The Master of Callous: Call for the Dead

"Even in fairy stories, the good people don't always win."

Writer: James Goss
Format: Audio
Released: December 2018
Series: The War Master 2.01

Featuring: War Master

Synopsis

On the mining colony Callous, Elliot King struggles to meet the demands of its governor, Teremon. The odds are stacked against him, and his options are running low. The world that once promised dreams now offers only despair.

A wild Ood stalks the forests, carrying an antiquated phone. The caller promises much – he claims he can change the world – but he always speaks a devastating truth.

He is the Master and the Ood will obey him... but to what end?

Verdict

Call for the Dead was a decent start to The Master of Callous, but I can't help but feel that it went slightly too long without actually doing an awful lot with the War Master. What they did set up was great and I really enjoyed learning more about the society of Callous and being introduced to some good new characters. I really liked Elliot King and he seemed like he was going to be the lead character against the Master for this series. His death was very surprising to me as he was so prominent to everything that was going on. Just when he had died, I figured that Jacques would then be the one to go and take over things, but then he died too! The manner in which the pair committed suicide was quite horrifying and whilst the Master didn't physically kill them, his influence in getting them to make that decision was very conniving. I get the feeling that if I hear another phone ring in a later episode in the boxset, it'll be very eery and chilling. Derek Jacobi was good as the War Master, but I really wanted him to feature more. Now, the Doctor doesn't appear in this series so as a buyer, I have given my money to explore more of the Time War incarnation of my favourite villain. I don't feel like I got that. It was fine and good with what was given to us, and I fully appreciate that this was just setting things up for what is come over the next three stories, but there really was a severe lacking of the titular character. Even the Ood, another familiar element from Doctor Who, didn't feature heavily. I am weary to not get ahead of myself and try to realise that this is just the first of a four-story arc, but I wanted more damnit! In all honestly, it was still very good despite their absences and I particularly liked the character of Cassandra King. It was emotional to learn that she was now 20 and hadn't seen her father for a decade. When her mother died, that must have been very hard. Martine, her wife, was not as likeable, but I'm sure I'll grow to enjoy her. This may be a slightly controversial comment, but I think that Doctor Who as a whole is slightly overdoing it when it comes to adhering to political correctness, but I think a lesbian relationship could be quite intriguing for the Master. I'm interested to see how Callous links with the Time War as we got absolutely nothing from this adventure, and the prospect of the Ood and Daleks meeting is fantastic. The Ood going mad is hardly surprising but I like where things can go. Now onto Teremon and she was a marvellous character. Basically, she was a bitch. And that was excellent. I'd love for her to meet the Master at some point as they would get on terrifically well. Well, only if she didn't charge him anything! Her constant exploiting of Elliot was devastating to hear, but it made her a brilliant villain and I look forward to hearing where her story goes from here. Cassandra struggling with the Colony now she was in charge was a good move and I liked the challenges posed by those wanting to be repaid for their shares with their founders fee. That would prove quite disastrous. The ending was good, if not a little predictable, with Cassandra finally answering the phone to the Master. Will she suffer the same fate as her father and his best friend when they answered the phone? I sincerely hope not. Overall, a decent start and I want more!

Rating: 7/10