Unveiling the Astonishing Connection: Jodie Whittaker's Good Dalek Foretold decades Ago

In Jodie Whittaker's final episode of Doctor Who, a Dalek's unexpected betrayal of its own species challenges the established characterization of these notorious alien antagonists. However, the groundwork for this storyline was laid 47 years earlier. Traditionally, the Daleks have been the Doctor's most infamous adversaries, continuously causing trouble across different points in time and space. Yet, there have been rare occurrences where the Doctor and a Dalek have found common ground. Notable instances of traitorous Daleks include Dalek Sec, a hybrid, and Rusty, who made an appearance in 2014 during the Twelfth Doctor's era.

Building upon the idea that the Doctor and their long-standing enemies could somehow coexist, Jodie Whittaker's farewell episode, "The Power of the Doctor," takes this concept even further. Unlike Rusty, this Dalek purposefully betrays its own race, providing the Thirteenth Doctor with vital strategic information that she ultimately utilizes to defeat them. This renegade Dalek's motivation stems from the belief that its kind has strayed too far from their original mission of preserving the Kaleds of Skaro. While this twist may appear improbable, the groundwork for the Dalek's betrayal was actually established almost 50 years prior in the 1975 serial "Genesis of the Daleks."

Whittaker's Rebel Dalek Was Set Up During Tom Baker's Doctor Who Era

The iconic 1975 serial introduced Davros for the first time. It revealed his role in creating modern Daleks using the mutated cells of his people, the Kaleds, during their war against the Thals. After Davros was defeated, he realized that the Daleks had developed free will and turned against him. "Genesis of the Daleks" in Doctor Who established that the Daleks were originally created to save the Kaled race from annihilation and genetic mutation. This episode also exposed Davros' betrayal of that philosophy when he declared the end of the Kaled race and the rise of the Daleks.

Since "Genesis of the Daleks," Davros and his Dalek creations have abandoned their original purpose of advancing the Kaled race and instead focused on their own superiority. In their pursuit of racial purity, the Daleks have only betrayed their past versions, viewing their ancestors as inferior or flawed. The Dalek that Jodie Whittaker's Doctor encounters in the show is the first of its kind since the episode aired nearly fifty years ago. This Dalek remembers the forgotten purpose that Davros discarded, so its allegiance to the Doctor is not surprising but rather expected.

Doctor Who's "Good" Dalek Teases An Exciting Future

With Jodie Whittaker's return to David Tennant's iteration of the Doctor coinciding with Russell T. Davies taking over as showrunner from Chris Chibnall, the introduction of a "good" Dalek that retains memories of its Kaled origins offers an exciting glimpse into the potential evolution of Doctor Who's iconic adversaries. This opens up new and fascinating possibilities for the series, allowing for unexplored directions in regards to the Daleks. One plausible outcome could be the emergence of a Dalek civil war, sparked by other Daleks following the lead of the rebel Dalek and the divide first seen in "Genesis of the Daleks."

Alternatively, the Dalek that assisted the Thirteenth Doctor could serve as a catalyst for permanent changes within Dalek society. While Doctor Who has previously featured individual Daleks who diverged from the traditional beliefs of their species, the impact of these changes has been limited to only a few of the extermination-obsessed villains. However, it is possible that the presence of a "good" Dalek in "The Power of the Doctor" will alter this dynamic, presenting an intriguing future for these timeless adversaries.