The Tertiary Console Room: Review - Dalek Empire III - Chapter Two

"Rumours persisted of mysterious alien benefactors. Healers. Could it really be that these healers were the Daleks? Tarkov's message had warned us of an imminent invasion but why the hell would potential invaders start out by tending to the sick?"

The second chapter of Dalek Empire III continues the high quality of the first as it does everything a good second instalment should do. The Healers fleshes out the characters further, deepens their motivations and builds a strong sense of intrigue as Briggs reveals more of the Daleks' plans which seem to confirm the Border Worlds' position that they are medical geniuses, here to help cure the plague…

It's clear from the start that the scope of Dalek Empire III has far more in common with the original series, but there is evidence that Briggs has gained a greater confidence in his own writing as he is now using this wider magnitude to let the narrative develop without the need to include more characters than is necessary as shown by one of the main credited stars featuring only in a single scene here.

Briggs' intent through this chapter is to make us question our preconceptions. With only a lone individual aware of their true threat (the others who know seemingly unreachable due to the quarantine of the Border Worlds) we have the benefit over the characters of knowing the Daleks' nature. Galanar's opening speech confirms a notion that was suspected in the opening episode, that the Daleks are the self-styled healers of the title and are using their power to help find a cure to the NFS plague. This is where the mystery of the story shifts by questioning why they would do this and at times Briggs almost convinces that they are genuine in their appeal that they "wish only to help." As with the approach in Dalek War, it is a subversion of our own knowledge of the Daleks, but with their destructive ability still unmistakable through their extermination of one of the Graxis Wardens for simply refusing a command to back away from a computer monitor, cynicism suggests that while they may have a new approach at their core they are still the same killers they have always been. But what is their ultimate aim? Briggs is giving nothing away but a final twist at the conclusion may offer a hint at how they have derived their strategy…

There are three main elements to the narrative which Briggs weaves together masterfully. Again, the plight of the Wardens takes priority as they find the representatives of the Dalek Empire overrunning their ecological paradise. As they are confronted with the viciousness of the Daleks as they exterminate Sergic for his lack of obedience, Briggs uses this to contrast the culture clash between humanity and the Daleks as Saxton insists upon a burial for her fallen comrade. To the Daleks, the corpse is merely something to be disposed of but the humans need to mourn and grieve for the passing of the lost life.

The scenes set upon Graxis Major are dominated by the pairing of Saxton and Kaymee, which proves again how well Ishia Bennison and Laura Rees work together. Their common trait is their defiance against their oppressors and their authority which has been imposed upon them. The funeral scene in particular brings out the determination of Saxton to ensure that they must be compassionate and respectful to the memory of Sergic despite the intense disapproval of the Daleks to whom their ceremony is meaningless. The remarkably perceptive Kaymee continues to appeal through her tenacity which tends towards frankness, ensuring she asks the right questions at the right times - meaning the awkward ones people like Provost Carneill and the Daleks don't want to answer. One of the most enduring aspects of Dalek Empire has been seeing ordinary humans fighting to survive against overriding odds and Kaymee feels like the natural successor to Susan Mendes in this respect but she is also a frequent source of humour with her wry jibes towards the Daleks.

The situation between the Galactic Union and the Border Worlds seems to provide the basis for the clash of ideals with the Daleks somewhere in between exploiting this division for their own ends. Putting Carneill, the leading representative amongst the Border World characters, onto Graxis Major proves an exceptional decision on the part of Briggs as he confounds the suppositions built up regarding this character in The Exterminators as it seems he's not quite the Dalek stooge that he first appeared. The script and Oliver Hume's passionate performance show him as a driven man who has become so overwhelmed with the horror of the plague, which cost him his entire family, and angered at the seemingly indifferent attitude of the Galactic Union towards the suffering of the Borderers that he has determined that the plague must be stopped at any cost and he will do anything to ensure that. Perhaps this is what the Daleks were counting on - an anticipation of the human factor? Hume conveys Carneill's animosity brilliantly and shows him as a man totally convinced that his decision to allow the Daleks to begin geoforming the entire Graxis system is both justified and necessary. The complexity of his character is shown by the way he almost pleads with Saxton to understand and accept that his position is morally correct yet despite his commitment to ending the plague with the help of the Daleks, he is unnerved by their readiness to exterminate and destroy whatever gets in their way.

Set alongside the manoeuvrings on Graxis Major, is the start of Galanar's investigation into the Daleks which has taken him out into the Border Worlds, posing as a doctor as these are the only people from the Galactic Union now allowed into the quarantine zone. On the ship he encounters Japrice (played with seductive charm by the alluring Octavia Walters) who acts innocently enough but Galanar, showing why he's Selestru's best operative in the security force, is already onto the fact that she's been following him and has anticipated her move. As David Tennant is such a good actor, his adoption of an eccentric bumbling personality for the assumed identity of the doctor is totally convincing and contrasts perfectly the assured and confident regular persona of Galaanr. Unlike another Big Finish series where the credibility of a similar operative outside the usual channels who was deployed by the authority figure was marred by the agent's complete lack of subtlety, Galanar's enigmatic qualities combined with the trust of Selestru have placed him into the position of being the individual the listener expects to get things sorted with the Daleks and Briggs, realising this, takes advantage by having his reaction to the suffering he witnesses when brought to Scalanis VIII sufficiently powerful enough to move him towards doubting whether the Daleks are really a threat after all. Japrice is yet another morally ambiguous character as it becomes clear almost immediately that she is working with the Daleks but seems utterly sincere in her belief that her work is helping the victims of the plague in a way that the Galactic Union never could. It's a fascinating quandary for the listener as they have to choose whether she is simply an accomplished liar or a genuine victim of Dalek manipulation.

The least important part of The Healers, but one of its most moving aspects, deals with Siy Tarkov, questioning what kind of a life a man who everyone he knew believed dead for twenty something years will have when he returns home. Yet in Amur he finds something completely unexpected. In giving so little time to this aspect in this chapter, Briggs shows his cruelty as the introduction of Amur and her relationship to Tarkov is a big revelation yet it is completely underdeveloped due to Claudia Elmhirst's character featuring in what amounts to a cameo. But the fact that Briggs is confident enough to shock his audience and chooses not to expand upon it further here is another sign of the assurance in the writing which gives the listener ample information to captivate them but leaves them wanting more. Steven Elder continues to impress with his convincing performance as a man suffering great agony all the time due to his infection. What's makes this doubly so is the excellent work of the sound design which helps give the listener a sense of how Tarkov is effected by this continuous clamour within his mind.

The final scene is shocking because of its implications despite the fact that it was something hinted at during The Exterminators, yet it provides the perfect cliffhanger to an engaging drama. Briggs succeeds with The Healers as it increases the tension further by divulging a little more information about the Daleks' plans but tantalisingly not enough to answer the fascinating questions regarding its nature. The Dalek Supreme states "now it begins," but the nature of the Daleks' plan is still an enigma. Are they truly the healers? It seems improbable but the great strength of the story is that Briggs makes the possibility seem real. As the Daleks of Dalek Empire III are a more insidious force than before, the intrigue surrounding their intent remains strong and ensures that The Healers superbly sustains the momentum of the overall story, which remains a thoroughly absorbing adventure.

Previous Review

Next Review