When I heard that the Daleks were coming back, I was excited and terrified at the same time. I was expecting an episode of action and adventure and I found that I had a lot more than that. There was comedy and tragedy at the same time. It was the most exciting first part episode so far. Let me take you back in time to Series 2 with ‘The Rise of the Cybermen’ where not a lot happened in the first episode. It was exciting and interesting but by the end, I wished that more had happened. Also, let us go back to ‘Army of Ghosts’ where also I thought that not a lot happened. If you watch the two episodes one after another it was absolutely fantastic but to begin with, I wished that more would have happened to make it more interesting. With ‘Daleks in Manhattan ’ o much adventure happened. I was hooked right from the beginning and cannot wait until next week for the second part. If this week is anything to go by, the episode will be more adventurous and more terrifying. I do however; have some faults with the episode which you will find out about later on.

The episode opens with us seeing New York from above and then going into the dressing rooms of the star dancers who are going on stage shortly. You also go into Tallulah’s room and see her draped over a guy who she is in love with. Lazlo is a guy who appears throughout the episode but does not look the same all the way through. Before she goes on stage, Lazlo gives her a rose to wear on stage so that she is thinking of him all the time. Aww, how romantic!

Suspense is built up here because we see something mysterious run across the hallway outside of the dressing room. What could it be? It sounded kind of funny but scary at the same time. Lazlo being inquisitive, goes to take a look but it does not all end well for him because he disappears, taken off by Pig People which leaves Tallulah completely heart broken and confused.

After the introductory music, the Tardis lands underneath the Statue of Liberty which Martha is extremely excited about. She’s always wanted to go to New York (not New New York, the real original New York ).

Once again, there is no rest for the Doctor and Martha because people are disappearing from Hooverville and he wants to find out exactly what is going on. A new adventure for Martha, off we go!

Once they enter Hooverville, they find two people having a fight. One as accusing the other of stealing bread from him. Solomon, the guy in charge of Hooverville, comes out of his tent and breaks up the fight. He says ‘Cut that out! That’s enough! Thirteen years ago I fought in the Great War. A lot of us did. And the only reason we got through, is because we stuck together. No matter how bad things get, we still act like human beings. That’s all we’ve got’. I really agree with his speech. It puts the whole episode in perspective. The Dalek stick together because they only have each other and the Doctor sticks with Martha because she is all he has. His speech is really meaningful and it really makes you think. What he is saying still applies today. As well as his next speech: ‘That there is going to be the tallest building in the world, how come they can do that, and we got people starving in the heart of Manhattan ’. They are still new buildings today being built, they are rising up places that are rich and can take care of themselves. Yes there are charities and organisations that take care of poorer people but why do big companies not care? Do they not think of everyone as equal? I just wanted you to think about that. Now, back to Dr. Who.

At the top of the Empire State building (that is being built throughout the episode) Mr. Diagoras, the man in charge, and a worker are talking about getting the job finished. It is not supposed to be completed for another month but the ‘new masters’ ask for it to be completed tonight. The guy tells Mr. Diagoras that it is completely impossible so he summons the ‘new masters’ down to talk to him. The new masters being none other than the Daleks!! The worker backs away from the coming Dalek and is terrified of the fact that a tin robot can talk! The Dalek is accompanied by two pig pen, the same as the ones that we saw earlier on with Lazlo. Because the worker is refusing to get the job finished that night, the Dalek tells the Pig Men to take him for the Final Experiment. While watching this bit I was fascinated by the two words ‘Final Experiment’ all through the episode I was wondering what the final experiment could be and how long until we find out. The pig men take him into the lift and take him off somewhere else.

The Dalek tells Mr. Diagoras that the job must be finished no matter what. Mr. Diagoras assures him that it will and whatever he needs will be done. 

Back in Hooverville, the Doctor questions Solomon about the people going missing. The Doctor wants to know what is going on because missing seems like a strange word for a place like this. He says that people always come and go all the time because they move on or find jobs so that they can make some money but Solomon tells him that they get taken from their tents at night. He knows that they are taken because they do not take their possessions. ‘When you’ve got next to nothing, you hang on to the little you have got’. Is what he says. The Doctor wants to know who is taking them and what for.

Outside the tent, Mr. Diagoras is there asking if any of them want work. $1 a day is what they are being offered. (Slave pay) but some of them accept it because having that little bit is better than nothing. The only job on offer is down in the sewers and, so to find out what is going on, the Doctor volunteers, along with Martha (who will kill the Doctor if anything happens), Solomon and a guy called Frank.

Once they get in to the sewers, Mr. Diagoras tells them to turn left and go about half a mile. Once they get back up they will get paid but the Doctor questions whether or not they will come back up. While looking around the sewers, the Doctor finds a green blob of something on the floor. He picks it up, smells it and investigates what it could be. He then tells the others that they have gone at least half a mile and have not found what they are looking for. He wonders why Mr. Diagoras has sent them down there and what exactly they are looking for. 

Back up with Mr. Diagoras the workers are talking to him. They are told that there are certain plates that must be fixed to the mast itself. Those plates – are off the Daleks!! They have to be put on tonight. The workers complain and tell him that they cannot do it. Mr. Diagoras tells them that the must work or they will be replaced. And believe me, if what happened to the other worker is anything to go by, getting replaced is one of the worst things that can happen.

For the first time in the episode, we meet Dalek Sec and two other Daleks. They, and the Dalek with Mr. Diagoras, are the only four Daleks in existence. Dalek Sec tells the Dalek to bring Mr. Diagoras to him. He promises him a reward for his loyalty but I don’t think he will be getting anything too rewarding. After all, they are Daleks!

