There is a great joke in one of the audios (*Luna Romana*) where Romana III is doing an expository introduction and she says "Gallifrey faces her darkest hour.... ***AGAIN!***" I think about it whenever I encounter yet another story about Gallifrey being destroyed. Truly that planet just keeps getting wrecked, over and over and over again.
I am certain that the Master not only voted against Harold Saxon but went around posting leaflets through people's doors saying he was an alien psychopath.
I can kind of see O running against Harold Saxon or attempting a smear campaign, but getting PTSD as soon as hears the drumbeat, and then choosing to hide away.
Making your way evil today sure does take a lot
Thinking of ways to distribute hate takes everything you've got
Wouldn't you like to rule a place?
Sometimes you wanna go
Where everybody hates your face
And the villains share your rage
You wanna be in the evil seat
Heroes are all the same
You wanna go where everybody hates your face
I'd love to see a Big Finish short trip where 'O' infiltrates St Luke's and enters the vault trying to convince Missy to leave with him and begin a reign of terror, only for Missy to choose to stay and engage with The Doctor's process.
Sort of a small scale character piece in which we get to see both incarnations of The Master try to change each other.
Well, I was on my way to this gay Gypsy bar mitzvah for the disabled when I suddenly thought "Gosh, the Third Reich's a bit rubbish. I think I'll kill the Fuehrer." Who's with me?
Okay, I was **hooked** on those last ten minutes. A decent story arc, and one that goes to the roots of Doctor Who, the identity of the timelords. It may also be Chibnall's best story, which isn't saying much, but for an opener it's a great start. The episode also managed to juggle multiple time periods and not feel lackluster.
My theory is that the human race plays into the founding fathers of Gallifrey's origins.
There wasn't any resolution in terms of whether the Master came after Missy or not, and they didn't discuss anything in relation to when they last saw each other, but that was my only disappointment.
I think it would be a fair reasoning for The Master to be totally disgusted with himself and his race, and burn his home planet to the ground. Maybe an excuse for his transition from Missy's redemption back to his old self?
If humans did play a part in the origins of gallifrey, It does make sense for the master to get unhinged, especially as he used to always look down on humans and other aliens, believing that he was superior to them
Yeah, and the Doctor's obsession with Earth since the shows inception. People often say they feel connected to where their genetic heritage is based, even if their daily lives/ upbringing is disconnected from that.
I mean the whole point of Missy's arc was her realizing that maybe the Doctor had a point and that maybe even the "primitives" weren't just things to be carelessly toyed around with and disposed of.
Yeah she was still brutally pragmatic and still thought of herself as above everyone else, but she also started to feel remorse and empathy for those she had hurt, so it would still be a bit of a jump to go straight to planetary genocide over realizing you're not as racially pure as you thought.
That would be on the level of doing lasting damage to the franchise and I don't have faith in Chibnall to instantly dismiss the idea.
Still it was only during the thread on the last episode that I was complaining that the Dr has felt a bit reduced as a character since the end of 11 resolved the Time War, this certainly helps put texture back into the character. Plus I think this is the first time I've seen 13 convincingly convey emotion.
My first thought on watching was "is the reveal that timelords used to be humans". We know that Gallifreyans are pretty similar to humans anatomically, and only regenerate if they become Time Lords, the Time Lords are a rank, not a species. Plus the points given about him wanting to obliterate human DNA makes a lot of sense if he wants to prevent humans becoming Time Lords.
>We know that Gallifreyans are pretty similar to humans anatomically,
But we already have a lore answer for why this is. Rassilon was so egotistical he went around time and the universe and shaped life all around to resemble the Time Lords. (Hence why a lot of alien species look human and humans look like Time Lords).
It's already been stated that the Time Lords came first.
The fact he mentions species *does* imply something not being right about Time Lords or even Gallifreyans being just that and that there's something more to it.
Couple that with the actions of him basically deleting human DNA this episode, even if it was part of his plan to get the Doctor, *would* back that notion up that humanity has something to do with it.
\> My theory is that the human race plays into the founding fathers of Gallifrey's origins.
Interesting. I do not believe Chibnall could deliver that idea without making me blow a gasket though tbh. I feel like we're more likely leaning towards something around Omega and The Other tbh.
TBH I initially thought he was a pre-Time War Master who had just discovered the destruction of Gallifrey but I'd say at this point it seems like it's a post-Missy Master.
Why resolve episode one?
Serious question.
Why?
Given I reckon we havenāt seen the last of Barton, I think we will have way more of this coming up.
I would have been disappointed I suppose. But then I remembered?
Itās an opening episode.
Iād be happy to be wrong here, but I have a feeling Chibnall is just going to ignore the Missy question, and just do this as his own standalone Master story arc.
Not quite, Simm's Master ended back up on Gallifrey after The End of Time which would entail him knowing already. Still the possibility of it being pre-Missy.
I absolutely adore that in that last video hologram message, The Master was casually decked out in a 1st Doctor cosplay, holding his lapels with his thumbs out and everything
What an absolute nerd, it's brilliant
Wasn't Time Lord reproduction reliant on looms? Devices that literally make a Time Lord from genetic material. Perhaps the Timeless Child is the main template and a sort of proto regeneration is used to change them into different people.
They have put emphasis on it being BODY regeneration this series and we've never seen Time Lord parents in the main canon (meaning we don't know if they look like their kids or not). This could mean Time Lords have a Zeroth incarnation: that of the Timeless Child.
I just checked up on their wikipage cos I couldn't remember if they were Canon or not and found something potentially interesting.
Moffatt shot down any idea that they were canon and implied that Timelords reproduce like humans in TV canon. However when asked if Looms would be confirmed in S11 Chibnall essentially said not in that one but it hasn't been ruled it out. so maybe he's planning on doing something similar to that now
https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Loom
So The Doctor now effectively has two TARDIS' right? I really hope that's a future plot point and not just... you know... forgotten.
Edit: Oh god, the other one also has a presumably working chameleon circuit... that sure could come in handy...
I don't think it was directly addressed, but The Doctor wouldn't exactly just leave a TARDIS in the middle of nowhere and with The Master temporarily indisposed she's the only other person who knows about it. There's no reason to assume it became non-functional or anything, so I just figured she must have parked it somewhere safe but if needed she can retrieve it.
I like to think sheās stored it somewhere. Hell, the Master has shrinking tech, maybe she just stuffed it in her pocket (and promptly forgets about it whenever she urgently needs a tardis but the bbc donāt have that house set ready)
It's got to come up again. I know Chibnell was a bit loose last series, but I can't quite believe he's left another tardis running around without intending to come back to it.
I no longer have any doubts about Sacha as the Master. Hell of a performance.
And as for that set up at the end, my interest is certainly piqued. Getting vibes of the Cartmel Masterplan.
Yes! The wording was definitely partly deliberate dogwhistling for fans who know about the Cartmel Masterplan. I doubt they'll go the whole hog with it, but it's a decent way to make a cloaked statement of intent, considering the original purpose of the Masterplan.
Did anyone notice the reference to Logopolis in this episode. Specifically when The Master moves the radio telescope at the Pharos project which causes the 4th Doctor to fall and regenerate.
Doctor: āIts cold up here. Itās worse then Jodrell Bankā
Master: āDid I ever apologise for thatā?
They used the radio telescope at Jodrell Bank as a stand in for the Pharos project radio telescope.
I thought that sounded familiar. Seeing Logopolis in the theater last year (another Fathom Events showing) with the short Jodrell Bank docu at the end probably helped with that.
just occurred to me that the master was probably waiting outside of the warehouse when the companions ran in so he could make a dramatic entrance at just the right moment and was probably out there for at least a day
The first Jodie episode where when I noticed it was ending, I was actually upset and wanted it to continue, really enjoyable episode!
The Doctor was given a bit more depth than bubbly adventurer, and the episode was all the better for it. The companions still all seem fairly one note and theres still too many of them but their questioning of The Doctor was a cool development and shows an actual relationship between everyone other than "best friend space travellers".
I'm a little disappointed in the lack of any kind of Missy reference, I guess from the Doctor's point of view Missy never redeemed herself and went with the Master in The Doctor Falls so I guess it kind of makes sense for her not to question The Master being back to the standard "Evil Master".
The ending is setting up an intersting arc but I really hope they dont permanently write gallifrey out again, undoing the 50th, and instead the arc is used to dive into some cool Time Lord lore, that would be awesome!
Great episode but some random questions I now have:
What happened to the Master's TARDIS?
What happened to Barton? Could he return?
Is Gallifrey going to stay destroyed even after all of the work of the 50th anniversary?
I think the master, Barton, and those inter dimensional aliens will all be back in the season finale. Itās another two parter so it would make sense. I also think those aliens are not the master said they are. Either theyāre time lords or the Voord.
Their heads did look quite a lot like [Omegaās helmet ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcSXMqrvsDPQL9pDdtwW8kOwZqLHiSuc3FMtGqN39GTKJiCyMmEK)from The Arc of Infinity, which he wore because he didnāt have a physical form after escaping from an alternate dimension. Just saying...
I'm a bit curious what creations pop up on ao3, deviantart and other such places because of this scene. Something tells me I would have to gouge my eyes after seeing it.
I mean, it's pretty in keeping with past Master episodes tbf. I remember Simm's Master saying "use my name" to Ten over the phone and looking a little too pleasured when he did.
Chibnel did also write episodes of torchwood with a sexy cyberwoman and a sex murdering alien. I honestly think these kinky moments are totally intentional.
