With Doctor Who finally back on television screens, its time for the merchandising train to continue on full steam once again. The Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff Bay will reopen from its "regeneration" in a few weeks time, and both the 3.75" action figures and Character Building mini figures are back for brand new waves. The subject of this review is particularly special, as it marks the new scale's first foray into the classic series. This Classic Dalek figure hails from the 1975 story Genesis of the Dalek , released as part of wave 3 of the new figure line. In the US, it is also a Walgreen's exclusive figure.

This is a custom I've wanted to do for god knows how long, but the fact classic 1964 Daleks don't come cheap on eBay hasn't sped the process along. Anyway I finally managed to get one for a reasonable price and have created what was not only one of (if not the) first red Daleks in Dalek history, but also the first Dalek ever to have a given name. I present to you...Zeg the invincible! In the TV21 comic strip he originated from, Zeg was a Dalek inventor who conducted experiments to strengthen the Daleks' Dalekanium casing. After a lab accident he went through a transformation that made him almost invincible. He named his new red casing 'Metalert'. Believing he should rule the Daleks, Zeg challenged the Emperor for supremacy. Untouched by even the black Dalek (the emperor's second in command) it was decided that both the emperor and Zeg should duel to the death. In an intense battle through the landscapes of Skaro, Zeg withstood attacks from bo...

Truth be told, my interest in Character Option's Doctor Who figure range has been waning of late. Besides their high price point (which seems to only be getting higher), there's been an increasing focus on one off monsters paired with releases or remoulds of existing figures. But among the god-knows-how-many sets they announced over the Christmas period (seriously, there were LOADS) was a set themed on the 1965 first Doctor/Dalek story 'The Chase', including a figure I've wanted to be made since I was five. Alongside two Daleks, the set also included a Mechanoid - the spherical robots that not only battled the Daleks in the final episode of the story, but was also one of their main adversaries in the TV21 Dalek comic strips. Given its size, I was expecting the Mechanoid to be hollow. But nope, its a solid figure and therefore as you can imagine quite heavy. The sculpt is perfect (although the arm did suffer some bending in the packaging) and the colours, while ...

I may have skipped over reviewing the 'Remembrance' of the Daleks set (one word: PERFECT) due it being 3 repaints and 1 remould (but an excellent one at that), but this set has a little more variety to it. Based on the 1984 story 'Resurrection of the Daleks', this one is comprised of the Doctor, the Dalek supreme, a standard Dalek drone and, most importantly, our first classic Davros figure. This set's Doctor figure is (obviously) the 5th Doctor, who's already received his fair share of figures in the line. Despite 5 being my least favourite Doctor, I have to say that he has one of the best sculpts so far. It's a dead ringer for Peter Davison, and the clothes are the perfect representation of his series attire. That's not to say the other Doctors have been bad, because they've all been brilliant, but this one definitely stands out. My own gripe is I feel the figure should have come with some sort of accessory - maybe not a sonic screwdriver...