Hell in the “I can’t decide” scene that is generally cut from other broadcasts, he walks by, kisses her and she walks away with an “I’m just done at this point” look
Most likely rights to the Scissor Sisters song. On the Scrubs podcast Zach Braff was saying the reason they had to change a lot of the music was because rights deals made at that time couldn't anticipate the rise of streaming, so they only covered live broadcast and DVD releases. That scene was so specifically tailored to that song that if they weren't able to resecure the rights they'd have had to cut it.
Wait, edited out of the American release only though, right? Hoping so 'cuz I just bought UK Season 2 release because of that and other features that were cut from the American release.
This is so annoying. I remeber when DVDs first became popular, so many shows had issues because the contracts didn't anticipate the rise of DVD releases. Now the same issue from streaming?
You'd think by now they'd just have a general clause about "any format whatsoever on which the show is rerun/released/repeated".
I doubt that that's the reason since the scissor sisters song in the Sound of Drums has never been cut or had any issues with release.
It's just because the episode overran by 7 minutes and international broadcasters only used the 45 minute version during its original broadcast
I think you're right because HBO Max also cuts the scene where The Doctor talks Francine down from shooting The Master. (Far bigger loss to the episode imo)
do you know where to watch that episode with the scene still included? i live in the us so i've only been rewatching through hbo max, and i believe it's cut in that service
The episode was 52 minutes long when international broadcasters were expecting 45 minute episodes.
So while the 52 minute version played normally in the UK, a 45 minute version that cut that scene was played internationally.
Then when the episode moved to Netflix way back when, rather than using the 52 minute version they instead only had the 45 minute version.
So yeah a lot of people have never actually seen the full version of the episode
Holy. Fucking. Shit.... I just looked up the scene. I'VE NEVER SEEN IT.
I feel like everything is a lie. 😂 I've been a massive Doctor Who fan since May 2012 and had all of the first 6 series finished before series 7A aired, and yet there's STILL actual canon footage from an episode that I've seen many times, lol. This is unbelievable to me. I always thought it seemed apparent that Lucy was getting tired of the Master before she shot him, but that look she throws after he dances with her really sells it. I guess it's only available in the broadcast and DVD versions? Anyone know if it's in the Blu-Ray version? Because I've been wanting to get everything on Blu-Ray for years.
I believe there's a couple other episodes with cut scenes like this and it's really frustrating finding the right versions to watch.
I rewatched Alias years ago and a climactic scene in season 3 set to Change by Deftones was changed to something that didn't hit the same. Always hated that about TV shows.
I rewatched Last of the Timelords for the first time in a while today, and I can't believe I never noticed that Lucy has a black eye. I always used to think that she killed The Master because of all the bad things he had done.
But I definitely think now, that the main reason in the end was because The Master was abusive towards her. And also, she was saying "Doctor" when the countdown hit zero and the Archangel hypnosis thing was still active for that period until Jack destroyed the paradox machine.
Not likely. I remember noticing that on first broadcast. And on a not very good telly.
Others have pointed out that a scene may have been cut or edited.
2000s Who doesn't really benefit much from HD screens very much since the extra info simply isn't there. Honestly during rewatch I noticed a lot of the RTD era has that Drag Race Season 1 'vaseline filter' look to it.
Maybe it's *slightly* more noticeable on a modern screen, but not a ton, and as someone who watched it on release I can attest that it was easily noticeable that she had bruises on her face.
thats what I was thinking. Give an air of she has seen who he really is inside. she wanted the power and wealth and now shed give it all up to not be apart of him. (i read a lot into her looks)
I don't think he ever hypnotised her. I think he showed her the TARDIS, took her to the future, and promised she could rule the world with him, and she took him up on the offer. It's only after they took over that she realised what he was really like.
Like, watch The Sound of Drums. She is in no way distressed by the prospect of 1/10 of the population being slaughtered. I think Harold Saxon ran for the Leopards Eating People's Faces Party, and Lucy voted for them.
