Bear in mind this is the first time I've ever watched an episode of Doctor Who on its transmission date (it was technically after midnight in Britain when I did, but it was Saturday here), not counting the TV movie. This was also the first completed episode of the new series I've seen.

I've never seen a Dalek more sympathetic or more frightening than the one in this episode, nor have I seen the Doctor so frightening at times. The Dalek was right when it told him "You would make a good Dalek." It's amazing how intimidating a five-foot-tall pepperpot can be when properly shown/lit...... The Doctor's reaction to the Dalek when he first saw it was abject terror, which I don't think I've ever seen in the Doctor before. The fact that the Time War wiped out both Time Lords and Daleks may have had something to do with it, but it made sense for the setting. The Doctor then moved to hysterical, childish cruelty in his taunting of the Dalek when he discovered it couldn't hurt him. It was difficult to tell which was the villain at that point.

The Dalek's new abilities were impressive, though perhaps a bit too powerful; its ablity to absorb DNA(?) from anyone who touches its casing was odd to say the least; its absorbing power and regenerating its casing made more sense to this longtime fan. The ability to rotate the shoulder section makes perfect sense for Daleks (the speed at which it turned was terrifyingly fast); the internal force shield, not so much. As for its hover technology--it was worth the loss of one of the few sympathetic redshirts for the "E-LE-VATE" line. NEVER taunt a Dalek ^_- Seeing the Dalek use tatics to exterminate the ambush squad was amusing--with three shots it eliminated over a dozen guards (and a few out-of-their-element scientists with guns).

The Dalek and Rose made an interesting couple for the last part of the episode; her absorbed emotions confused the Dalek so it could not kill her, and she did her best to understand and reason with it (even going so far as to convince it not to exterminate Van Staaten, who deserved it). The scen with Rose and the exposed Dalek creature basking in the sunlight was beautiful (the creature itself being hideous, but that's beside the point). The juxtaposition of a calm Dalek and a homicidal Doctor made this work, and let the Doctor know exactly how badly he'd failed this time. Poor Rose was torn between her traveling companion and a lonely creature who just needed to be understood......

The human supporting cast were not nearly as impressive. Van Statten was a one-note caricature, a low-rent Bond villain. Goddard was memorable only for her similarity to her boss in personality. Adam (I think that was his name) was entirely forgettable, like Adric without the annoyance factor to make him memorable. When the most sympathetic human character other than tthe Doctor's companion is a nameless guard, there's a problem.

That said, I enjoyed the episode immensely. It was well-plotted and very atmospheric, looking better than some American science-fiction productions. They took care to at least attempt to maintain continuity; the Cyberman helmet they used was supposed to be an "Invasion"-era one (unfortunately it was one which had been modified for "Revenge of the Cybermen" so had vacuum-cleaner hose handles and a four-barrel gun in its forehead), which would have been the most blatant Cyber-attack on Earth by that time ("Tenth Planet" mainly involving Antarctica, few-to-no Cybercorpses left from "Attack of the Cybermen", and a presumed coverup by the Seventh Doctor in "Silver Nemesis"). Yes, it was a bunch of concrete-and-brick halls, but that was acceptable given the bunker's established origins. As a great man once wrote, "little expense had been spared to make it look as though no expense had been spared".

In terms of acting, Nicholas Briggs and Billie Piper provided the most moving performances. The Dalek was by turns vulnerable, manipulative, autocratic, and reasonable, with Rose linking the Doctor and the Dalek with her concern for both. At the end, with the Doctor pointing the rifle at the defenseless Dalek creature, Rose didn't know who to sympathize with; through her obvious confusion neither did the audience. Not since the first season of Doctor Who has the companion (or companions) been the focus of the series; the new series, however, focuses firmly on Rose and her view of this strange visitor from another time. Rose is in many ways the main character of the series; her reactions to events reshape the Doctor's feelinigs--through her, he's learning to feel again. Whatever happened in the Time War has done a great deal of damage to his psyche; right now he needs Rose to help hiim learn all the things he's lost.

