Asylum of the Daleks

Well, was it worth the wait? You bet. Assuming you've seen it (and what are you doing reading stuff like this is you haven't? Go away!! Now!), you'll be wondering about the significance of events. Some random and rambling thoughts... (well it would have been rude not to post something - I know, I've neglected you, but you know I will always be back! - and rambling is all I can manage at the moment!)

Yes, following on from last season, we have a Doctor that the known universe thinks dead, but not the Daleks, they're too clever for that. And Skaro is back. I never really liked the fact that Skaro was destroyed in the original series - and in such an arbitrary way. It just never sat well for me. So Moff doing a bit of re-writing here is not only welcome, but gives us something to look forward to - odds on a Skaro Dalek story coming soon?

And we have a new method of Dalek control over humans. Dead or alive. Cool. Typical Moff! And, biggest shock of all, a Parliament of the Daleks. Nice, if not odd, idea. Reminded me of the old TV21 comic series where we got the full impression of a Dalek society and empire, something never really achieved in the original series. And a prime minister, all naked and proud of his natural Dalek form. Good for him. My only criticism here was the 'rubberiness' of the mutant skin and the lack of moisture or slimy gunk to sort of bring him to life. But as we all know, that sort of stuff perishes rubber, and I guess they will be wanting to use this again before too long!

The our new toy Daleks luring around in the background - there's a whole chunck of Dalek sociology we need to get our heads round here - weren't the new toy Daleks supposed to be in charge?

OK, and what else do we have? Oh, I nearly forgot, lots of different Daleks, perhaps not all used to their best effect, although I thought they were magnificent just standing around. Love it. Eggs-cellent in fact.

Oh, and nearly forgot. Jenna-Louise Coleman. Wow. How on earth did they manage to keep that under wraps! What a magnetic performance! She is going to be absolutely knockout! Moff has given us a Victoria style background (kidnapped by the Daleks), turned it on its head, added a bit of Zoe, and made the perfect companion for his 'second' Doctor. Shame we have to deal with the Rory and Amy (eish, I nearly forgot her name there) soap opera for another few episodes!

And what a great twist at the end. I must admit I was expecting the poor lass to be wired up into the Dalek network or something, but what an evil twist of script-writing genius.

Now Jenna-Louise just shone with charisma, and dare we say it, oused with sex appeal. I remember a certain Karen Gillan claiming to be the sexiest Who companion ever, a claim I was unsure to myself (I like a feisty redhead, don't get me wrong, but...) Well someone's just been out done on the sexy score for sure. I bet it takes more than a couple of pints and a kebab on the way home to gain the attention of our young Jenna-Louise! (Saying that, I've never seen Emmerdale, so for all I know that's exactly what she's been doing all this time).

And how is she going to get written back into the series? We seemingly have an independent storyline for her - she arrives on the crashed ship and dies at the end (again typical Moff). So she's not been brought into contact with the Daleks by the Doctor himself (which would have been cool). But we know something has to happen, so can only guess the Doctor picks her up at an earlier stage in her life, and drops her off, knowing full well what has to happen (or, perhaps even more interestingly maybe he doesn't!). She must therefore know him... We're gonna end up watching Asylum in a whole new light soon!

Looks like she's going to be another strong, independent and intelligent female character. Yippee. I really think the world would be a better place if women ran everything. Would they let us destroy our home to satisfy greed? Nah. But anyway, I digress. (Although I am thinking of starting a Jenna-Louise Coleman for President of the world campaign. She's got my vote already.)

And what else happened? Well, the Daleks have forgotten who the Doctor is. Not sure I liked this but, but anyway. Bit by bit Moff is setting the stage and correcting all the elements of the shows story he doesn't like, getting ready for something epic. This man's got plans - big plans - I can only guess he's thinking at least a season or two ahead here... and I can only hope he stays around to make them happen - on the strength of this episode he's back on top form, and I must admit I was worried after the last series and xmas special.

But before we get carried away, let's steady our expectations, for we still have the traditionally (very) weak second and third stories of the season to deal with first... lets hope they are better than they sound...

Ah, yes, and Amy and Rory get dropped off back home again. Nice touch, but does mean they have to come up with another excuse to pull them all back together next week... another 5 mins of Pond life padding. Get ready for another rollercoaster beginning next week, where in the first five minutes the poor writer has to pull the all back together... Oh just hurry up and kill 'em off!