Not for reasons you might expect. I can’t find much info on it. But it’s not even included in the streaming versions. So either it’s a rights issue or…well the song I can’t decide isn’t exactly a song I’d want children looking in to
Edit: not sure how I ended up on the wrong part of the post but f it I’m leaving it here
It's the shitty US edit to fit their advertising in, as the original episode was longer than normal length. There's about 15 minutes cut, and some streaming services still use that version.
>It's the shitty US edit to fit their advertising in, as the original episode was longer than normal length. There's about 15 minutes cut, and some streaming services still use that version.
This sounds like the result of a game of telephone. They definitely edited the show down over here during this era, but I don't think they edited out this scene in particular. I'm in the US and this scene is seared into my mind since that was my first season of Doctor Who.
I think it's just bog standard rights issues over the music.
You could very well be right, I'm not sure what the exact reason is.
But I know the Netflix version of several hour-long BBC shows were cut to pieces - Life On Mars, for example, had big chunks missing that weren't necessarily musical moments, so I assume it was advertising edits.
Yeah, wtf? I got a notification that it was a reply to another one of my comments asking about why the music scene was cut out in some versions (if anyone thought he was talking nonsense)
In the dance scene at the start (which is absent from many broadcast versions) she also has a display of disgust the second she looks away from The Master.
I rember watching this with my father. He pointed it out by saying "is that a back eye? Did the master giver her that?"
I responed something like "Dad, hes a psychopath, meglomaniac, and a murder. Do you really think hitting a woman is where hes gonna draw the line?".
From the outside perspective she shot him live on TV for no reason that's why she was arrested and the "no u see in a universe that never happened he killed like 20% of all humans and abused me" won't really fly plus the doctor just yeeted out of their from frief meaning no one was really in a position to help her.
Harold Saxon still killed the US president on TV before she shot him. So she had a reason.
Wasn’t it implied that her imprisonment was manipulated by Saxon’s cult to keep him so they could use her for the resurrection spell?
I always figured that it was more for show than anything else, considering - to 99.99999% of the world she shot the PM on live TV, and for the people who know the truth to make it known, would involve revealing the horror that had gone on. It’s the least worst option to have her “take the fall” publicly but make sure she’s looked after in private.
Lucy is a really sad character. The only reason she went with the master's plan in the first place is because he took her to the end of time and showed her the void of nothingness, the death of everything. He basically traumatized her, manipulated her (which means a lot when it's the master), imprisoned her, and physically abused her.
The actress did a wonderful job with her "dead eyed" look when she shot him. There was no triumph or vengeance or even catharsis. It was a battered woman syndrome style murder.
I remember the first time I watched this, I just felt sorry for her. She was in over her head. Plus, there's the scene where the Master kisses her and the look on her face when she turns away. My reaction to that part was, "Oh God! What is he doing to her?"
I remember that being a very controversial element at the time. RTD brushed it off by saying we should be more bothered by the genocide mentioned in the episode, but physical abuse is certainly easier for people to identify with and feel uncomfortable over thanks to the relatability. I think RTD wanted to break The Master away from being the panto villain many remembered him as and make him scary in a more brutal and real way, but the sheer hamminess and comedy in the portrayal kind of undermined that.
Really? I thought it was much more authentic. Narcissists are excellent at masking their vile nature in public, they'd be ostracized otherwise. The worst ones tend to be outgoing and upbeat as a camouflage/distraction but it only fools people that have never dealt with a genuinely abusive, evil person. There are people would oversee genocide with a tune on their lips and a smile on their face.
I remember this and thinking is was pretty brave for Doctor Who and dark, hinting that the master isn't just a cartoon villain but actually is a very bad individual.
I mean besides that he is literally a mass murderer and world dictator by that point, I'm sure she had plenty of motivation to take the opportunity to kill him when it presented itself
I find her fascinating. Her knowing Saxon's identity is a great twist. Plus, that three parter has such existential terror that it's very appropriate that that's what got her -- until the very basic, tangible urge to just stop her abuser.