‘The Final Experiment will begin’ says Dalek Sec as the obedient Dalek brings Mr. Diagoras to him. Once Diagoras is up there with the four Daleks, he begins to wonder whether or not it is going to be for good. Once he meets Sec, he is told that he must not talk anymore and that the Pig Men must secure him. He says that it is unnecessary because he is on their side but, as we all predicted, the Daleks are not rewarding him, he is part of the Final Experiment!

Back down in the sewers, the Doctor, Martha, Solomon and Frank hear strange noises. The same noises that we heard at the beginning with the Pig Men. Could there be some down there and what will they do if they see the Doctor? After all, the Pig Men work for the Dalek and they are the Doctors greatest enemy. If he is seen, almost anything could happen.

Down one of the turnings, there is a Pig Man on the floor. He looks injured and doesn’t look like he was making the noises. That means there is something else down there. More Pig Men I wonder?

Oh yes!! Or, maybe oh no. Depends on how you look at it really. There are more Pig Men down there and they follow the Doctor backwards so that the four of them end up running away. They go up a ladder and end up in the dressing room of Tallulah who is ready, with a gun, to find out who has just come out of the sewers. Unfortunately, Frank does not make it up the ladder in time and gets dragged off by the Pig Men.

Once the 3 of them get up out of the sewers, Tallulah asks what they have done with Lazlo. She tells them that he disappeared two weeks ago and knows that some men are pigs (hint hint) but not her Lazlo. She has no idea at all what happened to Lazlo. She is kind of confused as to where he has gone because she still receives a rose on her desk everyday but Lazlo was the only one who gave them to her.

Solomon tells the Doctor that he is going back to Hooverville because he needs to look after the people there. Tallulah tells Martha that she and the Doctor look like they are together but Martha says that he doesn’t feel the same way as she does. That’s another person who thinks that they should be together, when will he ever learn?

Back with the Daleks, Mr. Diagoras is still being held captive by the Pig People. Dalek Sec opens up his body and shows Mr. Diagoras the ‘True Dalek form’ He then takes its tentacles and grabs Mr. Diagoras. It pulls him inside and the body closes.

Elsewhere, Tallulah calls the other girls onto stage because the show is about to begin. They all sing and dance but Martha, from behind stage, sees a Pig Man who looks slightly different to the others. You can still make out some of his features. Trying to find out who he is, Martha runs across stage and starts chasing him.

Finally, the Doctor figures out what the little slimy thing is. He works out that the planet of origin is ‘Skaro’. Planet of the Daleks!!

Martha gets grabbed by a Pig Man and is dragged off back down to the sewers. The Doctor goes down into the Sewers to try and save her but Tallulah follows him. Down there, but in a different part, Martha is joined by other people – one of the being Frank! They hug and are both happy to see each other. I don’t think that them being reunited is really going to help at the moment though.

Meanwhile, while the Doctor and Tallulah are looking for Martha, a Dalek goes past them. The doctor then says ‘they always survive when I loose everything’. Poor guy, he lost Rose to them and they are back. His chaotic and tragic life goes on.

As the Doctor is taking Tallulah back upstairs they run into the Pig Man who is different to the others. This Pig Man is none other than Lazlo! He escaped without them taking his mind but it was too late for his face to stay human. When Tallulah realises that it is Lazlo, breaks down crying but hugs him anyway. Lazlo then agrees to take the Doctor to the Dalek so that he can try and stop them.

The Dalek tells the people that they have taken (including Martha) that they must line up for scanning. If they are considered clever, they will be used in the major part of the ‘Final Experiment’ but if not, they are turned into Pig Men.  

The Doctor joins the line halfway through and walks along with Martha and Frank. They are all lead upstairs with the Daleks and are told to stand in a line until they are ready for them.

The next thing we know is that Dalek Sec is evolving. Mr. Diagoras is coming out of the Dalek with a human body and a Daleks head! Half Dalek and Half Human…Total Monster?

Episode Rating: 9/10. An episode like that deserves a good rating. My one and only complaint is that the Dalek is kind of rubbish! A Dalek is a metal robot that needs its outside to survive. Without it, it cannot levitate or survive. If you shoot a human, it is possible that they will die. If you shoot a human Dalek, would they not die easily? If what I was thinking of is revealed in the next episode, I will quite possibly put my rating up to a 10. My first 10 of the series. It really was a truly fantastic episode! By far the best Dalek episode since Series 1 began. And certainty the most terrifying Dalek episode.

Name: Brendan Kennedy | Age: 21

"I am a Human Dalek. I am your future."
    Helen Raynor's Doctor Who debut shows all the signs of dreaded "part one of two" syndrome. It lags in places, doesn't have any especially exciting action set pieces (all doubtlessly being held until part two, "The Evolution of the Daleks") and suffers from severe Doctor deficiency. The Doctor is shoved into the background to make way for more Martha scenes and the introduction of several new characters who will most likely die horribly next week.
    Raynor penned the strongest episode of Torchwood last year, "Ghost Machine," which featured some beautiful scenes and subtle dialogue. "Daleks in Manhattan," however is in full-on pastiche mode. The characters are big, colourful and vibrant, and what they have to say is similarly exuberant. Tallulah is wonderfully played by Miranda Raison, and the scenes she shares with Martha are touching, though not exactly subtle. James Strong's excellent direction is of blockbuster standard and the visuals throughout are superb. He possibly could have spent a little more time working with the supporting actors, but their somewhat broad performances don't jar too much.
    Raynor introduces several themes during the episode, none of which have any real pay off yet. We once again have the apparent recurrent theme of the season: what makes us human. The Daleks are a wonderful visual, and thematic juxtaposition to this. The Daleks are brilliantly written this time and they speak sparingly. When they do speak, they command the scene and are more chilling than ever.
    As this is only the first part, my score is going to be a little lower than the episode probably deserves. I'll further discuss the themes and other elements of the episode in next week's review, but for now it's safe to say that this episode is a good introductory act for what should hopefully be a stand-out second part.

