Again a perfect start to the season Jo grant is a standout and first on screen appearance of Mike Yates in this timeline marathon too I love it oh and who could forget the master haha

I'm afraid I don't have anything more coherent to say than "Now, that was Doctor Who!" I have always been the biggest Master fan, and I am very pleased to finally have watched his first story (and no, I will not tolerate any "what about the war games?" jokers). It was exactly what I expected - in a good way - and very much fit the format I've grown to recognise and love from Delgado era stories. Apart from the wonderful and (relatively) subtle homosexual undertones, the excellent use of Autons, and the general criticism of the military, the other thing I thought was done very well was the introduction of a new companion - Jo's character was established quickly and efficiently, and I found it was very easy to grow attached to her and worry for her wellbeing, even though this was her first story. Bravo!

"What's wrong with being childish, I like being childish." As is often the case, this Sequel is not as good as the original, but there is so much to enjoy here. There is plenty that is familiar to the start of season eight, with yet another factory / headquarter setting for this story, but it has to be acknowledged that the tone has changed significantly. The 1971 show is less serious and more playful than in 1970 and the return of a four part story is a godsend.

The Master's performance is a fantastic contrast to Pertwee's Doctor, especially in this story where he is a little more acerbic. The Master can seem normal, composed, regular, then suddenly turn by doing something completely mad, murderous and evil. "The bomb is a kind of greetings card." The Doctor is being hunted by one of his own people, an equal which adds another wonderful recurring character to the show, along with a brand new member of UNIT and Jo Grant. Its becoming quite the ensamble.

Liz Shaw is unceremoniously dumped without so much as a goodbye, which is a great shame. Katy Manning is great but it has to be said that she acts far more naively than Caroline John, which does not sit well with me. There is a childlike quality to her performance which has weakened the only female role in the show, simply because (in my eyes) the team were unable to write for a strong woman. Having said that, there is an infectious excitement in Katy's performance, she feels like more of a 'Doctor Who companion' which makes for great TV. I much prefer her despite myself.

When the Brigadier says "sure you can fire her, but I think you should tell her yourself" we get some fantastic character moments. I like it when a little bit of Pertwee's tenderness comes out, you get to see an impressive emotional range from The Doctor in this story.

The Autons completely deserved a return, they are a really tangible threat; believable, frightening and down to Earth. They are ideal for stories like these, which are clearly centered around introducing characters rather than plot. The moment these creatures become manipulative, rather than being used as pawns by the Master I lose a little interest. I like them less when they are dressed up in giant heads and handing out dangerous plastic flowers, they seem a little too knowing at that point.

Some of the best and worst aspects of Terror of the Autons come from its lack of focus and structure. I love the Time Lord in a bowler hat popping out of nowhere, never to be seen again - it's an exciting moment even if it is just for some gratuitous CSO use! The hilariously disguised TARDIS that we see The Master arrive in comes from the same mindset. On the other hand, does a circus need to be in this story? What does it add? I feel like it must have had a more central role in an earlier draft, because it is a random and underdeveloped element of the story. This scatterbrain approach produces the best cliffhangers we have ever seen (an Auton disguised as a police officer!) and another terrible cliffhanger involving a phone wire and Pertwee ripping off his tentacle acting from Spearhead from Space.

Back when I reviewed Tomb of the Cybermen I was highly critical of the character of Toberman, but Toby (played by the same man) is far worse. After having a couple of interesting roles for black men in the previous series, here is a stereotypical strong man being used as a prop. At least Toberman was useful for the plot, this was a cheap gag.

Perhaps the most unsatisfying element to the story is that The Master is convinced he is completely wrong with just one line, it is a rushed convenient ending. I would like to have seen The Master having more faith in his plans. The ending ties the confused plot together poorly, there was such a mixture of mad schemes from the The Master and the Autons.

The most satisfying element to this story is the general feel of the show. It feels new (again!) and exciting and I am loving the chemistry between the very much established Doctor and his new companion, despite my misgivings. The Master is now trapped on Earth, just like his adversary and there are a lot of adventures to come!

Jon Pertwee's era of Doctor Who took a lot of inspiration from the spy genre, so it is hardly surprising that producer Barry Letts decided to add a Bond-style villain in the form of the Master. What is surprising is how long it took them to do it. The Master wasn't introduced into Jon Pertwee's second season in the role in 1971's Terror of the Autons. As we all know, the character became a big hit with audiences and has gained the status of one of the Doctor's most iconic enemies.

When the Master (Roger Degaldo) arrives on Earth in his TARDIS, he steals a Nestene meteorite and hooks it up to a radio telescope in order to boost a frequency wave that will bring to life the plastic of Earth. Meanwhile, the Brigadier (Nicholas Courtney) introduces the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) to his new assistant Jo Grant (Katy Manning). At first, they don't get on due to Jo's clumsiness and lack of scientific knowledge however over the course of the story they become firm friends and the Doctor starts to accept her as his companion. Together they must stop the Master from summoning the Nestene and destroying humanity with an army of Autons.

Whilst the first story to feature the Autons - Spearhead From Space - focused entirely on shop window dummies, here other forms of plastic are explored as potential threats to the Doctor and his companion and it is nice to see the concept expanded upon. The Autons become a much more terrifying threat when not only are shop window dummies deadly but you cannot trust phone cords and plastic daffodils either.

There is even a deadly chair that in perhaps one of the show's most gruesome moments swallows Farrell Plastics' head of production George McDermott (Harry Towb) whole. It is not surprising that this serial was criticised by many at the time for being too scary for kids - the special effects may not be the best the classic series has to offer but many of the scenes like many of Doctor Who's greatest stories wouldn't look out of place in a horror movie. Other examples of this include the Dalek sucker coming towards Barbara in The Daleks and Zygon Harry attacking Sarah with a pitchfork in Terror of the Zygons.