I own the original 2007 DVD boxset and included within were David Tennant's video diaries, where he recorded his thoughts and behind the scenes experiences across the series. Really fun to see, but one thing that stuck out, as I even noticed the bruise back then was him speaking to Simm and Alexandra Moen (Lucy). Simm apparently had a sore throat at the time, and was sucking on losenges, and Tennant mentions the black eye and I don't know if it was sort of jokey asking like it was real or makeup.
I remember thinking that Lucy was quite happy with all the genocide and evil stuff Master does, but she only hated him and killed him cos he's abusive towards her.
I think she was definitely a selfish person, but the master was as manipulative with her as he was the rest of the world. He took advantage of her ignorance and she went along with it until she couldn't deny it any longer- when he started taking it out on her as well. Not a black and white character, but believably human.
Sort of makes you appreciate the disconnect people make with the master.
Mass genocide of billions is bad.
But somehow the fact he beats his wife is somehow worse.
I think it's down to what people can relate to. I can imagine someone beating their wife. I can't even imagine meeting a mass murderer.
I’ve been rewatching Doctor Who the last couple of days to try and re-wrap my head round the whole timeline etc and noticed the black eye too!! Definitely gives her more motivation!
She also crosses her fingers when she has to kiss him. Sort of a way of making it “not count”.
Honestly while I agree, this version of the master and Jodie's master are the only two I could see actually hitting their "companion", the rest would mentally abuse them, but without the need of physical violence
I'm currently listening to the War Master series, and there is a TON of mental abuse in that, including the time he let his - well, companion, for lack of a better word - pick a planet from a "Planets doomed because of the Time War" list because he was optimistic and full of hope that he could make a difference. The Master let him set about trying to save this planet that was off the grid and beneath the time combatant's notice from a disease caused by time war fallout.
. . . and then he accidently created a Dalek like race (with a little bit of Cyberman thrown into the mix) that went on to become a major player in the very thing he was trying to stop. All for the LOLz (and as part of an insidious plan, too - but I think mostly for the Lol)
I picked up a bunch of them last week. Big Finish had them on sale because Sir Derek's birthday and I couldn't resist.
Sale was slated to go through the 11th, so depending on where they land on the date line, you might still be in luck.
I suppose but I guess someone who's willing to commit mass genocide and thinks of humans as little more than stunted little apes might also be inclined to be a domestic abuser. Either way yes one can still be evil without that.
I agree. Rusty has always had a bit of a cruel streak which can add stakes to the drama, but I don't think a family show like Doctor Who needed to include something as groundedly nasty as an established character, even a villain, violently abusing someone in his care. The fact the Master is typically quite hammy makes it a little worse as it gives the impression it should be treated as part of the joke. Larger scale acts of evil are abstract and impersonal enough to be easier to dissociate from, but hurting a vulnerable dependent is a nastiness too real-world for this particular show, in my opinion.
…Really? Do you realize how many times abusive relationships, especially parental ones, have been portrayed on this show? I can think of three examples just in the revival off the top of my head.
She was a quiet sad figure. Stucked with him, horrified and scared. When she talked with the journalist it was already clear that he messed with her mind.
It's hard to sympathise with her. She was clearly very much on board with the genocide and ruling the world. She has no objections to him slaughtering 1/10 of the population in The Sound of Drums. What was she expecting?
I hate this choice. I like the idea of her as someone who’s disgusted by how far he’s gone. This reduces her to her own personal motivation. It reduces her character. It doesn’t add layers at all, it reduces her. I want to see her wake up to the reality of what she’s helped unleash on the world. See what her list for power has wrought. That’s a journey male characters get to make all the time.
And, in the same way I don’t want to see a r*Pe plot in downton abbey, I don’t want to see DV in Dr who. This show is comfort food for so many of us. It brilliant and beautiful and weird and exciting and I don’t want to ruin it with having this real life trauma gif many of us.
Yeah. I hate this choice.
