Doctor Who - The Keeper of Traken Review

Doctor Who:

The Keeper of Traken

By Johnny Byrne

“A new body…at last.”

The Doctor and Adric are invited to Traken or diverted to Traken by the Keeper.   The Keeper needs The Doctor to help him to prevent evil to take over the source when he dies.  It appears that a calcified statue called Melkur that had appeared on Traken many years ago hasn’t desolved into the ground as most things that are evil do.  The Keeper is worried that when he dies that somehow Melkur would find a way to get possession of the source and threaten all the tranquility of the Traken Union.

Goodbye to 12 - Doctor Who - The Doctor Falls Review

We celebrate the Peter Capaldi era by revisiting the 12th Doctor's adventures as we count down the days to his last adventure.

Doctor Who:
The Doctor Falls
By Steven Moffat

“No! No! When I say no, you turn back around! Hey! I'm going to be dead in a few hours, so before I go, let's have this out, you and me, once and for all. Winning? Is that what you think it's about? I'm not trying to win. I'm not doing this because I want to beat someone, or because I hate someone, or because, because I want to blame someone. It's not because it's fun and God knows it's not because it's easy. It's not even because it works, because it hardly ever does. I do what I do, because it's right! Because it's decent! And above all, it's kind. It's just that. Just kind. If I run away today, good people will die. If I stand and fight, some of them might live. Maybe not many, maybe not for long. Hey, you know, maybe there's no point in any of this at all, but it's the best I can do, so I'm going to do it. And I will stand here doing it till it kills me. You're going to die too, some day. How will that be? Have you thought about it? What would you die for? Who I am is where I stand. Where I stand, is where I fall. Stand with me. These people are terrified. Maybe we can help, a little. Why not, just at the end, just be kind?”

“The Doctor Falls” is the final episode of Series 10 and for once it was a pretty decent episode but it wasn’t great.  Like most of the big series ending stories they try to jam so much into the story. Case in point we have the Cybermen and two versions of the Master.  With a cluttered cast this doesn’t really bog the story down as for the most part the Master and Missy plus the Cybermen were not really featured all that much in the story.  For the most part it was a story about Bill and The Doctor getting to grips with what had happened to her.  Bill had been converted into a Mondasian Cyberman and she’s not all that sure that The Doctor can change her back to human.  She also lets him have it about making her wait for ten years and that it’s his fault that this happened to her.  To a degree she’s right and it’s a wonder that things that happened to Bill hasn’t happened to the companion more often.

Goodbye to 12 - Doctor Who - World Enough and Time Review

We celebrate the Peter Capaldi era by revisiting the 12th Doctor's adventures as we count down the days to his last adventure.

Doctor Who:
World Enough and Time
By Steven Moffat

“I waited for you.”

A 4 mile spaceship that is tinkering next to a black hole and the escape velocity has made time a bit out of whack.  The gravity of the black hole has manipulated time that the part of the ship next to the black hole is moving very slow while the bottom of the spaceship is moving fast.  This becomes a problem later on when The Doctor figures it out when he is desperate to get back to Bill who was shot with a laser right through her chest. What lead us to this point was that the TARDIS landed on the spaceship to conduct a test for Missy.  The Doctor picked a distress call and with the aid of Bill and Nardole will go with Missy to investigate what is wrong while he stays in the TARDIS monitoring to make sure Missy can be good.   Apparently the travelers were detected and what is on the bottom of the ship seems to be coming up to the top to take whoever is human and whatever it is has the janitor Jorj frighten enough to kill whoever is human and to The Doctors horror he does.

Promo Pics for Doctor Who - The Doctor Falls

Doctor Who - World Enough and Time Promo Pics

Doctor Who Series 10 Finale Promo Pic

The BBC have released a new promo pic for the Series 10 finale that starts this weekend with World Enough and Time and concludes with an hour long episode The Doctor Falls.  The promo pic does look a bit familiar as it is the same style as the 50th anniversary special poster.

John Simm to return as The Master in Doctor Who Series 10

The BBC have announced today that John Simm will be returning to Doctor Who in Series 10 as he will be taking on Peter Capaldi's Doctor along side Missy.  This should be pretty interesting to say the least.   Here is the full press release.