Jo Grant is immediately endearing as the Doctor's new companion also. Katy Manning plays the part brilliantly, oozing a certain charm and likeability as the bumbling assistant. Whilst some may question the Brigadier's decision to replace Liz Shaw with her despite her lack of qualifications as the Doctor does in the serial, by the end of the serial you really don't care. Katy Manning sells the character right from the beginning and I have a feeling she will always be considered one of the show's most beloved companions. It is a shame that her debut also happens to be the debut of the Master as she is unfortunately over-shadowed but the production crew at the time weren't to know that the Master would go on to become one of the show's most iconic characters.

It's certainly not hard to see why he has become such an iconic character either. The Master is a brilliant adversary for the Doctor; essentially he is a direct reflection of the Doctor. Whilst the Doctor fights for the good of the universe, the Master fights for chaos and destruction. He is essentially the Moriarty to the Doctor's Sherlock or the Loki to the Doctor's Thor.

Compared to, say, John Simm's Master, here he is treated as more of a behind the scenes presence and for the most part it works better when he is not the front and centre of the plot. The drawback is that it results in a plot resolution that comes out of nowhere. The Doctor manages to persuade the Master round but we are not shown enough of the Doctor and the Master's 'frenemy' relationship to make it convincing that he would be so easily persuaded. I would rather the Doctor had managed to out-wit the Master in his plan rather than talk him round.

Roger Degaldo is brilliant as the Master though and will always be to many the definitive version of the character. He has a certain sinister charm as the Doctor's Time Lord nemesis and doesn't need to act insane in order to have a big presence onscreen. Whilst I like John Simm's later portrayal of the character, I would have rather seen him play the part like Roger Degaldo as opposed to bearing more similarities to The Joker. Michelle Gomez as Missy will likely always be my favourite take on the character but if it were not for the legacy left by Roger Degaldo it is highly doubtful that her version of the Master would exist. Roger Degaldo's performance is the reason why the Master has become such an iconic part of Doctor Who mythology; the part was very clearly written for him as he has a wonderful sense of gravitas in the role. Roger Degaldo quite simply was the Master.

One of the things I think is a shame is that the Master no longer has the hypnotic powers he displays here. I like the idea of the Master hypnotising people; it helps to show how different he is to the Doctor despite being of the same race and it bears similarities to brain-washing techniques seen in real life ruthless dictators such as Adolf Hitler or Vladimir Putin. The notion that somebody could mess your mind and, for example, persuade you to set off a bomb is a scary one and something that is actually quite true to current society with the way terrorists have twisted people into exacting their plans of terror. A brilliant decision by writer Robert Holmes to have Jo Grant placed under the Master's hypnotic powers also as it leaves the viewer feeling uneasy to see one of the Doctor's friends turn against him. I would like the new series to show Missy hypnotise the companion for an entire series as I think the uneasiness that comes from somebody close to the Doctor being placed under the spell would make for an interesting angle to be explored in more depth.

Overall, Terror of the Autons takes the concept of the Autons and offers a deeper exploration of how they can be a threat to our planet. Not only can they possess shop window dummies now but telephone coils, chairs and plastic daffodils can also be brought to life - giving the terrifying impression that nothing made of plastic material is safe from the clutches of the Nestene.

The story serves as a great introduction for Katy Manning's Jo Grant - one of the show's most charming companions - however it is over-shadowed by the debut of Roger Degaldo as the Master. It is easy to see why the Master has developed such a legacy within Doctor Who after watching Roger Degaldo's performance in the role; he is amazing and a true highlight of the Autons' return, even if the character's tendency to act behind the scenes rather than at the forefront of the episode results in a rushed conclusion that comes out of nowhere.

It's a shame that the new series has opted to ignore the Master's hypnotic powers as they are a great way to emphasise the difference between the Doctor and the Master, as well as offering a nice sense of uneasiness to the plot when the Doctor's new companion Jo Grant is placed under his hypnosis. I hope for Series 10 that Missy places the twelfth Doctor's new companion Bill under his (or rather her) hypnotic powers but somehow I doubt it is going to happen (NB: It didn't).

Terror of the Autons is pretty cool in that it feels much like a re-pilot of the Third Doctor era to me. With a new companion, the incredible introduction of the Master, and a very similar plot to Spearhead from Space, there are a great deal of similarities between these two stories, yet it largely still works for me.

While it is a shame Liz Shaw was just unceremoniously dropped, Jo Grant is pretty great as a replacement. You can tell we very quickly get a sense of purpose from production with her and Roger Delgado joining on. I'm truly impressed by just how much of the character of the Master was realized in this first episode. Sure, the Monk and War Chief were certainly early prototypes of this character, but The Master is unique with a few traits already made apparent here, such as his hypnosis, elaborate scheming with other aliens, and his unique relationship with the Doctor that they would only build on going forward - hell, even the miniaturization comes from here.

I think he is well built up in a cool way in this serial, with the Time Lords actively involved at the start of this story while the Master has a great opening scene that kicks off this whole season (which, in retrospect, is very accurate for what we could expect the tone of Season Eight to take on).

The Autons don't feel like they've changed much but I think they are better used here. Having the Master around gives them a bit more of a voice and sense of character to them. Even if they are always going to look a little dorky, this might be them at their best out of all their televised appearances. They're actually presented as a threat and their effects are used more effectively than in Rose or Spearhead from Space. A great start to a new chapter in Doctor Who history with the introduction of two very substantial characters in the form of Jo and the Master. All told, I quite enjoyed these episodes and would recommend.