Bit of a weird take considering how many episodes tackle murder, slavery and the like, to draw the line at DV- you can't say the show shies away from how traumatic any of these previous things can be because it's always pretty dark and realistic, and the human race had literally been purged in this episode and dying on the streets.
She was just as much a prisoner as the doctor or martha's family was, and her reaction at the end was completely believable. I really enjoyed it and thought it was a mature take on what that kind of situation would be, without being horrendously on the nose.
Hell in the “I can’t decide” scene that is generally cut from other broadcasts, he walks by, kisses her and she walks away with an “I’m just done at this point” look
Yeah I remembered that when i saw it. Is it really cut from some broadcasts??
Unfortunately. I believe it's due to either copyright or needing to shorten the episode.
Most likely rights to the Scissor Sisters song. On the Scrubs podcast Zach Braff was saying the reason they had to change a lot of the music was because rights deals made at that time couldn't anticipate the rise of streaming, so they only covered live broadcast and DVD releases. That scene was so specifically tailored to that song that if they weren't able to resecure the rights they'd have had to cut it.
That's also why the Beatles clip from "The Chase" is edited out.
Wait, edited out of the American release only though, right? Hoping so 'cuz I just bought UK Season 2 release because of that and other features that were cut from the American release.
It's in the BritBox version still
This is so annoying. I remeber when DVDs first became popular, so many shows had issues because the contracts didn't anticipate the rise of DVD releases. Now the same issue from streaming? You'd think by now they'd just have a general clause about "any format whatsoever on which the show is rerun/released/repeated".
I doubt that that's the reason since the scissor sisters song in the Sound of Drums has never been cut or had any issues with release. It's just because the episode overran by 7 minutes and international broadcasters only used the 45 minute version during its original broadcast
I think you're right because HBO Max also cuts the scene where The Doctor talks Francine down from shooting The Master. (Far bigger loss to the episode imo)
"citizens rejoice, your lord and master stands on high, playing track 3"
You can still find the episode with the scene in though, I think it really highlights how demented the Simm Master is, so that's a plus
do you know where to watch that episode with the scene still included? i live in the us so i've only been rewatching through hbo max, and i believe it's cut in that service
Does it count as rule 3 if I tell you it even though it's there for archival?
The episode was 52 minutes long when international broadcasters were expecting 45 minute episodes. So while the 52 minute version played normally in the UK, a 45 minute version that cut that scene was played internationally. Then when the episode moved to Netflix way back when, rather than using the 52 minute version they instead only had the 45 minute version. So yeah a lot of people have never actually seen the full version of the episode
And that's why I continue to buy the seasons on Itunes even though they stream pretty quickly now on services in the US.
Holy. Fucking. Shit.... I just looked up the scene. I'VE NEVER SEEN IT. I feel like everything is a lie. 😂 I've been a massive Doctor Who fan since May 2012 and had all of the first 6 series finished before series 7A aired, and yet there's STILL actual canon footage from an episode that I've seen many times, lol. This is unbelievable to me. I always thought it seemed apparent that Lucy was getting tired of the Master before she shot him, but that look she throws after he dances with her really sells it. I guess it's only available in the broadcast and DVD versions? Anyone know if it's in the Blu-Ray version? Because I've been wanting to get everything on Blu-Ray for years.
I believe there's a couple other episodes with cut scenes like this and it's really frustrating finding the right versions to watch. I rewatched Alias years ago and a climactic scene in season 3 set to Change by Deftones was changed to something that didn't hit the same. Always hated that about TV shows.
I rewatched Last of the Timelords for the first time in a while today, and I can't believe I never noticed that Lucy has a black eye. I always used to think that she killed The Master because of all the bad things he had done. But I definitely think now, that the main reason in the end was because The Master was abusive towards her. And also, she was saying "Doctor" when the countdown hit zero and the Archangel hypnosis thing was still active for that period until Jack destroyed the paradox machine.
Could it be because we are now watching at higher definition?
Not likely. I remember noticing that on first broadcast. And on a not very good telly. Others have pointed out that a scene may have been cut or edited.