John Simm to return as The Master in Doctor Who

John Simm will return as The Master to battle The Doctor (Peter Capaldi), new companion Bill Potts (Pearl Mackie) and Nardole (Matt Lucas) in the forthcoming series of Doctor Who.
John Simm says: "I can confirm that it’s true, thanks to the power of time travel I’m back. It’s always a pleasure to work with this great team of people and I can’t wait for you all to see what The Master gets up to in the next series."

Steven Moffat, writer and executive producer, says: "Nothing stays secret for long on Doctor Who but you'll have to wait a little bit longer to see exactly what The Master is up to and how he makes his return to face the Doctor. It’s been a huge pleasure to have fan favourites John Simm and Michelle Gomez face to face in the same role! It’s not often you get to see a solo personality clash."

John Simm was last seen as The Master on New Year’s Day 2010. Viewers will have to wait to see exactly when and how The Master will return to the new series, which starts on Saturday 15 April at 7.20pm on BBC One.

As previously announced, Doctor Who series ten will also star Michelle Gomez as Missy - a later regeneration of The Master. Other returning foes include the Daleks, the Ice Warriors and - returning for the first time in almost fifty years - the Mondasian Cybermen. An exciting line up of new faces and adversaries will debut across the series, including adorable-but-deadly Emojibots and David Suchet as The Landlord.

Doctor Who returns to BBC One with episode one The Pilot at 7.20pm on Saturday 15 April.

Doctor Who - The Ultimate Foe Review

Celebrating 30 years of Colin Baker's season 23 story The Trial of a Time Lord

Doctor Who:

The Trial of a Time Lord

The Ultimate Foe

By Robert Holmes Episode 13

Pip and Jane Baker Episode 14

“In all my travellings throughout the universe I have battled against evil, against power-mad conspirators. I should have stayed here. The oldest civilisation, decadent, degenerate and rotten to the core. Ha! Power-mad conspirators, Daleks, Sontarans, Cybermen, they're still in the nursery compared to us. Ten million years of absolute power, that's what it takes to be really corrupt.”

After the turn of events from Terror of the Vervoids  The Doctor is now on trial for genocide to go along with the charges of meddling.  The Inquisitor tells The Doctor that he can call witnesses to help his cause but how can he get them as they are all scattered throughout space and time.   When suddenly Mel and Glitz appear at the trial and this turn of events catches The Valeyard by surprise.  

Then a more shocking turn of events as The Master appears on the Matrix screen offering to help The Doctor.  The Master shows proof that The Doctor is correct that the Matrix can be entered by anyone and events can be altered as he shows the key of the Matrix he has that has dumbfounded the Keeper of the Matrix.  The Master beckons the Time Lords to let Sabalom Glitz give his testimony.  Glitz explains that on Ravalox he was there to steal the secrets of the Matrix that the Sleepers had stolen.  It appears that the tide might be turning for The Doctor.

Doctor Who - Details on The Two Masters

This month's Main Range release sees the continuation of The Master Trilogy as we get two Masters teaming up.  It's up to the 7th Doctor to stop the dastardly duo. You can order this release from the Big Finish website.
https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/the-two-masters-1052

The future is dying. All over the universe, gaps are beginning to appear. From the space lanes terrorised by the rag-tag remnants of the once-mighty Rocket Men, to the empire of the Gorlans, stricken by a terrible civil war. Gaps in space/time, portents of the end of everything.

Only three beings might prevent it. The Doctor, a renegade Time Lord from Gallifrey. The Master, another renegade Time Lord from Gallifrey. And another Master, yet another renegade Time Lord from Gallifrey.

One Doctor. Two Masters. What could possibly go wrong?

Written By: John Dorney
Directed By: Jamie Anderson

Cast
Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor), Geoffrey Beevers (The Old Master), Alex Macqueen (The New Master), Lauren Crace (Jemima), Russ Bain (Blore/Baron Jarvill), Esther Hall (Tazmeena/Bauza/Mum), James Garnon (Sebastian/Gorlan), Neil Edmond (Sarlon/Gorlan/Time Lord). Other parts portrayed by members of the cast.