If "Dalek" is what Doctor Who for the 21st century is, it's got a long future ahead of it.

“Oh my God. Oh. My. God.” (as someone in ‘Friends’ would surely say, had they the wit to understand Doctor Who at its very best!)

‘Dalek’ is almost unbelievable in the way in which it raises the level that the new series is operating on. As someone who was distinctly unimpressed by all the hype and gushing praise that surrounded ‘Jubilee’, I was all ready to be disappointed by this too – it just goes to show how catastrophically wrong one can sometimes be. This is by far the best episode of the new series so far, almost certainly one of the best episodes in all of Doctor Who, and in terms of Dalek stories is right up there with Evil and Remembrance.

And that is odd, considering that ‘Dalek’ is extremely highly influenced by ‘Jubilee’, and is by the same writer. Robert Shearman’s audios have never done it for me, so for this episode to be a success in my household (or rather my grandmother’s – that’s where I watch it. I’m 18) Shearman would have to make some pretty drastic changes. And here he’s nailed it – boy, has he nailed it! The script takes all the best elements of Jubilee – that is, the Dalek itself – and creates (or recreates?) something awesome.

This Dalek can do everything! It is, in a very real sense, SuperDalek. Sure, it can fly (yawn yawn, been there, done that), but watch out for what else it can do! Project a force field! Suffocate people with its sucker arm! Manipulate keypads designed for human fingers! Emote convincingly! Regenerate! Drain the entire US East Coast power grid! Survive firestorms of bullets (that’ll show those Resurrection Daleks)! Erm…open up its casing! Speaking of which, the thingy inside was another inspired Dalek design – I loved the hesitant way in which its tentacles nuzzled the sunlight, feeling the warmth of a star for the first time in uncounted years.

Oh, and of course it slaughters hundreds.

This Dalek, just like the one in Jubilee, is a real character, and nowhere is this more evident than in the scene where it confronts Van Statten. It moves realistically and reacts to the humans surrounding it. Its eyestalk actually looks at people, its lights flash in synchronicity with Nick Briggs’ superb voice work, and it conveys emotion through body language. Really, it does! Just watch and you’ll see what I mean. This is a masterpiece of direction by Joe Aherne, and a triumph of design, that the metal monstrosity could have come back with all appendages present and correct, no obvious alterations (except making it shinier and better), but still be so very much more than the slightly mobile lump of scenery of yesteryear. It even gets character development, beginning to question its meaningless existence and begging for release at the end. We haven’t seen the like since Evil of the Daleks, and Scott Gray’s seminal comic strip in DWM, ‘Children of the Revolution’.

Eccleston is again the weak link in a fairly good cast. The lines at the end, for example – along the lines of “I couldn’t… I wasn’t…” – would have been shattering delivered by somebody unimpeded by having to try so hard to play the role. But even Eccleston manages to make something out of the excellent material Shearman’s script and Billie Piper’s Rose give him; I am thinking particularly of the scene where Rose, cornered with no hope of escape, tells the Doctor she wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Coming so soon after Jackie’s anxiety that her daughter will not be safe (and what a world of difference between the writing here and the writing just one or two weeks ago), this is more epic stuff.

This story had me completely hooked from the very beginning. Even before we discuss the high-octane set-pieces and thrilling mix of action and character moments, which seemed to go on forever (in a good way, just to be clear – whenever I wanted more, there was more. It was a truly great script), the teaser was one of my favourite things in the entire series, and the best single moment of the story. Most of you will doubtless spit at this, but I really am such a fanboy that that Cyberman head, and the subsequent lines (“The stuff of nightmares, turned into an exhibit. I’m getting old.”), managed to be the most thrilling example of Doctor Who I’ve seen in a very long time. I was literally bouncing up and down in my seat with childish glee when the Cyber-head hove into view – and a proper head, as well, ritually engraved teardrops and all! Forget the Dalek’s self-destruction, that’s when I almost cried, with sheer joy that Robert Shearman – and yes, even Russell T Davis, I suppose – care that much about Doctor Who fans and Doctor Who continuity. Mentions of Davros later on made me grin warmly as well – and, on current form, I would suggest that a story showpiecing a lone Davros, possibly directed by Aherne again, would be just the ticket for Season Two. Lance Parkin has shown what can be achieved.

