all over. The Restoration is about to commence. The Supreme Dalek then puts the ship into flight as it begins to lift off. Sara, thinking quickly, grabs hold of the Time Destructor and unplugs it from the ship. She runs with it, evading Dalek fire, and jumps out of the moving Dalek spaceship onto the floor of the jungle.
Sara looks around and sees that it’s no longer a jungle, though, it’s becoming more and more like a desert. Holding the Time Destructor, already, Sara has gotten notably older. She says to herself that it’s effect must be stronger the closer the proximity.
On the Dalek spaceship, the Doctor and Mavic Chen reveal themselves. The Doctor tells the Monk to stop this. The Monk laughs and tells the Supreme Dalek, that with her equipment, they can commence the Restoration now, even without the Time Destructor, as its power is now alive within the ship, itself. The Doctor raises an eyebrow, confused about how this is the case. Mavic Chen shoots a Dalek, but it soon returns to life. The Doctor confronts the Monk asking her why she had to change with his personal history? The Monk says that she could’ve got hold of some Taranium and forced the Restoration herself, but this way was just so much more entertaining. The Doctor just looks down on her and says that she isn’t even a meddler, but a true nasty piece of work. The Monk walks over to her TARDIS, to which the Doctor follows her. She shows the Doctor her equipment which will transmit the Restoration universe-wide. The Doctor tells her that they both know the Restoration will not take place as it should – so why keep it from the Daleks… The Monk smiles and puts her finger on her lips, telling the Doctor “shush”.
In orbit of Earth, the space battle continues, as one of the fighters is destroyed by the Daleks. Raleigh breathes in as she gets the news, and tells the other two to change their strategy. She tells them to just kill as many individual Daleks as possible. Go one on one with the ones flying in space – not to target the ships.
Sara continues walking through the, now desert on Kembel, heading toward the TARDIS, as she grows weaker and older. The Time Destructor’s power is immense. It grows stronger and stronger.
In the Monk’s TARDIS, the Monk tells the Doctor that the Restoration now will only bring everything back to life. She says that now Kingdom has removed the Time Destructor, people won’t continually come back to life, for the Daleks to slaughter them again and again, but instead they will just die. She says it’s one big reset, one big Restoration. Everyone back. Then it all starts again. She says the Daleks will just be the population control they desperately will need. The Doctor says that it’s still wrong and they need to stop it while they can. The Monk says that she doesn’t want to, and that it’s a good thing. Give everyone a second chance. The Monk then opens the doors, and they see that they’ve landed, on a newly formed planet, which resembles a volcano. She pushes the Doctor out and says that this is where she’ll leave him now. The Doctor tells her to stop. He says think about her actions, put an end to this madness… but the Monk says to “enjoy the sun” and slams the door, before dematerialising.
In the Dalek spaceship, Mavic Chen speaks to the Supreme Dalek, saying that he will help with the activation of the Restoration, as he understands the workings of the Time Destructor. The Supreme Dalek is suspicious but allows it. The Daleks stop the ship’s movement, and begin activation of the Restoration. Chen looks at the panels pretending he’s looking at the Restoration percentage, but instead looks at another panel.
In the Earth space battle, one fighter faces off against a Dalek, blowing it up, but as he victoriously moves away, he sees the fighter who died appear behind him. Restored. Alive. The fighter comes back on the comms, and to Raleigh’s confusion he says that “he’s alive again.”.
The Monk’s TARDIS lands back on the Daleks’ space ship, as she tells the Daleks that the Doctor has been dispensed with. Mavic Chen fiddles with the controls, and sets a button which begins a countdown. He then faces the Daleks and tells them that he has just started a countdown which will destroy every Dalek within signal range of the spaceship. He says that if they don’t withdraw their presence from the Sol System, he will let it reach 0. The Daleks look at each other, before they shoot Chen. But… it’s too late, the countdown reaches 0. The Dalek ships blows up, seemingly killing the Monk too.
In the Earth space battle, the fighters are shocked as they see every Dalek explode. In the ground battle on Earth, every Dalek also explodes. Raleigh and Karlton in the control room can’t believe it, as they look at the reports… the Daleks are gone. They are all dead.
In the Kembel desert Sara (now played by Jean Marsh), as a very old woman, almost crawls with the Time Destructor, in visual range of the TARDIS. She hears a voice, the voice of the First Doctor: “It’s not far now. Sara!” Echoing and repeating again and again.
On the volcano planet, we see the Doctor as he closes his eyes and hears this voice too. The voice continues: “It will continue until the taranium has finally burnt itself out. Our only chance is to get back to the Tardis.” The Doctor and Sara both hear this, as Sara crawls on, and the Doctor closes his eyes. Then, we focus on the Doctor as the background around him, as his First incarnation’s voice gets louder and louder, begins to morph from a volcano to a desert.
Sara, crawling on the floor, looks up and sees the Doctor. He looks down at Sara, so sad, so ashamed. We see a flicker of the First Doctor’s face, as Sara looks at him, before it flickers back to Sixteen. Sara asks the Doctor if she saved them. The Doctor says the Restoration has happened, but it will only happen once, a single event, now she has removed the Destructor. Sara asks what happens now. The Doctor is kneels down to her and says that the Taranium core is nearly burnt out, and that she has nearly absorbed it all. She doesn’t have long left.
As the Doctor gets nearer, he starts to notice it effecting him, as his hair gets a tiny bit greyer and his face just a bit older. Nevertheless, he holds Sara’s hands, helping her up, as they stand opposite each other. He tells her that she shouldn’t have done what she did, but Sara insists that if the Restoration was going to happen anyway, then she ensured the best outcome. She maintains that she’s saved the universe from being exterminated a thousand times over. The Doctor begins to cry as he embraces her, the age showing more and more on him, as Sara’s skin begins to peel, and she begins to slowly become a skeleton, before her body collapses backward onto the sand, and the Time Destructor’s glowing red light flickers out.
The Doctor closes his eyes in grief, as he sees Sara’s skeleton… and then he turns towards the TARDIS and enters. The TARDIS slowly dematerialises, leaving an open desert, where Kembel’s jungle once was… as we cut to the end credits.
That completes the first serial of Season 56. The next is the BBC Centenary Special which will see the Sixteenth Doctor, the Eleventh Doctor and the Fourteenth Doctor teaming up in a 90 minute epic, this October!
WIDWWA 