Product Details

• Actors: Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Terry Malloy
• Directors: Graham Harper
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: BBC Worldwide
• DVD Release Date: June 6, 2006
• Run Time: 89 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000EMG91I
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,557 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks (Story 143)" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The sixth embodiment of Doctor Who, Colin Baker, faces his long-running foes the Daleks in this two-part story from 1985. Revelation has the Doctor and companion Peri (Nicola Bryant) traveling to the planet Necros, where a plan to pay respects to a late friend uncovers a scheme by Dalek scientist Davros (Terry Malloy, the only actor to play the role more than once) to use the bodies of the recently deceased to build a new and terrible Dalek army. The only Dalek story to be produced during the Colin Baker years, Revelation doesn’t quite rise to the level of classic Dalek episodes from the past (like Genesis of the Daleks, with Tom Baker), but Who fans will still find much excitement and intrigue to enjoy here. The story is probably better known for its historical impact as the last Doctor Who serial to be produced before the BBC imposed an 18-month hiatus on the series in 1985. Extras include commentary by Bryant, Malloy, writer/script editor Eric Saward, and director Graeme Harper, as well as the featurette "Revelation Exhumed," which examines the story through interviews with the cast and crew (including comedian Alexei Sayle, who contributes an amusing performance to the story as a DJ), though Baker is noticeably absent. There’s also an optional video track that allows viewers to watch the story with improved visual effects, as well as an isolated score audio option, and a selection of deleted scenes. --Paul Gaita

Product Description

DOCTOR WHO:EP 143 REVELATION OF THE D - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A first-rate Dalek story. The peak of an under-rated era., December 7, 2000

By 

G.Spider - See all my reviews

This review is from: Doctor Who - Revelation of the Daleks [VHS] (VHS Tape)

The Doctor and Peri arrive on Necros, the 'planet of the dead', where there is a whole complex filled with people in suspended animation whilst the Great Healer works on cures for whatever diseases they are suffering from.

But before long the 'Great Healer' is revealed to be none other than Davros, sinister genetic engineer and creator of the Daleks. Having been abandoned by the original Daleks, he is engineering replacements.

This is not only the best Colin Baker story, but also one of the finest Dalek adventures ever made. There is a very grown-up feel about it with genuine suspence, sexual undercurrents and horror which is suggestive rather than tasteless. The whole thing is filled with strong characters such as bounty hunters (a space-age knight and his squire), a superbly cold-hearted female villain and a futuristically-weird DJ. Davros and the Daleks (with impressive new white casings) are at their dramatic best and the music and scenery are first-rate. Watch for one partically memorable scene involving a glass Dalek.

Highly recommended. Even if you dislike Colin Baker (though personally I think he was an under-rated Doctor who should have been given more time in the series), this adventure is still unmissable.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars BE AT PEACE, August 20, 2006

By 

Thomas E. O'Sullivan - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks (Story 143) (DVD)

By 1985 DOCTOR WHO had not only been wounded, but it was bleeding and blood was in the water - it was only a matter of time before the axe fell and the show once believed would never die would be dead. And died it did - but not before REVELATION OF THE DALEKS was finished and ready for release. Had the show stopped here, some might have been disappointed - while others might have rejoiced. Either way going out with a Dalek story, and a Dalek story about death and rebirth - you couldn't have asked for better.

REVELATION is one of the few DOCTOR WHO stories that is so much a DOCTOR WHO story, yet almost has NOTHING to do with DOCTOR WHO. Both Peri and the Doctor play secondary roles here. They arrive on the scene at the end of a much longer, and mostly unseen, story and fall into and fill in the gaps and the cracks in the plot. The Doctor literally takes a backseat here. He's always playing catch up, and when he finally gets caught up, he's being pushed out of the story by bigger and better characters, larger plots and a final showdown between his enemies with him stuck in the background only able to look on. Peri's role is expanded a little here as she's allowed to wander off into trouble and not be resuced at the last moment by the Doctor. Death is literally around every corner - and there is the very real sense that anyone could really die.

There's also love, passion, romance, lust, revenge and villiany - and Daleks. Davros is back and has taken his new Daleks deeper into racial purity by casting them in cream white cases with gold accents. They're the new Angels, and his old creations are his own Fallen, and they're back as well looking to punish their creator. Everything about this story screams invention, ideas, concept, charm and wit. Funny, scary, brutal, over the top and underplayed all at once, it bookends neatly with the true, final story of DOCTOR WHO - GHOST LIGHT.

Just as in REVELATION the Doctor in GHOST LIGHT takes a back seat to all the action, deep characters and already involved story. And they both nearly end the same as well - with the Doctor and his companion sharing a moment, a musing and moving on. In the case of the Seventh Doctor it would be in SURVIVAL, as for the Sixth it would be into limbo... and public outcry.

This is another well stocked DVD with a host of extras that help to accent the already excellent story. Commentary is included and is very fun. Everyone involved is very involved with the story and with each other, they bring the facts with them, their memories and the good times are brought to the fore with a lot of laughter. The only real downside is that Colin Baker is not on had to add his own thoughts to the mix.

There's a solid MAKING OF documentary and the production notes help to add more background to both the production and the story. But by far the best feature is IN STUDIO A another look at the show from behind the camera where everything is happening at once. Action, direction, special effects, problems, retakes and makeup - you name it, it's all going on. The Doctor also takes a back seat here as well - it's the Daleks, Davros and the rest that get the most camera time - a fantastic feature (and one that appears on the release of GHOST LIGHT as well).

