Customer Reviews

Doctor Who the Daleks' Masterplan, Part II: The Mutation of Time (Target Doctor Who Library) (Bk. 2)

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This is a follow up to Doctor Who The Daleks' Masterplan I Mission to the Unknown. It is notable for the return of The Meddling Monk, an annoying charcter from the Docter's own race,who adds comic relief to what is a dark story. Between the two novels two of the Doctor's companions die to help defeat the Daleks. However, the first few chapters of this novel are rather light because the episode they are based on was broadcast on Christmas night 1965. The Docter even starts pie fight on a movie set, and somehow escapes unscathed.

This is the adaptation of the final six episodes of Doctor Who's season three magnus opus, 'The Daleks' Master Plan'. It picks up where the previous novel. 'Mission to the Unknown', finished.

What is unfortunate about this is that it starts with the episode 'The Feast of Steven'. When this story was shown, its seventh episode was broadcast on Christmas Day. Feeling that the story was a bit grim for Christmas viewing, a strange episode featuring a visit to a Hollywood studio and an English police station was produced. Even accepting the logic of going this in the first place, it does seem very out of place in the novel.

The story is properly resumed, as the Doctor, Steven and Sara are soon not only faced by the Daleks and their allies, but also by the Monk, another Time Lord with whom the Doctor and Steven had had a previous conflict.

The full details of the Daleks' plan come to light, leading to conflict within the alliance. The climax of the story is truly apocalyptic.

As with the previous part of the story, John Peel imbues his adaptation with references to the Doctor Who universe.

The Dalek Masterplan was a massive 12 part Doctor Who epic that was mostly destroyed by the BBC. Only two episodes survive. It deserves better than this. Not that it is badly written, it is just not particulary well written either. It's like reading about the events surrounding The Dalek's plan to use the Time Destructor to conquer the galaxy as reported by the New York Times. Dry and lifeless. So much more could have been done. See the novels The Power of the Daleks or The Mythmakers as examples. Still, it is the only way to experience the story and the Doctor Who fan(and that is the only one who would ever read it) can bring his or her imagination and knowledge of the show along to spice things up.