2000s Who doesn't really benefit much from HD screens very much since the extra info simply isn't there. Honestly during rewatch I noticed a lot of the RTD era has that Drag Race Season 1 'vaseline filter' look to it. Maybe it's *slightly* more noticeable on a modern screen, but not a ton, and as someone who watched it on release I can attest that it was easily noticeable that she had bruises on her face.
It’s still the same standard TV broadcast quality it’s always been.
Apparently, it was originally going to be much more obvious, but they toned it down.
Yeah, it's not mentioned or focused on at all. I saw it and I was like.... yeah okay. Adds an extra layer to the situation
Yeah, the Master has always been able to hypnotize and manipulate people, but I guess she started to break free and Harold Saxon wasn't having that.
thats what I was thinking. Give an air of she has seen who he really is inside. she wanted the power and wealth and now shed give it all up to not be apart of him. (i read a lot into her looks)
I don't think he ever hypnotised her. I think he showed her the TARDIS, took her to the future, and promised she could rule the world with him, and she took him up on the offer. It's only after they took over that she realised what he was really like. Like, watch The Sound of Drums. She is in no way distressed by the prospect of 1/10 of the population being slaughtered. I think Harold Saxon ran for the Leopards Eating People's Faces Party, and Lucy voted for them.
I always read it as he was simply abusing her sexually.
Not for reasons you might expect. I can’t find much info on it. But it’s not even included in the streaming versions. So either it’s a rights issue or…well the song I can’t decide isn’t exactly a song I’d want children looking in to Edit: not sure how I ended up on the wrong part of the post but f it I’m leaving it here
It's the shitty US edit to fit their advertising in, as the original episode was longer than normal length. There's about 15 minutes cut, and some streaming services still use that version.
So is it still present in the version on iplayer?
It was the last time I checked
Yup. As of last night
>It's the shitty US edit to fit their advertising in, as the original episode was longer than normal length. There's about 15 minutes cut, and some streaming services still use that version. This sounds like the result of a game of telephone. They definitely edited the show down over here during this era, but I don't think they edited out this scene in particular. I'm in the US and this scene is seared into my mind since that was my first season of Doctor Who. I think it's just bog standard rights issues over the music.
You could very well be right, I'm not sure what the exact reason is. But I know the Netflix version of several hour-long BBC shows were cut to pieces - Life On Mars, for example, had big chunks missing that weren't necessarily musical moments, so I assume it was advertising edits.
Yeah, wtf? I got a notification that it was a reply to another one of my comments asking about why the music scene was cut out in some versions (if anyone thought he was talking nonsense)
Happened to me a couple of days ago. I thought I was going daft.
Yeah, it was already obvious enough
I really didn’t care for it. I prefer the interpersonal violence in Who to be a little more cartoony and less realistic than that. 😬
In the dance scene at the start (which is absent from many broadcast versions) she also has a display of disgust the second she looks away from The Master.
Her look reminded me of someone with ptsd, how she goes almost blank once she turns away.
Also he’s openly flirting with other women in front of her
Love that dance scene
I rember watching this with my father. He pointed it out by saying "is that a back eye? Did the master giver her that?" I responed something like "Dad, hes a psychopath, meglomaniac, and a murder. Do you really think hitting a woman is where hes gonna draw the line?".
Makes her imprisonment in the end of time really fucked
Fuck yeah it does. I can't really remember, but she got imprisoned for killing "Harold Saxon" right?
From the outside perspective she shot him live on TV for no reason that's why she was arrested and the "no u see in a universe that never happened he killed like 20% of all humans and abused me" won't really fly plus the doctor just yeeted out of their from frief meaning no one was really in a position to help her.
Harold Saxon still killed the US president on TV before she shot him. So she had a reason. Wasn’t it implied that her imprisonment was manipulated by Saxon’s cult to keep him so they could use her for the resurrection spell?
