The Dominators Part 1
When the Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe arrive on the seemingly peaceful planet Dulkis for a relaxing holiday, they uncover a sinister plot by alien Dominators to enslave the Dulcians and exploit the planet's resources, forcing the Doctor to intervene and stop their destructive plans.
The Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe arrive on Dulkis, an island surrounded by mist, hoping for a peaceful holiday. The Doctor assures his companions that Dulkis is a planet of gentle and advanced beings, free from any unpleasantness. However, their arrival is marked by an explosion and they soon discover signs of atomic blasts, contradicting the Doctor's initial assessment of the planet. They find a war museum, complete with antiquated weapons, raising further questions about the true nature of Dulkis.
They encounter a survey team led by Balan, who explains that the island is an atomic test site, a relic of a bygone era when the Dulcians experimented with atomic weapons. However, the Doctor and his companions note that the island isn't radioactive and that the presence of atomic weapons clashes with the Dulcians' reputation for being a peaceful race that abolished war.
Meanwhile, another group of travelers, including Cully, have also arrived on the island, but their ship has crashed. Cully claims to have seen robots and a spacecraft, and that others accompanying him have been killed by robots. His claims are initially dismissed, particularly since there is another party traveling with him and known to the Dulcians (Balan's team).
The Doctor and Jamie investigate a strange structure near the TARDIS, described as a box, which aliens have marked with a five-pointed star. They find unusual tracks in the sand that lead them to a spacecraft. They soon learn that Dulkis is under threat from alien invaders called the Dominators, led by Rago and Toba. These aliens are planning to exploit Dulkis to replenish their fuel reserves by drilling into the planetary crust, indifferent to the wellbeing of the Dulcians whom they consider a suitable work force.
Rago and Toba inspect the test site museum, discussing the potential threat the Dulcians pose. Rago is infuriated that Toba destroyed the initial travelers Cully mentioned. They note the advanced technology present on Dulkis, including their laser principle weapons. They also discover the TARDIS, and consider destroying it, but Rago decides it would be wasteful.
Back at the survey unit, Cully's story is further discredited, culminating in Balan dismissing it as a lie. Zoe remains at the unit when the Doctor and Jamie investigate Cully's claims, since they are not believed.
As the episode concludes, Rago instructs the commencement of drilling operations, signaling the beginning of the Dominators' exploitation of Dulkis and their plans for the enslavement (or destruction) of its population. The Doctor and Jamie have now noticed the ship, while Balan is still trying to contact Cully's father. The Daleks are not yet a part of the plot but Cully has been dismissed by the survey team.
Events in This Episode
The narrative beats that drive the story
The episode opens with the Dominators, Rago and Toba, landing their saucer on Dulkis. Rago asserts their mission: exploit the planet's thin crust for fuel and enslave its intelligent inhabitants, destroying them if necessary. Toba, a probationer, expresses reservations but complies. Concurrently, a group of thrill-seekers, led by Cully, crash-lands their hovercraft on the "Island of Death," an alleged atomic test site. They discover their radiation meters register zero, contradicting the island's reputation. Cully's companions venture out, only to be summarily executed by the Dominators' robotic Quarks under Toba's command, a move Rago deems wasteful. Immediately following, the Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe materialize the TARDIS on the same beach, seeking a peaceful holiday. Their expectations shatter with an explosion (Cully's hovercraft) and the discovery of a war museum displaying antiquated laser weapons and evidence of atomic blast damage. This directly contradicts the Doctor's prior knowledge of Dulkis as a gentle, war-free planet. Three Dulcian survey team members, Balan, Kando, and Teel, in environmental suits, apprehend the bewildered travelers, bringing them into their unit for decontamination and questioning. This act establishes the primary antagonists, introduces the immediate danger, and sets the Doctor and his companions on a collision course with the unfolding crisis, revealing Dulkis is far from the peaceful haven they anticipated.
