Radio Free Skaro #326 – Because We Need The Eggs
< New Doctor Who! Yes, Asylum of the Daleks marked the return of the good Doctor and his erstwhile companions for the first time since last Christmas, and in high style with quite literally EVERY DALEK EVER making an appearance. What did the Three Who Rule think of Asylum? You’ll just have to tune in and find out, but suffice it to say their opinions were less than uniform. All this and Pond Life, an entirely too long rant about the BBC America specials, the universally beloved viewing figure recitation, and much more on this episode of RADIO! FREE! SKARO! |
| Show Notes:
– Asylum of the…Daleks! |
18 Comments on “Radio Free Skaro #326 – Because We Need The Eggs”
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Doctor Who: Radio Free Skaro 
Hi guys, enjoy listening to your podcasts. Don’t worry Australia is not offended by your comments. Managed to watch Asylum of the Daleks on ABC i view. ABC i view obtained its highest viewing figures for Asylum of the Daleks.
By the way, you did not mention the scene where the Doctor looks up at the honeycomb or lattice like roof in the Parliament of the Daleks (there is what appears to be one of the cracks in time!).
New Zealand only gets it on Thursday, but think about us in India. It will probably be another year. They haven’t even aired the second half of Series here yet. Granted, the entire Indian fan base of Doctor Who probably consists of ten people, but still. Thank CERN for the Internet.
Thought the episode was nothing wrapped in a box with pretty wrapping. There was no defined threat to the Darleks, one which would make them demand help from the Doctor. Sure a Darlek which has retained its humanity and has the ability to rewrite the whole race would be such, but you don’t figure that out until the end when its done.
Also very irksome that the Skittles Darleks, who where suppose to be ultra-purist, have adopted an “everyone’s invited” policy which includes a weapon able to turn anyone into a proto-Darlek slave.
BTW the Borg want their nano-probes back.
Despite all that I find that I in fact liked the episode. It was presented well, had good acting and pacing, its just that after its over and you think about it, there either was no plot or there were so many plot holes it may as well not have been there.
I liked the episode a lot. Sure it’s not one of those “special” episodes but we’ve gone so far with the Daleks that a hell of a lot more needs to be undone before we’re in a position to get another one of “Dalek” quality.
My main issue is the Dalek ratio: the number of Daleks involved in the threat is inversely proportional to how scary they actually are.
Looking at what I’ve seen a couple of people mention on:
– The skittles Daleks can be inclusive with some because there have been more than one type of Dalek, even in Nu-Who. The Daleks in Victory were also from Journey’s End. They were therefore taken from Davros’ own mutated cells. The other Daleks (Dalek, The Parting of the Ways) were different. They were Time War Daleks from original Skaro stock and therefore could be considered genetically pure.
– The threat to the initial Daleks is that they don’t know how strong the Asylum Daleks are, their strength or their numbers. For all they know there are more than a million insane and very pissed off Daleks at full capacity and ready to take revenge for their imprisonment, thereby starting another Dalek civil war.
– People have complained about the Dalek Parliament but it’s just a name. Gadaffi had a parliament. Syria and Russia still do, doesn’t mean that they’re not ogliarchys.
– Being called an “asylum” doesn’t mean that the Daleks are suddenly caring for their wounded or mad. For the majority of the time that humans have used the phrase an asylum was the place where the mad or embarrising were sent when you couldn’t stand them around you but didn’t want to kill them. We need to look at the term without modern sensitivities to understand its usage here.
– Out of all the things that people have picked up on, why not the fact that the members of the escape pod were converted differently? Why were the bodies of 4 allowed to die whilst the other was preserved (other than to keep the ethnic minority actor quotient ok)?
Finally – not looking for spoilers (actively avoid them wherever possible) but surely the look to the camera after Oswin’s last line was a fourth wall break and has got to mean something for the future?!?
As I said, not one of the extra special episodes but a great improvement on all the tenth Doctor’s Dalek stories and a solid 7 or 8 out of 10 start to the new series.
Enjoyed the podcast.
Asylum of the Daleks just had too many plot holes and Moffat tropes for me to like it too much.
The problem with the Daleks forgetting the Doctor is that in a show all about time travel, “forgetting” is just too linear. Just because they forget who the Doctor is at this point in time doesn’t mean that the next time the Doctor meets them it won’t be before this or after the Daleks remember.
So the Daleks knew someone had crashed into their prison planet. It had a force field that could only be turned off from the planet. (really? that is pretty stupid) Since they are too scared they call the predator to turn it off for them. That is why they kidnapped The Doctor Amy and Rory.
If they didn’t need supervision, who chained all of them up?
The Amy/Rory split seemed pretty weak to me, hey Amy think about adopting? but then what would they do when the Doctor pops in?
I like the twist of The Daleks forgetting the Doctor.
I feel so old when none of the new Who fans I know have any idea about Skaro, Been a Who fan since I was about 5. so 45 years give or take. Thanks for the podcast!