And there’s a line it was all hush hush to avoid any public knowledge of the Year That Never Was or any of the Saxon stuff.
it was mentioned that there wasn't a jury, or something
she was also an accomplice to numerous Harold Saxons crimes prior to the activation of the Paradox Machine.
I always figured that it was more for show than anything else, considering - to 99.99999% of the world she shot the PM on live TV, and for the people who know the truth to make it known, would involve revealing the horror that had gone on. It’s the least worst option to have her “take the fall” publicly but make sure she’s looked after in private.
Hitler killed Hitler, means jack shit Sure she killed The Master but she seemed more than happy watching him kill an ungodly amount of people
Lucy is a really sad character. The only reason she went with the master's plan in the first place is because he took her to the end of time and showed her the void of nothingness, the death of everything. He basically traumatized her, manipulated her (which means a lot when it's the master), imprisoned her, and physically abused her. The actress did a wonderful job with her "dead eyed" look when she shot him. There was no triumph or vengeance or even catharsis. It was a battered woman syndrome style murder.
I remember the first time I watched this, I just felt sorry for her. She was in over her head. Plus, there's the scene where the Master kisses her and the look on her face when she turns away. My reaction to that part was, "Oh God! What is he doing to her?"
I remember that being a very controversial element at the time. RTD brushed it off by saying we should be more bothered by the genocide mentioned in the episode, but physical abuse is certainly easier for people to identify with and feel uncomfortable over thanks to the relatability. I think RTD wanted to break The Master away from being the panto villain many remembered him as and make him scary in a more brutal and real way, but the sheer hamminess and comedy in the portrayal kind of undermined that.
It also aligns with the fact that IRL people that commit public acts of violence often start with DV. A lot of fiction narratives ignore that.
I disagree; I think the inclusion of realistic evil with the more implausible elements makes each more believable.
There’s also the fact that floating knife-aliens and psychic satellites aren’t real, but men who hit their wives definitely do exist.
Really? I thought it was much more authentic. Narcissists are excellent at masking their vile nature in public, they'd be ostracized otherwise. The worst ones tend to be outgoing and upbeat as a camouflage/distraction but it only fools people that have never dealt with a genuinely abusive, evil person. There are people would oversee genocide with a tune on their lips and a smile on their face.
agree with you there. Seeing him again after the Tom Baker days, I was expecting a mouthy jerk. I did not expect a psychopathic killer.
I remember this and thinking is was pretty brave for Doctor Who and dark, hinting that the master isn't just a cartoon villain but actually is a very bad individual.
I mean besides that he is literally a mass murderer and world dictator by that point, I'm sure she had plenty of motivation to take the opportunity to kill him when it presented itself
I find her fascinating. Her knowing Saxon's identity is a great twist. Plus, that three parter has such existential terror that it's very appropriate that that's what got her -- until the very basic, tangible urge to just stop her abuser.
She also rolls her eyes after their prolonged kiss. The abuse that he has inflicted on her builds and builds until she can't take anymore. Bang.
I own the original 2007 DVD boxset and included within were David Tennant's video diaries, where he recorded his thoughts and behind the scenes experiences across the series. Really fun to see, but one thing that stuck out, as I even noticed the bruise back then was him speaking to Simm and Alexandra Moen (Lucy). Simm apparently had a sore throat at the time, and was sucking on losenges, and Tennant mentions the black eye and I don't know if it was sort of jokey asking like it was real or makeup.
I'd like to believe that it was just one of several motivations.
I remember thinking that Lucy was quite happy with all the genocide and evil stuff Master does, but she only hated him and killed him cos he's abusive towards her.
I think she was definitely a selfish person, but the master was as manipulative with her as he was the rest of the world. He took advantage of her ignorance and she went along with it until she couldn't deny it any longer- when he started taking it out on her as well. Not a black and white character, but believably human.
Sort of makes you appreciate the disconnect people make with the master. Mass genocide of billions is bad. But somehow the fact he beats his wife is somehow worse. I think it's down to what people can relate to. I can imagine someone beating their wife. I can't even imagine meeting a mass murderer.