Cully’s attempt to justify their illegal hovercraft expedition to the forbidden 'Island of Death' unravels when his sensationalized warnings about radiation prove false. The crew—Wahed, Etnin, and Tolata—initially dismiss his …
The hovercraft carrying Cully and his skeptical companions—Wahed, Etnin, and Tolata—crashes violently onto Dulkis’ beach after Cully’s alarm about radiation triggers an emergency landing. The crash injures Wahed and leaves …
Cully’s hovercraft crashes violently onto Dulkis’ beach after a radiation alarm triggers, injuring Wahed and forcing an emergency landing. The group’s skepticism of Cully’s warnings escalates when radiation tests reveal …
Toba, overseeing the Dominators’ drilling operations, abruptly shifts focus when Cully and his companions flee the hovercraft. Cully’s desperate pleas for mercy are ignored as Toba coldly commands the Quarks …
Outside the Dominators’ saucer, Toba casually orders the Quarks to execute Cully’s companions after they stumble upon the drilling site, leaving Cully as the sole survivor. When Rago arrives and …
Within the Dulcian survey unit, the Doctor's party undergoes decontamination. They discuss the island's history as an atomic test site, yet the Dulcian meters, like Cully's, register no radiation, a fact Balan finds perplexing. The Doctor questions how a peaceful race like the Dulcians could have engaged in atomic warfare, while Balan, unaware of their extraterrestrial origins, assumes their ignorance. Meanwhile, Rago reprimands Toba for the unnecessary destruction of Cully's companions, emphasizing the need for investigation over impulsive action. Rago and Toba discover the TARDIS, a "crude, box-like structure," but Rago forbids its destruction, deeming it wasteful. They then inspect the war museum, where Toba demonstrates a laser rifle's power. Rago deduces the Dulcians, having developed such weapons, likely possess more advanced technology, making their inhabitants valuable for study rather than immediate annihilation. Cully arrives at the survey unit, recounting his ordeal with "robots and spacecraft" and the death of his companions. Balan dismisses Cully's claims as a fabricated story, believing Cully conspired with the Doctor's group to gain access to the island. The Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe learn about the aliens marking the TARDIS with a five-pointed star and their intent to destroy it. The Doctor and Jamie leave to investigate, while Zoe remains behind, witnessing Balan's continued dismissal of Cully's warnings and his attempts to contact Cully's father, which are hampered by mysterious interference. This act escalates the Dominators' strategic assessment of Dulkis and its inhabitants, while the Dulcians remain oblivious, and the Doctor's party begins to actively pursue the alien threat.
After hearing an explosion, Jamie and Zoe confront the Doctor’s insistence that Dulkis is peaceful and that the blast occurred long ago. Jamie’s discovery of a damaged hexagonal building—clearly the …
After hearing an explosion, the Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe rush to investigate and discover a damaged hexagonal building. Jamie’s skepticism about Dulkis’ supposed peacefulness is reinforced by the visible destruction, …
The Doctor and his companions emerge from the survey unit’s decontamination chamber, where they’ve been held under the false assumption that the island is radioactive. Balan, the Dulcian survey team …
The Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe emerge from the survey unit after being mistakenly quarantined for radiation exposure, only to challenge Balan’s false narrative about the island’s radioactivity. Zoe’s scientific precision …
The Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe emerge from the survey unit’s decontamination chamber, where Balan and his students—Kando and Teel—had mistakenly assumed they were contaminated by the island’s radioactive history. The …
As the Dominators' plans accelerate, Rago issues orders to commence the preparation of outer bore holes, signaling the imminent exploitation of Dulkis. Toba accepts the command and dispatches a message to the Fleet Leader, confirming materials are located. Simultaneously, Balan persists in his attempts to contact Cully's father, the Director of the Council, despite ongoing communication interference. He dismisses Cully's urgent warnings as alarmist, prioritizing protocol over the immediate threat. Cully, frustrated by the Dulcian's inaction and complacency, openly criticizes their leadership as "vegetables," highlighting their passive existence. Zoe, remaining at the survey unit, observes Cully's growing unpopularity due to his persistent but unheeded warnings. Outside, the Doctor and Jamie return to the TARDIS, relieved to find it unharmed. They discover unusual "survey marks" and distinct, closely spaced oblong "tracks" in the sand near their ship. Following these tracks along the beach, they ascend a cliff. From this vantage point, they spot the Dominator saucer, its landing struts holding the body of the ship clear of the rocky ground. This direct visual confirmation provides the Doctor and Jamie with undeniable evidence of the alien presence and the scale of the threat, transitioning their understanding from abstract suspicion to concrete certainty. The episode concludes with the Dominators actively initiating their destructive operations and the Doctor's party having definitively identified the source of Dulkis's peril, setting the stage for direct confrontation.
In the Survey Unit, Cully bursts in with a desperate warning about an impending robot attack, but Balan immediately dismisses him as a liar, exposing the Dulcians’ complacency and the …
The Doctor’s team and the Dulcian survey unit clash over Cully’s credibility as Balan systematically dismantles his story, exposing inconsistencies that paint Cully as either a liar or a reckless …
The Doctor and Jamie abandon the survey unit to investigate Cully’s urgent claims about a marked box and alien spacecraft, despite Balan’s dismissive skepticism. Cully’s credibility crumbles as Balan mocks …
Cully’s desperate attempts to warn the Dulcian survey team about the Dominators’ presence and the planet’s imminent danger are systematically dismissed by Balan, who refuses to act without consulting Cully’s …
Cully’s frustration reaches a boiling point as Balan dismisses his warnings about the Dominators, insisting on consulting Cully’s father—a move Cully predicts will result in inaction. Cully’s outburst reveals his …