# Doctor Who 4/14 "Dalek" (Open spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 15, 2006, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747 "2006-04-15T02:47:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/21 "2006-04-16T00:41:57Z")
> [@shamrock227](#): > > I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who felt bad for the Dalek. I was feeling rather conflicted about it. Ha! I was urging Rose out of the way. What did the Dalek eat and drink for all the time it was in museums? Does the Tardis have any armament? Mrs. Plant has come to like the show; perhaps because she didn’t see them before. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/22 "2006-04-16T00:45:38Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > But obviously I’m no expert: I had no idea the Daleks were biological entities inside machines. I thought they were entirely cybernetic. The Daleks were originally the Kaleds, a human-like species torn apart - and, if memory serves, mutated into little green globs - by endless nuclear warring. The Dalek casing was designed by crippled evil genius Davros as an assault vehicle and protective shell to house said little green globs, and was based on the design of his wheelchair. Ah, Davros. No-one could stab viciously at a switch with a withered claw and a cackle of evil triumph like he could. The Cybermen had a similar origin, except that they gradually replaced bits of themselves with robot parts to become tougher until they were almost wholly machine-like. As someone once pointed out, the Borg are just Cybermen who watched too much Hellraiser. ---
**Author:** ![shamrock227](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@shamrock227](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shamrock227)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/23 "2006-04-16T01:01:50Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Ha! I was urging Rose out of the way. Rose is a little bit (just a bit) on my nerves. I was kind of wishing either the Dalek or The Doctor (in trying to get to the Dalek) would take her out. ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/24 "2006-04-16T11:21:28Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > :dubious: I’m 38 and I consider myself the shows “real” audience. The network puts it on at 9pm so I don’t think they believe that 6 year olds are the real audience either. It is made for a 7:15pm slot on the BBC however and the primary audience it targets is kids, in the UK anyway. It has a huge adult fan base but most of them are people who got into the doctor as kids. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/25 "2006-04-16T12:43:25Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > :dubious: I’m 38 and I consider myself the shows “real” audience. The network puts it on at 9pm so I don’t think they believe that 6 year olds are the real audience either. Dr. Who is ultimately a kids show that works for adults. My Son is a little young, I think the target audience is supose to be a little older, but part of what makes Dr. Who good is it works for kids and adults. A kid isn’t going to worry about downloading the internet too rapidly or that a door control can’t takes billions of code tries in 30 seconds or the previously mentioned power drain. Adults have to work a little harder to suspend disbelief. I like the show more than any Doctor since Baker in fact, but it was definitely designed for kids and shows around 6pm in England IRC. Jim ---
**Author:** ![ryobserver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b2d939/32.png) [@ryobserver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ryobserver)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/26 "2006-04-16T13:22:28Z")
> [@Elza B](#): > > I had to laugh when the Doctor said that the Dalek had downloaded the Internet. We both were like “Hey, do you think he finally got the Neiman-Marcus cookie recipe? Or he figured out how to forward email so Bill Gates’ll send him a million dollars?”. > > E. Worse, it got all our porn. Do you suppose that has any tactical value? Excellent episode, and I can see why it was nominated for a Hugo. The only flaw I noticed while watching it was the excessive heavy-syrup music during the Dalek’s final scenes. It might have been OK if it had been quieter, but as it was the effect was as subtle as a voiceover announcing “Please pay attention! We are having an Emotional Moment!” ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/27 "2006-04-16T13:54:08Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > One thing I was curious about:why did the Dalek need cells specifically from someone (Rose) who had traveled in time, in order to regenerate it’s injuries? IHMO, no need for spoilers now. It’s aired twice here, and a whole year ago for the UK. 😉 As for an answer, the implication of there being a Dalek survivor of the Time War all way “back” to today’s time is that it travelled thru time. Previous eps (old series) have implied that the Time Lords control their TARDIS by means of gene they have. And the new series changing the Gift of the Time Lords to the Gift of the Tardis might be interpreted as some sort of symbiotic change to travellers in the TARDIS. So, accessing Rose’s genes (I would like access her jeans), allowed a Time Lord like regeneration of sorts. Mebbe… WAG, YMMV, IANATL, etc… ---
**Author:** ![Archergal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Archergal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Archergal)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747/28 "2006-04-16T14:58:40Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > “Broken… Broken… Hair dryer…” 😃 > > Anyhow, it’s strange how suspension of belief works. I had no trouble with an alien with a Northern accent who travels through space and time in a blue police box. But I winced at the notion that you can draw enough power through a computer terminal to bring down the power grid of half the country. I kept thinking, surely there’s a breaker somewhere? I know, it’s a silly nitpick. “Lots of planets have a North.” 😃 Yeah, I liked it too. A lot. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-4-14-dalek-open-spoilers/352747.md?page=1)