7/10

Name: Emma Jane Shepherd | Age: 34

 

Well in my day is was the Muppets in Manhattan but there is something far more sinister than Kermit and Miss Piggy roaming around the underbelly of Manhattan .
The episode opens to 1930s Manhattan and a courting couple swapping words of true love.  
They are in a Theatre.   We learn that they are Laszlo and Tallulah.  Tallulah is a singer/dancer at the Theatre and she is about to go on stage.  Laszlo is a stage hand.    Tallulah goes onto the stage and Laszlo is left alone.   

Laszlo sees something run by in the corridor.  He goes after the person.
It is not a person at all it is a Human body with a pig's head (reminiscent of the pig creature in Series 1 Episode 4 Aliens of London.   Laszlo is attacked by the pig creature.

The scene then changes to the Tardis appearing.   The Doctor and Martha open the door and they have arrived in Manhattan at the base of the big lady herself the Statue of Liberty.    
Martha is obviously excited and makes the point that she has always wanted to go to New York (the old one not the New New York, I loved that!)

However all is not well and the Doctor and Martha quickly find this out.  They try to ascertain the date they  have arrived and Martha notes the Statue of Liberty has not been completed.    The Doctor starts a brief history lesson to ascertain the date and Martha picks up a paper and tells him the date – very funny.   Martha is really finding her feet and not afraid or overawed by the Doctor.    (Incidentally it was actually intended in the early days of the classic series of Doctor Who that it was going to be used as an educational  tool for history etc., but the BBC decided against this “i.e., when the Tardis appeared they were going place a date on their surroundings by stating the figures of history that they were seeing i.e., it's Ann Boleyn so it must be the reign of Henry VIII ((just an example never an episode!))  I have noted that there have been quite a few historical references and figures now, Shakespeare etc., so they have managed to bring in history side of things without it feeling like a school lesson which is a compliment the excellent writing

Matters are then made worse by the headline on the paper stating about the Hooverville Mystery.  
It transpires the Doctor and Martha have landed right in the American Depression (which occurred after the Stock Market crashed and millions lost money sometimes all they had.)    If they had no home they lived in Central Park and other communal areas where the Hooverville mystery is taking place.

The scene then switches to Central Park and two men fighting over bread.  
One man has stolen bread from another.   A man, Solomon, comes out of his tent and solves the argument by breaking the bread in half and telling both men many are starving but staying together and not fighting and basically having values is what keeps us Human. 
I thought a very clever reference to Daleks as these are qualities which they lack they have no conscience no redeeming features whatsoever.

The Doctor and Martha witness this fight and its resolution.   The Doctor is obviously intrigued by Solomon.  Solomon tells him of the hard times in the Park but says that at least they are all equal and have equal rights, they all have nothing.  To really understand the impact of this sad statement it should be understood that, at that time, there was the truly horrendous abomination of segregation separating peoples of different race or class from one another and deeming one more superior than the other.  I always find Dalek story lines amazing because that is what they really touch on, they touch on the horrendous attitudes and effects that can occur when one race, quite wrongly and abhorrently,  deem themselves more superior than another. 

Also highlighting the attitude is the fact that they are building the Empire State Building .  As  Solomon says they are using money building the Empire State but not giving monies to help the victims of the Depression.

The next scene shows a Foreman arguing with the Project Manager called Diagoras.    
Diagoras wants the Empire State Building to be completed tonight he says his 'Masters' need it finished (Daleks here we come!)

The Foreman refuses, one of the Masters is summonsed.   The lift opens into the room and the Foreman is faced with a Dalek and two pig creatures.  The Foreman is taken to be used as part of the final experiment.

The plot moves on to include scenes where  the Doctor learns that men from Hooverville (the Park) are going missing/being kidnapped.  The Doctor wants to investigate.   Men then turn up to the Park asking for workers stating there has been a cave in (when really the Daleks want more Humans.)  The Doctor volunteers so does Martha who, tongue in cheek, threatens the Doctor about this, Solomon and a new character called Frank.

They go to the tunnels under the Empire State Building .  There is no cave in, it is a trap.  

There is  a laboratory in which the pig creatures appear to be enslaved by the Daleks.  Dalek Sec talks to the other three Daleks of  the Cult of Skaro (Skaro being the Daleks home planet shared by the Kaleds and Thals) ((there was a war and the Kaleds mutated into the Daleks and all but wiped out the Thals via genocide.))

The Doctor & Co in the tunnels find some green goo, which the Doctor takes and they also find one of the pig creatures.  The Doctor realises it is a result of a diabolical experiment and apologises to the creature.   However more creatures arrive and a chase ensues (good old  Doctor Who no series would be complete without a tunnel chase scene or a chase around some caves, usually Cheddar Gorge and Wookey Hole!)  They escape up a ladder except for Frank who is taken.
 
They end up in the Theatre and meet Tallulah.  She explains about Laszlo going missing.  

The Doctor busies himself making a DNA scanner to scan said green goo.