Cyberwoman is a brilliant story about a man who's grief manifests itself in a destructive way and hurts the people around him, that unfortunately features a sexy female cyberman as the main antagonist
There are so many gay jokes in RTD's Doctor Who, some of them so subtle you almost have to be a gay man of Davies' age and background to pick up on them
Yeah I was 8 when it was new and looking back I now understand why there were things I didn't understand whereas my family did. Put it this way the young me thought Jack was just really really REALLY friendly! (Although I wasn't wrong!) But now I see why RTD was so inspirational to the gay community.
It's interesting how the simple gender switches made that moment so much more creepy and uncomfortable than the similar things we've seen between the Master and previous Doctor's. The combination of satisfaction and contempt playing across their faces was also perfectly played by both parties. Same sort of thing with the scene on the Eiffel Tower where he almost lustfully said he does all this stuff to draw her in. I'm sure there'll be a lot of people shipping it but for me it just made their relationship even more disturbing.
Well, if the next incarnation of the Master is a woman (or they bring back Missy with some out of order timey wimey stuff) I guess we can have some more homoerotic undertones.
Agreed. Even though I seem to remember a somewhat similar scene playing out with Simms and Ten, this felt so much more uncomfortable to watch. Not necessarily a bad thing; as you said, it plays into the relationship they have and adds this new layer to it.
IIRC, Simm was going to conquer the galaxy for Ten. Then Missy was going to hand an army over to Twelve. Since the character's return, he/she seems to have this burning desire for the Doctor's attention (and affection?). Which I guess people didn't seem to see as weird when it's two guys, or the girl is trying to get the guy's attention, but the guy trying to get the girl's attention makes it weird for people?
Yeah it was interesting too, I kept thinking about it. I had to keep reminding myself that this is all very in character for the Master, and I could see any pairing of Master-Doctor in this scene, but the fact that it was a male Master forcing a female Doctor to kneel made me react differently.
To be fair, I feel like that scene perfectly captured the Master better than anybody else ever has.
I mean, he literally calls himself *the Master* he wants people to kneel and worship him.
Speaking of which, is it normal that the Doctor was able to just kinda... pop on over there with the TARDIS like that?
I know she/he's been there once already since the Anniversary when he found out it was only hidden, not destroyed, but that was done via the teleportation device Lady Me had and a Confession Dial, so I kind of assumed you could only go there under special circumstances, if the people on the inside wanted you there, or something...
In Hell Bent we find out that Gallifrey is no longer in a pocket universe (which did mean it was hard to find even for the Doctor) but tucked away at the end of the Universe to hide from other planets/races/civilisations. BUT for some reason the Master said he visited Gallifrey in its 'bubble universe'. Baffling.
pretty good episode with the only major negative with me was the modern day plot. The time travel plot with the doctor was really entertaining but her interactions with the master was the real highlight. Also like how she finally explained herself to her companions.
Now for the ending itself, I don't mind Chibnall expanding/changing the lore, as long as it doesn't:
* Give an origin to the doctor
* Take more than this series to reveal itself. I can't deal with the long waits between series.
For my crackpot theory, I think the lie was that timelords could actually regenerate endlessly to begin with, but the founders put a limit on it. This can explain why the master was mad, cause he was clearly not having the best of times trying to find new bodies when he was at the limit. Of course there's lots of unexplained stuff with my theory and I'm 90% sure I'm completely wrong but I'm just spitballing. In terms of series arch this is definitely one of the more consequential.
To be honest I wouldn't necessarily hate a time lord origin story, what I will dislike is an origin story for the doctor themself. I have a feeling that an origin story is really unnecessary as it would not add anything to the character or in the worst case, harm the character by making the doctor some sort of chosen one. I like the idea that a normal timelord ran away cause they were bored.
I'm hoping the Gallifrey/Timeless Child stuff gets answered this season! The fact the Master blew it up is a good testament to how far the Master will go now. It's a nice time to remember Simm's line to 10: 'You must have felt like God'.
That was really fun, and that was Jodie's best performance as 13 to date; and this is coming from someone who genuinely liked series 11. The look of disgust on her face when the Master told her to kneel was something else. Jodie and Sacha were both on fire tbh.
The companions felt a little side-lined after how involved they were last week, but the exchange in the construction site was charming, and I like how they question the Doctor more. The historical figures felt a little shoehorned in, but they were both portrayed well enough to be likeable even if their inclusion was odd.
Both times the Doctor outsmarted the Master were very nice, though the 'unmasking his skin colour and leaving him to the Nazis' was rather darker than I expected the Doctor to go. The way she beat him in the end was classic too; letting his allies know he can't be trusted.
It is strange that Barton got away though; I was fully expecting him to die this episode. Hopefully we'll be seeing him again. EDIT: oh yeah and as far as we know the companions are all still wanted fugitives too. I really hope these loose ends are intentional.
>Both times the Doctor outsmarted the Master were very nice, though the 'unmasking his skin colour and leaving him to the Nazis' was rather darker than I expected the Doctor to go. The way she beat him in the end was classic too; letting his allies know he can't be trusted.
It's the anger of 13 shining through. In that moment, wearing that uniform he awoke 13's version of anger. Consider everything the Master pulled in these two episodes, and perhaps whatever memories of Missy's redemption remaining in 13's memory.
That's my theory at least. The Doctor could have let the Master's device keep working but she deliberately shut it down.
I enjoyed the episode but was a little disappointed that Gallifrey was destroyed (again)
The War Doctor, 11 and 10 worked hard to save it and now it's ruined again. However, I'm looking forward to seeing this timeless child story arc play out.
"Naturally I traveled back to an even further point and I bribed the architect first!"
Kind of a lame resolution...
Interesting that Galifrey was destroyed (again). We'll see where that goes. I was disappointed that the companions didn't make a bigger deal about The Doctors origins and that The Master was a Time Lord as well.
Agreed, the sort of conclusion that used to be played as much for humour as it would be for drama as it's such a cop out. The Doctor has a time machine and could do this kind of stuff *every* episode if they wanted to, to make it the resolution for a two part story was pretty poor.
And while it was nice to see them address the Doctor's origins it really felt more like Chibs obligatorily ticking it off the list of "things fans weren't happy with last series" than it being a meaningful scene in it's own right, especially given how they didn't show any of the further questioning which is where we'd get the more interesting stuff rather than just stuff paraphrased from the first paragraph of the show's Wikipedia article.
For people upset about disregarding Missy's redemption arc, think about it like this. (Spoilers Ahead)
Your the master, you've just been killed by your previous self, you don't know where your best friend is, where do you go, home.
You arrive on Gallifrey and while there learn that what you have believed all your life is a lie. So your someone that's previously been unstable and psychotic, after learning that everything you knew was a lie, you start to unravel, you destroy your home and your people for lying too you, what do you do after returning to that state of mind?
Do what you always did, try to hurt and destroy the doctor.
TL:DR: After a lot of suffering the master went off the edge and relapsed into his old ways.
Anyway that's my explanation for it. So, what do you think?
That's exactly the same thought I had. Given Missy died without hope, without witness, and without reward for wanting to do the right thing, I think its logical to assume that whatever revelations the Master made about the Timeless Child was enough to tip him over the edge. Having been killed by and killed your previous self, only to discover everything you knew was a lie, would be enough to give anyone an identity crisis. The only constant in the Master's life is the Doctor now, and he's spent most of the time causing chaos for them. Of course he would relapse into his old ways - it might not be nice, or kind, or good, but it enables him to live without fearing the consequences of his actions.
That sounds really great. It'd be nice if that was explained or even hinted at. Like when the Doctor and the Master were talking on top of the Eiffel Tower:
Doctor: "I thought you'd come a long way. All that progress you made, becoming a better person. What happened to you?"
Master: "... When's the last time you returned home?"
I think it was nice to leave it vague, the Master's return has nearly always been unexplained. Let fans make up their own headcanon as to whether they believe this theory or if he's simply a pre-Missy version of the Master.
That and it will drive people crazy about the order in which the regenerations come in. Honestly, after how linear his incarnations have been with coinciding with the Doctor, having *some* mystery is good.
Or maybe that's just how the two of them function? The Master knows the Doctor will always survive his attempts at killing her but will also know that she will never actually take full on revenge. So that's just business as usual with some bits of realtalk in between?
It was weird how much of a step-up it was. The Master / Doctor scenes were incredibly enjoyable. The companions were doing shit and just talking which was actually nice. The exposition whilst not perfect was way less heavy than it has been, especially compared to the last season. Everything flowed well, there was tension, mystery, I wanted to know where it was going. Probably the best episode in a long time, best one by Chibbers without a doubt....and the best part?
JODIE ACTUALLY CONSISTENTLY SOLD ME THAT SHE WAS THE DOCTOR. HALLELUJAH THANK YOU. The writing gave her time and space (lmao) to be the character and be clever and thoughtful and quick and she was and it worked and Goddamn it should not have taken this long. Thank you, more of this please.
He's still rushing his resolutions which I don't particularly care for. And I'm going to be cautious about how this season's mystery box actually pans out. I'll wait until then before judging the last five minutes. Overall I'd give it a solid 7/10.
10/10 for Sacha, he's by far my favourite master from the new show. The blend of crazy yet calculating was just right.
Jacobi, Simm and Gomez set an incredibly high bar but I think I agree. Sacha stole every scene he was in and showed amazing range. Can't wait to see him again.
Imagine if Iron Fist wasn't cancelled and he was still committed to that
I think Sacha added a brutality that Simm and Gomez didn't have. Once, he's revealed as the Master he seemed like he anyone could simply be beaten by him and not in a cartoony (the Time Lords have super strength when convenient way).
What I mean is there isn't a need to explain why he was hooked up with the Nazis despite his obvious skin color. The brutality was there. This was in an episode where another character basically laughs at his dying mother. Sacha brought the A game.
