The Master Escapes

[Paul Monk]

It was interesting looking back at Season 19 because its made me remember that its never explained how the Master escapes in the stories he's in. I think they get away with it in the Pertwee era because the Master hops off in his TARDIS or something similar but during the 80's virtually ever story he's in, sees him in some dire situation or other at the end, from which there appears no escape. Yet there he is a few stories later, popping up as if nothing had happened.
The worst offender is when he pops up in Mark of the Rani even though he was last seen being fried in Planet of Fire.

So what I'd like to know is, how does the Master escape each time? What ingenious plan does he use to get away?

[Si Hunt]

My theory is that "Planet of Fire", arguably the most "final" Master demise (because he burns to death in front of us) is actually the final end of the character (at least until his numismaton ashes are taken to Skaro) so every other time we see him it takes place first in his timeline.

In "Mark" he escapes, the novel tells us, because the T-Rex grows so big its spine snaps against the roof of the Rani's TARDIS.

"Castrovalva"'s demise is the Master having his shirt pulled a bit by some imaginary people, so I'm sure he escaped from that somehow.

And I don't know where he wound up at the end of "Time Flight" as that would require watching it to find out.

The rest was easy.

Si.

[Richard Brinck-Johnsen]

Except that we do actually see him standing in a cage (having seemingly regenerated into Gordon Tipple) before he's atomised by the faux Daleks voiced by David Sax so he must somehow escape from PoF.

I can't wait till he somehow returns from being stuck in the time war with Rassilon and the others (if I got to write it both John Simm and Derek Jacobi would be required although I'd somehow rejig things so that Don Warrington was back as the Big Finish version of Rassilon).

[Si Hunt]

It's about time they recast the Master again isn't it?

Si.

[Richard Brinck-Johnsen]

It'd have to be someone roughly Matt Smith age for symmetry as Simm was quite well suited to Tennant.

How about Dominic Cooper?

"If the Doctor can be young and strangely hot in an angular kind of way then I shall and young and hotter!"

[Si Hunt]

I'd go against type and cast a 90 year old woman. No-one would see that coming.

Si.

[Simon R]

I couldn't stand John Simm and his over the top antics so anyone would be an improvement on him!

[Ian Lethbridge-Stewart]

I couldn't stand John Simm and his over the top antics so anyone would be an improvement on him!

I actually really liked John Simm's performance and characterisation; the problem for me is that I can't believe that he is suppossed to be The Master!!!
If he were some new megalomaniac character then great but as he was meant to be The Master I find it almost impossible to watch!!!

A real shame - if only he was meant to have been someone else - it kind of seems like great performance wasted by virtue of the fact that it's been added to the ethos of an existing character where it doesn't really gel.

Yes, I'm not sure I'm getting my point across very well....errr.........

Yes, well.....what Simon said!!!!

[J.R. Southall]

Personally, it doesn't matter a jot to me how the Master escapes to live another day, just as I don't mind all the different explanations for the fall of Atlantis, or the naming of the SIDRATs and DARDISes - none of Doctor Who really makes sense!

So I just go with it, in the same way I'd go with it with Kenny from South Park. And Rory. And Amy, and the eleventh Doctor.

[SiHart]

The Master escaped from Xeriphas using Kamelion. Somehow.

[Zbigniev Hamson]

Personally, it doesn't matter a jot to me how the Master escapes to live another day, just as I don't mind all the different explanations for the fall of Atlantis, or the naming of the SIDRATs and DARDISes - none of Doctor Who really makes sense!

So I just go with it, in the same way I'd go with it with Kenny from South Park. And Rory. And Amy, and the eleventh Doctor.

Far be it for me to suggest enduring Fury from the Deep again (although I suppose we all will do once the "new" episode is released), but is there actually anything in it that contradicts The Time Monster? Are there any other Atlantis stories I'm forgetting?

[Zbigniev Hamson]

Okay there was Azal too, but I can't remember what he said either.

[J.R. Southall]

The Underwater Menace. My point though, was that it doesn't really matter if there's a contradiction (as long as it's not something ridiculous, like the Master actually saying he escaped from Planet of Fire by, I dunno, cleaning his teeth), if the story that follows is worthwhile in and of itself.

[Zbigniev Hamson]

Yeah I got your point, I was just asking was there even a contradiction in those Atlantis stories

[Andrew Curnow]

I always assumed that the Master's escape from Castrovalva is because all the Castrovalvan people suddenly disappeared along with the town, so I guess he was suddenly left alone with his TARDIS (ie, the only two real things in there).

But it's a shame about Planet of Fire - it would have been quite a brave decision if JN-T had kept him 'dead' then, or at least rested the character for a good long while before actually making an 'event story' out of his return. One could, I suppose, argue he'd absorbed just enough Numismaton gas to allow him to cope with a bit of burning, before escaping to his TARDIS... except that there's no hint of anything like that onscreen!

[Stuart Wallis]

I couldn't stand John Simm and his over the top antics so anyone would be an improvement on him!

Well said Simon!

[Richard Brinck-Johnsen]

I actually really like John Simm's Master I just don't think he'd work well with Matt's Doctor.
The alternative to my earlier proposition would be to wait until we have an adult playing the Doctor again and just bring him back just like the perpetual Ainley incarnation of the 80s.