Doctor Who: Dark Gallifrey Master! Part 3 from Big Finish Review

At the end of Dark Gallifrey Master Part 2, the Eighth Doctor appeared as a shadow. His reputation as the arrow man who shoots and tries to kill them expertly was cemented by the “Vector” Master in the minds of the young people marooned in a desolate place. As the final part of the story plays out, the focus shifts to the consequences of Orzel’s breakdown and the timely intervention of the 8th Doctor to try and fix things.

I must admit it’s not a moment too soon. Up to this point, the Master has manipulated the situation so skillfully that the students, in their desperation to go home, shook off the trappings of normal, civilised behaviour. Everyone, bar probably Soolindra, has been reduced to a survival setting, doing the unthinkable and purposely breaking Orzel’s mind with various violent scenarios.

The final part of this story continues the phases introduced by the Mind Shield, and number nine is described as Forgiveness, with a mature Gamara realising as she retells the experience to the Mind Sheild she desperately wants it. Looking for forgiveness implies knowledge of your own guilt and all of the students became culpable regarding the treatment of Orzel but Gamara completes the process eventually locking a terrified Orzel in a storage box and walking away. Orzel’s begging her not to do it twisted these listeners’ emotions very uncomfortably. Gamara then returned to Gallifrey.

I do especially like the exploration by Liz Hopley of quite complex ideas between the Mind Shield and Gamara as to whether it’s possible on the part of a perpetrator to be able to do enough good in their life afterwards in penance. It’s probably my favourite part of the whole story, their back and forth. There’s been such a journey through the phases between them that it conveyed an intimacy of the confessional as the story progressed between them. It’s strong writing, as at the same time, Gamara creates her justification for what happened to Orzel. It’s to distance the horror of Orzel’s later experiences and being left at the mercy of the Master. I wasn’t expecting the revelation about the Mind Shield’s identity, but it brings many more layers to the story.

I should have guessed that Orzel, newly regenerated with all the rage of the injustice, the ill treatment that her fellow students heaped on her, would become the instrument of the Master and fulfil the Mother Quiver legend. The Master had seeded this through “auto-suggestion” very early with the students. You have to hand it to the Master; he is like a relentless cat that is playing with an injured bird and digging his claws in deeper each time.

There are some disturbing scenes as the Master’s plans, to solve “regenerative dissonance”, come to fruition as Orzel starts to regenerate. The regeneration sounds very painful compared to the TV version we’ve seen of the Doctor. Orzel in post-regeneration is completely vulnerable to the Master’s influence, and it’s interesting how he “grooms” her to become a war-mongering Time Lady.

I’ve used the word terrifying extensively for where the students go emotionally in this story, but the process with her screams as Orzel regenerates conveys the painful process so well that it stays with you. When it’s over, the quiet, shy person has been replaced with a raging soul as her mind seems broken, uncontrolled in her thirst, and it reminds me of the furies of Greek mythology. Her path of wreaking vengeance and retribution becomes set with a little encouragement from the Master. 

In the past, the last survivors of the Master’s experiment struggle to navigate a fractured landscape and the threat of the Doctor.In the present, Gamara must confront the consequences of her buried truths, as the monstrous Mother Quiver returns to claim her final victim.

The arrival of the 8th Doctor, however, is a really welcome shift of the scales as it is only the Doctor, he is the one, who can stop the Master. The reappearance of the Doctor has been thwarted throughout the story, necessarily, I suppose, to be able to explore the Master’s manipulation and chaos that he has created. Paul McGann seems to really love playing his incarnation, and I haven’t seen enough of the 8th Doctor to work out all his complexities, but I like the firm resolve that he brings to help others.

The Holmes and Moriarty cat and mouse game kicks in for this part as the Doctor works to reverse the damage, and it is always interesting to go through that battle as a listener, although it is at the expense of knowing the impact of the experience on Tabreen, Torliss and Borrin.

I’m glad that some of the students seem to survive, but then it does end in tragedy anyway, as the Master kills his experiment. It is explained that the Master wanted to prevent what the students would become and achieve in the future. I’m not sure I would credit the Master as being that interested in the lives of a few students, but he would do it for kicks just to mess with his home planet. Eric Roberts continues to excel as the Master.

The 8th Doctor describes his manipulation as “viciousness and charm”, and I’m not sure that it is that charming, really. This incarnation seems psychotic in a sly way, as he is calculating and cold. The American twang of the Master’s accent lures people in with a deceptive drawl.

In conclusion, this three-part story was far more engaging than I expected. It pushed a particular focus on identity and guilt. I found the two-step approach of linking back to the past to the younger students and also the present with Gamara and the Mind Shield interesting, as it allowed different layers to be revealed, and each part had a cliff hanger, which left me wondering where the story was going.

Having the 8th Doctor only in part 3 was probably a good decision for dramatic purposes, as it allowed the story to fully explore the machinations of the Master and go on a listener journey where I felt quite uncomfortable, especially in the second part. I would really recommend this story if you love the Eric Roberts Master in fully bonkers control mode.

You can pick up Dark Gallifrey: Master! Part 3 from Big Finish now on CD and digital formats.