The Dominators (TV story)

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The Dominators was the first story of Season 6 of Doctor Who.


Synopsis

When two rogue Dominators and their robotic servant Quarks land on the peaceful planet Dulkis, planning to drop a radioactive seed into the planet's core of the planet to refuel their spaceship, the Doctor, Jamie & Zoe must attempt to inspire the non-aggressive Dulcians to resist.

Plot

The Doctor must stop the dominators before they destroy the planet of Dulkas,



The Tardis lands on Dulkas, where the Doctor and his friends decide to take a vacation, but evil is at work, and only the Doctor can stop this evil before it is too late.


Cast

Crew

References

  • The Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver as a cutting device.
  • Zoe mentions both the Daleks and the Cybermen, hoping that neither will be present on Dulkis.
  • The Doctor has been to Dulkis before.

Story notes

  • This story had the working title of; The Beautiful People
  • Originally a six-part story, The Dominators was edited at the script stage down to five episodes by script editor Derrick Sherwin.
  • The write is credited as Norman Ashby; this was a pseudonym for Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln. Script editor Derek Sherwin also made a significant input to the writing of Episode 5.
  • Episode 3 was not identified by any caption.
  • Chris Jeffries doubles for Patrick Troughton in all location-shot scenes featuring the Doctor.

Ratings

  • Episode 1 - 6.1 million viewers
  • Episode 2 - 5.9 million viewers
  • Episode 3 - 5.4 million viewers
  • Episode 4 - 7.5 million viewers
  • Episode 5 - 5.9 million viewers

Myths

  • The location scenes of this story were shot on colour film as a test exercise. (They weren't. Despite persistent rumours to the contrary, the BBC did no colour filming or recording on any of the sixties Doctor Who stories.)

Filming locations

Production errors

If you'd like to talk about narrative problems with this story — like plot holes and things that seem to contradict other stories — please go to this episode's discontinuity discussion.


* The rubble over a hatch in episode four vanishes.

* The zip at the back of Zoe's skirt causes her problems on numerous occasions, being open in episodes two, three and five.

* There is an obvious close up of Troughton's location double in episode five.

* On certain scenes (especially when the Quarks are recharging) the operators hands are visible using the Quark arms. Also the face of the person operating the Quark s visible.

* When Rago is testing the supposedly self-charging laser gun, a mains power lead can be seen attached to it (Presumably for operating the cue / effects light).


Continuity

  • The end of this story leads into DW: The Mind Robber
  • The Dominators reappear in DWM: The Fires Down Below.
  • Quarks frequently appeared in the run of the Second Doctor in TV Comic, beginning on the very day that Episode 4 of this serial initially aired. Notably, they were the proximate cause for the departure of John and Gillian from the TARDIS. The Second Doctor judged the Quarks too dangerous for John and Gillian, and enrolled them in Zebadee University rather than subjecting them to an encounter with the robots. (TVC: Invasion of the Quarks)
The implication of the comic seems to be that Quarks are more powerful than Trods, Daleks, or Cybermen, since John and Gillian had encountered these species on various occasions.
  • Of the six TVC stories in which Jamie appeared, the Quarks were the enemy in four. Indeed, Quarks were the dominant recurring enemy of the comic Second Doctor's era. However, the Dominators, portrayed as the "masters" of the Quarks in this serial, never appeared in TVC.

Home video and audio releases

DVD releases

  • This story was first released on DVD in the UK on 12th July 2010. The one disc set includes a restored version of the story, as well as the following special features:
  • Commentary by Wendy Padbury (Zoë), Frazer Hines (Jamie), Giles Block (Teel), Arthur Cox (Cully) and Sylvia James (Make-Up Designer).
  • Recharge And Equalise
  • Tomorrow’s Times – The Second Doctor
  • Coming Soon Trailer
  • Radio Times Billings
  • Production Subtitles
  • Photo Gallery
  • Although this has yet to be confirmed by BBC Video, it is expected that clips of censored scenes from parts 4 and 5 will be restored on the DVD - they were first found in 1996 and therefore did not make it to the VHS release in 1990. Whether they will be incorporated into the programme or included separately has yet to be seen.
  • UK DVD 2010 Cover

    UK DVD 2010 Cover

VHS releases

The Dominators was issued to VHS in 1990 in episodic format.

Novelisation and its audiobook

Dominators novel.jpg
Main article: The Dominators (novelisation)

External links

Footnotes

Template:Season 6

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