8.1 - Mastermind

As a continuity nut and someone who has trouble following The Master's timeline this story is absolutely a must listen. It's interesting hearing how The Master passed his time on Earth and hearing how he escaped his fate in the TV movie and eventual imprisonment by UNIT. I feel like there's a missed opportunity here of paralleling The Master's century bound on Earth jumping bodies with the 3rd Doctor's exile but the story is interesting enough and it's a good payoff as The Master's plan unfolds.

Mastermind was written by Jonathan Morris and directed by Ken Bentley. It's set after the events of the TV Movie. Daphne Ashbrook and Yee Jee Tso are back as 'Ruth Matheson' and 'Charlie Sato'. Geoffrey Beevers' 'Master' is being kept prisoner by UNIT, and it's up to Ruth and Charlie to interrogate him.

The music comes and goes but aids the imagery when it's there, and helps set the sinister atmosphere. I like Geoffrey's Master a lot more here than I have heard him in other titles. To avoid his attempts at hypnotism their characters take turns to interrogate the Master. When the Master narrates certain parts of his history it's up to the opposing actor to play the opposing part and unfortunately both Daphne and Yee aren't as good with accents as Geoffrey is, so it tends to grate a little at times but not majorly so.

I like the way the Master tells how he escapes death from the eye of harmony in the TARDIS in the TV Movie, but then gets clobbered over the head by a maid called Violet in Victorian London and knocked out. Women, you can't be an amorphous ball of gas with them. You can't take over their boyfriend's body and brutally murder them without them, eh? There are some gruesome acts skilfully narrated, and this master is the most cold and calculating that I remember. Removed from his usual motivations he isn't so predictable either.

It's one of the more sinister of 'the Companions Chronicles', with the best ending I have heard in a while. The only problem I have with it is, as mentioned, the supporting actors during flashbacks and talking to the Master just sound like the Ruth and Charlie but sometimes doing a dodgy accent. Would a couple of bit parts really break the bank. Still a small price to pay for such an excellent audio adventure.

A perfect example of Companion Chronicle storytelling. A superb story seamlessly matching with the Master's known TV history - and it even explains that TV Movie snake.

Wonderful performances, production, sound and music combine for audio bliss.

An absolutely gripping story from start to finish. I don't know what more I can say.