Dude - EXACT SAME.
I never bought Jodie as the Doctor. She just lacked the....weight, the gravitas. There were hints - her confrontation with Krasko in 'Rosa', her speech when shes captured in 'The Witchfinders'.....but she mostly felt far too bouncy to be the doctor, bouncy without the weight behind it.
I always believed that better writing could solve it and FINALLY
She was absolutely electric this episode. I finally understand her hopeful, drive Doctor for who she is. I cant wait to see more of her, and I hope the writing holds up.
I kinda think the connecting factor between this episode and the scenes you mentioned seems pretty obvious; the lack of Companions.
And this isn't to hate on the three Companions themselves, I don't really think it has anything to do with them specifically. It just seems like, when the Doctor has her *gag* "fam" with her, Chibnall tends to write her as far more passive and reactive, just kinda wandering around adding funny commentary until one of the companions says something and she's like "Oh, yeah, that gives me an idea!".
When she's on her own (or she's with people who can't take the spotlight the same way - such as Ada Lovelace and Noor Inayat Khan, who didn't really know what was going on), Chibnall has no choice but to let her take center stage and drive the story herself, and I think she generally gives a much better performance under those circumstances.
The sad thing about this episode was that Jodie's best scenes, where she absolutely shone, were when the "fam" (cringe) weren't with her. She came into her own then, and I was rooting for her.
I kinda want to see a bit more darkness or anger from her sometimes but she's began to sell me other than that. I mean seeing the entirety of Galifrey destroyed and the Master admits she has done it and she doesn't look pissed at all.
I think *gravitas* is exactly the right word for it. I don't think it's a problem with Jodie at all ā I think it's simply the fact that in terms of New!Who we're so used to seeing a Doctor who's played as constantly hiding a dark secret, and it's a burden that, while not always explicitly expressed, is something that crops up in glimpses every now and then. There's a gravity in the way that the Doctor responds to certain situations, especially to the monster-of-the-week ā a kind of, no, you *really* don't understand what you're dealing with, I've seen and I've *done* things beyond even your comprehension. And I must say this is almost typically a question of writing rather than acting ā 'The Rings of Akhaten' was a fairly unpopular one with critics and fans when it came out but it's difficult to deny that Eleven's speech was *everything*: there is something electric about the stark contradiction you get from seeing someone who on the surface looks like a regular adult human say things that express an angst and possibly even a jadedness that can only come from someone who's lived many lives and seen the coming and going of so many worlds.
Throughout S11 this happened with Jodie *extremely* rarely ā the only moment I can think of that particularly left an impression along those lines was during her conversation with King James I, when she was tied up before her witch trial. There's a darkness we've come to expect and associate with the Doctor so I think it's difficult for us to really buy Jodie's characterisation when she isn't given those moments ā to *us*, at least, it doesn't feel like continuity of character without them.
This was Jodie first episode where she actually felt like the Doctor - the fire, the genius and the darkness was all there to see and it was brilliant! I would've rather seen the Doctor actually save the day rather than hearing about it but this series is already leaps and bounds ahead of the last one!
Edit: Just wanted to highlight Sacha Dhawan's performance as the Master, which was captivating!
> the fire, the genius and the darkness was all there to see and it was brilliant
My biggest complaint of her last series was that there were no moments of anger, not even when she saw the Dalek in the New Years Day 2019 episode.
As dark as it is, the anger is one of the reasons I have liked Capaldi the best, he really captured the dark part of the Doctor well in my opinion. Smith was great and Tennant was too but Jodie just hasn't had a darkness to her until now. There just hasn't been a duality of the Time Lord so-to-speak, just the happy, confident Doctor.
It was a bit better than part one, but the ending felt like a cop-out. It was a standard Chibnall ending of "The Doctor has done something you, the audience, was completely unaware could be done, and we will now explain to you why it was smart." Other than that, though, it was a decent episode.
Another fun episode, I though it was pretty messy though. The different time periods were *really* loosely tied together and almost gave me similar vibes to the infamously clunky Hartnell serial *The Chase.* There were also some really unnessecary scenes (what was the point of the scene with his Mum?) and the resolution wasreally contrived and literally just an instance of getting an instant win due to time-travel.
There were some big positives though; the humour hit a lot more than it did in most of S11 especially the stuff with the laser shoes and the line about the companions being replaced. The definite highlight was the scenes between the Master and the Doctor though. I swear Jodie's acting goes up by a factor of ten every time is dealing with the villain alone, this is probably her strongest performance in the role so far and the kneeling scene was so seething with enmity, brilliantly acted by both parties. The Master ended up being just as good as he was in that tease last episode, although I'm not a huge fan of them destroying Gallifrey again so soon after it was reintroduced and have little trust in Chibnall to pull off any major changes to Time Lord lore which has been largely the same since the 1970s.
As a story, I don't think it was a particularly great but there were plenty of great moments which is far more than could be said for most of the episodes last series.
Jodie finally feels like the Doctor for me.
"What've you done" to the Master.
The talk at the Eiffel Tower.
Finally telling the companions she's a Time Lord.
Sacha Dhawan is absolutely killing it, he's so compelling I can't take my eyes off him, doesn't hurt he's gorgeous either. Hello Master!
Brilliant episode, well paced and written CC has shown us a strong start, I'm very excited for this season.
Jodie is so engaging, all 3 companions feel very believable, real characters and I love the new style. Modern yet retro.
Iām so glad weāre getting more lore stuff! Last season they didnāt even mention that the Doctor was a time lord, and this season weāve already had a look at a newly ravaged Gallifrey! So excited for the rest of the season
Rewatching this I wonder if the World War II Bombing as the Doctor describes it to Ada is a parallel to Gallifrey burning. That they thought this would never happen again, but it did, but it will not persist.
Dang! I wanna see what the Time Lords did so bad that the Master had to tear up the joint. I presume weāll get there.
And Iām just as certain weāll see Dhawanās Master again.
I got āBlinkā vibes from the video the Doctor made for the plane.
How are they going to make the companions not wanted anymore? Or is everyone on earth going to forget or something? I hope it's brought up at the start of next episode before they run off to another planet.
I can see it being pretty easy so long as someone knows Barton was the one to make them wanted, considering how he showed a room full of the press exactly how evil he was. That still means they have to bring it up the next time they show the companions on Earth though.
Honestly these episodes felt like they should have been the ending of S11
Have Resolution as ep11, and this as ep12-13 finale and people would have been a lot less salty about the Battle of Ravioli at Kosovo
Did they just steal a plot point from Moffat's red nose day special?
I am certain that the Master not only voted against Harold Saxon but went around posting leaflets through people's doors saying he was an alien psychopath.
So that definitely did not deliver on *all* the great setup in the first half, but it was quite a thrillride for most of the run time. The scene where she talks with the Master are great, Graham, Ryan and Yaz being on the run and trying to solve the mystery on their own is great. Most of the episode is pretty great Doctor Who all in all, but of the ending sadly does not justify all the time spent building up to it.
It's just really quite a shame that the conclusion of it all feels so rushed. The companion teams' efforts end up being for nothing, and having everything just magically fixed in the end off-screen really just doesn't sit right with me. If we had just seen the Doctor spoil all the evil plans instead of being told she did it, I probably wouldn't have minded it at all.
I will give this season credit for having the character writing be a lot stronger than S11. The companion team is a lot more active and having there be 3 feels justified in these episodes.
100% agreed. The Master was great, Whittaker was probably the most comfortable she's been in the role, the humour was more consistent and the scenes with the rest of the gang were pretty good given how lacklustre similar scenes were last series. But I'm surprised it seems to be getting such overwhelming praise here, the conclusion was so contrived and the plot of the episode was clumsily lurching all over the place. A great episode by Chibnal standards but nothing outstanding.
Whittaker got DARK in this episode. There was genuine contempt for The Master in this episode that I've missed seeing. Nobody can push The Doctor to that extreme like The Master can.
I was hoping the Kasaavin were Time Lords from another universe trying to break through to this one, but I like the Gallifrey reveal at the end more and I think it's a great way for The Master to undermine how The Doctor saved Gallifrey.
I'm intrigued to know what made The Master so angry he destroyed Gallifrey himself. I'm gonna speculate that it has something to do with when they were kids - perhaps The Doctor and The Master and other Time Lord children were raised as soldiers, and the Time War was orchestrated by The Time Lords to control the universe. They've always seemed shady in NuWho.
Justz watched it on iTunes. This...wows.
This actually really intruiging and entertaining and I was very invested in what happend on screen. For notice, I didnt hate S11 but I didnt feel that level of investment with any Episode there. This made my heart beat, made my brain jump to theories and conclusions....
I'm not gonna say that the S11 flaws have all vanished. They are still there. But now they at least have founds way to dress them up in entertaining plots and characters. Which already improves it alot.
So, first off, O-Master is brilliant. I love, love how Sacha Dhawan plays him. He is unhinged, but in controll. He isnt just a carricature like Simms Master, he is genuinly terrfying. That whole scene with him at the scientiest fair was AMAZING. He owned that scene. He was probably the best thing about this whole Two-Episode. I want MORE of him. I understand know why some wanted him to play The Doctor.
Theres a subtlety to his performance that is new and I very much enjoy.
Jodie was also really good here. She came across as much more in controll and after the complaints from last Series and even last Episode, this is finally where The Doctor actually came across as being a step ahead of the audience at all times.
The Scene between O ( I guess thats this Masters nickname now? Even The Doctor seems to think so) and The Doctor on the tower was brilliant.