Tallulah congratulates Martha on her choice of travelling companion stating she has seen the way Martha looks at the Doctor.  Martha says he is not interested and there is wonderful gag about Tallulah saying she should have realised this due to his interest in musical theatre, wonderful writing!

There is beautifully acted scene between Martha and Tallulah about Tallulah losing Laszlo and she states that he leaves a flower on her dressing table before every performance and someone is still doing the same.  
I must admit immediately thought of Phantom of the Opera at this point because this is about a secret admirer in the Theatre who did not want to be seen for some reason (in the Phantom's instance because he was hideously disfigured and had imposed on himself a reclusive life.)

The Doctor works on the green goo (also earlier when they found the green goo in the tunnel the Doctor asked Martha her medical opinion “Doctor to Doctor“ I liked that reference it showed a companion as an equal.  This has been the ground breaking theme in Doctor Who right from Elizabeth Shaw, Sarah Jane Smith etc.,  that the companions are equal to or nearly always equal to the Doctor.)

The Doctor realises to his horror that the origin of the matter is from Skaro and runs in fear to find Martha.

Martha is watching Tallulah's song and dance routine on stage when she sees a strange creature in the wings.  She runs onto the stage and gives chase.   Tallulah and the other performers then see the creature and they all run off stage.   Martha has gone.  The Doctor catches up with Tallulah and she explains what has happened.  The Doctor and Tallulah (against his advice) go into the tunnels to find Martha.

Martha is taken by the pig creatures.  She is joined by Frank.  
The Doctor stops Tallulah  from screaming as they both see a Dalek.  The Doctor curses the fact that they survive when all he loved has died.  Tallulah asks what the 'metal thing' was and the Doctor tells her  that it was a Dalek and that they are filled with hate and destroy everything and all Humans will die.
Tallulah and the Doctor then find Laszlo who has been turned into a pig creature.  His head is that of a pig but he tells them he escaped before they took his mind.   Again very Phantom as he has been the one leaving the flower for Tallulah but he did not want him to see her.  

The scene then shows Martha being selected as the group of hostages are divided up into higher and lower intelligence.  Lower intelligence being turned into pig creature slaves and higher intelligence for the final experiment.   

Also included in this final experiment is the Project Manager, Diagoras himself who has been taken by the Daleks.  Despite his pleading loyalty etc., which obviously means nothing to Daleks -  Dalek Sec has absorbed him as part of the final experiment.   The question is then answered about what the experiment is as the Dalek Sec  mutates and opens out.  A truly gruesome and loathsome half-human half-Dalek then emerges.  Dalek Sec has told the Daleks they must evolve and this what they are evolving into to survive.   This is the fate that awaits the Human race lower intelligence are to become slaves, higher intelligence Dalek hybrid all very depressing and gruesome as Dalek episodes are.  There would appear about to be another battle with the Daleks for the survival of humanity.  

Also Martha screams at the Daleks for experimenting on Humans stating this to be insane,  wrong and inhuman  - you go girl!  Even when facing mortal danger she is strong character.  Martha's character is getting stronger and stronger every week.  Rose/Billie Piper was going to be hard act to follow but Freema Agyeman is proving superb in this role and an equal to the much loved Rose.

Summary:-

Fantastic story, one of the most sinister so far.  
Acting superb as ever, areally good episode 9/10  (and got funny feeling next week of this two parter may be a 10 anyway!)

 

Name: Annette Bean | Age: 37

Wow what a fantastic 45 minutes that was! I could leave my review at that but there is so much more to say. In fact as my notes for this episode run to 3 pages I will leave it to better people than me to try to tell you everything that happened in detail, but as the title suggests the Daleks are back and in New York. 1930 New York to be precise (cue a quick history lesson for the kids from the Doctor)  taking advantage of the depression to pressgang the desolate inhabitants of the Hooverville slum into their “final experiment”. As the Empire state building is being completed with a mast made from part of their casing, they are lurking in the basement which has been turned into a laboratory and are busy creating pig/human hybrids as their slaves. Gloriously travelling in art deco lifts it is the cult of Scaro, the last remaining 4 Daleks who are trying to find ways to evolve and survive. The Doctor together with Martha, Solomon (leader of the Hooverville slum), Tallulah (a showgirl), Frank (a slum inhabitant who has taken a shine to Martha) and Laszlo (boyfriend of Tallulah and now part pig) witness the wonderfully shiny black Dalek, Sec, absorb their human conspirator Mr Diagoras and become a “human Dalek”. The result is disgusting (see cover of this weeks Radio Times).

 

This series more than any before is constantly rewarding the loyal viewer with references to previous episodes. The Daleks lament that their planet has gone (as the Doctor did last week) and that there are only 4 of them left when the human race always seems to survive even though they are inferior to the Daleks. Equally the Doctor is bitter and angry that the Daleks always survive when he loses everything because of them. There was another confirmation of the Doctor’s asexual nature and his indifferent feelings towards Martha. She also mentions her previous encounter with Shakespeare. When you combine this with the fabulous acting talents of David Tennant and Freema Ageman, who is now completely at home in the role of  Martha, cracking scripts, a dazzling full on song and dance number, and the haunting score from Murray Gold sounding not unlike Don Giovanni during the unveiling of the final monster, you can not bear to be anywhere else on a Saturday evening. There is nothing more entertaining or diverse in one show than Doctor Who and long may it continue to lead the way in top quality family drama.

 

Mark out of 10

 

In anticipation of the concluding part next week being even better

 

9/10.