So, yes, the more I think about it the more I am gobsmacked by just how good this was all told, and just how much Mr Shearman has improved the series. I can only hope that Paul Cornell and Steven Moffat excel themselves in the same way that he has. Here’s to the future, although probably not ‘The Long Game’.

It isn’t the first time The Doctor’s been threatened with ending up as an alien exhibit, but I loved the Cyberman cameo and the fact that we were onto Episode 2 by Classic Series Standards immediately after Pre & Opening Titles.

We didn’t get to see much of Utah beyond the base, but it was totally convincing. Robert Shearman’s story was a strong one.

I always liked the boy-girl thing. Having Bruno Langley in it as Adam Mitchell striking up a mutual rapport with Rose made the series more human, not to mention contemporary since actors were instantly recognisable. Though by no means the chief requirement, Billie & Bruno ran down corridors and up stairs well together. The Dalek moved up them well too. Loved the new Dalek catchphrase: EL-E-VATE.

There was an Ursula Andress Moment where the chunkier ‘bling’ Dalek, complete with ID barcode, sucker head shrinker & X-ray exterminator gun bristled at sharing company with the Doctor and burst it’s bonds. Seems natural that a future project - whether TV or film - covers the Time War set up by Russell T. Davies. He’s highlighted the Daleks’ status by wiping out one of the more contentious aspects of the latter series: The Doctor’s home planet, Gallifrey. Nice move.

There was an interesting dynamic going on between The Doctor and the Dalek. Things have changed since Tom Baker refused or hesitated to wipe them out thirty years ago to the month (our time). Eccleston was in yer Dalek’s face about it. The Daleks’ response that The Doctor would make a good pepperpot himself stood as a gloating statement that it’s own ruthless motives were stronger and purer than The Doctor’s avowed intent of good. Similarly, The Doctor lost the argument with Rose when he was all for killing it. The Daleks are, as Eccleston put, the Kryptonite to his Doctor - and perhaps future Doctors. They may have the potential to turn him.

Christopher Eccleston is perhaps the strongest Doctor since Tom Baker. His Northern accent detracts not one iota; in fact it helps convey his character’s strength and passion. It would be impossible to imagine him as The Doctor without it.

The machine-gun battle sequence was mercifully void of the picture distortion video-tape often gave and was worthy of a feature film, while at the same time looking like a classic sequence from DR. WHO.

There was real tension when Van Statten reminded The Doctor that Rose was the woman he loved. No one could have doubted it. Lump in the throat moment when Rose, facing death thanked The Doctor as she “wouldn’t have missed it for the world”. But far from being exterminated, Rose had touched the Dalek in more ways than one (and I’m not talking Katy Manning Page 3 spreads!). By the same token I think Billie Piper’s portrayal and rapport with Eccleston’s Doctor has touched all of us in a short space of time by being so grounded and likable.

It was a very original move to open up the casing to show us the real Dalek aiming for freedom and a life beyond it’s genetic tyranny. Sad but somehow inevitable that it could not fully adapt.

Rose threw the Doctor’s suspicions about Adam being pretty back at him as two become three in the TARDIS (“I hadn‘t noticed”). Again, this Doctor can’t duck gay innuendo. If Rose disagrees with The Doctor she’ll tell him. She’ll neither agree to disagree (60s & 70s), or whinge (80s).

Absolutely magnificent!