Producer David Richardson
Script Editor Alan Barnes
Executive Producers Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs

Doctor Who - Details For "Vampire of the Mind"

The Master Trilogy continues this month with a showdown with the 6th Master as the Alex MacQueen Master takes center stage.  You can order this audio adventure from the Big Finish website.
https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/vampire-of-the-mind-1051

Somewhere off the South Coast of England, there’s a lonely island. On that island stands a solitary castle, long since abandoned – haunted, they say. But the truth is, that castle houses something far worse than mere ghosts.

The castle is what lies at the end of a trail followed by the Doctor in search of several missing scientists – all of them connected to the top secret Dominus Institute and its elusive CEO, Sir Andrew Gobernar…

But the Doctor will soon discover that he’s the one being haunted, by a ghost from his past… or perhaps, his future.

Written By: Justin Richards
Directed By: Jamie Anderson

Cast
Colin Baker (The Doctor), Alex Macqueen (The Master), John Standing (Professor Threadstone), Kate Kennedy (Heather Threadstone), Neil Edmond (Boatman/Guard/Blank), Catriona Knox (Landlady/Blank), Elliot Levey (Gobernar/Blank). Other parts portrayed by members of the cast.

Producer David Richardson
Script Editor Alan Barnes
Executive Producers Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs

Doctor Who - Details For "And You Will Obey Me"

This month's main range release begins The Master Trilogy.  First up is an encounter with The 5th Doctor.  You can order this audio adventure from the Big Finish website.
https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/and-you-will-obey-me-1050

The Master: wanted for crimes without number, across five galaxies.

The Master: escaped his pursuers. Last known location: rural Hexford, England, Earth.

The Master: dead and buried in an unmourned grave, in a lonely churchyard.

Apparently.

Written By: Alan Barnes
Directed By: Jamie Anderson

Cast
Peter Davison (The Doctor), Geoffrey Beevers (The Master), Sheena Bhattessa (Annie), Alex Foley (Colin), Peta Cornish (Helen/Jade Nymph), Russ Bain (Mikey/Grigor), Tessa Coates (Janine), Nick Ellsworth (Gomphus/Auctioneer). Other parts portrayed by the cast.

Producer David Richardson
Script Editor Alan Barnes
Executive Producers Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs

Doctor Who - Details on a Masterly Jago and Litefoot Series 11

This month sees the 11th series for Jago and Litefoot and this time they have to go up against the toughest enemy they have ever encountered.  But they will not have to do it alone.  You can order this release from the Big Finish website.
https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/jago-litefoot-series-11-1386

1. Jago and Son by Nigel Fairs

With missing persons, dead bodies and a Satanist cult to deal with, both Litefoot and Jago need help. Professor Litefoot finds himself working with Jean Bazemore, an old archaeologist friend. Jago, however, finds he is assisted by someone he never even knew existed – his own son. Or is he? Can Jago be sure of anything?

But there is more to events than the detectives know. An alien menace is stirring underground. Once again, Jago and Litefoot find themselves fighting for their lives…

2. Maurice by Matthew Sweet

As he tightens his grip on Inspector Quick, the Master becomes interested in the young composer Maurice Ravel. For his part, Ravel befriends Professor Litefoot. But is anyone truly who they seem or able to control their own destiny and actions?

When Litefoot goes missing, it’s up to Jago to investigate. But the Professor finds himself in a nightmare landscape where reality and fiction seem to have merged. Will he ever manage to escape? And if the real Maurice Ravel is trapped with Litefoot, who exactly is walking the streets of London?

3. The Woman in White by Simon Barnard and Paul Morris

The great actor Henry Irving is not as great as he once was. In fact, he’s awful – a shadow of his former self. Worried that something may be terribly wrong, Irving’s assistant Bram Stoker enlists the help of an old friend – Henry Gordon Jago.

With Irving’s state deteriorating, Professor Litefoot also faces a challenge. He performs an autopsy on a man who has had all his bodily fluids drained from him. Can the detectives discover the connection between the great actor and the mysterious dehydrated corpse? And how does it relate to the Woman in White who supposedly haunts Irving’s theatre?

4. Masterpiece by Justin Richards

The Master’s plan is nearing completion – and he is sure that Jago and Litefoot will help him bring it to fruition. With Inspector Quick increasingly under the Master’s influence, the Infernal Investigators find themselves tired and fatigued, as if their very life force is being drained away...