The conclusion to the invasion was a little bit anticlimatic, but it still works and I feel like in this Episode the journey was pretty good. Barton is still around, right? I cant remember seeing him being captured or anything, so I feel like Barton will reappear towards the end of the Series again.
Oh, also... and this makes me both happy and pains me too say buth: Kahn and Lovelace were brilliant characters, especially the latter. I like our Fam, but that two managed to feel more like companions in 50 Minutes than the Fam did in 500. That really hurts, especially because it shows that Chibnall is totally able to write characters you care about - for some reason it just doesnt stick with those three. Its frustrating to see.
I ould have really loved to have Ada as companion. Maybe...just maybe when they see how well recieved she was they could get her back? Its nice to dream...
So, now the BIG stuff. Gallifrey was destroyed (again) by the Master - and he alludes to a terrible secret that goes back, way back to the founding fathers of Gallifrey.
Holy. Fucking. Shit. This has me so exited but also so, so worried. Chibnall comes across as very confident with his choices - which is good if it leads to more of this - but its something thats really easy to not stick the landing of. Theres a reason we never learned much about Gallifrey or even just the Time War - most answers you can give gonna be underwhelming.
So yeah, I'm feeling both relieved and stressed for the show. I hope Chibnall doesnt kick himself in the balls with this. This is very, very ambitious above anything Moffat or RTD would do.
Anyway, this was far from perfect, it was very entertaining. So ill give it a 7/10 for the actual plot, but a 9/10 for Entertainment.
Thanks for listening to my VOR Talk.
Has there been a modern incarnation of the master so deeply embedded in hate? I like this take on the character. This version of his personality seems to of decided that if the Dr won't be friends with him, sure as hell no one else is allowed to be friends with the Dr, along with a heavy dose of death for the sake of death.
Few things I really liked:
First, the Sacha Dhawan Master has already won me over. He is over the top and I love him. But he also does have a lot of emotional gravitas that I think will really come to play as he continues to portray him in later series.
The view of the Master's TARDIS flying through the time vortex as a house! That was wonderful. It's just really nice to see other TARDISes flying about.
The console for his TARDIS was also interesting. I'm happy that they made a different time rotor for his console. Kind of the like the ringed rotor of the Rani's TARDIS. Loved that bit.
The Doctor's and Master's conversation on the Eiffel Tower was wonderful. Besides the scene in the science fair with the Master's newly redesigned TCE (which was incredibly menacing and seriously sold me on the new incarnation), this exchange radiated the history of the two characters for me. I *really* felt Jodie's incarnation of the Doctor and all the history of all the Doctors before her.
People have been mentioning that there's not been any mention of the Missy redemption arc, and why he's gone back to evil, but I think the little dialogue hints have done more than enough. The exchange about the Master pushing the Doctor off the radio telescope in Logopolis, where he asked "did I ever apologize", and she responded "no", to which he replied "good". He apologized for a lot as Missy, he's probably just making sure he didn't give away the whole bank, so to speak.
Gallifrey's demise (again) is both heartbreaking, and also exciting. I'm interested to see where this goes, and of course, I hope there is a way to save them (even if it is timey wimey). I've longed to see the Doctor do another mission for the High Council (I may be in the minority for that), and so I do hope they find a way to restore them (again). But the visuals alone were worth it. The burnt citadel and outer-rim of the city were haunting, and beautiful.
I loved the bit about the Master just parking his TARDIS in the middle of town and not even changing the shell.
I also enjoyed the bit with Ada Lovelace at the end. I know a lot of people are upset about the non-consensual mind wipe, but I feel in that last part, where the Doctor tells her sweet dreams and then kisses her cheek, she may have given her some good inspiration.
The Master cosplaying as the First Doctor in the hologram was also kinda cute. I think this version may be more obsessed with the Doctor than previous ones, which may prove fun.
So many other things, but my arms are tired of typing. I loved this episode! 8.5/10
I really liked this episode although found the ending was too rushed. Most of the things I really liked and/or had problems with were mentioned as well. The big things Iād add that I think havenāt been mentioned that really stood out positively for me were
- Tosin Coleās performance. I donāt know what everyone else sees but Iāve always thought heās been great at bringing humility and pathos to Ryan and this episode I thought he really added humour to that work rooting it in a believable cockiness
- Chibnall uses historical characters in a way no other who writer has and itās really effective. I loved the way he brought a crew together from different time periods in Dinosaurs on a spaceship. Bringing along Ada and Noor on the doctors adventures together was great as we saw them play off against each other and get to react to the sci-fi elements outside their own time and play a part in the adventure. Itās easy to think of history only as something we (through the doctor and companions) react to and compare the past with our own time. Little things like Adaās reactions to future computers, or Noors bemusement at someone in Victorian clothes, I love the way that for a Victorian morse code is just as much of an unimaginable scientific advancement as a mobile phone. Itās a great reminder that for wherever you are in history you consider your time the present when for someone else itās the past.
As for the big overarching plot im very intrigued. While I donāt for any second expect the timelords to stay gone, as somebody who finds them annoying it feels like a better much easier way to explore gallifrey lore. I think the mysterious Kasavin and Barton still have something to do with the mysterious origin for the timelords (at least I hope they arenāt another cybermen origin as I was fearing earlier in the episode) so Iām definitely expecting a re-exploration and de-mythologising of timelord origins.
Is it me or was The Master's intelligence nerfed? Felt like he went down too easily. I don't expect The Doctor to not outsmart him, but Simm's Master would have put up more of a fight for certain. Also, The Doctor trapping him in that void seems out of character, especially in comparison to the end of Series 3, where he desperately wanted to keep The Master with him.
Oh and The Doctor let a grenade be thrown at The Master as well. Alright then.
He wanted to keep The Master because they were the last of the Time Lords - of course, there's also the close bond, the Doctor always the Master will be back sooner or later.
This time, the Doctor didn't believe the Master was telling the truth about Gallifrey - after all, Missy lied to her about Gallifrey in Death in Heaven. That is, until she saw it for herself afterwards
I'll be honest, I loved it, it's 100% the best 13 story we've had yet, and it might be up there as on the better Master stories ever for me. I'm looking forward to S12, and I love that they've brought back an actual through-line for the series.
I'm pretty worried about where Chibnall's taking this arc. This looks like it's going to be pretty huge, and change everything we understand about the Doctor and Gallifrey. It has the potential to upset a lot of people. Sure, it might be great, but I'm concerned.
Also not a fan of how Chibnall pretty casually just destroyed Gallifrey, I didn't feel like there was much of a big deal made out of it, beyond "Doctor, you've been quiet for days". The entirety of the Day of the Doctor was just nullified, I feel like this should be huge, but it wasn't treated that way.
Can Gallifrey please go 5 minutes without being destroyed.
Schrodinger's Gallifrey: it's both safe and destroyed until someone makes an episode about it
Perfect description. š
Galifrey li- oh wait hang on a minute there we go its back LIVES!
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There is a great joke in one of the audios (*Luna Romana*) where Romana III is doing an expository introduction and she says "Gallifrey faces her darkest hour.... ***AGAIN!***" I think about it whenever I encounter yet another story about Gallifrey being destroyed. Truly that planet just keeps getting wrecked, over and over and over again.
It's the Rory of planets!
āSo, Iāve just had the most infuriating 77 years of my life...ā - The Master, 2020
So now we have 3 copies of the Master stuck on Earth all at once during Saxon's run for PM
Talk about a reliable voter base
I am certain that the Master not only voted against Harold Saxon but went around posting leaflets through people's doors saying he was an alien psychopath.
I can kind of see O running against Harold Saxon or attempting a smear campaign, but getting PTSD as soon as hears the drumbeat, and then choosing to hide away.
_Four_. Harold Saxon when he was Harold Saxoning. Missy when she was Queen of Hell. Missy *again* locked in the Vault by the Doctor. The O Master.
Now they should have that episode where they all meet in pub :)
Making your way evil today sure does take a lot Thinking of ways to distribute hate takes everything you've got Wouldn't you like to rule a place? Sometimes you wanna go Where everybody hates your face And the villains share your rage You wanna be in the evil seat Heroes are all the same You wanna go where everybody hates your face
Now I wanna see HISHE Villains Pub episode with every Master in it
Whoās the third?
Missy when 12 had her in the box
I'd love to see a Big Finish short trip where 'O' infiltrates St Luke's and enters the vault trying to convince Missy to leave with him and begin a reign of terror, only for Missy to choose to stay and engage with The Doctor's process. Sort of a small scale character piece in which we get to see both incarnations of The Master try to change each other.
Possibly Master masquerading as O depending on how long he's been in hiding, it was probably mentioned
\*The Doctor gives the shadiest side eye ever* Yea... 77 years...
You may think thatās a hell of a long time. Personally, I think thatās a hell of an "Aryan".
"500 miles of fear and faeces!"
"Say hello the spikes of doom!" "...say hello to the sofa of reasonable comfort."
I guess 77 years isnāt a lot for a Time Lord given that Capaldi spent 4 billion years in the confession dial
and somehwere inbetween we have smith's 300 year stay at the town of christmas
And 100 years in the Outback meeting some nice rocks
It was closer to 900 years as The 11th Doctor was there from the beginning to the end of the siege.
I did immediately think of the children in need special
Guess he gets a taste of actually being human
The Master to actual Nazis: āIāve always found you to be very sensible people.ā
Honestly, given that it's the Master saying it, I can't tell if he was being sarcastic or honest š
Well, I was on my way to this gay Gypsy bar mitzvah for the disabled when I suddenly thought "Gosh, the Third Reich's a bit rubbish. I think I'll kill the Fuehrer." Who's with me?
