Doctor Who: Is The Master a racist?

[RosemaryWoodhouse]

Did anyone else find it tasteless how he turned the black family into his personal slaves? He didn't treat his white wife like that. He had Captain jack chained up. He made The Doctor live in a tent. And he made the black cast members serve him his morning coffee. Is this the sort of message that we want sending out in children's programmes?

well i must say I'd include black people as being of "my own kind" sue but i do get what you are saying. its an interesting point.

I don't think just becuase someone is generally BAD they are racist though. I really don't. Neither do I think that just becuase someone is generally NICE then they can't be racist. I've had enough examples to the contrary. "nice" people often have a LOT of unquestioned assuptions IME.

I still think rosemary makes a good point. So what if its to wind us up? The response to this thread suggests that thats a good thing, there's a LOT of interesting responses here.

No, I agree. Being a racist isn't of neccessity part of being a bad guy. But as a bad-guy trait it's no more shocking than any other bad-guy trait.

What's challenging is the idea of 'our hero' being racist.

And yes, of course human beings of all shades are of 'my kind' because I'm a human. But the Doctor isn't.

What's perhaps interesting to note is that when the Doctor became human, he was that ever-so-genteel kind of racist that mostly just patronizes. And when he turned back into a Timelord, he said that John Smith was still in there, somewhere, presumably with all the foibles and character traits he displayed.

I also think it's interesting that both of the main black characters in the series got a bit fed up of being treated a shabbily by the Doctor and left him of their own accord - Mickey in the parallel universe and Martha in The Last of The Timelords.

true this thread is less offensive than the others, but i really didnt like when he/she posted about being dumped if she couldnt conceive and actively appealed for people who had been in a similar situation

He tried to save the Master just as he tried to save the Family of Blood - turned himself into a human being to stop the FoB enacting their devilish plans etc. etc.

Of course - but he spent a year trying to get the Master to allow him to say sorry. With the FoB, he did use the chameleon arch for a few months, but then when Baines is explaining their punishments he mentions that the Doctor might forgive them, one day - meaning he hasn't yet.

Apart from anything else, that whole 'no second chances, I'm that sort of a man' fell a bit flat in the last episode, but that's a character and plotting criticism really.

/waffle

I just saw actors/actresses, not their colour. So was surprised by the discussion heading.

I think the reason he was easier on the master than others and why he was so upset at his death is because the master was the only other time lord left, and they had a history together.

HE didn't want to be alone even if the other person was a raging homicidal crackpot.