On the plus side, Planet Of Fire makes the Master menacing again after a string of appearances that reduced him to a standard moustache-twirling villain. Even though he's a Master-by-proxy rather than the real thing, there's something of a throwback to the Master's run-ins with the Third Doctor in the way he manipulates the adherents of Logar into doing what he wants. Speaking of the "proxy" bit, this story also finally resolves the vexing Kamelion question, making far better use of the character than...well, anything else, really. On the minus side, it also gives us Peri. And an itty bitty Master. That being said, it is Peri's first story, so she's a lot better here than she ever would be again. The Master's diminished state is... somewhat less satisfying. Still, at least he didn't get to finish his last line, "Won't you show mercy to your own ...," which producer John Nathan-Turner reportedly said would have ended in "brother." Ugh. No wonder the Tenth Doctor makes fun of the notion of a "secret brother." And speaking of which...
Tony Whitt has previously written TV, DVD, and comic reviews for CINESCAPE, NOW PLAYING, and iF MAGAZINE. His weekly COMICSCAPE columns from the early 2000s can still be found archived on Mania.com. He has also written a book of gay-themed short stories titled CRESCENT CITY CONNECTIONS, available on Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle format. Whitt currently lives and works in Chicago, Illinois.