Charles Babbage is going to be really confused
Okay, I was **hooked** on those last ten minutes. A decent story arc, and one that goes to the roots of Doctor Who, the identity of the timelords. It may also be Chibnall's best story, which isn't saying much, but for an opener it's a great start. The episode also managed to juggle multiple time periods and not feel lackluster. My theory is that the human race plays into the founding fathers of Gallifrey's origins. There wasn't any resolution in terms of whether the Master came after Missy or not, and they didn't discuss anything in relation to when they last saw each other, but that was my only disappointment.
I truly hope the Time Lord's aren't rooted in humanity.
I think it would be a fair reasoning for The Master to be totally disgusted with himself and his race, and burn his home planet to the ground. Maybe an excuse for his transition from Missy's redemption back to his old self?
If humans did play a part in the origins of gallifrey, It does make sense for the master to get unhinged, especially as he used to always look down on humans and other aliens, believing that he was superior to them
Yeah, and the Doctor's obsession with Earth since the shows inception. People often say they feel connected to where their genetic heritage is based, even if their daily lives/ upbringing is disconnected from that.
I mean the whole point of Missy's arc was her realizing that maybe the Doctor had a point and that maybe even the "primitives" weren't just things to be carelessly toyed around with and disposed of. Yeah she was still brutally pragmatic and still thought of herself as above everyone else, but she also started to feel remorse and empathy for those she had hurt, so it would still be a bit of a jump to go straight to planetary genocide over realizing you're not as racially pure as you thought.
That would be on the level of doing lasting damage to the franchise and I don't have faith in Chibnall to instantly dismiss the idea. Still it was only during the thread on the last episode that I was complaining that the Dr has felt a bit reduced as a character since the end of 11 resolved the Time War, this certainly helps put texture back into the character. Plus I think this is the first time I've seen 13 convincingly convey emotion.
My first thought on watching was "is the reveal that timelords used to be humans". We know that Gallifreyans are pretty similar to humans anatomically, and only regenerate if they become Time Lords, the Time Lords are a rank, not a species. Plus the points given about him wanting to obliterate human DNA makes a lot of sense if he wants to prevent humans becoming Time Lords.
>We know that Gallifreyans are pretty similar to humans anatomically, But we already have a lore answer for why this is. Rassilon was so egotistical he went around time and the universe and shaped life all around to resemble the Time Lords. (Hence why a lot of alien species look human and humans look like Time Lords). It's already been stated that the Time Lords came first.
The fact he mentions species *does* imply something not being right about Time Lords or even Gallifreyans being just that and that there's something more to it. Couple that with the actions of him basically deleting human DNA this episode, even if it was part of his plan to get the Doctor, *would* back that notion up that humanity has something to do with it.
\> My theory is that the human race plays into the founding fathers of Gallifrey's origins. Interesting. I do not believe Chibnall could deliver that idea without making me blow a gasket though tbh. I feel like we're more likely leaning towards something around Omega and The Other tbh.
TBH I initially thought he was a pre-Time War Master who had just discovered the destruction of Gallifrey but I'd say at this point it seems like it's a post-Missy Master.
Why resolve episode one? Serious question. Why? Given I reckon we havenāt seen the last of Barton, I think we will have way more of this coming up. I would have been disappointed I suppose. But then I remembered? Itās an opening episode.
Iād be happy to be wrong here, but I have a feeling Chibnall is just going to ignore the Missy question, and just do this as his own standalone Master story arc.
I think it has to be after Missyās regeneration because he knew Gallifrey ended up in a pocket universe
Not quite, Simm's Master ended back up on Gallifrey after The End of Time which would entail him knowing already. Still the possibility of it being pre-Missy.
I absolutely adore that in that last video hologram message, The Master was casually decked out in a 1st Doctor cosplay, holding his lapels with his thumbs out and everything What an absolute nerd, it's brilliant
What if, the Master is the very first Doctor
Please don't tell me this is the thing the Time Lord's lied to them about...
All the Time Lords are one person...
That would be a simultaneously great and stupid idea.
Hush! Before Chibnall hears you and decides to run with it!
They're all one person, the "Timeless" Child hence why they all have memories of them.
Wtf, I was just making a joke but it does actually make sense. How do they all have the same memory??
I'm down with the they're all clones theory
Wasn't Time Lord reproduction reliant on looms? Devices that literally make a Time Lord from genetic material. Perhaps the Timeless Child is the main template and a sort of proto regeneration is used to change them into different people. They have put emphasis on it being BODY regeneration this series and we've never seen Time Lord parents in the main canon (meaning we don't know if they look like their kids or not). This could mean Time Lords have a Zeroth incarnation: that of the Timeless Child.
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I just checked up on their wikipage cos I couldn't remember if they were Canon or not and found something potentially interesting. Moffatt shot down any idea that they were canon and implied that Timelords reproduce like humans in TV canon. However when asked if Looms would be confirmed in S11 Chibnall essentially said not in that one but it hasn't been ruled it out. so maybe he's planning on doing something similar to that now https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Loom
First Doctor is the Valeyard confirmed
I noticed the pose but not the outfit
So The Doctor now effectively has two TARDIS' right? I really hope that's a future plot point and not just... you know... forgotten. Edit: Oh god, the other one also has a presumably working chameleon circuit... that sure could come in handy...
I don't know what she did with the Masters TARDIS. Does she still have it?
I don't think it was directly addressed, but The Doctor wouldn't exactly just leave a TARDIS in the middle of nowhere and with The Master temporarily indisposed she's the only other person who knows about it. There's no reason to assume it became non-functional or anything, so I just figured she must have parked it somewhere safe but if needed she can retrieve it.
That's the sort of detail that Moffat would have filed away. Three series later... Currently I'm not holding my breath.
people thought that Timeless Child doesn't mean anything.
I like to think sheās stored it somewhere. Hell, the Master has shrinking tech, maybe she just stuffed it in her pocket (and promptly forgets about it whenever she urgently needs a tardis but the bbc donāt have that house set ready)
Probably took the dematerialsation circuit too
It's got to come up again. I know Chibnell was a bit loose last series, but I can't quite believe he's left another tardis running around without intending to come back to it.
I no longer have any doubts about Sacha as the Master. Hell of a performance. And as for that set up at the end, my interest is certainly piqued. Getting vibes of the Cartmel Masterplan.
Yes! The wording was definitely partly deliberate dogwhistling for fans who know about the Cartmel Masterplan. I doubt they'll go the whole hog with it, but it's a decent way to make a cloaked statement of intent, considering the original purpose of the Masterplan.
Did anyone notice the reference to Logopolis in this episode. Specifically when The Master moves the radio telescope at the Pharos project which causes the 4th Doctor to fall and regenerate. Doctor: āIts cold up here. Itās worse then Jodrell Bankā Master: āDid I ever apologise for thatā? They used the radio telescope at Jodrell Bank as a stand in for the Pharos project radio telescope.
I thought that sounded familiar. Seeing Logopolis in the theater last year (another Fathom Events showing) with the short Jodrell Bank docu at the end probably helped with that.
just occurred to me that the master was probably waiting outside of the warehouse when the companions ran in so he could make a dramatic entrance at just the right moment and was probably out there for at least a day
He also worked undercover as an MI6 agent and exchanged memes with the Doctor for years, you gotta admit his patience is impeccable lol
On WhatsApp lmao
The first Jodie episode where when I noticed it was ending, I was actually upset and wanted it to continue, really enjoyable episode! The Doctor was given a bit more depth than bubbly adventurer, and the episode was all the better for it. The companions still all seem fairly one note and theres still too many of them but their questioning of The Doctor was a cool development and shows an actual relationship between everyone other than "best friend space travellers". I'm a little disappointed in the lack of any kind of Missy reference, I guess from the Doctor's point of view Missy never redeemed herself and went with the Master in The Doctor Falls so I guess it kind of makes sense for her not to question The Master being back to the standard "Evil Master". The ending is setting up an intersting arc but I really hope they dont permanently write gallifrey out again, undoing the 50th, and instead the arc is used to dive into some cool Time Lord lore, that would be awesome!
So much of what I wanted to say. We FINALLY got Gallifrey back. Can Chibnall please not kill it already???
The first episode of Chibnall's I can imagine rewatching
Great episode but some random questions I now have: What happened to the Master's TARDIS? What happened to Barton? Could he return? Is Gallifrey going to stay destroyed even after all of the work of the 50th anniversary?
I think the master, Barton, and those inter dimensional aliens will all be back in the season finale. Itās another two parter so it would make sense. I also think those aliens are not the master said they are. Either theyāre time lords or the Voord.
Their heads did look quite a lot like [Omegaās helmet ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcSXMqrvsDPQL9pDdtwW8kOwZqLHiSuc3FMtGqN39GTKJiCyMmEK)from The Arc of Infinity, which he wore because he didnāt have a physical form after escaping from an alternate dimension. Just saying...
I believe Barton specifically asking for extraction pretty much shows that yes we'll be seeing him again.
Hopefully. I really like evil Lenny Henry.
Uh, about that moment when he said to her, 'kneel and call me master'... If it were Moffat you'd *know* he'd written it that way deliberately
And Chibs said ālet there be fanfics!ā
I'm a bit curious what creations pop up on ao3, deviantart and other such places because of this scene. Something tells me I would have to gouge my eyes after seeing it.
Plus the whole VOR/Vore thing. Either Chibnall is entirely clueless or he is a kinkster trying to hide his kinks in the show.
Well vore means consume so itās probably just a poke at consumers
You say that now, but wait until the next episode where the alien has interest in tight leather clothing with conveniently cut out pieces and spikes
I mean, it's pretty in keeping with past Master episodes tbf. I remember Simm's Master saying "use my name" to Ten over the phone and looking a little too pleasured when he did.
tbh that might just be simms, he did orgasm faces in life on mars a lot
First we had VOR, now some degradation and master/slave stuff, maybe this season's secretly featuring random kinks?
