Doctor Who: Why the reunion between Paul McGann’s Doctor and Eric Roberts’s Master is huge
By James Aggas
Day of the Master is already exciting enough as the biggest multi-Master story yet in Doctor Who history. But the reunion between Paul McGann’s Doctor and Eric Roberts’s Master is especially major…
Ravenous 4, the final volume of the Doctor Who audio series featuring the Eighth Doctor, features an incredibly exciting idea. The two-part finale, Day of the Master, is set to feature four different incarnations of the Doctor’s greatest enemy. Obviously, the idea of the Doctor facing so many Masters at once is exciting enough already.
But perhaps one Master that’s particularly exciting to see included in this story is the one that means the most to the Eighth Doctor. In this case, the first incarnation that he faced back in the TV movie, as played by Eric Roberts.
By the time this story is released, it will have been twenty-three years since McGann’s Doctor and Roberts’s Master had last appeared in a story together. What will the Doctor’s reaction be to facing this particular incarnation of his greatest enemy once more?
Let’s be honest, the TV movie isn’t exactly the most popular of stories. It’s not terrible, (it introduced Paul McGann as the Doctor, after all,) but it is definitely flawed. And there are more than a few fans who weren’t too keen on Eric Roberts as the Master.
But I must admit, this is a reunion I’m really excited about. While I do think that Macqueen’s Master is the best fit for McGann’s Doctor, Roberts was there at the very beginning of the Eighth Doctor’s era.
There’s also the fact that the Eighth Doctor has been through a lot since this particular Master last saw him. Macqueen’s reaction to Eight’s new look in Dark Eyes 2 is brilliant to listen to. But what will Roberts make of him?
Eric Roberts returned back in January in The Diary of River Song: Series Five.
(Image credit: The Diary of River Song/Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.
Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)
Return
He also had a pretty decent re-introduction in The Diary of River Song: Series Five. In the TV movie, he seemed to be utterly obliterated. However, (and despite the fact that it seemed to ignore Mastermind, which is one of the greatest Master stories ever,) his re-introduction in River’s own series was overall a decent one.
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One thing that leapt out about his performance in The Lifeboat and the Deathboat was how he’s less over the top and theatrical than he was in the TV movie. This Master is also a lot more subtle in his schemes, too.
This actually suits this incarnation really well. As much as him “dressing for the occasion” completely overshadowed the rest of Roberts’s performance, the Master’s manipulation of Chang Lee in the TV movie was interesting to watch. And that’s the side that we got in The Diary of River Song, but with even more restraint. I wouldn’t say that Eric Roberts is now my favorite Master on audio, but I did enjoy him a lot more, overall.
Maybe that’s a reason why I’m looking forward to round two of McGann’s Doctor versus Roberts’s Master. While I’m sure all the Masters will get their share of the story, I can’t help but wonder if, for Eight, at least, Roberts’s incarnation will be the main focus in Day of the Master. I can’t wait to find out.
Next. Tremas – the worst “in-joke” in the show’s history?. dark
Are you looking forward to the reunion between Paul McGann’s Doctor and Eric Roberts’s Master? Do you think it will be a major aspect of the two-part story? What are your own predictions for Day of the Master? Let us know in the comments below.