This was not only comfortably the best episode of the new series but, quite possibly, the best Doctor Who story ever - and I know I'm not the only one to say that. In exploring the allegorical potential of science fiction, the episode took up the gauntlet thrown down so dauntingly by the likes of the new Battlestar Galactica and beat them at their own game. We were shown the Doctor as refugee (and, perhaps, war criminal) a man (alien?) struggling to come to terms with his own past and, in his torment, posing some serious questions for our own world.

There is no need to rhapsodise at length about the tautness of the plot, the excellence of the special effects or, even, how well Billie Piper performed as Rose; others have covered that ground and said nothing with which I would disagree. For me, it was the overwhelming sadness of the episode that ensured its classic status. The moment when the Dalek learned that he was all alone in the universe was genuinely moving. And has the series ever produced a finer moment of acting than Christopher Ecclestone's utter devastation in response to the Dalek's "You destroyed us"? The actor conveyed perfectly the Doctor's realisation that he, too, was a mass murderer, no better, and probably worse, than the creature he was so violently taunting.

But even that was topped by the Dalek's melancholy response "You would make a good Dalek" to yet another of the Doctor's bile-filled rants. How easy it would have been to make that line a flippant throwaway, an infantile "one-liner" with an instant, and unsatisfactory, payoff. Instead, it added a bleak resonance to the Dalek's earlier remark that he and the Doctor were alike. The Dalek had meant that their loneliness united them. In fact, as the creature came to understand, the common ground was irrational hatred.

At such moments, the programme was much more than an entertaining piece of fantasy hokum, but a profound exploration of the human condition. Of course, such existential speculation has always been begged by a series with the title Doctor Who; many more episodes like this and they're going to have to start writing it with a question mark.

This episode promised alot and delivered. The Daleks once again have some street cred which - without changing what is in many ways a very dated design - is a huge achievement.

Later on I make some sneaky comparisons with other stories as I feel casual viewers will be doing so with the episode from the previous week and this will effect their expectations of later installments.

The opening in an underground museum with stuffed alien relics and artefacts was lovely and very reminiscent of the original series. In the old series a moment like that would have been alot more drawn out and involved more of a 'lets explore' exchange with the companion which would have been great, but with these 45 minute episodes there understandably isn't time for that kind of measured drama. I got a twinge of excitement when the cyberman head appeared as an exhibit, though was a little surprised that the 1970s chunky version was used. Though it seemed to work with Christopher Ecclestone's very weighty perfomance which was the best we've seen so far.

This was really an episode for Ecclestone to get his teeth into and he seemed to enjoy the opportunity to up the tension and energy. I quite like the backstory that we're given about the time war and the Doctor being the last Time Lord left alive and am perfectly happy with this having damaged his psyche somewhat - the outbursts and uncharacteristic lack of control the Doctor has over his anger and hate. Though it did seem to jar at one point towards the end of the episode. I'm thinking of the scene where the Dalek opens its casing to feel the sunlight (what a treat that was - big smile, very happy. And they carried off tentacles without them looking too phalic!). Seeing the Doctor wield a large gun and appear to lose his usual attitude towards violence is presumably intended to put across how very damaged and alone he is, following the destruction of his people. The comparison between such total loneliness in the Doctor and in the last Dalek was a wonderful moment and made a powerful statement, leveling two sworn enemies in mutual despair. However (some people are never satisfied;) I wish we could have had a less trite line than 'I didn't... ...I wasn't...'. I also felt that having the Doctor ridicule someone for their reliance on knowledge (his comment to Adam about his A-levels) and then brandish a (comically) large gun and deliver the line 'lock and load' was going a bit too far. Despite the effort and conviction in Ecclestone's perfomance, this just isn't the same character - psychological trauma or not - and it starts to look a mite self-conscious. The leather jacket is fine so long as it's not a deliberate attempt at a macho charactersation. And Ecclestone's Doctor frequently isn't that, but now and again he comes over as too much of a knee-jerk reaction to the camper or more gentlemanly previous Doctors and can be really unpleasant to others. Colin Baker suffered from this when the programme makers had him try to throttle his companion shortly after regenerating, and Ecclestone's repeated telling people to shut up or undermining of anyone who isn't a pretty girl (what IS going on here?) really starts to grate. Efforts have been made to make the Doctor less sexist, but it may come full circle because of the pseudo-sexual tension he has with any young man who talks to Rose!