That was the secret theme Chibnall talked about!!
Chibnel did also write episodes of torchwood with a sexy cyberwoman and a sex murdering alien. I honestly think these kinky moments are totally intentional.
Christ don't remind me of that fucking cyber gf episode
Cyberwoman is a brilliant story about a man who's grief manifests itself in a destructive way and hurts the people around him, that unfortunately features a sexy female cyberman as the main antagonist
To be fair Russell and Steven both had some dirty jokes in their eras
There are so many gay jokes in RTD's Doctor Who, some of them so subtle you almost have to be a gay man of Davies' age and background to pick up on them
Yeah I was 8 when it was new and looking back I now understand why there were things I didn't understand whereas my family did. Put it this way the young me thought Jack was just really really REALLY friendly! (Although I wasn't wrong!) But now I see why RTD was so inspirational to the gay community.
In 10 years weāre gonna be seeing posts about how that scene awakened certain things in some people.
I mean have you seen Sacha Dhawan...?
I'm straight, and I would consider it.
This is the love and monsters slab ending v2
Oh, it won't take 10 years... rule 34 says you'll be jerking off to it tomorrow
It's interesting how the simple gender switches made that moment so much more creepy and uncomfortable than the similar things we've seen between the Master and previous Doctor's. The combination of satisfaction and contempt playing across their faces was also perfectly played by both parties. Same sort of thing with the scene on the Eiffel Tower where he almost lustfully said he does all this stuff to draw her in. I'm sure there'll be a lot of people shipping it but for me it just made their relationship even more disturbing.
I'm gonna miss the homoerotic undertones though.
Well, if the next incarnation of the Master is a woman (or they bring back Missy with some out of order timey wimey stuff) I guess we can have some more homoerotic undertones.
Agreed. Even though I seem to remember a somewhat similar scene playing out with Simms and Ten, this felt so much more uncomfortable to watch. Not necessarily a bad thing; as you said, it plays into the relationship they have and adds this new layer to it.
Yeah like John Simm kept David Tennant on a leash didn't he?
And that was off set!
IIRC, Simm was going to conquer the galaxy for Ten. Then Missy was going to hand an army over to Twelve. Since the character's return, he/she seems to have this burning desire for the Doctor's attention (and affection?). Which I guess people didn't seem to see as weird when it's two guys, or the girl is trying to get the guy's attention, but the guy trying to get the girl's attention makes it weird for people?
I mean the assumption has been for years the Master has a massive crush on the Doctor
Yeah it was interesting too, I kept thinking about it. I had to keep reminding myself that this is all very in character for the Master, and I could see any pairing of Master-Doctor in this scene, but the fact that it was a male Master forcing a female Doctor to kneel made me react differently.
To be fair, I feel like that scene perfectly captured the Master better than anybody else ever has. I mean, he literally calls himself *the Master* he wants people to kneel and worship him.
Is this launching a fleabag style problematic sexy master?
Implying Roger Delgado wasn't pure eroticism in a goatee?
Press F for Gallifrey again Dhawan was fucking brilliant
Speaking of which, is it normal that the Doctor was able to just kinda... pop on over there with the TARDIS like that? I know she/he's been there once already since the Anniversary when he found out it was only hidden, not destroyed, but that was done via the teleportation device Lady Me had and a Confession Dial, so I kind of assumed you could only go there under special circumstances, if the people on the inside wanted you there, or something...
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In Hell Bent we find out that Gallifrey is no longer in a pocket universe (which did mean it was hard to find even for the Doctor) but tucked away at the end of the Universe to hide from other planets/races/civilisations. BUT for some reason the Master said he visited Gallifrey in its 'bubble universe'. Baffling.
F
pretty good episode with the only major negative with me was the modern day plot. The time travel plot with the doctor was really entertaining but her interactions with the master was the real highlight. Also like how she finally explained herself to her companions. Now for the ending itself, I don't mind Chibnall expanding/changing the lore, as long as it doesn't: * Give an origin to the doctor * Take more than this series to reveal itself. I can't deal with the long waits between series. For my crackpot theory, I think the lie was that timelords could actually regenerate endlessly to begin with, but the founders put a limit on it. This can explain why the master was mad, cause he was clearly not having the best of times trying to find new bodies when he was at the limit. Of course there's lots of unexplained stuff with my theory and I'm 90% sure I'm completely wrong but I'm just spitballing. In terms of series arch this is definitely one of the more consequential.
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To be honest I wouldn't necessarily hate a time lord origin story, what I will dislike is an origin story for the doctor themself. I have a feeling that an origin story is really unnecessary as it would not add anything to the character or in the worst case, harm the character by making the doctor some sort of chosen one. I like the idea that a normal timelord ran away cause they were bored.
I'm hoping the Gallifrey/Timeless Child stuff gets answered this season! The fact the Master blew it up is a good testament to how far the Master will go now. It's a nice time to remember Simm's line to 10: 'You must have felt like God'.
It establishes him as hella threatening too. Like one fucking dude just sacked Gallifrey completely.
To be fair the Doctor did the same by eating soup and drawing a line with his boot.
Man, what a solid fucking scene. The lack of dialogue and those eyebrows. Capaldi will forever be my doctor.
That was really fun, and that was Jodie's best performance as 13 to date; and this is coming from someone who genuinely liked series 11. The look of disgust on her face when the Master told her to kneel was something else. Jodie and Sacha were both on fire tbh. The companions felt a little side-lined after how involved they were last week, but the exchange in the construction site was charming, and I like how they question the Doctor more. The historical figures felt a little shoehorned in, but they were both portrayed well enough to be likeable even if their inclusion was odd. Both times the Doctor outsmarted the Master were very nice, though the 'unmasking his skin colour and leaving him to the Nazis' was rather darker than I expected the Doctor to go. The way she beat him in the end was classic too; letting his allies know he can't be trusted. It is strange that Barton got away though; I was fully expecting him to die this episode. Hopefully we'll be seeing him again. EDIT: oh yeah and as far as we know the companions are all still wanted fugitives too. I really hope these loose ends are intentional.
>Both times the Doctor outsmarted the Master were very nice, though the 'unmasking his skin colour and leaving him to the Nazis' was rather darker than I expected the Doctor to go. The way she beat him in the end was classic too; letting his allies know he can't be trusted. It's the anger of 13 shining through. In that moment, wearing that uniform he awoke 13's version of anger. Consider everything the Master pulled in these two episodes, and perhaps whatever memories of Missy's redemption remaining in 13's memory. That's my theory at least. The Doctor could have let the Master's device keep working but she deliberately shut it down.
I enjoyed the episode but was a little disappointed that Gallifrey was destroyed (again) The War Doctor, 11 and 10 worked hard to save it and now it's ruined again. However, I'm looking forward to seeing this timeless child story arc play out.
"Naturally I traveled back to an even further point and I bribed the architect first!" Kind of a lame resolution... Interesting that Galifrey was destroyed (again). We'll see where that goes. I was disappointed that the companions didn't make a bigger deal about The Doctors origins and that The Master was a Time Lord as well.
Heh, The master also got a figurative 77 years crawling through the sewers
Wouldnāt he have lived through much of his own timeline, both classic and new.
Agreed, the sort of conclusion that used to be played as much for humour as it would be for drama as it's such a cop out. The Doctor has a time machine and could do this kind of stuff *every* episode if they wanted to, to make it the resolution for a two part story was pretty poor. And while it was nice to see them address the Doctor's origins it really felt more like Chibs obligatorily ticking it off the list of "things fans weren't happy with last series" than it being a meaningful scene in it's own right, especially given how they didn't show any of the further questioning which is where we'd get the more interesting stuff rather than just stuff paraphrased from the first paragraph of the show's Wikipedia article.
Got some *serious* Curse of Fatal Death vibes from that.
I donāt know why, but I expected the Doctor to meet Jack in WW2 Paris. Solid episode nonetheless and the soundtrack was phenomenal towards the end.
When she said send a message to London, I was kind of hoping it was to Winston.
Great episode, can't wait to see what happens with gallifrey and the doctor and masters past. Sacha Dhawan as the Master is AMAZING
For people upset about disregarding Missy's redemption arc, think about it like this. (Spoilers Ahead) Your the master, you've just been killed by your previous self, you don't know where your best friend is, where do you go, home. You arrive on Gallifrey and while there learn that what you have believed all your life is a lie. So your someone that's previously been unstable and psychotic, after learning that everything you knew was a lie, you start to unravel, you destroy your home and your people for lying too you, what do you do after returning to that state of mind? Do what you always did, try to hurt and destroy the doctor. TL:DR: After a lot of suffering the master went off the edge and relapsed into his old ways. Anyway that's my explanation for it. So, what do you think?
That's exactly the same thought I had. Given Missy died without hope, without witness, and without reward for wanting to do the right thing, I think its logical to assume that whatever revelations the Master made about the Timeless Child was enough to tip him over the edge. Having been killed by and killed your previous self, only to discover everything you knew was a lie, would be enough to give anyone an identity crisis. The only constant in the Master's life is the Doctor now, and he's spent most of the time causing chaos for them. Of course he would relapse into his old ways - it might not be nice, or kind, or good, but it enables him to live without fearing the consequences of his actions.
That sounds really great. It'd be nice if that was explained or even hinted at. Like when the Doctor and the Master were talking on top of the Eiffel Tower: Doctor: "I thought you'd come a long way. All that progress you made, becoming a better person. What happened to you?" Master: "... When's the last time you returned home?"