 

Name: Abbie Taylor | Age: 13

 

From the begining this episode had us on the end of our seats, the shadows, the escence of a horror film. Then all of a sudden we have a pig/human pig running at us! The Doctors excitment of the date they arrived at perfectly matched Marthas. The unemployed people living in the middle of the park, fighting each other again as in previous episodes, highlighted problems in our modern day lifestyles. But this also proves how people pulling together can also her people carry on full of hope. The actors were magnificent in this episode, the expressions and the accents they used. The Darleks are back! And this time they're in control, building the empire state building the biggest landmark in america. The Doctor bravly volunteering, just because his curiousity got the better of him, as allways. The slimy green lump they found in the manhattan underground left us with loads of questions buzzing round our minds: Why were they sent down there? What are the Darleks doing in manhattan? And why are they in control of building the empire state building? The man that thinks like a Darlak being rewarded only sprouts more questions. Darlak Sec finally got what he wanted, to be in control. Back in the underground, noises of the pig person were scaring the senses out of everyone, with the exception of the Doctor. His curiousity growing rapidly by the second causing him to attract all of the big pig people causing him and the others to flee for their lifes. Tallula coming out of the shadows with a gun and threatening them all, this may have been the only time that the Doctor was scared. The gun wasnt even real! Tallula and Martha mean while were having a gurly moment in the dressing room, having a heart to heart about relationships, Martha gave us a slight hint that she might feel a bit more about the Doctor than we knew before. The builders on top of the empire state building, attatching the Darlak pannels while underneith them Darlak sec was sacraficing himself to set back the extinction of the darlkeks. The dancers on the stage , while Martha who was observing saw the pig person  watching and waiting ruining the show but saving their lives.  All this time the Doctor was trying to figure out what the green blob was Martha was kidnapped by the pig people and  the Doctor again came to her rescue in time to get the jist of what was happening to discover the Darleks again. He was unable to believe that they were able to survive again, this angered him and sent him into a wrld of darkness. Tallula were scared by this.  Darlak sec, who had absorbed the man, were evolving. Smoke was billowing out of him, making the other Darleks uneasy. Lasso was found again and even though his face deformed he still knew where his loyalties lie, being faithful to tallula. Martha was chosen to be part of the final experement due to being of the "supreme intellegence". The Doctor slid into this group slyly to find out what was happening. To his horror he found the Darleks evolving out of their metal cases, becoming human Darleks. The Darleks of the future.

My Rating out of 10: 10/10
I found this episode the best episode yet, the graphics were amazing and the costume of the Darlek-human was so realistic, it really frightened me. I truthfully can say that I desperatly wanted this episode to carry on, but unfourtunattly we have to wait until next week! There is absoulutly no critisim I can give this episode. The actors were great, the graphics were great and the storyline was great. They will have their wok cut out to top this episode! 

 

 

Name: Ruth Waterton | Age: 48

You can’t help feeling a bit sorry for Martha. Somebody buy that girl a
T-shirt – “I went to New York with the Doctor and all I got to see was
the sewers”. Oh, and the Mutant Ninja Pigs, of course.

Never let a wandering Time Lord near a newspaper, or he’ll be off. No
tourist trail for you, Miss Jones.

After a couple of episodes focussing on the Doctor’s rather bleak
emotional state, this outing had a “business as usual” feeling about it
which came as something of a relief. The Doctor and Martha are settling
down as a team, and beginning to work independently of one another at
times. The two-parter format allowed for some secondary character
development, with even Dalek Sek being given a credible agenda (I
hesitate to use the word “emotional” where a Dalek is concerned). Great
support from Miranda Raison as spunky showgirl Tallulah, and Hugh
Quarshie bringing dignity to the Hooverville leader Solomon, gave
texture and depth to the plot.

And what a location! Iconic, cinematic, with extremes of wealth and
poverty, glamour and grit, Manhattan in the 30s really has it all.
Carefully placed plate shots, the right amount of exposition,
convincing American accents and an excellent script brought everything
to life. I tend to find the Doctor doing social comment a bit awkward,
but Freema Aygeman conveyed her shock and compassion without a great
deal having to be said. Her scene in Tallulah’s dressing room was a
neat bridge into the love story which promises to throw up some
interesting issues, and gave Martha chance to develop a warmer persona
than we saw under pressure last week.
 
This wasn’t really David’s episode (time the poor bloke had a rest,
anyway) but he did an awful lot with limited material. I loved his
compassion towards the mutant pig-man, his assumption that Martha would
pull her weight (as indeed she did), his scientific curiosity and his
quiet, profound dismay when he identified the enemy that he was, once
again, facing. Here was a Doctor playing his cards very close to his
chest, revealing nothing of the rage and horror he must be feeling. It
was all there, but didn’t detract at all from the impact of the
cliffhanger, our first sight of a hybrid Dalek. Even after the spoiler
of this week’s Radio Times cover, it provoked a shudder of good
old-fashioned horror, a reminder of the behind-the-sofa days when the
Doctor’s personal issues were very low down on the viewers’ agenda.

Although this story stands as a self-contained adventure, there were
further pointers to the overall themes of the series. Again, we saw the
Doctor being pressed to reveal something of his true identity, and he
seems to have more trouble ducking the issue with each passing week.
Also, it seems likely that the dilemma of the Daleks, the weakened
remnant of their great race, having to contemplate evolution and
hybridisation, will be reflected by the continuing question of the Time
Lords’ future, and the ultimate explanation of the Face of Boe’s
prophecy. For the sharp-eyed, there was even a rose, but its
significance is anybody's guess..

