Colour versions of all b & w episodes or we riot.
I’m on record (on another forum) as wanting this one next for colourisation. All the different locations would lend themselves massively to colour and the middle episodes in particular could be easily edited down as not a lot of importance actually happens in the search for the keys. Edit it so that you just have the bit in the jungle lab searching for the key while the plants attack and in the next one cut immediately to the ice caves (the Vasor stuff would definitely go).
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And, oh my goodness, there would be an absolute riot if the colourings of the TARDIS interior were even a smidgeon wrong. Look at the debate over the colour of the TARDIS floor in The Daleks.
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RTD confirmed in DWM that they’re already working on this year’s and that Ben Cook managed to get one episode down to I think, 11 minutes? Dreading whatever serial they butcher next.
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The good thing about this project, though, is that - whether you consider it ‘butchering’ or not, the original will still be freely available on iplayer, DVD, potentially bluray etc so it is merely a different way of watching the story, in the same way for the missing stories we have animations, recons and narrated soundtracks or - even for non-missing stories - we have the occasional ‘director’s cut’ or re-edited version (like the Trial-scene less Terror of the Vervoids).
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Yes,. Not like Star Wars where the originals no longer exist. So my opinion is always tempered by that, these colour versions will be a fun extra for old fans & undeniably make 1960s TV more appealing to modern audiences.
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I quite like the Daleks, it definitely could have lost a part and a half at least, but still a nice atmospheric story, some great early characterisation for the Doctor with the fluid link, and of course a fantastic monster design. I love the petrified jungle and the Magnedon. My highlight I think is Ian trying to convince the Thals to fight, saying that pacifism in the face of fascism will just get everyone killed, very good stuff.
The colourised version… well I have many questions about that edit and why they changed the music, I had been quite open to the idea of colourisations but I think I’m actively against more if they’re in the same style. The actual colourisation work is good, I disagree with some of the colour choices but overall its fine. But the edit…
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Like some others, I was disappointed in the color version. I love the colorization, hated the over booming soundtrack. How long till someone splices in the color parts to the b/w. That would be worth another watch.
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I remember this being one of the first classic series episode I saw and I’ve always loved it. Overlong yes, but many iconic moments and a wonderful start for the Doctor’s greatest enemy. I do quite like the colourised version too, though I agree the editing can be a little rough at points. Need to read the novelisation at some point…
Dalek, Skaro, both great names! I love the atmosphere of Skaro in this story, sp erie. Lying about the fluid link is a great piece of characterisation for the Doctor. My favourite of the surviving First Doctor Dalek stories, would love if they could animate Daleks Master Plan sometime soon 
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I gave this 3.5/5 (7/10). While some of this serial drags a little it does bring us the long time villian that we all love to hide from. Plus a bonus Badass Barbara 
The colour version was a dissapointment. Rushed and cut some of my favourite moments. Also the editing where they removed things was rather rough.
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I realised that I never shared my thoughts on this one, so here are my brief opinions:
The first episode of this story sets the scene and showcases early teamwork for the TARDIS team. Throughout the whole thing, the crew showcases their abilities and tests each other’s limits.
William Hartnell’s manipulative and stubborn Doctor takes centre stage, but with a sliver of the warmer, more heroic side defining the character by the end of his tenure shinig through towards the end. Susan receives some character development, and the Daleks, modelled after the Nazis, are a simple yet effective concept.
Christopher Barry and Richard Martin divide directing duties, with Barry’s work being remarkable despite the limited resources. The set design demonstrates the talent behind creating false senses of scale and space in a cramped studio.
The stakes feel high from the beginning, as if watching a series finale. However, there are slight pacing problems towards the end, and the dragged-out cave sequence in Part Six sucks out energy and fun.
Oh, and I love the food dispenser!
Score: 7/10
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Well I did this the other way around to many of you. I watched the colourised version on release and so delayed my rewatch of the original version to give a decent interval between them. I was shocked to see how many of the key scenes had been cut out, particularly in the early parts of the story, and it was nice to see the Thals’ characters come through this time round. Rather than “binge-watch”, I deliberately decided to watch it over the course of a full week, one episode per day, and I found that it worked much better that way.
Personally I much prefer the slower pace of Classic Who, allowing the story to breathe and develop, than the frenetic quickfire cutting between scenes typical of modern Who (which actually began in the Cartmel era, & I had issues with it then!)
Interesting to see a romance between a companion & a guest character so early on - rather than between Ian & Barbara as might have been expected.
As this was the first Dalek story, I am rating it on its own stand-alone merits rather than comparing it with future Dalek stories yet to be written. Any similarities of plot are therefore not yet an issue. It does raise the question of how they will get around the Daleks dependence on static electricity and radiation in the future though.
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Terry Nation just forgets he ever wrote that in 
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He remembered long enough for Dalek Invasion of Earth where they had the dishes on their backs.
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I was gonna say, I assume they just miniturise the tech over time and eventually replace it with internal radiation sources as seen in Into the Dalek
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I still haven’t watched the original but I enjoyed the colorization quite a bit! I find that most 6 parters drag a lot so I appreciate the edit.
I didn’t mind it - although it got crazy from the lift shaft bit onwards.
I will say that the original spends more time developing the Thals into proper characters and there is some brilliant stuff with Ganatus and Antodus which deserves people’s time.
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I’m not sure where I stand on The Daleks. For introducing the Daleks and Thalls, it does a good job. I’ll admit it is at least an episode too long. The novel is one the handful of Target Novelizations I’ve read and it does well at streamlining the story. There are definitely some good moments, even if that history of Skaro presented here doesn’t meld well with later stories.
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I think it’s a shame the ‘colourised’ version cut out a lot of the Thal character work - the Ganatus / Antodus stuff in the trekking through the mountains episodes is really compelling.
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I still need to watch the colorized version, I struggle to be all that interested though, I tend to be of the opinion that color doesn’t add much to the Black and White stories
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