With the help of Ellie together with stage hypnotist Madame Sosostris and her assistant Mr Nocturne, Jago and Litefoot finally track down the Master. But as they make their way towards his lair, the Time Lord's true scheme is revealed.

Written By: Nigel Fairs, Matthew Sweet, Simon Barnard, Paul Morris and Justin Richards
Directed By: Lisa Bowerman

Cast
Christopher Benjamin (Henry Gordon Jago), Trevor Baxter (Professor George Litefoot), Ellie Higson (Lisa Bowerman), Conrad Asquith (Inspector Quick), Geoffrey Beevers (The Master), James Joyce (Henry Gordon Jago Jr), Rowena Cooper (Jean Bazemore), Andy McKeane (Maurice Ravel), Jonathan Forbes (Bram Stoker), Edward de Souza (Sir Henry Irving), Robbie Stevens (Mr Manners/Stanley Harker), Maggie Ollerenshaw (Dame Wilhelmina Gussett/Woman in White), Rachel Atkins (Madame Sosotris/Bishop) and Colin Baker as The Doctor.

Producer David Richardson

Script Editor Justin Richards
Executive Producers Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs

Doctor Who - Big Finish To Do The Two Master's Trilogy

Now this great news for fans of The Master.  Big Finish will be doing a Master trilogy that has the two Big Finish Masters joining forces to take on The Doctor.  It will span three audio adventures that will feature Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy. This will take place in the Main Range so no extra money for a box set will be spent on this thankfully.  The full details are below.

This summer, the Doctor will face the most deadly duel with two versions of his oldest enemy. Geoffrey Beevers and Alex Macqueen are The Two Masters!

Doctor Who - The Deadly Assassin Review

With the return of Gallifrey this Saturday we at The Gallifrayan Gazette thought we take a look back at a couple of stories that took place on Gallifrey.

Doctor Who:
The Deadly Assassin
By Robert Holmes

“Through the millennia, the Time Lords of Gallifrey led a life of peace and ordered calm, protected from all threats from lesser civilizations by their great power.
But this was to change. Suddenly and terribly, the Time Lords faced the most dangerous crisis in their long history ...”

The Doctor has returned to Gallifrey and he doesn’t get the welcome he was expecting.  First the TARDIS is surrounded by the Chancellor guard and they are awaiting the key to break in.  The Doctor gives them the slip and proceeds to head to the capitol when he is caught by a guard.  A man in the shadows helps The Doctor out by shooting the guard allowing The Doctor to escape and make the guards think he is in the tower all the while The Doctor sneaks back to his TARDIS.

Doctor Who - Planet of Fire Review

With Missy/ The Master returning we thought it would be good to take a look back at a few of the classic series stories that feature The Master.

Doctor Who:
Planet of Fire
By Peter Grimwade

“Kamelion, my slave, resist the girl. Have I travelled a billion light years through time and space to be thwarted by this brat? Resist the girl! Kill her immediately.”

The Doctor and Turlough are responding to a distress call which takes them to Earth.  It appears the signal is coming from an artifact that is alien in nature.   They find the artifact by chance when Turlough rescues a drowning Peri.  Peri had the artifact in a bag to take to shore and Turlough notices it’s from Trion and tries to hide it from The Doctor who appears before he could hide it.  In the TARDIS Kamelion set the coordinates for Sarn a planet that is in danger of exploding from the volcanos that are on it.

On Sarn Kamelion is in better contact with The Master and takes his form.  The Master needs the healing factors of the gas from the volcanos to heal him from an accident he had with the Tissue Compression Eliminator.  The problem is The Doctor is in the way and causing a rift from those that believe in Logar and those that don’t.  The Master after chasing Peri around Sarn makes his presence known and to the horror of The Doctor wants to use the people of Sarn for his own bidding.  So it’s up to The Doctor to take on The Master yet again and save the people of Sarn from being killed on a planet that is nearing its end.

Doctor Who - The Keeper of Traken Review

With Missy/ The Master returning we thought it would be good to take a look back at a few of the classic series stories that feature The Master.

Doctor Who:
The Keeper of Traken
By Johnny Byrne

“A new body at last.”