The Daleks themselves provoke a mixed reaction – almost a feeling of
disloyalty to the Doctor as the viewer sqeals with delight at the
return of a well-loved enemy. There are monsters, and then there are
the Daleks – even the Cybermen don’t come close. The challenge is to
give the pepperpots some genuinely shocking and scary qualities,
preventing them from degenerating into parodies of themselves, unworthy
of the Doctor’s response. The final scene of this episode certainly
succeeded, leaving the viewer horrified, fascinated and hungry for
more.

I leave the final words to my children: “The Daleks should be in every
episode; they’re cheesy but they’re awesome.” (16 year old boy) and
“Tallulah would make a great companion,” (13 year old girl). RTD,
please note. And, while you’re at it, more female writers, please.
 
RATING: 8 out of 10

Best line: “Daleks are unfamiliar with the concept of worry!”
 
Biggest relief: The Doctor has outgrown his S2 oral fixation. Licking
jellyfish in the sewers wouldn’t be good for him.

Name: Georgia Shippen | Age: 14

But now we are on week 4 of our 13 part journey.The Daleks are of course back! YEY! The start of episode starts of with the TARDIS landing in 1930s New York.With people living in horrible conditions in Hooverville the Doctor and Martha come across Soloman and Frank.But little do they know the Daleks are just above them in the empire state building.With David Tennant (the best actor around) and Freema Agyeman putting in a great preformance between them, it makes you feel with the Doctor he is starting to care for Martha, David and Freema are so good together.I was a massive Rose Tyler fan,But I am staring to like Martha now.But now back to the episode the daleks have taken Diagoras for a "Ugrade".When Dalek SEC "ate" him i couldnt believe it, it was disgusting!But with the Doctor down in the seywers he has no idea.This episode never stopped for breath with Daleks,Pig men in the seywers,Lazlo,Frank,Soloman,Tullulah,Diagoras....erm who have forgotton....oh and The Doctor and Martha.It was quite hard to keep up so i wont go into to much detail with the episode that dosent need mentioning.But this whole episode was great and i really enjoyed it.With Martha Taken by the pig men and the Doctor just reliasing that the Daleks are back it never stopped.But it was all good as the doctor got back to Martha without the Daleks relising he was there they were taken to Dalek SEC.I found it quite funny when the Daleks hadnt even noticed that the Doctor was there.My dad asked me what I was laughing at and I said, "Well the Daleks hate the Doctor dont they? so how come if they look out for him all the time and yet, there he is standing right next to one and it hasnt even noticed? That just proves the Doctor is smarter than 4 Daleks....but I already knew that!".Still with the scary new Dalek Sec,half human and half dalek came out of the shell of the Dalek SEC, it was pretty scary stuff! It was great the way he was shown to the world of WHO! with the music and the fire...wow is the only word for it.Actually WOW is the only word for the whole episode.I loved it it was brilliantly written great acting form everyone and the fantastic cliff hanger at the end!!

Well done for the brillance of the episode!!!!! I LOVED IT!!

My overall rating for this episode is a well deserved 10/10!!!

Keep up with all of the fantastic work David and Freema!!

 

Name: Frankie Eden-Smith | Age: 15

This week we join the Doctor and Martha in New York, 1930 during the great depression. Only this episode was far from depressing; it’s a mixture of dark tunnelling sewers and glamorous stage shows. The Doctor and Martha arrive at the Statue of Liberty and spot the unfinished Empire State building, the construction, however, isn’t the only unfinished business- the daleks are back!!! We visit the construction site of the Empire State building where Mr. Diagoras is making plans with the Cult of Skaro, who somehow escaped their last encounter with the Doctor in Doomsday. There are rumors of people going missing from Hooverville. When Mr. Diagoras arrives looking for people to unblock the sewers, the Doctor is keen to volunteer to Martha’s disgust. 
They come across a green alien flesh, within the sewers, which the Doctor later examines only to find it’s linked to Skaro!! Whilst down in the sewers they come across a half- human half- pig, as if one was bad enough they soon have a group of them chasing them back through the sewers. They all get out except Frank. They meet Tallulah (three l’s and an h) a show girl whose boyfriend was taken too. After a fabulous song and dance number, Martha spots one of the pig slaves, but he’s not the same as the others, she chases him but is captured by a proper pig slave and taken down to the sewers where she is reunited with Frank. The Doctor and Tallulah are not far behind and reach Martha just as the Daleks reveal themselves to the people. There are mentions of the final experiment and when the Doctor manages to slip in the queue, he discovers just what it is. The daleks are adapting, evolving and becoming half human!!!! I have to say though they looked fantastic the half human- half daleks. Another great episode- definitely looking forward to the second part!!!8/10

Name: Emily Cook | Age: 13

The Daleks are back! I was really looking forward to this episode and it was great. The basic plot, like all stories involving daleks is to take over the universe. Seeing New york in the 30's was great. I love the doctor's intelligence of history, and how he can worki thioghs out so quickly. Seeing Hoovervill shows us what it was really like during the depression, but then we see Mr Diggoras and the dalek and we switch back to the reality of Doctor Who.

 

The connection between Mr Diggoras and Solomon was that they both fought in the great war, but they went different ways. Another connection in this episode was that last time the doctor came to America he fought the dalek with Rose. I really love Tullulah's charachter, she's so sweet and innocent.

 

When Mr Diggoras asks for voulteers to go down the sewers it's clear that Martha is only going because the doctor is. It looked disgusting down in the sewers, but for me the doctor brightened the whole thing up. Martha talikg to Frank gives us information then the doctor talking to Solomon gives us even more. The brain on the floor was disgusting, but the doctor being the doctor would just have to pick it up and smell it. Martha's medical intelligence tells us that it's not human, but the doctor would have known that too.