Back to the main stars of the episode. The part where Rose reached out to comfort the Dalek was the best moment in the whole series and in a lot of Doctor Who ever. The cunning of the Dalek and sudden reversal of mood in the scene when it 'extrapolated' a sample of Rose's genetic material was so exciting and well executed. It was a moment where the direction, the music and Nick Brigg's perfect portrayal of the melodic ascension in pitch in the Dalek's voice all worked perfectly together. I was definitely twelve again and was definitely watching Doctor Who!

All in all this was one of the two best episodes in the new series. It's almost meaningless to directly compare it with some of the others because of the change in tone and atmosphere, but alongside Mark Gatiss's episode it was an unparalleled piece of family television and a juicey slice of what the series should be like. And no one farted. It worries me a little that the stories I have enjoyed the most so far and that I have found more casual watchers were impressed by were those not penned by RTD. I don't quite understand how the man who's skill and vision is almost solely responsible for the return of the show can have introduced such clangers like the burping bin and the wind-breaking slitheen. A friend who is not a fan but has been enjoying the new series commented that the farting aliens from the previous story were more like characters from Austin Powers! 'Dalek' acheived a wonderful 45 minutes of drama and excitement without anything that unsubtle and when we look back at the best and worst parts of the show's history, it is the excess of humour and absecne of seriousness that is criticised the most. I do hope RTD and the rest of the team take note of how differently both journalists and the public seem to have responded to the more serious stories as opposed to the more childish episodes. Perhaps I'm forgetting what children enjoy on television as the show must fundamentally appeal to the pre-teen audience (though obviously I'd rather it was just for me!). And I suppose we should count ourselves lucky that this isn't the early sixties when like the Slitheen would have been called the Flatulatons from the planet Fartos. Fingers crossed we'll get some more wind-less Dalek stories before this run is over!

American Doctor Who fans are a funny lot. We accept that the series is created for children (or "Family audience", if you will..) but most of us old-time fans began watching the series in our teens. I, myself, began a life-long love for the program in the early eighties as a teen sci-fi fan looking for something more fun to watch than Star Trek or Battlestar Galactica. What fun! What charm! It's meant to be ..what?

Scary?

Honestly, I could just never get my head around the idea. Millions of English children diving behind the sofas in sheer terror of the Daleks. The Daleks?

Don't get me wrong, I love The Daleks to bits. Really. I love the single-mindedness and the blind "dislike for the unlike" and those fantastic scratchy/electronic voices....

But I can't imagine anyone being scared of them.

Fast forward. I'm a typical fan with loads of videos and Dapol Dalek action figures and Big Finish audios. I'm also the step-dad of a wonderful young girl named Jessica Jones, who I very much want to enjoy the series with me. Over the years, I tried many different items. Pyramids Of Mars? Yep. Dapol toys mixing with her own toys? Sure, I tried that.

Not much interest.

Over time, she would watch episodes with me. Peter Davison episodes ,mainly. Season twenty. No monsters. Still, her opinion of Doctor Who was pretty low. One night, we were driving home and I knew that the trip would take roughly thirty minutes. "Hey, guys..", I said, "how about an episode of Doctor Who on the cd player? Just so happens I have one in the car." My better half, Teresa, rolled her eyes and sighed that particular sigh (the "what a geek" one) and settled in for some Doctor Who. "Jubilee" episode four played in tandom with a clear starry night as I drove home listening to another class production from Big Finish. That's when I learned something.

