My Master Rankings Least Fave To Most Fave
[Of The masters I've seen enough material I think I got a good vibe for the character]
9) Roberts!Master
He just doesn't compel me on a fun level, on the idea he's complex nor does he feel menacing. His main story just doesn't give him enough to work with. The lack of getting to really act makes it so hard to feel for him. And I haven't listened to his EU stuff yet so I don't have good wider vibes yet. But I just don’t get a lot to vibe with. Also why the slug, just why slug?
8) Decayed!Master
Love the theory but kind of boring in practice. Just didn't get super fun vibes from him, maybe just too restricted by the virtue of how his whole story is done.
7) Child Master
Only there for a short amount of time but like damn do I love this sinister little kid. Terrifying in the best way. The right kind of creepy. Very top Master in the way he messes up his own timeline. Yes we don’t get much to read here but i just feel so much more for this character over Roberts and The Decayed.
6) Simm!Master
Okay don't hate me, but I just don't think he's that good okay? Like not John Simm he can fuck it up but like i don’t think it’s written that well. He just makes me uncomfortable in a way that's not that fun to watch. I love very specific scenes but not enough of the time. Like I love the way he plays off ten in very specific scenes but so often he's being just so ~wacky/crazy~ it's no longer any fun. Yes the master is strange and extra but they aren’t like this out of control!! And the drums make his villainy less interesting. I hate this. The rest of The Masters get to be evil without this strange head screwy reason done by the big old time lords. But whatever, okay. And also why does he eat people? Why did we do that? And why does he have laser beam hands? Like I prefer when The Master’s villainy is more in doing things, not just being weird. So many questions!
5) Jacobi!Master [including EU]
I love him for being legitimately scary. Like maybe I've seen Simm take over planets but this guy would kill me while staring into my eyes with a truly coldly terrifying expression and I'd say thank you. Love that for us. He throws people out of TARDISES!! I mean even in his moment in the show the way he kills Chantho? Love it. Peak actually threatening Master.
4) Ainley!Master
Part of my rating this guy higher is just how long this Master lasted. Like Ainley, my king being The Master for so many Doctors. Also though a very versatile Master. In more kinds of TV stories than many Masters. Got a Doctor kill in there too good for him. Good at being over the top, has a good enough report with The Doctor to make watching them face off enjoyable. And him getting this way by stealing a body is downright awful and shows a deep cruelty in The Master I do quite enjoy. The Rani making fun of him for being obsessed with The Doctor? Love it. Being punched by The Brig? Awesome. He’s delightfully evil if not scary in the slightest after the whole body snatching. Also he becomes a cat person? The image is quite funny.
3) Dhawan!Master
Handles over the top erratic behavior in a better way then Simm. Because he doesn't EAT people. The dancing and convoluted plans work well. I don't like that he wears a Nazi uniform that feels out of character for the Master, they are way too regimented and a banal kind of evil filled with human hate and bile and vileness when The Master tends to find more enjoyment in bombast and intrigue of larger than life villains. But overall Dhawan just puts in so much life into the character it makes him often the best thing in a scene. Making the monologuing and talking at the audience of TTC worth getting through if you're not super invested in the whole big meta lore. I also like that he is definitely trying to die a little in series 12 and destroy himself in the special, like falling apart? interesting. Wish there was more connective tissue explicitly done between Missy & Dhawan!Master. Like sure you can work it out. But I still think Missy would want to destroy parts of Galifrey explicitly for The Doctor, angry because the time lords hurt their best friend vs. Dhawan being mad The Doctor is a part of him ya know? The Master and The Doctor have considered themselves inextricable from each other forever.(I have a whole AU story here but i'll skip that)
2) Delgado!Master
The OG has to be this close to the top! I love this guy, everyone. The way he and UNIT are like enemies in the most gentlemanly way possible. You buy that Delgado and Three were friends and I love that about them. The start of the "only i can kill The Doctor" idea that carries for many of the Masters. He wants to take over earth, sure but he also wants to pick fights with The Doctor. No he swears it's necessary for the plan he has to call The Doctor first. Dumbassess. Love that about them so much. He's also the most distinguished silly man ever. He always made me want more. People say he is overused, But it made those seasons feel kind of like a sitcom with an annoying neighbor who uses mind control. Also has a catch phrase! The way the brig is just so done with his shit, and like honestly UNIT kind of stops viewing him as a real threat lol.
1) Missy
I love her because she just wants her friend back. I love that she loves The Doctor. Sure she's still chaotic and out there making all kinds of evil for most of her run and thinks humans are funny and small, but she doesn't want to be cruel and cowardly anymore by the end. She wants to learn kindness. I think that's freaking beautiful. She will never really undue what she has done to planets full of people, but she isn't asking for their forgiveness, she just wants to stand with The Doctor. And that's so heartbreaking. She was going home to her friend, the long way round. Honestly I wish this had been the end of The Master's timeline. Sure she died, and was killed by her past. But that's okay, can they really have a happy ending? But she dies bravely! Without hope, without witness, without reward, she was The Doctor's friend. She stood up to her past self and to stand with The Doctor and she fell.