 

I acctually felt sorry for Lazlo down in the sewers as the doctor did. I like the line when the pig men were chasing them when Martha said they're following you and he said yeah I can see that. They all ran, to doctor and Martha and Solomon sensibly going to saftey straight away but Frank trying to defend himself ends up getting caught. The first of my 2 favorite scenes was when Tullulah had the gun and said hands in the air and no funny buisness. I'v had that stuck in my head. I loved it when the doctor said you'd better put that down, and she says it's only a prop.

 

Solomon confesses he's scared and says he's going back to hoovervill to warn the others. Tmy second favorite scene is when the doctor sets everything up to find out what speices the brain is, Tullulah get ready in her dressing room with Martha (Martha says unfortunatly the doctor doesn't love her back even though she loves him which is what i think will be the case the whole way through), and we learn more of the reality of the depression, when Martha wades her way through the dancers to see lazlo the pig man, and when the doctor realises the planet is Skaro. The look of horror on his face! (I love seeing the close ups of his face though!!!!!!!!) Another one of my favorite senes is when the doctor goes down to the sewers and Tullulah follows (she may be cute and innocent but she had guts to go down there dressed like that!) and he say no no no no no you're not coming and she says it's her problem, which way, and she walks of the wrong way. The doctor replies, this way. I loved that. I loved the contrast of the two charachters as they were walking thought the sewers and how she couldn't shut up even when a dalek was coming past. Love it. I like the line whe the guy after the intelligence scan say what are you calling me stupid. I don't think he really understood what was going on. poor Tullulah, seeing Lazlo like that. I felt so sorry for her in that scene.

 

Mr Diggoras getting sucked in to the dalek was pretty disgusting, and evolution of the daleks is a whole new interesting brilliant idea. Whe the doctor joins the line behind martha he says you can kiss me later and we think may be there is some chemistry then he says you too farnk and then we think maybe not.

It was a very wise idea for the doctor to keep his identity from the daleks. Seeing the evoultion of dalek sec was amazing. Human Daleks, it was pretty creep when he said i am a human dalek. I gave me chills.

 

The acting from everyone was brilliant, amazing and any more big words you can think of, but for me the doctor and Tullulah stuck out for me. I really literaly love the doctor's charahter in every way and Tullulah's charahter is so different.

What's going to happen at Hoovervill?

Will Tullulah get out?

What will the evoultion of the daleks lead to? I just had to look at the trailer for next week and i can't wait. the week after a clifhanger always go slowly. I want it to be saturday now!!!

It was brilliant...I rate it 9/10  

 

Name: Daisy Allen | Age: 13

The Good: The Daleks are back! ^.^

The Bad: None really

'Daleks in Manhattan' is set in the 1930's in Manhattan (Suprise suprise ;)). The Tardis lands near The statue of liberty. The doctor is trying to work out what date it was when Martha picks up the Newspaper which says on there. As soon as they read the newspaper the doctor notices something unusual, Which lures him into another exciting adventure.

Woohoo the Daleks are back. I love each and every episode that involves the daleks and you always know something very exciting is going to happen. The daleks, Who are the only monster the doctor seems scared of, are 'in charge' of building the Empire State Building and are building it for a reason which we will probably find out next episode!

I also think the ending of this episode was a real cliff hanger. The man who turned into a human dalek wasn't very nice and I was glad to see him change into one. If anyone had just seen the ending they would definatly want to tune in next week to find out what was happening.

I conclude that the return of the Daleks, the realism & the pigs made this a very exciting Doctor who and I cant wait to see what happens next week!

Overall Rating : 7/10

 

Name: Zoe Brown | Age:27

Just when you thought that they’d finally been defeated, they keep coming back for more.  It’s time for the Daleks, the Doctor’s most iconic and nefarious enemies, to make another appearance, and this time, their plan for world domination is more dastardly than ever before.

Unusually for ‘Doctor Who’, we have a doomed love story that is central to the main plot, that of Tallulah and Laszlo.  Tallulah has probably been named as a reference to Jodie Foster’s character in ‘Bugsy Malone’ – both are feisty, but project an outward image of confidence to hide their inner doubts.  Following Laszlo’s capture by the pig-men, Tallulah becomes a main character in the story, as a confidant for Martha and also helping the Doctor to find out what’s really going on in the sewers.  Tallulah’s costume is one of many references to Heaven and Hell that appear in this episode – she is dressed as an angel, while the other dancers are dressed as devils.  Laszlo gives Tallulah a white rose every night before she goes on stage – white is the colour of purity, and is also associated with Heaven and angels’ robes, but this may also be a subtle reference to Rose Tyler.  The Doctor doesn’t mention her by name in this episode, but once the Daleks reappear, she is surely at the forefront of his mind once again.  Pigs seem to be significant in the ‘Doctor Who’ universe – a genetically-modified pig was also used by the Slitheen to pilot the crashed spacecraft in ‘Aliens of London’, and they have now been chosen by the Daleks to become human hybrid slaves.  This may be due to the fact that their genetic makeup is similar to humans, as pig organs have previously been used in human transplants.

