While the Master's psychotic tendencies haven't changed all that much in 2014, his face - and gender - certainly have. In the Series 8 finale the malevolent Missy revealed herself as the latest incarnation of the renegade Time Lord in an Earth-shattering cliffhanger which the Doctor Who community is still recovering from today. The last time fans saw the Doctor's arch nemesis was in The End of Time in which he was seen disappearing into the Time War to seemingly to die with the rest of his race along with Gallifrey's imminent destruction. With Gallifrey now saved, he didn't waste any time escaping the confines of his home planet and he's been keeping a watchful eye on the Doctor and Clara's adventures ever since. The only difference is, he now looks like Michelle Gomez! So, 2014 was the year the Master became female and with Missy's return already confirmed for Series 9, it looks like it's only just the beginning for her and her foray into uncharted madness. When you've built a Nethersphere and raised an army of Cyberman to feast on the corpses of planet Earth, where do you possibly go next? Call us paranoid but she'll definitely be able to come up with something.
Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.
