When Daleks can’t shoot straight, they become the universe’s angriest tin salt shakers.
Short Synopsis
The Doctor and Sarah crash-land on a desolate planet where even the TARDIS has lost power. Unfortunately, so have the Daleks — leading to an uneasy truce, some ancient puzzles, and a lot of sulking from everyone involved.
Extended Storyline
Things start when the TARDIS suddenly conks out mid-flight, stranding the Doctor and Sarah Jane on a gloomy, foggy planet called Exxilon — the sort of place even estate agents wouldn’t bother describing as “up-and-coming.” To make matters worse, the TARDIS doors won’t open, so the Doctor and Sarah have to wander around in the dark. Sarah, showing remarkable optimism, promptly gets kidnapped by the locals, who look like extras from a Stone Age discount bin.
The planet is under the influence of a massive city built by the Exxilons’ ancestors — a city so advanced it basically drains all power. No electricity, no gadgets, no hairdryers. Which would be tragic enough, but then the Daleks show up… and promptly discover their death rays don’t work either. Cue the funniest sight in Doctor Who history: Daleks desperately trying to exterminate people with clicky-noise guns that go “pfft.”
So, Daleks being Daleks, they swap out their guns for machine guns. Yes, the galaxy’s greatest menace downgraded to pew-pew bullets. It’s like Darth Vader suddenly deciding to fight with a water pistol.
The humans (a stranded Earth expedition looking for a mineral called parrinium to cure a plague) and the Daleks form a fragile alliance, though everyone knows the Daleks are still scheming. Meanwhile, the Doctor investigates the ancient city, which is essentially a giant booby-trapped escape room designed by a particularly sadistic architect. Cue riddles, logic puzzles, and the Doctor muttering about bad interior design.
Sarah Jane, proving once again she’s the MVP, dodges sacrifices, bosses around cave people, and generally outsmarts everyone. Eventually, the Doctor reaches the heart of the city and manages to shut down its power, sacrificing the place before it can strangle everyone with its smug superiority.
The Daleks, predictably, betray everyone (shocking, I know) but get blown up when their escape ship explodes. Because if you’re a Dalek in a ’70s story, your contract almost always includes a fiery death clause.