10 Doctor Who Moments You're Missing From Expanded Media
1. The Lumiat
When Spyfall debuted last year, and showed us a new incarnation of the Master played by Sacha Dhawan, the fan response was largely positive towards this new insane regeneration of the Master. However, one criticism was the fact that his portrayal of pure rage was slightly jarring after Missy's redemption arc in the finale of Series 10. So what made the Master return to an incarnation full of hatred, similar to Missy's predecessor played by John Simm?
This major shift back in portrayal led many fans to believe that Dhawan came in between Simm and Gomez's incarnations. However, this theory lessens the delicious ending of the two "stabbing each other in the back" at the end of the Doctor Falls. So what other explanation could there be? Welcome Big Finish once again.
July 2020, saw Big Finish release Missy Series 2, and the series opener was a story titled The Lumiat by Lisa McMullin. Why is this important? Well SERIOUS spoilers to follow...
The Lumiat it turns out is an incarnation of the Master following Missy. The ending of the Doctor Falls depicts Missy as being very much dead, and so as a last ditch to save herself, uses a Time Lord device called an Elysian Field. The device reprograms her molecules, giving her a new regeneration cycle, as well as a reprogrammed personality. Long story short, the Lumiat becomes similar to the Valeyard, but as the good version of the Master/Missy.
In the end, as Missy forces the Lumiat to regenerate, she tells her she thinks it unlikely her next incarnation will share this good streak, as they are rarely the same person twice, hence leading to the ball of rage Dhawan's incarnation was.
Another interesting point of note, is that McMullin actually stated she'd written this story long before Spyfall aired, making this situation a very satisfying happy accident, to explain the Master's sudden shift in personality. Whilst series plot holes can be altered with 'head canons', it is so satisfying when other aspects of the show line up to fill in the gaps so seamlessly.