Eve of the Daleks

"Didn't we just get exterminated?"

Writer: Chris Chibnall

Format: TV

Broadcast: 1 January 2022

Series: 2022 New Year's Day Special

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Yaz, Dan

Synopsis

Sarah owns ELF storage and Nick visits his unit every year on New Year's Eve; this year, however, their night turns out to be a little different than planned as they join forces with the Doctor, Yaz and Dan in a temporal fight against the Daleks.

Verdict

Eve of the Daleks was an excellent episode and a lovely watch on New Year's Day! I do think it probably should have been broadcast yesterday given the fact it was actually set on New Year's Eve, but that has no bearing on what was a terrific story. This was just so much fun, there really was a lot to like about the episode. I must admit that I was initially a little sceptical about having a special set at a storage facility, but that location worked wonderfully well and really provided a contained feel whilst having the ability to go places which was a unique selling point. The Doctor looking to reset the TARDIS following the events of Flux was good continuity and Dan's line about saving the universe last week confirmed the proximity of this episode to Series 13. It wasn't much removed at all which I like. Sarah and Nick were fantastic additions to the main TARDIS trio and they complimented each other really well and it was lovely to see all of their relationships develop with each reset. The basis of the episode concerning a time loop and each ending with extermination was magnificent and just added to the fun. Despite everything that was going on and the stakes on hand, this was an easy watch that didn't really require a huge amount of previous knowledge. After an eventful six-part serial, it's probably what we needed. I would argue this was Dan's best episode and I loved how he could see Yaz's feelings for the Doctor, and after his own circumstances with Di not going well he was on hand to encourage his friend. He also wasn't shy in challenging the Doctor on what she said and felt too which I'm sure we'll come back to in the future. I liked the slight design shift on the Executioner Daleks and the imagery and effects for the extermination were very impressive. Dan's first encounter with the Daleks was great and I loved his efforts at distracting in feigning being a customer at ELF Storage. The comic value of Sarah's character was a real highlight for me, she was so damn good. I was a massive fan of the character and I'd love for her to return in the future. The shift on the time loop style story by them losing a minute with each reset was brilliant and provided some urgency as the episode went on as well as a clear goal of having to be out of the building by midnight. It was quite the countdown! The audacity of doing a dummy escape on the penultimate reset was a nice unexpected twist, and I loved how when things were on the final run, Sarah's mum on the phone provided the ultimate trigger to set off the building into millions of pieces and a nice firework display to bring in the new year. Despite the temporal nature of the episode, it was a simple one that was just fun. And sometimes that's all you need. It's nice to know Sarah and Nick will head off around the world together now and it also seems the TARDIS troubles are behind the Doctor and co now. She still doesn't want to address her feelings, but the setup for a treasure story involving Sea Devils sets us up marvellously for the Spring Special! I didn't see that return coming! Overall, a brilliant episode! 

Rating: 9/10