Doctor Who review: The War Master: The Castle of Kurnos 5
By James Aggas
Major questions are answered and the Eighth Doctor faces his old enemy once more in the third episode of Doctor Who spin-off box set The War Master: Hearts of Darkness.
The Castle of Kurnos 5 is a rather unusual story for The War Master. Not because it stars Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor – after all, he had a pretty major role to play in last year’s box set Rage of the Time Lords. No, it’s because the entire story is told in flashback.
This seems like an unusual approach. But it’s also an essential one, too. For the first two episodes of Hearts of Darkness, we knew that the War Master was hunting down the Doctor. But we didn’t know why, or even what the Doctor was up to.
The Castle of Kurnos 5 answers these questions, at least partially. At the same time, it also tells a very old-school horror story. On a world shrouded in darkness, one that has an ancient and seemingly abandoned castle, David Llewellyn is keen to tell a story that conjures up the best kind of monster movies – one that’s absolutely filled with atmosphere and horror. Even the Master casts himself in the role of a mad scientist. During the month of Halloween, a horror story as old-school as this one is more than welcome – especially as Doctor Who often does horror so extremely well.
The Eighth Doctor and the War Master are reunited in this story. But what’s really going on?
Image Courtesy Big Finish Productions
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The Eighth Doctor and the War Master
It’s also fantastic to hear Paul McGann as the Doctor once more, and in a pretty full-on role, too. He’s arrived on Kurnos 5 specifically to find the Master. He knows he’s up to something terrible, he just doesn’t know what. The Doctor thinks he’s fully prepared for his old enemy. But is it the other way round?
What’s really a joy to hear is the War Master being so gloriously evil. Casting the character in the role of classic mad scientist works really well for this episode. In some ways, he’s subtle about his plans, but in others, he’s forced to use desperate methods to achieve his goals. It all ends in a satisfying confrontation between him and the Doctor – one that not only explains what’s really been going on in this box set but sets up the final episode in a big way.
Overall, The Castle of Kurnos 5 is a great little horror story, one that uses the Doctor effectively while giving us plenty of major revelations about the story so far. Another strong episode for this box set.
Next. The Paternoster Gang: Heritage 4 neatly resolves the spin-off’s first series. dark
Do you enjoy a good old-school monster movie? What are some of your favorite ones? Do you think there are any great Doctor Who stories that captured the style and atmosphere of those movies well? Let us know in the comments below.