On the Doctor's Greatest Foes

There’s a rumor that in the upcoming season of Doctor Who there may be a story pitting the Doctor’s two greatest foes against one another–the Daleks and the Cybermen.

Sure, it’s a fanwanky concept. That’s the appeal. So, if I were writing a Dalek vs. Cybermen story, this is what I’d do….

Set it during the events of “The Dalek Invasion of Earth.” Yes, that old Hartnell chestnut. Daleks invaded Earth, enslaved the human population, but there are rebels against the new order.

Deep in London’s sewers something stirs. Cybermen, in hibernation since “The Invasion” (yes, that old Troughton chestnut), have been awoken by the Daleks. Now the Cybermen are out to cyber-convert the remaining human population, build their army, and oust the Daleks from Earth.

The Doctor arrives. He knows that the Daleks will be defeated–he defeated them in his first incarnation. If he stays out of history’s way, the Daleks will be defeated as history says they must. But there’s a new element, one of which he was unaware in his younger days–the Cybermen. Destroy the Daleks, create a vacuum, and the awoken Cybermen will fill it. Defeating the Daleks will give the Cybermen their own opening to enslave humanity.

The Doctor confronts the mistakes of his own past and finds himself in a war between the two races. Who will win in this war between the Cybermen and the Daleks?

That’s what I’d do. 🙂