The Genocide Machine

Main Range #7

Released: April 2000

Listened: 11/22/20

Still back at the beginning of Big Finish, this story was the first appearance of the Daleks in their stories. It’s also the first part of the “Dalek Empire” trilogy that continued into “The Apocalypse Element” and “The Mutant Phase,” all of which have already happened from the Doctor’s point of view. This is also the first time Nick Briggs voices the Daleks for Big Finish, although Alistair Lock also provides some. The Doctor and Ace land on a dismal planet that contains an immense library behind a time-shield. Naturally, the Daleks want to get their hands on this library, and they’ve got a plan to do it. The plot development has an interesting high concept to it, one that’s pretty rare for Doctor Who. There are also some pretty good minor characters, one of them good enough to turn up again later. Ace is written as fairly young here, admitting to behaving like an adolescent, and carrying Nitro-9. They’re also still leaning into the audio medium, having a bit character who’s described as being talkative, but who only speaks once in the story. It’s a good premiere for the Daleks, not nearly as bombastic as other stories in the trilogy.