The Doctor and Martha arrive at the foot of the Statue of Liberty to the strains of Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’, a piece of music which always conjures up images of the Manhattan skyline.  The Doctor surmises that it must be the 1930s because the Empire State Building is not yet finished – when Martha confirms the date by checking a newspaper, he gives her (and the audience) a brief history lesson on the events leading up to the Great Depression and the creation of ‘Hooverville’, named after Herbert Hoover, the 31^st US President.  There were many ‘Hoovervilles’ all over America , full of disenfranchised people, wondering why the government was doing nothing to help.  The Doctor and Martha then meet Solomon, the apparent leader of the camp, whose name is also significant – in the Bible, Solomon was a king of Israel , known for his great wisdom.  The other inhabitants of the camp seek guidance from Solomon, and the Doctor also uses him as a sounding board throughout the episode.  Solomon is determined that everyone in the camp is treated equally, regardless of age, race or status, and that they must all stick together and, crucially, “act like human beings”.  However, he cannot understand why buildings like the Empire State Building are being constructed while people are starving, and even the Doctor is at a loss to explain this.

It is at this point that Mr Diagoras makes his first appearance.  He is in charge of construction at the Empire State Building , carrying out the orders of “the new masters”, who have decreed that the mast must be completed immediately.  Although the audience is already well aware of the identity of the new masters, the final revealing of the Daleks is suitably suspenseful – before Dalek Thay emerges from the lift, there is a shot of the lift pointer moving upwards, and when the lift doors part to reveal the passengers, the circle on the left-hand door is directly in line with the Dalek’s eye stalk.  The Daleks were originally inspired by the Nazis, so their “final experiment” suggests a similar plan to the Nazis’ ‘final solution’ – the idea that they were the master race, and the experiments of Joseph Mengele, amongst others, who tried to create the perfect race.  This even extends to the separation of the victims into high and low intelligence – those with high intelligence are kept for the “final experiment” and taken to the transgenic laboratory, and those with low intelligence are turned into pig-men.  Dalek Thay tells Mr Diagoras that “the Gamma strike has accelerated – we need more bodies immediately”.  It is not yet clear what the Gamma strike is, although we will presumably find out more in the next episode, but in much the same way as John Lumic sent Mr Crane out on a “recruitment drive” in ‘Rise Of The Cybermen’, Mr Diagoras goes out to Hooverville to lure people into the sewers with the promise of work. 

Mr Diagoras’s name is very unusual – perhaps it is a reference to events yet to come, but it is similar to ‘diagonal’, and there are many diagonally-positioned girders shown on the plans for the Empire State Building , although this may be a red herring.

Whilst in the sewers, Martha and Frank strike up a friendship, as they have much in common – both are separated from their families, and both are “hitchhiking”.  The Doctor and Solomon also begin to work together – Solomon tells the Doctor that Mr Diagoras was once a construction foreman, but is now practically in charge of the entire city.  While the Doctor finds this strange, Solomon is unconcerned, saying that some people have seen their luck change for the better and the worse overnight. 

It is at this point that the Doctor discovers the ‘brain’ on the floor – he and Martha deduce that it is not human, which suggests that it is a by-product of the “final experiment” that has gone wrong.  As we start to learn more about the Daleks’ plans, they sound a lot like the ideas explored in ‘Frankenstein’ – plates from the Daleks’ outer casing (Dalekinium, although the Doctor said in ‘Doomsday’ that it was polycarbide) are bolted onto the outside of the mast to create an energy conductor, just as Victor Frankenstein used a lightning conductor to power his experiments.  The Daleks have decided that they cannot remain pure any more and have to integrate to survive, sharing Mr Diagoras’s belief that “you have to move with the times, or you get left behind”.  The “final experiment” also plays on current fears about genetic engineering – the Doctor discovers that the ‘brain’ has been artificially created, but, like Frankenstein, the Daleks’ earlier experiments have failed. 

It transpires that the Daleks had chosen Mr Diagoras some time ago, and had been transmitting thoughts and images into his brain to tempt him into their way of thinking.  They decide that he is their best option for survival, as he thinks in the same way they do, but it is unclear as to why the Daleks chose him specifically, unless this will also be touched on in more detail in next week’s episode. 

As with ‘Gridlock’, this episode relies heavily on the idea of levels and reaching upwards – like the Macra, the pig-men lurk at the darkest and lowest level, and the people have to aim and climb upwards to escape from them into the light.  There are other echoes from earlier episodes, as the Doctor’s anguish when he cannot save Frank (and Solomon’s vow that “I’m not losing anyone else!”) hark back to ‘Doomsday’ and ‘The Runaway Bride’ respectively. 

The scene between Martha and Tallulah is very touching.  Tallulah adopts the performers’ mantra of “the show must go on”, even though she is worried about Laszlo, and tries to counsel Martha about her feelings for the Doctor.  The episode shows the Doctor and Martha working as an established team, and the Doctor seems to be finally starting to move on after Rose, although seeing the Daleks again will, of course, have reminded him of her again.  “They survive.  They always survive, while I lose everything.”

Mr Diagoras is absorbed by Dalek Sec (in much the same way as the Abzorbaloff) and kept inside the ‘incubator’ for the gestation period before being ‘birthed’, which once again addresses the idea of creating life outside the normal process that was the central theme of ‘Frankenstein’.  However, before Dalek Sec ‘gives birth’, one of the Daleks administers the “solution” – a syringe of green liquid, which seems to be the “chromatin solution” mentioned earlier in the episode.  According to the dictionary, chromatin consists of protein, RNA and DNA – perhaps this is additional Dalek DNA, but this will probably again be explained in the next episode.  The final scene, where the half-human Dalek Sec is ‘birthed’, is truly horrifying (although it would have been altogether more horrific if a spoiler picture hadn’t appeared in the TV listings magazines prior to transmission).  The Doctor and Martha can only look on in amazement, and we wait until next week to see what happens next…

All in all, I thought that this episode was possibly the best so far this series.  I’ve always been