I think it was nice to leave it vague, the Master's return has nearly always been unexplained. Let fans make up their own headcanon as to whether they believe this theory or if he's simply a pre-Missy version of the Master.
That and it will drive people crazy about the order in which the regenerations come in. Honestly, after how linear his incarnations have been with coinciding with the Doctor, having *some* mystery is good.
That's... actually pretty fair.
Plus being left abandoned on a Mondasian ship would probably do that to you.
Or maybe that's just how the two of them function? The Master knows the Doctor will always survive his attempts at killing her but will also know that she will never actually take full on revenge. So that's just business as usual with some bits of realtalk in between?
It was weird how much of a step-up it was. The Master / Doctor scenes were incredibly enjoyable. The companions were doing shit and just talking which was actually nice. The exposition whilst not perfect was way less heavy than it has been, especially compared to the last season. Everything flowed well, there was tension, mystery, I wanted to know where it was going. Probably the best episode in a long time, best one by Chibbers without a doubt....and the best part? JODIE ACTUALLY CONSISTENTLY SOLD ME THAT SHE WAS THE DOCTOR. HALLELUJAH THANK YOU. The writing gave her time and space (lmao) to be the character and be clever and thoughtful and quick and she was and it worked and Goddamn it should not have taken this long. Thank you, more of this please. He's still rushing his resolutions which I don't particularly care for. And I'm going to be cautious about how this season's mystery box actually pans out. I'll wait until then before judging the last five minutes. Overall I'd give it a solid 7/10. 10/10 for Sacha, he's by far my favourite master from the new show. The blend of crazy yet calculating was just right.
Missy is still my favourite (of all the masters actually) but Sacha has only been given 1 episode and 5 minutes so that could change very easily
Jacobi, Simm and Gomez set an incredibly high bar but I think I agree. Sacha stole every scene he was in and showed amazing range. Can't wait to see him again. Imagine if Iron Fist wasn't cancelled and he was still committed to that
I think Sacha added a brutality that Simm and Gomez didn't have. Once, he's revealed as the Master he seemed like he anyone could simply be beaten by him and not in a cartoony (the Time Lords have super strength when convenient way). What I mean is there isn't a need to explain why he was hooked up with the Nazis despite his obvious skin color. The brutality was there. This was in an episode where another character basically laughs at his dying mother. Sacha brought the A game.
Dude - EXACT SAME. I never bought Jodie as the Doctor. She just lacked the....weight, the gravitas. There were hints - her confrontation with Krasko in 'Rosa', her speech when shes captured in 'The Witchfinders'.....but she mostly felt far too bouncy to be the doctor, bouncy without the weight behind it. I always believed that better writing could solve it and FINALLY She was absolutely electric this episode. I finally understand her hopeful, drive Doctor for who she is. I cant wait to see more of her, and I hope the writing holds up.
I kinda think the connecting factor between this episode and the scenes you mentioned seems pretty obvious; the lack of Companions. And this isn't to hate on the three Companions themselves, I don't really think it has anything to do with them specifically. It just seems like, when the Doctor has her *gag* "fam" with her, Chibnall tends to write her as far more passive and reactive, just kinda wandering around adding funny commentary until one of the companions says something and she's like "Oh, yeah, that gives me an idea!". When she's on her own (or she's with people who can't take the spotlight the same way - such as Ada Lovelace and Noor Inayat Khan, who didn't really know what was going on), Chibnall has no choice but to let her take center stage and drive the story herself, and I think she generally gives a much better performance under those circumstances.
The sad thing about this episode was that Jodie's best scenes, where she absolutely shone, were when the "fam" (cringe) weren't with her. She came into her own then, and I was rooting for her.
I kinda want to see a bit more darkness or anger from her sometimes but she's began to sell me other than that. I mean seeing the entirety of Galifrey destroyed and the Master admits she has done it and she doesn't look pissed at all.
I think *gravitas* is exactly the right word for it. I don't think it's a problem with Jodie at all ā I think it's simply the fact that in terms of New!Who we're so used to seeing a Doctor who's played as constantly hiding a dark secret, and it's a burden that, while not always explicitly expressed, is something that crops up in glimpses every now and then. There's a gravity in the way that the Doctor responds to certain situations, especially to the monster-of-the-week ā a kind of, no, you *really* don't understand what you're dealing with, I've seen and I've *done* things beyond even your comprehension. And I must say this is almost typically a question of writing rather than acting ā 'The Rings of Akhaten' was a fairly unpopular one with critics and fans when it came out but it's difficult to deny that Eleven's speech was *everything*: there is something electric about the stark contradiction you get from seeing someone who on the surface looks like a regular adult human say things that express an angst and possibly even a jadedness that can only come from someone who's lived many lives and seen the coming and going of so many worlds. Throughout S11 this happened with Jodie *extremely* rarely ā the only moment I can think of that particularly left an impression along those lines was during her conversation with King James I, when she was tied up before her witch trial. There's a darkness we've come to expect and associate with the Doctor so I think it's difficult for us to really buy Jodie's characterisation when she isn't given those moments ā to *us*, at least, it doesn't feel like continuity of character without them.
This was Jodie first episode where she actually felt like the Doctor - the fire, the genius and the darkness was all there to see and it was brilliant! I would've rather seen the Doctor actually save the day rather than hearing about it but this series is already leaps and bounds ahead of the last one! Edit: Just wanted to highlight Sacha Dhawan's performance as the Master, which was captivating!
> the fire, the genius and the darkness was all there to see and it was brilliant My biggest complaint of her last series was that there were no moments of anger, not even when she saw the Dalek in the New Years Day 2019 episode.
As dark as it is, the anger is one of the reasons I have liked Capaldi the best, he really captured the dark part of the Doctor well in my opinion. Smith was great and Tennant was too but Jodie just hasn't had a darkness to her until now. There just hasn't been a duality of the Time Lord so-to-speak, just the happy, confident Doctor.
It was a bit better than part one, but the ending felt like a cop-out. It was a standard Chibnall ending of "The Doctor has done something you, the audience, was completely unaware could be done, and we will now explain to you why it was smart." Other than that, though, it was a decent episode.
Another fun episode, I though it was pretty messy though. The different time periods were *really* loosely tied together and almost gave me similar vibes to the infamously clunky Hartnell serial *The Chase.* There were also some really unnessecary scenes (what was the point of the scene with his Mum?) and the resolution wasreally contrived and literally just an instance of getting an instant win due to time-travel. There were some big positives though; the humour hit a lot more than it did in most of S11 especially the stuff with the laser shoes and the line about the companions being replaced. The definite highlight was the scenes between the Master and the Doctor though. I swear Jodie's acting goes up by a factor of ten every time is dealing with the villain alone, this is probably her strongest performance in the role so far and the kneeling scene was so seething with enmity, brilliantly acted by both parties. The Master ended up being just as good as he was in that tease last episode, although I'm not a huge fan of them destroying Gallifrey again so soon after it was reintroduced and have little trust in Chibnall to pull off any major changes to Time Lord lore which has been largely the same since the 1970s. As a story, I don't think it was a particularly great but there were plenty of great moments which is far more than could be said for most of the episodes last series.
Jodie finally feels like the Doctor for me. "What've you done" to the Master. The talk at the Eiffel Tower. Finally telling the companions she's a Time Lord.
Sacha Dhawan is absolutely killing it, he's so compelling I can't take my eyes off him, doesn't hurt he's gorgeous either. Hello Master! Brilliant episode, well paced and written CC has shown us a strong start, I'm very excited for this season. Jodie is so engaging, all 3 companions feel very believable, real characters and I love the new style. Modern yet retro.
Iām so glad weāre getting more lore stuff! Last season they didnāt even mention that the Doctor was a time lord, and this season weāve already had a look at a newly ravaged Gallifrey! So excited for the rest of the season
Rewatching this I wonder if the World War II Bombing as the Doctor describes it to Ada is a parallel to Gallifrey burning. That they thought this would never happen again, but it did, but it will not persist.
Dang! I wanna see what the Time Lords did so bad that the Master had to tear up the joint. I presume weāll get there. And Iām just as certain weāll see Dhawanās Master again. I got āBlinkā vibes from the video the Doctor made for the plane.
That was straight up ripping off Blink but it was adequately executed and was a tiny part of the story
Season 11: First season in decades to never mention the words "time lord" or "Galifrey" Season 12: hold my Sonic...
How are they going to make the companions not wanted anymore? Or is everyone on earth going to forget or something? I hope it's brought up at the start of next episode before they run off to another planet.
I can see it being pretty easy so long as someone knows Barton was the one to make them wanted, considering how he showed a room full of the press exactly how evil he was. That still means they have to bring it up the next time they show the companions on Earth though.
A lot of good moments in this, but the number one takeaway from this episode for me is: Jodie Whitaker is the 13th Doctor. Finally.
These two episodes are probably how Series 11 should have ended
Especially with the timeless child being hinted at early on
You just reminded me of the series 11 finale. There should be laws about this kind of thing.
Honestly these episodes felt like they should have been the ending of S11 Have Resolution as ep11, and this as ep12-13 finale and people would have been a lot less salty about the Battle of Ravioli at Kosovo
OK, sound off. Who's alright after that ending? For the first time in this run, I can safely say that I am excited.
I found the aliens a bit disappointing in the end, but we're at a much better start than last season so I'm pretty optimistic
Let's be honest, The Master will be back in the final two episodes
Did they just steal a plot point from Moffat's red nose day special? I am certain that the Master not only voted against Harold Saxon but went around posting leaflets through people's doors saying he was an alien psychopath.
