Faustian

"How soon will you bring me back?"

Writer: Robert Valentine

Format: Audio

Released: March 2021

Series: Master! 1.01

Featuring: Master

Synopsis

Drake Enterprises is the most powerful company on Earth. Dr Lila Kreeg is its most valued asset. But her experiment open a doorway which allows an evil back into the universe. The Master can offer Lila the world, so long as she obeys him...

Verdict

Faustian was an excellent start to the first series of Master! I love the idea of different incarnations of the Master getting their own spinoff series with Missy and the War Master having notable runs, but now it's time of a lesser seen but majorly impactful incarnation to have a go. The Master of The Movie is a very unique incarnation and it's a massive shame we only got to see him on screen once, but what a performance! Having someone with the presence of Eric Roberts in the role was a masterstroke and his voice was just made for audio. The American accent really gives a different feel to the character and I feel like that will only get better as the series goes on. I was a massive fan of Lila Kreeg who was essentially the main character for the episode here and her position as the R&D Director at Drake Interplanetary was fantastic. I really liked what they were trying to achieve and the 2223 setting was fantastic! It's far into the future but not so far that was being researched and tested wasn't too unbelievable by contemporary standards. The Yellowbrick project was really interesting and I was genuinely interested in what they were trying to achieve with the focus of moving matter over distance by folding space. It all sounds so simple! It was fascinating stuff and that's the kind of science I'm interested in. I'm more of a humanities person but when it comes to space and time I'm all for it (as I should be as a fan of Doctor Who!) Cathrin was a good character and whilst she was pretty much just doing her job and following the contract, she had garnered a reputation of something of an ice queen. Her hearing that insult was a fun moment. I liked how Lila was angered at having Cathrin put in place as her supervisor by Drake, but she wasn't going to let these people of authority get in her way. She was the real scientist and she was on the verge of a breakthrough. Her folding of space inadvertently causing temporal disruption was excellent and it was the perfect opportunity for the Master to escape from his limbo in the Vortex. I thought that was a stellar way of having this incarnation survive despite it seeming impossible. I liked how that formed the basis of the story in getting him back ready for the story ahead, although the humour of him escaping the Vortex only to be stuck on Earth was terrific. I thought the continuity with The Dalek Invasion of Earth was tremendous and I loved that in the 23rd century it was still a society dealing with a cultural shift and rebuild. It made it a time ripe for exploitation and I suspect that's exactly what the Master has planned! His distrust of Eddi was good and I like how Lila quickly realises what the Master can bring her. She's driven by her science perhaps a little too much and that's also something the Master is going to use to his advantage I'm sure. She almost becomes his companion here! Lila going against her contract and using company equipment for her experiments was good and that really drove her into becoming lawless. I thought that was good fun and having the Master by her side as he recognises her genius is a sublime pairing. I loved how the Master desired everything when it came to the planet and his aims with this icarnation having a thirst for greed. The Master taking no prisoners when it came to the 'authority' at Drake Interplanetary was really good stuff and whilst Lila left the room before Drake met her fate, the fact she stayed when she asked him to deal with Cathrin showed what kind of person she is. How very exciting! Another evil genius for the Master to partner with. This was an excellent opener for a series I'm very intrigued and excited about! Overall, a fantastic listen.

Rating: 9/10