For some this story was a waste of time. For others it was just another Dalek story - for myself, it was another example of just how flexible this show could be when allowed to run. REVELATION OF THE DALEKS is one of the best the series produced and a must for those new to the series and us old hands (just watch your fingers).

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two of the very best from the Dalek canon, June 25, 2006

By 

JKO "A Doctor Who Viewer" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks (Story 143) (DVD)

The Daleks! Two words that genuinely strike fear into British children of a certain age, no matter how old they may be now! The `pepper pot' enemies of the BBC TV's heroic Time Lord - Doctor Who, made their debut in the second story ever broadcast from their long running serial and were so successful that they appeared and again and again in the subsequent 26 year run of the show and indeed made a stunning re-appearance in the new adventures in 2005. This pair of DVD releases from BBC Video celebrates two of their encounters with the Doctor, dating from 1975 and 1985. And they're both classics.

Genesis of the Daleks was the fourth of five stories broadcast in Tom Baker's first season as the fourth Doctor, albeit recorded fifth. It has to be said that by the time the mutant Skarosians met the Gallifreyan in this story, the Daleks seemed to have run out of steam. Their three appearances in the last three seasons starring the third Doctor, Jon Pertwee, were somewhat lackluster and certainly covered a lot of ground previously explored by writer and Dalek creator Terry Nation. Thankfully, when he submitted yet another retread of the Dalek tales, outgoing producer Barry Letts and his script editor Terrance Dicks, tactfully pointed out to Nation that it was all getting a bit tired and that perhaps a story about the Genesis of the Daleks would be more interesting. Nation leapt on the idea and came back with arguably one of the greatest stories in the entire Doctor Who canon. Genesis has been seen on the BBC five times over the years, a record for any Doctor Who story, albeit in two cut down versions on occasions. The full six-part adventure is re-mastered and released on DVD for the first time now in it's episodic format as originally broadcast in the late winter, early spring of 1975. It is almost a faultless story and the execution of the script beyond parallel. Indeed, although a fan of the Letts/Dicks era, I do wonder how it would stand up had they still been in charge when the show was made. It was left to new producer Philip Hinchcliffe and his script editor Robert Holmes to bring the show to the screen and this story goes a long way to proving why they are regarded as the show's most successful production team.

If you are a Doctor Who devotee, there are some niggling continuity problems to worry about in terms of the Dalek history that had been established over the preceding 11 or so years, but Nation has indeed done a great job in reinventing his malevolent creatures without too much disruption to their past storyline. The Daleks themselves play a relatively minor role in the story as the focus is on their evil genius creator Davros and his team of humanoid henchmen. The performance of Michael Wisher as Davros is truly outstanding and one of the finest and most chilling turns ever presented in the series. The regular cast of Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen and Ian Marter are simply superb and the guest cast dazzles. It is rare for everything to come together so perfectly in Doctor Who and Genesis is truly one of the best examples of such an occasion.

Revelation of the Daleks, made and broadcast in 1985 and starring Colin Baker as Doctor number six isn't quite up to the same standard, and will probably suffer in comparison to the earlier story, but when taken in context of Baker's short run as the Time Lord, this really is one of his classic adventures. Made as two 45-minute episodes and broadcast in March 1985 at the end of Baker's first season, alas the story came to air just after it had been announced that the next season had been postponed and the show was going to be off the air for 18 months. The BBC was blaming the overtly violent nature of the show as their reasoning for the cancellation, and this story does indeed highlight many of their concerns. But it is also a very humorous script, albeit darkly so; and again the performances and the production values do go a long way to raising it up in an otherwise mediocre season.

Davros makes a fourth appearance in this story, penned by script editor Eric Saward, this time played by Terry Molloy. Although Molloy turns in a good performance, comparison with the `original' Davros is inevitable and he may disappoint as a result. Colin Baker takes something of a back seat in this story, as do the Daleks themselves, which allows the assembled guest cast the chance to shine and indeed dominate. Clive Swift, Eleanor Bron, William Gaunt, John Ogwen, Hugh Walters and even the incomprehensibly bad Jenny Tomasin, really stand out in this story, with a neat cameo from Alexei Sayle almost stealing the show. Even the minor characters really stand out in this adventure. It's a shame that this story aired when it did. Despite ratings of over 7.5 million viewers (something David Tennant's much hyped Doctor is struggling to achieve), the earlier disappointments of this twenty-second season of the Doctor had rung the death knell loud and clear.

The extras for these two stories are as always superb. The six-part Genesis is contained on one disc, with commentary by Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah-Jane), Director David Maloney and guest actor Peter Miles (Nyder). The quartet provide a very, very interesting and entertaining insight into the making of the show as does the accompanying disc featuring two lengthy documentaries. One covers the making of the show from concept to screen; the other is a potted history of the Daleks. There are also continuity announcements, a Blue Peter featurette, Photos and other PDF files accessible on your computer. The only minor (very minor) criticism I have is that the information subtitles that follow the storyline are somewhat repetitive of what features in the documentaries and the commentary and in a lot of cases are on screen so briefly, that hitting the pause button is the only way to read them. For Revelation, the extras include a commentary from Nicola Bryant (the Doctor's companion Peri), Terry Molloy (Davros), Director Graeme Harper and writer/script editor Eric Saward. Molloy is billed as "Malloy" on the sleeve. Oops! There's also outtakes and `in studio' footage from the recording, new CGI effects, continuity announcements, photos and soundtrack options. Full credit goes to BBC Video for such interesting and indeed extensive extras. These alone make the purchase worthwhile.

The Dalek stories that remain on the shelves are perhaps the least interesting from their canon, but if the folks at BBC Video can pull together the same quality of extras that they have for these two releases, they will be worth waiting for.