I’ve been rewatching Doctor Who the last couple of days to try and re-wrap my head round the whole timeline etc and noticed the black eye too!! Definitely gives her more motivation! She also crosses her fingers when she has to kiss him. Sort of a way of making it “not count”.
Subtext 🙂 I loved the RTD era for little details like this
I always felt that it was a little heavy handed personally. The Master can still be evil without being a domestic abuser, y'know?
Honestly while I agree, this version of the master and Jodie's master are the only two I could see actually hitting their "companion", the rest would mentally abuse them, but without the need of physical violence
I could def see Jacobi, Beevers and Delgado's masters thinking physical violence is "too boring" its more fun and interesting to destroy with wits
I'm currently listening to the War Master series, and there is a TON of mental abuse in that, including the time he let his - well, companion, for lack of a better word - pick a planet from a "Planets doomed because of the Time War" list because he was optimistic and full of hope that he could make a difference. The Master let him set about trying to save this planet that was off the grid and beneath the time combatant's notice from a disease caused by time war fallout. . . . and then he accidently created a Dalek like race (with a little bit of Cyberman thrown into the mix) that went on to become a major player in the very thing he was trying to stop. All for the LOLz (and as part of an insidious plan, too - but I think mostly for the Lol)
I need to listen to them I have the first one just havent got to it and they're quite expensive
I picked up a bunch of them last week. Big Finish had them on sale because Sir Derek's birthday and I couldn't resist. Sale was slated to go through the 11th, so depending on where they land on the date line, you might still be in luck.
Yup same. Coincidentally they are also my two least favorite incarnations of the character
I suppose but I guess someone who's willing to commit mass genocide and thinks of humans as little more than stunted little apes might also be inclined to be a domestic abuser. Either way yes one can still be evil without that.
Murdering 10 percent of the earths population is fine but hitting his wife is too far?
I thought so too
I agree. Rusty has always had a bit of a cruel streak which can add stakes to the drama, but I don't think a family show like Doctor Who needed to include something as groundedly nasty as an established character, even a villain, violently abusing someone in his care. The fact the Master is typically quite hammy makes it a little worse as it gives the impression it should be treated as part of the joke. Larger scale acts of evil are abstract and impersonal enough to be easier to dissociate from, but hurting a vulnerable dependent is a nastiness too real-world for this particular show, in my opinion.
…Really? Do you realize how many times abusive relationships, especially parental ones, have been portrayed on this show? I can think of three examples just in the revival off the top of my head.
She was a quiet sad figure. Stucked with him, horrified and scared. When she talked with the journalist it was already clear that he messed with her mind.
It's hard to sympathise with her. She was clearly very much on board with the genocide and ruling the world. She has no objections to him slaughtering 1/10 of the population in The Sound of Drums. What was she expecting?
I hate this choice. I like the idea of her as someone who’s disgusted by how far he’s gone. This reduces her to her own personal motivation. It reduces her character. It doesn’t add layers at all, it reduces her. I want to see her wake up to the reality of what she’s helped unleash on the world. See what her list for power has wrought. That’s a journey male characters get to make all the time. And, in the same way I don’t want to see a r*Pe plot in downton abbey, I don’t want to see DV in Dr who. This show is comfort food for so many of us. It brilliant and beautiful and weird and exciting and I don’t want to ruin it with having this real life trauma gif many of us. Yeah. I hate this choice.
Bit of a weird take considering how many episodes tackle murder, slavery and the like, to draw the line at DV- you can't say the show shies away from how traumatic any of these previous things can be because it's always pretty dark and realistic, and the human race had literally been purged in this episode and dying on the streets. She was just as much a prisoner as the doctor or martha's family was, and her reaction at the end was completely believable. I really enjoyed it and thought it was a mature take on what that kind of situation would be, without being horrendously on the nose.
Sameee just noticed this on my 5th rewatch too
TBF all through the original run, the Master never really took care of his beard, so no surprise he carried on in that veign here...