Cybermen

Cybermen were originally a wholly organic species of humanoids that began to implant more and more artificial parts into their bodies as a means of self-preservation, but in the process removed all emotions, believing them to be a weakness to their survival.

History of Cybermen and the Creator

Mark 1
Appearance: The Tenth Planet (1966)

The original Cybermen had human faces beneath cloth masks, visible hands and copious tubes and gadgets. Their mouths opened but their lips didn’t move and they spoken with a buzz. They arrive at the South Pole, intending to drain Earth’s energy, explode the planet with a Z-bomb a nd turn its population into Cybermen. But they are dependent on engery from thnier world – when it is destroyed they all die.

While the Doctor's other old enemies the Daleks were on the whole unchanged during the original series' twenty-six season run, the Cybermen were seen to change with almost every encounter. The Cybermen are humanoid, but have been cybernetically augmented to the point where they have few remaining organic parts. In their first appearance in the series, the only portions of their bodies that still seemed human were their hands, but by their next appearance in The Moonbase (1967), their bodies were entirely covered up in their metallic suits, with their hands replaced by two finger claws, but changed back to regular five finger hands in The Invasion (1968). As they are relatively few in number, the Cybermen tend towards covert activity, scheming from hiding and using human pawns or robots to act in their place until they need to appear. They also seek to increase their numbers by converting others into Cybermen (a process known as "cyber-conversion").

The Cybermen which the Doctor met on Snowcap Base in 1986 had undergone a less radical conversion and still retained biological hands. (DW: The Tenth Planet)

Mark 2
Appearances: The Moonbase (1967), The Tomb of the Cybermen (1967), Wheel in Space (1968)

Mark 3
Appearances: Invasion (1969), Revenge of the Cybermen (1975)

Mark 4
Appearances:  Earthshock (1983), The Five Doctors (1973), Attack of the Cybermen (1985), Silver Nemesis (1988)

Mark 5
Appearances:  Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel (2006), Army of Ghosts / Doomsday (2006), The Next Doctor (2008)

The Cybermen returned in episodes 5 and 6 of the 2006 season of the new series, in a two-part story set on an alternate Earth. The new Cybermen were designed by production designer Edward Thomas's team and Neill Gorton at Millennium FX. The new Cyberman design is physically imposing, being about 6 feet 7 inches (2.0 m) tall, in a style reminiscent of Art Deco, with their Cybus Corporation logo on their chests and made to look like burnished steel instead of silver. The other distinct Cyberman design is that of the Cyber-Controller, which had glowing eyes, a transparent forehead revealing the brain, and sockets on its chest-plate providing connectors to other systems.

The 2008 Christmas special, "The Next Doctor", will feature a new variant called a Cybershade.

The Cybermen are a race of cyborgs who are amongst the most persistent enemies of the Doctor.

Cybermen were originally a wholly organic species of humanoids originating on Earth's twin planet Mondas that began to implant more and more artificial parts into their bodies as a means of self-preservation. This led to the race becoming coldly logical and calculating, with emotions usually only shown when naked aggression was called for.

They were created by Dr. Kit Pedler (the unofficial scientific advisor to the programme) and Gerry Davis in 1966, first appearing in the serial, The Tenth Planet, the last to feature William Hartnell as the First Doctor. They have since been featured numerous times in their extreme attempts to survive through conquest.

A parallel universe version of the Cybermen appeared in the 2006 series' two-part story, "Rise of the Cybermen" and "The Age of Steel". These Cybermen also appeared in the two-part 2006 season finale, "Army of Ghosts" and "Doomsday". This then carried through to the spin-off Torchwood in the episode "Cyberwoman".

While the Doctor's other old enemies the Daleks were on the whole unchanged during the original series' twenty-six season run, the Cybermen were seen to change with almost every encounter. The Cybermen are humanoid, but have been cybernetically augmented to the point where they have few remaining organic parts. In their first appearance in the series, the only portions of their bodies that still seemed human were their hands, but by their next appearance in The Moonbase (1967), their bodies were entirely covered up in their metallic suits, with their hands replaced by two finger claws, but changed back to regular five finger hands in The Invasion (1968). As they are relatively few in number, the Cybermen tend towards covert activity, scheming from hiding and using human pawns or robots to act in their place until they need to appear. They also seek to increase their numbers by converting others into Cybermen (a process known as "cyber-conversion").

It is presumed (and often implied) that there are still organic components beneath their suits, meaning they are actually cyborgs, not robots: in The Tenth Planet, a Cyberman tells a group of humans that "our brains are just like yours", although by the time of Attack of the Cybermen, their brains seem to have been replaced with electronics. In Earthshock (1982), the actors' chins were vaguely visible through a clear perspex area on the helmet to suggest some kind of organic matter. In The Tomb of the Cybermen (1967), veins were visible through the domed head of the Cyberman Controller and similarly, in Attack of the Cybermen (1985) and "The Age of Steel" (2006), the Cyber-Controller's brain is visible through the dome. The first is a Mondas Cyber Controller, while the second involves alternative Earth's John Lumic. However, in Revenge of the Cybermen (1975), the Doctor says they are "total machine creatures".

Cybermen Audio Stories

Third Doctor: The Blue Tooth
Fifth Doctor: Spare Parts, The Gathering
Sixth Doctor: Real Time, The Reaping, The Ultimate Adventure
Seventh Doctor: The Harvest, Kingdom of Silver & Keepsake
Eighth Doctor: Sword of Orion, Human Resources, The Girl Who Never Was

Novels

Iceberg by David Banks (Virgin New Adventures)
Killing Ground by Steve Lyons (Virgin Missing Adventures)
Illegal Alien by Mike Tucker and Robert Perry (BBC Past Doctor Adventures)
Made of Steel by Terrance Dicks (Quick Reads Initiative)

Did you know?

* A Cyberman head was seen in the 2005 episode, "Dalek", kept in a display case. The text on the info card states that the head was found in a sewer, suggesting that the head was from The Invasion. However, the enlarged Cyber-Handles suggest that the head is from Revenge of the Cybermen. The info card states the head was found in 1975, the year in which The Invasion was set and the year in which Revenge of the Cybermen was broadcast.

* The Torchwood episode "Cyberwoman" features a partially cyber-converted woman who lacks the outer plating of a fully converted Cyberman. Her body is encased in metal structures but much of her flesh, including her face, is visible. She also has clearly visible metallic breasts, though it is not clear how much of her own flesh has been replaced and how much is merely covered. Another character speculates she could be 40-45% human, and 55-60% Cyberman.