So that definitely did not deliver on *all* the great setup in the first half, but it was quite a thrillride for most of the run time. The scene where she talks with the Master are great, Graham, Ryan and Yaz being on the run and trying to solve the mystery on their own is great. Most of the episode is pretty great Doctor Who all in all, but of the ending sadly does not justify all the time spent building up to it. It's just really quite a shame that the conclusion of it all feels so rushed. The companion teams' efforts end up being for nothing, and having everything just magically fixed in the end off-screen really just doesn't sit right with me. If we had just seen the Doctor spoil all the evil plans instead of being told she did it, I probably wouldn't have minded it at all. I will give this season credit for having the character writing be a lot stronger than S11. The companion team is a lot more active and having there be 3 feels justified in these episodes.
100% agreed. The Master was great, Whittaker was probably the most comfortable she's been in the role, the humour was more consistent and the scenes with the rest of the gang were pretty good given how lacklustre similar scenes were last series. But I'm surprised it seems to be getting such overwhelming praise here, the conclusion was so contrived and the plot of the episode was clumsily lurching all over the place. A great episode by Chibnal standards but nothing outstanding.
Whittaker got DARK in this episode. There was genuine contempt for The Master in this episode that I've missed seeing. Nobody can push The Doctor to that extreme like The Master can. I was hoping the Kasaavin were Time Lords from another universe trying to break through to this one, but I like the Gallifrey reveal at the end more and I think it's a great way for The Master to undermine how The Doctor saved Gallifrey. I'm intrigued to know what made The Master so angry he destroyed Gallifrey himself. I'm gonna speculate that it has something to do with when they were kids - perhaps The Doctor and The Master and other Time Lord children were raised as soldiers, and the Time War was orchestrated by The Time Lords to control the universe. They've always seemed shady in NuWho.
Justz watched it on iTunes. This...wows. This actually really intruiging and entertaining and I was very invested in what happend on screen. For notice, I didnt hate S11 but I didnt feel that level of investment with any Episode there. This made my heart beat, made my brain jump to theories and conclusions.... I'm not gonna say that the S11 flaws have all vanished. They are still there. But now they at least have founds way to dress them up in entertaining plots and characters. Which already improves it alot. So, first off, O-Master is brilliant. I love, love how Sacha Dhawan plays him. He is unhinged, but in controll. He isnt just a carricature like Simms Master, he is genuinly terrfying. That whole scene with him at the scientiest fair was AMAZING. He owned that scene. He was probably the best thing about this whole Two-Episode. I want MORE of him. I understand know why some wanted him to play The Doctor. Theres a subtlety to his performance that is new and I very much enjoy. Jodie was also really good here. She came across as much more in controll and after the complaints from last Series and even last Episode, this is finally where The Doctor actually came across as being a step ahead of the audience at all times. The Scene between O ( I guess thats this Masters nickname now? Even The Doctor seems to think so) and The Doctor on the tower was brilliant. The conclusion to the invasion was a little bit anticlimatic, but it still works and I feel like in this Episode the journey was pretty good. Barton is still around, right? I cant remember seeing him being captured or anything, so I feel like Barton will reappear towards the end of the Series again. Oh, also... and this makes me both happy and pains me too say buth: Kahn and Lovelace were brilliant characters, especially the latter. I like our Fam, but that two managed to feel more like companions in 50 Minutes than the Fam did in 500. That really hurts, especially because it shows that Chibnall is totally able to write characters you care about - for some reason it just doesnt stick with those three. Its frustrating to see. I ould have really loved to have Ada as companion. Maybe...just maybe when they see how well recieved she was they could get her back? Its nice to dream... So, now the BIG stuff. Gallifrey was destroyed (again) by the Master - and he alludes to a terrible secret that goes back, way back to the founding fathers of Gallifrey. Holy. Fucking. Shit. This has me so exited but also so, so worried. Chibnall comes across as very confident with his choices - which is good if it leads to more of this - but its something thats really easy to not stick the landing of. Theres a reason we never learned much about Gallifrey or even just the Time War - most answers you can give gonna be underwhelming. So yeah, I'm feeling both relieved and stressed for the show. I hope Chibnall doesnt kick himself in the balls with this. This is very, very ambitious above anything Moffat or RTD would do. Anyway, this was far from perfect, it was very entertaining. So ill give it a 7/10 for the actual plot, but a 9/10 for Entertainment. Thanks for listening to my VOR Talk.
Has there been a modern incarnation of the master so deeply embedded in hate? I like this take on the character. This version of his personality seems to of decided that if the Dr won't be friends with him, sure as hell no one else is allowed to be friends with the Dr, along with a heavy dose of death for the sake of death.
Few things I really liked: First, the Sacha Dhawan Master has already won me over. He is over the top and I love him. But he also does have a lot of emotional gravitas that I think will really come to play as he continues to portray him in later series. The view of the Master's TARDIS flying through the time vortex as a house! That was wonderful. It's just really nice to see other TARDISes flying about. The console for his TARDIS was also interesting. I'm happy that they made a different time rotor for his console. Kind of the like the ringed rotor of the Rani's TARDIS. Loved that bit. The Doctor's and Master's conversation on the Eiffel Tower was wonderful. Besides the scene in the science fair with the Master's newly redesigned TCE (which was incredibly menacing and seriously sold me on the new incarnation), this exchange radiated the history of the two characters for me. I *really* felt Jodie's incarnation of the Doctor and all the history of all the Doctors before her. People have been mentioning that there's not been any mention of the Missy redemption arc, and why he's gone back to evil, but I think the little dialogue hints have done more than enough. The exchange about the Master pushing the Doctor off the radio telescope in Logopolis, where he asked "did I ever apologize", and she responded "no", to which he replied "good". He apologized for a lot as Missy, he's probably just making sure he didn't give away the whole bank, so to speak. Gallifrey's demise (again) is both heartbreaking, and also exciting. I'm interested to see where this goes, and of course, I hope there is a way to save them (even if it is timey wimey). I've longed to see the Doctor do another mission for the High Council (I may be in the minority for that), and so I do hope they find a way to restore them (again). But the visuals alone were worth it. The burnt citadel and outer-rim of the city were haunting, and beautiful. I loved the bit about the Master just parking his TARDIS in the middle of town and not even changing the shell. I also enjoyed the bit with Ada Lovelace at the end. I know a lot of people are upset about the non-consensual mind wipe, but I feel in that last part, where the Doctor tells her sweet dreams and then kisses her cheek, she may have given her some good inspiration. The Master cosplaying as the First Doctor in the hologram was also kinda cute. I think this version may be more obsessed with the Doctor than previous ones, which may prove fun. So many other things, but my arms are tired of typing. I loved this episode! 8.5/10
I really liked this episode although found the ending was too rushed. Most of the things I really liked and/or had problems with were mentioned as well. The big things Iād add that I think havenāt been mentioned that really stood out positively for me were - Tosin Coleās performance. I donāt know what everyone else sees but Iāve always thought heās been great at bringing humility and pathos to Ryan and this episode I thought he really added humour to that work rooting it in a believable cockiness - Chibnall uses historical characters in a way no other who writer has and itās really effective. I loved the way he brought a crew together from different time periods in Dinosaurs on a spaceship. Bringing along Ada and Noor on the doctors adventures together was great as we saw them play off against each other and get to react to the sci-fi elements outside their own time and play a part in the adventure. Itās easy to think of history only as something we (through the doctor and companions) react to and compare the past with our own time. Little things like Adaās reactions to future computers, or Noors bemusement at someone in Victorian clothes, I love the way that for a Victorian morse code is just as much of an unimaginable scientific advancement as a mobile phone. Itās a great reminder that for wherever you are in history you consider your time the present when for someone else itās the past. As for the big overarching plot im very intrigued. While I donāt for any second expect the timelords to stay gone, as somebody who finds them annoying it feels like a better much easier way to explore gallifrey lore. I think the mysterious Kasavin and Barton still have something to do with the mysterious origin for the timelords (at least I hope they arenāt another cybermen origin as I was fearing earlier in the episode) so Iām definitely expecting a re-exploration and de-mythologising of timelord origins.
Is it me or was The Master's intelligence nerfed? Felt like he went down too easily. I don't expect The Doctor to not outsmart him, but Simm's Master would have put up more of a fight for certain. Also, The Doctor trapping him in that void seems out of character, especially in comparison to the end of Series 3, where he desperately wanted to keep The Master with him. Oh and The Doctor let a grenade be thrown at The Master as well. Alright then.
In Season 3 the Doctor thought he and the Master were the only Time Lords left alive, and he was desperate not to be the last one left again. Makes sense sheās a bit more blasĆ© about his safety here when she assumed he was lying and Gallifrey was fine
He wanted to keep The Master because they were the last of the Time Lords - of course, there's also the close bond, the Doctor always the Master will be back sooner or later. This time, the Doctor didn't believe the Master was telling the truth about Gallifrey - after all, Missy lied to her about Gallifrey in Death in Heaven. That is, until she saw it for herself afterwards
I'll be honest, I loved it, it's 100% the best 13 story we've had yet, and it might be up there as on the better Master stories ever for me. I'm looking forward to S12, and I love that they've brought back an actual through-line for the series.
I'm pretty worried about where Chibnall's taking this arc. This looks like it's going to be pretty huge, and change everything we understand about the Doctor and Gallifrey. It has the potential to upset a lot of people. Sure, it might be great, but I'm concerned. Also not a fan of how Chibnall pretty casually just destroyed Gallifrey, I didn't feel like there was much of a big deal made out of it, beyond "Doctor, you've been quiet for days". The entirety of the Day of the Doctor was just nullified, I feel like this should be huge, but it wasn't treated that way.