Big Finish Productions does not make that many mistakes when it comes to their Doctor Who audio range, however Daleks! Genesis of Terror appears to be one of few outright missteps. This is basically a retelling of the classic serial known as Genesis of the Daleks, which starred Tom Baker. This version is based on the first draft submitted by Terry Nation. Baker returns to perform the first part and is joined by Sadie Miller as Sarah Jane Smith and Christopher Naylor as Harry Sullivan. Nicholas Briggs provides much of the narration, and other cast members read much of the synopsis for the remaining five parts.
The Doctor is sent by the Time Lords to the early days of the creation of the Daleks where he is tasked with trying to avert the terrible genesis. He meets the creator, Davros, while the war between the Kaleds and the Thals raged mercilessly.
The screen version is one of my favorite stories, but this is essentially a repeat of that although most of it was just summarized by Briggs and several other narrators.
I guess there is some mild interest to be found here, but I am not sure retelling one of the most popular serials was all that necessary. Big Finish releases this as part of the Lost Stories range, but this was just an early draft or treatment of something that’s already considered a classic among the fans.
There is another release of this sort from Big Finish based on The Ark in Space, and I am not that motivated to try that one…at least not yet.
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