Jessica is TERRIFIED of The Daleks. She can't so much as look at them, let alone listen to those evil-filled voices.

Really?

In recent months, I've had the good fortune to see episodes of the new Doctor Who series (lots of squinting, though. Thank goodness I have a multi-region DVD player and DVDs are right around the corner). I have loved the good old mix of cheeky self-reference and adventure, wit and thrills I first enjoyed in Doctor Who mixed with a fresh new breakneck pace. And, boy! Am I enjoying Christopher Eccleston's Doctor Who! By the way, how sad a fanboy am I that I actually cheered when I saw him listed in the end credits as "Doctor Who"?

Jessica watched "Rose" over my shoulder at first, then found herself drawn right into the action. She really loves it, but is most taken with Rose Tyler. Billie Piper's Rose is just heroic enough to be a role model and just normal enough to be an everywoman.

And so we've watched most of the episodes together, when possible.

When the preview for Rob Shearman's frankly brilliant episode "Dalek" started, Jessica froze. "Daleks...", she hissed." I don't like Daleks..." When the Dalek began shouting "Exterminate!" , she began to shake. I told her that there was only one Dalek in the episode.

"oh....that's okay then..."

The Doctor and Rose land in an impressive alien archive, complete with the head of a Cyberman ("Hey! I've seen one of those!"). Suddenly, armed guards take our heroes to visit our villain Van Statton, who seems to have an alien fetish. Along with him, they meet Adam, working for Van Statton ("Ohh...he's british, too. Is that why he thinks they will like each other?") And The Doctor is taken to visit the prize of the collection ("uummmm..."), a living alien life form. All alone in the dark (At this point, Jessica begins to position herself closer to my chair). When The Doctor introduces himself, the lights come on and we see a lone Dalek. The Dalek goes mental at the sight of The Doctor and begins shouting "Exterminate!!" (At this point, Jessica screamed and hid behind my chair. It's true. Kids DO hide behind the sofa.)

When The Dalek realizes that he and The Doctor are the last survivors of a great war, he also realizes that he is all alone in the universe ("Aww", says Jessica. She was pants-wettingly scared of The Dalek and now she feels SORRY for it?) When The Doctor offers to free him from life by electrocuting him, Jessica went ballistic. "What? He can't do that! The Dalek's chained up! That's not fair!"

In the labs, Adam begins making goo-goo eyes at Rose ("They like each other....wonder what The Doctor will think?")

Angered by The Doctor's attempt to kill his prize, Van Statton begins a scan of The Doctor that seems like torture. "You have two hearts", Van Statton coos ("Cool!", Jessica exclaimed)

Thanks to Rose ("No! Rose! Get away from it!", Jessica shouts. This is followed by "I think that Dalek likes Rose. She feels sorry for him.")

Suddenly, The Dalek re-energizes and breaks free. Jessica screams. I cheer wildly.

"What are you gonna do," a doomed man asks, "Sucker me to death?"

It does. Jessica screams. I cheer wildly.

Over the next thirty minutes, we are treated to a massacre the likes of which Doctor Who has never seen. My jaw drops several times throughout as the production team do everything humanly possible to make that Dalek the coolest (or scariest) thing ever.

Jessica picks up the theme of the episode early on, noting that The Doctor is acting like a bigger monster than the monsters! She gasps every time that Rose is in danger (RTD, you've done quite a job with this one..) and cheers when Van Statton gets what's coming to him.

And she feels very sorry for The Dalek at the end.

And, hey! So do I.

She chuckles as Adam finds his way aboard The TARDIS ("Is he going with...ha! ha ha ha! He's only going because he likes Rose, y'know..")

And as the episode ends, she asks "Can we watch again?"

I loved the episode. I got action, suspense, and a great character study of the tenth Doctor. But I also got to see what the show looks like to a nine year old, non sci-fi fan.

I saw the Daleks as children see them. Behind the sofa scary.

RTD, you are on to a winner!