Doctor Who: Is Roger Delgado the greatest Master?

With the first episodes of the Doctor’s arch-enemy broadcasting on Twitch, we look at the original actor to portray the Master, Roger Delgado. Almost five decades later, is the original still the best?

Watching very first appearance in Terror of the Autons, it becomes rapidly clear why the Master has endured as one of Doctor Who‘s greatest villains. It isn’t simply because of the immediately established history between him and the Doctor.

No, it’s Roger Delgado himself that makes the character so brilliant. He brings such class and suaveness to the role, and completely owns it. Delgado’s Master might be trying to bring about the destruction of the Earth, but you can’t help but love his incarnation.

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He also has great chemistry with Jon Pertwee. You really believe that not only are the two truly equal opponents, but that they used to be friends once. For both of them, at this point, trying to outwit or even destroy the other is nothing more than a game.

It’s not surprising to know that Pertwee and Delgado were very good friends in real life. Particularly as it seems to blend quite nicely with the almost friendly aspect of the characters themselves.

A cooler Master

It’s funny to think how much the Master has changed over the years. Particularly with both Simm’s and Gomez’s incarnations.

For the New Series, the Master has generally become more insane and playful with his victims. Even Alex Macqueen from the Big Finish audios has a very manic and fun side to his Master.

But Delgado just has an effortless sense of cool the whole time. Sometimes, that only makes his villainy all the more frightening. He can be utterly charming to someone one moment, and then killing that person the next.

And the whole time, he would have the same calm, collected manner. As if killing an innocent life meant absolutely nothing to him. Certainly, Delgado knew how to give an utterly chilling performance.

To me, Roger Delgado will always be the greatest Master. Striking an excellent balance between charm and pure evil, he was either a villain you’d love to hate, or one you simply couldn’t help but love.

Without his brilliant performance, the Master wouldn’t have been nearly as memorable as he’s become. And even several decades later, it’s still a performance that holds up as one of the very best.

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Have you been enjoy Roger Delgado’s Master on Twitch? Do you agree that he’s one, if not the best Master? If not, who’s your favorite? Let us know in the comments below.

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