The Doctor and Adric are invited to Traken or diverted to Traken by the Keeper.   The Keeper needs The Doctor to help him to prevent evil to take over the source when he dies.  It appears that a calcified statue called Melkur that had appeared on Traken many years ago hasn’t desolved into the ground as most things that are evil do.  The Keeper is worried that when he dies that somehow Melkur would find a way to get possession of the source and threaten all the tranquility of the Traken Union.

Doctor Who - The Daemons Review

With Missy/ The Master returning we thought it would be good to take a look back at a few of the classic series stories that feature The Master.

Doctor Who:
The Daemons
By Guy Leopold

“Chap with the wings there. Five rounds rapid.”

There are strange things going on at Devils End.  There is an archeologist dig at The Devils Hump where a witch by the name of Miss Hawthorne is trying to get Professor Horner to stop as she believes great evil will be released.  While catching wind of this The Doctor and Jo head off to Devils End to Devils End and see if they can put a stop to it as The Doctor believes that Miss Hawthorne is indeed right.   To make matters worse The Master is posing as a Vicar for the town and is hoping that whatever is in Devils Hump will give him unlimited power.   The Master is already using black magic to help his cause and using the gargoyle Bok to do his bidding and to help keep a strangle hold on his control over the town.

What lies in Devils Hump is the alien Azal that looks like a version of the devil.  As they open the hatch of what happens to be his ship The Doctor tries in vain to stop them but is too late as the cavern is hit with a cold blast of air which freezes The Doctor and signals the coming of Azal as he is now free to roam the countryside.  So it’s up to The Doctor, when he thaws out, and UNIT to save all of humanity from Azal and The Master.

Doctor Who - The Claws of Axos Review

With Missy/ The Master returning we thought it would be good to take a look back at a few of the classic series stories that feature The Master.

Doctor Who:
Claws of Axos
By Bob Baker and 
Dave Martin

“The claws of Axos are already deeply embedded in the Earth's carcass! Soon it'll activate its nutrition cycle and the feast will begin. The Axonite'll cease to be dormant and it'll continue to grow, gentlemen, until every living thing is consumed.”

A space ship is heading to earth and UNIT is on alert.  The Doctor is curious of its nature but as usual he gets put off by the humans that want to destroy it.  In particular with a Mr. Chinn from the Ministry that orders a missile strike.   When that fails and the missiles given the abort order UNIT goes to the area where the ship has landed which is near a power plant.

Doctor Who - Terror of the Autons Review

With Missy/ The Master returning we thought it would be good to take a look back at a few of the classic series stories that feature The Master.

Doctor Who:
Terror of the Autons
By Robert Holmes

“You are incorrigibly meddlesome, Doctor, but we've always felt that your hearts are in the right places. But be careful. The Master has learnt a great deal since you last met him.”

There is a new threat for The Doctor.  The renegade Time Lord The Master has made his way to Earth to cause havoc and to take it over.  This time his allies are the Nestene and their plastic servants the Autons. In exchange for the power he craves The Master helps to hatch the Nestenes plan to take over Earth.  The Master has taken up residency in the plastics factory owned by the Farrel family.   The Doctor is warned about the Master coming to Earth by a pompous Time Lord who says The Master is not the same push over as before.

Doctor Who - Utopia Review

The Master returned eight years ago today. We look back at his NuWho return in Utopia.

Doctor Who:
Utopia
By Russell T. Davies

“I… Am…The Master.”

The Doctor, Martha and Jack travel so far in the future that they literally have ended up towards the end of the universe.  They have gone so far that Time Lords never ventured there when they were still in existence.   The last humans are trying to get to Utopia with the help of a rocket ship that Professor Yana is trying to make lift off.

The Doctor offers his services and with the help with some power from the TARDIS the ship is ready to launch towards Utopia.  The Future Kind do not want the humans to leave for Utopia because then there would not be any humans for them to eat anymore and they are hungry.  So they have an agent that is trying to sabotage the launch.   The Doctor and Jack fix that problem but have encountered another when Martha informs The Doctor that Yana has a watch just like he does and she suspects he is another Time Lord.  She is correct in her guess but unfortunately for them that Time Lord happens to be The Master who is now reborn to wreak havoc on the universe once again.