The events of the Doctor Who New Year’s episode “Revolution of the Daleks” were pretty timey-wimey. If you’re a casual watcher, new to the show or it’s just been a while since you’ve watched, it can seem confusing. So here is your breakdown on what you need to know.
There are a few episodes that all tie into this New Years special:
- Season 11 Episode “Arachnids in the UK”
- Season 11 Episode “Resolution”
- Season 12 Episode “Fugitive of Judoon”
- Season 12 Episode “The Timeless Children”
Spoiler Warnings Apply
Doctor Who: Revolution of the Daleks
This year’s holiday special for Doctor Who aired on Friday, January 1st and it found the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) locked away in a high-security alien prison with no hope of escape. Yaz (Mandip Gil), Ryan (Tosin Cole) and Graham (Bradley Walsh) are far away on Earth and having to carry on with their lives without her.
While on Earth they soon discover a plan which involves a Dalek. Captain Jack (John Barrowman) returns to help. We also see the return of season 11 guest star Chris Noth as Jack Robertson.
Storylines and Timelines Explained
The beginning scene is a flash back to the 2019 New Year’s episode “Resolution”. The Doctor and her squad are fighting a dangerous Dalek. The next scene cuts the government assigned clean up crew just the moments after. The government is transporting the now damaged Dalek casing to a secure facility.
After those scenes, we jump to the future and over a year has gone since the events of the “Resolution”. Here we find Jack Robertson (Chris Noth) and Leo Rugazzi (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) have been working with the the British Transport Secretary to develop defense weapons. We are now also catching up with the TARDIS Team. It has been ten months since events of the season 12 episode “The Timeless Children”. The Doctor has been incarcerated 79 Billion Light Years away and her friends have no idea where she is. Ryan and Graham believe she may have died but Yaz does not lose hope.
Jack Robertson Returns
There are also some things you may need to know about Jack Robertson from an episode from season 11 that he appeared in. Before both of the events of “Resolution” and The “Timeless Children” was the season 11 epsidoe called “Arachnids in the UK“. That featured actor Chris Noth as a Sheffield luxury hotel’s wealthy American owner, Jack Robertson. His mismanagement of his putting his luxury hotel on top of a toxic dumping ground led to spiders mutating and killing people in the area, including some of his own staff. This incident became a damaging PR mess for him and ruined some of his political prospects as a result. We see him in this current episode attempting to rebuild his reputation and political power.
The Daleks return
In “Resolution” archeologists in modern day England accidently revive a Dalek that arrived on Earth in the 9th century to do reconnaissance. It was eventually killed by the humans from the 9th century, it’s armor casing destroyed and the creature buried. When the archeologists revived the Dalek, it escaped to the tunnels under the city.
Ryan (TOSIN COLE), Graham (BRADLEY WALSH)
Without its casing, it resembled a squid creature. The creature had the ability to attach itself to the bodies of humans. It controls and makes them do its bidding. With a human host, the Dalek creature begins to construct a makeshift Dalek casing out of scrap metal. The Doctor, Yaz, Ryan and Graham defeat the Dalek by tricking it and throwing it into a Supernova. But before that, it’s now destroyed casing was left empty on Earth.
In this episode, that is the casing we see a young government employee recovering and driving away with. The young man has been set up, and while grabbing tea, he is poisoned and his truck is stolen. It is later discovered that the Transport Secretary (Harriet Walter) has tipped off Jack Robertson about the Dalek casing. They work together with an unknowing scientist, Leo Rugazzi , to turn it into defense weapons. They have no idea what a Dalek is or how dangerous the technology in the casing is.
As Leo works to create an army or robotic and AI powered Daleks, he finds organic material inside the casing. In an effort to lean more, Leo accidently clones the squid creature that the Doctor threw into a supernova. This squid clone takes Leo as a host and has hacked the company Leo and Jack in order to create enough Dalek clones to fill the casings made by Leo and Jack.
The Doctor and Captain Jack
As for the Doctor, during the events of “The Timeless Children” the Doctor is arrested by the Judoon, a kind of space police force that has come to bring the Doctor to justice for her crimes around the galaxy. The Doctor has committed many crimes in her previous regenerations. There is a lot of darkness in the Doctor’s past. And now she is paying the price with little hope in getting back to her friends.
That is until Captain Jack Harkness arrives to rescue her. Harkness was first introduced in season one of the modern run of the show and has appeared in several episodes since. He was as a traveling companion for both the 9th (Christopher Eccleston) and 10th (David Tennant) incarnations of the Doctor. He is even mentioned by the 11th Doctor (Matt Smith). Captain Jack is Time Agent who ended with immortality because of one of his adventures with the Doctor and former companion Rose Tyler (Billie Piper). Captain Jack got his own spin-off, Torchwood, after partying ways with the Doctor. In one episode in the 3rd season it is revealed that he becomes the Face of Boa, which the 9th Doctor befriended in the first season, but many years in the future. Timey-wimey.
Last season Captain Jack made a fantastic return, after over 8 years (Torchwood was canceled in 2011) in the episode “Fugitive of Judoon“. Here the Doctor is hunted by the Judoon for crimes against the galaxy. But it is revealed in that episode that the Judoon were actually hunting an incarnation of the Doctor that she cant remember, a woman named Ruth (Jo Martin), in hiding with her companion on Earth. Captain Jack is trying to get a message to the Doctor about the Lone Cyberman and accidently picks up Graham instead. He leaves his message with Graham and leaves promising to always be there for her.
And he keeps that promise. In this episode Captain jack rescues the Doctor from the Judoon prison and stays along with her long enough to help her and her friends deal with the current Dalek situation on Earth. He even mentions having a personal grudge against Daleks. Because they were the first to murder him. That happens in the season one episode “Bad Wolf”. He is killed by the Daleks but given immortality by Rose Tyler, who has taken the Tardis conciseness into herself and become an entity known as “Bad Wolf”.
That’s pretty much all you need to know to be caught up on what’s happening in this episode. Leave a comment and tell us if we missed anything!
For More Doctor Who Discussions check out:
Doctor Who Holiday Special “Revolution of the Daleks” Recap
The Doctor welcomes a new friend to the TARDIS: John Bishop
Season 13 of Doctor Who filming is now happening under industry guidelines
Temple of Geek Podcast – Discussing Doctor Who’s Series Twelve Return
Temple Of Geek’s Who Review – Episode 1: The Woman Who Fell To Earth
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