Contributor: John Keegan
Written by Robert Holmes
Directed by David Maloney
With Sarah Jane back on Earth, no longer a companion, the Doctor is on his own as he feels himself called to Gallifrey by visions of an assassination. Thus begins a story that I’ve heard mentioned many a time, but wasn’t completely prepared for. In fact, I wasn’t sure what to think when it was all said and done.
Previous depictions of the Time Lords made them look officious and manipulative, seriously powerful but without the whimsy and curiosity of the Doctor. Even when they are willing to interfere with the affairs of other cultures, they just use the Doctor, rather than act themselves. In fact, it seemed that the majority of the Time Lords that have been introduced were atypical in the sense that they weren’t willing to isolate themselves, given how much power is at their disposal.
The Doctor always seemed to be a “criminal” among his people because he was willing to stand up to authority, more often than not, and change things as he felt they should be. The introduction of the Master ultimately led the audience to reflect on the questionable nature of the Doctor’s activities. While he is ostensibly “good”, as he’s not seeking personal power or direct control over vast populations, he does enforce his personal code of morality on the universe.
This serial shows a very different version of the Time Lords: still isolated and inwardly focused, but stagnant and ignorant of their own history. The Time Lords of this story have gotten so used to the wonders of their own technology that they don’t even think about how it works or why. It’s precisely why the Master is able to do what he does; there’s pretty much no one with the knowledge to stop him.
It’s somewhat problematic, but there are ways to explain it. There is a mention of the Celestial Intervention Agency, which could be interpreted as the source of the previous Time Lord appearances. It would make sense, if there are such strict prohibitions on breaking the isolationist traditions of Time Lord society, that there would be a secretive organization devoted to hunting down and controlling any rebellious members of their society that might come along.
Having known the Doctor for so long now, would it make sense for him to flee a society that was open enough to allow for free travel? Of course not. If he stayed on Gallifrey, he’d be forced into the kind of self-interested and myopic lifestyle that the rest of the Time Lords take for granted. It also suggests a reason why the Doctor and the Master might once have been friends and confidants; I can imagine the two of them in the Academy, seeking out and delving into forbidden knowledge, and ultimately coming to diametrically opposed views on what they should do with that knowledge.
In terms of the story, the Master has returned to Gallifrey because he is dying, and he has used up his available regenerations. In order to give himself a new lease on life, he needs the Eye of Harmony, a relic from the early days of the Time Lords, which I imagine ties Gallifrey and its enormous power (and its population with its advanced powers over spacetime) to that black hole that Omega is trapped within, as revealed in “The Three Doctors”. That requires the Seal and Great Key of Rassilon, which happens to be kept by the President of the Time Lords. So, the Master needs the current President to be replaced by his thrall, Goth, so he can execute his plan without interference.
As usual, the Master goes overboard. For one thing, the President is stepping down, and Goth is the leading contender. Why not just wait until Goth is elected? The assassination doesn’t actually change the circumstances, other than to make things more chaotic! But since using the Eye of Harmony to reset his regenerations will ultimately destroy Gallifrey, the Master wants to ensure the Doctor is there, and that he will know that the Master has bested him. So he is the one that sent the visions to the Doctor, using something called the Matrix, and he contrives to frame the Doctor for the assassination of the President.
This leads to a great deal of confusion once the assassination takes place, and the Doctor buys himself time to use the Matrix to locate the Master. He ends up in a very long mental struggle with Goth, who the Master has been controlling. The Doctor, of course, prevails, saving Gallifrey and the Time Lords, who advise that the truth of events must be “adjusted” to ensure that society doesn’t lose faith in their leadership. Meanwhile, the Master pulled enough energy out of the Eye of Harmony to survive, or so it would seem.
Mixed in with all of this new material introduced about the Time Lords is a massive amount of detail that I found a bit overwhelming. One of those details, of course, was the notion that Time Lords are limited to twelve regenerations. It’s fairly incidental within the context of the story, as it’s there just to explain why the Master is running out of time. It’s odd to think that this became such a strict point of canon, though it would appear that there are plenty of ways to get around it!
I do find it odd that the Doctor appears to not recognize the name of Rassilon, as it would seem that he is rather familiar with the name later down the road. On the other hand, he is dealing with someone who has been fairly ignorant of Time Lord history. Perhaps the Doctor doesn’t want to assume that he knows everything, and wants to see if the “legends” reveal some clue he might have overlooked? After all, that does seem to be what happens!
Initially, I was annoyed at the changes to Time Lord society, which seemed to me to be unnecessary and too “human”. After some thought, I appreciate it a bit more. If the Time Lords that were considered “criminals” or worthy of exile were atypical members of Time Lord society, then it stands to reason that the “conformists” would be everything the Doctor is not. Having conquered space and time, the Time Lords have lost their sense of wonder. One might wonder if the Doctor’s appreciation of humanity comes from some similarity to what the Time Lords were before they fell into their eventual malaise.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
