Genesis Of The Daleks is a goddamned perfect Doctor Who story.

Revelation Of The Daleks is not.

For one, it has like, the most non-threatening incarnation of Davros ever. For two, it's an exceptionally bleak and dark story but isn't ever scary. For thirds, it’s a Sixth Doctor story starring Colin Baker.

Sorry. That last bit was just harsh.

Observe our story: The Doctor and his companion Peri (Nicola Bryant) travel to Necros to attend a funeral. Necros, as the name strongly implies, is a dead planet. All of the important, albeit terminally ill, members of society go there to be cryogenically frozen until a future date when they can be cured. This is all well and good, but while “suspended” they are kept appraised of current events subliminally by a most annoying DJ. If any of the patients were capable of moving, they would have had him sacked.

Think about this: 99.99% of Doctor Who actors are British. It's a British production after all. But the DJ is modeled on the American Wolfman Jack-style DJs of the 1950’s. So what we have is a British writer on a British show using a British actor who has a British accent to play an alien on the planet Necros, who apes an American DJ accent. Fuck you, whoever thought THAT would come off as believable. Fuck you.

Aside from the awful DJ, the other thing that sucks for the kinda-departed residents of Necros is that Davros, evil creator of the Daleks, somehow ended up in the catacombs of the Tranquil Repose funeral home, and is taking the suspended animation people and doing one of two things with them. If they're intelligent, he turns them into Daleks. If they aren’t, he turns them into concentrated protein, and uses them as a food source. But before the Doctor can say, “Soylent Necros is PEOPLE!” he’s got to actually get inside the cemetery, and that doesn’t even happen until the second episode.

Did I mention that there are only two episodes in this adventure?

Revelation Of The Daleks proves that Doctor Who doesn’t work as well in two fourty two minute episode format as it does in four twenty four minute episodes. That's particularly evident in the fact that the only cliffhanger in Revelation has the Doctor being crushed under a paper mache statue that actually falls apart as it falls on him.

The second episode of Revelation Of The Daleks is a big improvement over the first. But it’s too little, too late, and episode two isn’t without flaws. Once Davros’ plan is revealed and the Daleks are on the rampage, looking for the Doctor, the show picks up steam. Even then there are some goddamned ridiculous moments: Davros setting an absurd trap, the DJ using a sound-wave gun that he's able to kill two Daleks with before standing up like a dope and letting Daleks gun him down and so forth. Two interesting secondary characters called Takis and Lilt who are plotting against the Dalek occupation could have been used to benefit the plot, but they're woefully neglected until the dénouement.

In fact, the only really cool things about this story are that Davros’ proto-Dalek traveling device (a high-tech wheelchair) can now hover above ground and the chief embalmer keeps trying to molest Peri, which is simultaneously funny and creepy.

I don’t hate Revelation Of The Daleks, but there are definitely better Doctor Who stories. Revelation has the Doctor playing second-fiddle in his own program. It’s shameful.

The DVD Presentation
Revelation Of The Daleks is presented in the original full-frame aspect ratio that it was broadcast in. The restoration team did another fine job on the adventure (you can learn about them here) and it looks good. There's an optional version included with retooled special effects and some added CGI. I can’t say it improves the original presentation much though. The audio track sounds great. There's a new 5.1 surround mix in addition to the standard stereo. Regardless of the option you choose, there are moments when Davros’ dialogue is indistinct and hard to understand. English subtitles are included for the hearing impaired (thanks to the garbled Davros dialogue, I needed it) and there's an isolated music track if you're into that sort of thing.

And the Extras Are?
Audio commentary by actors Nicola Bryant and Terry Malloy, writer Eric Saward and director Graeme Harper -
The commentary is more like a jam session than an enlightening feature. It isn’t bad, but I can’t say I learned much from it. The participants seem to enjoy the serial a bit too much, though they sound like they had a great time talking about it.

Information Text –
This feature takes the place of a subtitle track and provides all sorts of interesting information, technical details, script alterations, television ratings, etc. It’s a great feature to run while you have the commentary going for a nice healthy chunk of Who history.

Revelation Exhumed – (45:49)
This is a really well assembled documentary focusing on every aspect of the production. The participants openly discuss how Revelation lacks action and recount the difficulties that they had filming the script. It was interesting seeing how pleased they were with the casting. I think they could have done a lot better in that area. Still, this was a very enjoyable feature to watch, and it’s definitely the must-see extra of the bunch.

Behind the Scenes: In Studio – (15:36)
This feature is a nice bit of unedited behind-the-scenes footage with no narration. Check out Davros drinking his coffee! Way cool!

Deleted Scenes – (2:15)
Three deleted scenes are included. One further develops Takis’ character, and it would have improved the story if it were included in the final edit. Another is an extended scene that follows the DJ’s death. Finally, there's a sequence that shows Takis leading the Supreme Daleks’ task force to capture Davros.

Continuity – (3:29)
Simply a collection of commercial lead-in bumpers used when Revelation Of The Daleks was previously run and re-run on the BBC. Also included are some commercials for the VHS releases in the UK and bumpers for when it was re-edited into four episodes instead of two.

Photo Gallery – (5:56)
A collection of a whole lot of photos taken from the production of Revelation Of The Daleks.

The Bottom Line
Revelation Of The Daleks, while mildly enjoyable, is a lesser Doctor Who story. It certainly isn’t for newcomers, and will really only be of interest to Dalek and Doctor Who completists. While the Colin Baker era of Doctor Who is looked down upon overall, there are several very good adventures. Until we get (I hope) a box set for The Trial Of A Time Lord you're better off getting your Sixth Doctor fix elsewhere. Vengeance On Varos and The Two Doctors are both better stories and are currently available on DVD. The presentation and extras on Revelation Of The Daleks are very well done, and that’s the only thing which elevates it to a three pant rating.