‘Doctor Who’ Finale: Missy Reveals Herself

Doctor Who Series 8 is drawing to a close, and as he is wont to do, Steven Moffat kicked off the two-part season finale with an emotional roller coaster. “Dark Water” was filled with twists, turns and emotional gut punches. But the biggest twist was saved for last as series eight enigma Missy finally revealed her identity to The Doctor.

If you have not yet watched “Dark Water” be warned: there will be spoilers. We’re going to talk about Missy. A lot. This is your last warning.

First appearing at the end of the series eight premier “Deep Breath,” the identity of Missy (played by Michelle Gomez) has been debated ad nauseam by Doctor Who Fans. Digital Spy even ran as list of fan theories on the subject. Was she River Song? Maybe she was a reincarnation of Romana? Was she a version of Clara from her split at the end of series seven?

Well, now we have our answer.

Missy is The Master!

That’s right, The Doctor’s nemesis is back. Last seen in the Tenth Doctor finale “The End of Time,” The Master has returned, only now he’s a she and she’s calling herself The Mistress, or Missy for short. Got it?

Moffat teased the return in a BBC interview ahead of the series sight premier.

“We’ve got some cracking new monsters – the Teller. And we’ve got some cracking old monsters – the Daleks will be back. Another major foe will be making a return, but more of that later.”

The Master is arguably the preeminent recurring antagonist in Doctor Who lore. First appearing in “Terror of the Autons” in 1971, The Master has terrorized The Doctor across multiple series of Classic Doctor Who, the modern reboot, comic books, and radio plays. Driven mad due to events of his childhood, The Master always seems to pop up when least expected, bent on the acquisition of power and the death of the human race.

Now she’s back, with a particularly nefarious plan to, what else, kill all the humans. The Master — or The Mistress, or Missy — is a radical new direction for The Master and for Doctor Who. While the show has featured female time lords before, this is the first time we have confirmation that a male time lord and regenerate as a female. Could this be the prelude to a long-rumored female Doctor?

Moffat and company are no stranger to plot twists. Many fans saw this one coming, but this feels like a big deal all the same. Doctor Who fans have been wondering about Missy all season, and we finally got our answer. What are you thoughts about Missy’s identity and the return of The Master?