I love the shout out to abciview – it was incredibly cool that we could watch the show asap. I tutor and all of my kids and moms are so excited by this. I am not kidding – the Doctor is my best friend in tutoring. This kid had never done anything, but as soon as I drew Matt Smith’s quiff and a bow tie – and bing a bang a boom – this kid is writing an entire story about the the Doc.
Guys, I enjoyed your discussion, especially your knowledge of Dalek lore. Very cool to learn that the “ballerina Dalek” was a 1963 prop. (Was the figure in the hallucination supposed to be Amy herself, I guess, with that flowing red hair?)
I thought this was a fantastic episode, myself. I do hope Coleman returns somehow, in a time-wimey way, as Oswin – maybe the Doctor will rescue her before the crash of the ALASKA?
Re: Skaro… Who’s to say the planet the Doctor arrived on in the teaser was really Skaro? We know the whole thing was a trap – i.e., not as it appears. We didn’t see the Doctor receive the Dalek puppet’s message – maybe that’s when he batted his eye.
Oswin’s “humanity thing” was perfectly in keeping with the theme of self-determined identity that we’ve been dealing with in Moffat-era Who, from Bracewell in “Victory of the Daleks” on. A commendable continuation of, given the epilogue and the business of the Unanswered Question, the First Question, what will be a major preoccupation of the Matt Smith era: what is the nature of identity, who gets to determine it, and what implications flow from it?
I agree with you that Gold’s score was fun – makes me want to buy the series 7 album whenever it comes (I skipped series 6 since so much of it seemed recylced from series 5). I think Gold wrote a lovely theme for Oswin, which may lend credence to speculation that she’ll be the next Companion – how many guest stars get their own themes?
@Mike – We do see the Doctor get the message in the prequel; he’s even forced to name the planet as Skaro in it. Nevertheless the episode has to be taken on its own, and there’s nothing in it to make one question it’s actually Skaro.
Hey guys! I enjoyed the podcast as always. Personally I loved the episode. I don’t think I’d label it as the best of the new series by any means, but it is one of my favorite new who openers for sure. I agree with Warren on the issue of the Ponds and their quick make up. It wasn’t the fact that it happened in the middle of everything that bothered me, it was the fact that even after all this time Rory still has no power or say in his relationship. Amy decides she’s going to kick him out to protect him, slaps him for daring to think that he should get a little credit for waiting for her 2,000 years, and then decides when it’s ok for the relationship to start again…whatever, no big deal just bugged me a bit. Also wanted to mention that I am a very dedicated Who fan who does enjoy the BBC America Doctor Who specials even though I admit they are pretty much pointless. I don’t like them because I care what those people think because they’re “famous” but because watching it sparks conversation and not everyone has friends who are into the show to talk to so it’s fun.
Thank you for your calling out of the “Doctor Who” self-referencial business. It’s fun to do every once in a while, but it’s really being pounded and pounded to the point where it’s no longer fun.
I really did love Rory’s line of, “What color are they?” A nice call out to us nerds who got mad about the Lego/Skittles Daleks.
The look was breath-taking, and definitely feels more and more cinematic.
When it comes to Oswin, does it not feel like we are heading towards River Song territory? We meet a character near the (supposed, based on our view point) end, and wonder what deeper significance she holds. With that said, I do like the Oswin character, she’s quite fun and fiesty. Her shoes have an Ace feel, but maybe it’s just because the 80s fashion is back.
You got rid of the Christmas alcohol! Keep it that way!!
The scenes with Oswin (Jenna-Louise Coleman) and the Doctor. Weird, wonderful and quite a surprise!
I’ve always gotten annoyed about how no one talks about the Daleks as being more than emotionless, mindless Cybermen. I’ve always thought that the Daleks must have their own art, literature, theater etc. So I loved The Parliament Of The Daleks and I don’t see why it is so implausible. Daleks only hate other species, not their own.
I really liked this episode all in all. Definitely in my top ten, though I have only seen the new series and a bit of the classic. (All McCoy’s just to spite Warren. He he he, etc, etc.)
Milo
Hello gentlemen, this is the first time I’ve listened to your podcast and I loved it. I will be listening from here on in. One thing I want to ask/state; this whole Oswin (Jenna-Louise Coleman) thing. This is not the first time we’ve had a companion introduced into the show as a different character. In series 2 actress Freema Agyeman appears but is not Martha Jones (in fact she is her “cousin”). What makes this appearance different? Don’t get me wrong, I’m hoping that Moffat is weaving in a really interesting connection, just wondering why no one mentioned it? anyway love the podcast and can’t wait to go back and hear what you all didn’t love about “Doctors Wife” 🙂
One difference is both Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate were in the role before either was set to be a companion, so they didn’t have the same element to hype/market. With Moffat (or the production team as a whole anyway) asking those at advance screenings to not spoil the JLC appearance in Asylum, I too assume there’s something interesting coming up.
The planet is Skaro. The Doctor knows the plantary co-ordinates.
The difference between Skaro and Gallifrey is that Skaro wasn’t locked into the time war, it was destroyed.
This means that Skaro can still be visited, it just has to be at a time before the 7th Doctor destroys it.
We know that there are periods in history where the Daleks abandon Skaro so we know that there are periods where it would be as empty as in the episode.
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