An Autist Reviews: Masterful (The Worlds Of Doctor Who - Special Releases 11.1)

*All Reviews Are Spoiler-Free Aside From Any Spoiler Sections*

*This Review Includes One Review Per Part Along With An Overview Review And One Spoiler Section Where I Talk About Why The Story Is Amazing*

Part 1 Review:

The Master has won and has decided to invite all of his other selves to a party. But Jo Grant wasn’t invited, no, she’s a stand-in for the Master who tormented UNIT back in the day, and of course, that scamp Kamelion is there too, despite not having an invitation either, playing the part of the Master for someone else who was smart enough not to come. Everything is going brilliantly until Missy, the uninvited incarnation of the Master arrives and reveals that the entire universe is doomed thanks to her previous self. Scattering across time and space for their own safety, the different incarnations of the Master, as well as Jo and Kamelion, in the guise of the Doctor, have to find a way to survive, make the most of their situation, and save the universe… that is, if they even care to.

This is not what I expected, but that hardly makes it bad. In fact, I don’t know how what I expected really could have been better. What starts off as a simple, fun romp with the Masters joking with each other and plotting to kill Jo quickly turns into a multi-pronged, elaborate, personal story, with each Master playing different parts. The War Master is on a planet that’s doomed, with inhabitants trying to survive by rushing to the city, the Crispy Master finds himself miraculously restored to his former handsomeness as he spends time with his savior, a kind mother who is punishing herself for a past sin by isolating herself, the Bald Master gets stuck in a supplies cabinet in which he will likely suffocate, Missy and the Unbound Master get to chit chat a little, Jo and Kamelion, who becomes the Doctor to make Jo feel better, explore an abandoned, ruined city that has had all the energy drained from it, only to find a monstrous vampire puddle chasing them, and, thus far, the Young, Bruce, and Saxon Masters have yet to reappear. Each prong of the story is uniquely interesting, but let’s start at the beginning, the setup for the entire story. The Humor here is brilliant, the Masters all clearly have their own personality and, of course, the War Master steals the show, really proving that, after all the stuff Big Finish has shown us about him, he really is the most dangerous, cunning Master, as he bashes his previous selves and makes even them fear him. Missy then steals the show after that, with her referencing what is, perhaps, the Daemon’s most famous scene. Jo’s appearance is done rather well too, even if the conversation around it could have been written to be more natural, especially on Jo’s end, but it barely lessens the scene. Sadly, the end of that half of the story does have some issues, but we’ll get to that in the effects section. Now, one last complaint for this first half of the story. The exposition, while understandable, still rubs me the wrong way a little, as it feels a little forced. Now, the latter half of the story. Once the Masters get split up, things really get going! Each story that gets told is uniquely intriguing, and, aside from the War Master’s story, rather personal and character-study-esque, which I LOVE! There isn’t much to say about this half, other than it has uniquely emotional points and such interesting scenarios for each Master, scenarios that really let them shine. Hearing the Crispy Master being so human is so amazing and it really shows the pain of the Master, the goodness inside of them, and hearing the Bald Master contemplate his death is also a unique insight into his character. Missy and the Unbound Master have only a short amount of time together, but that time is spent creating a remarkably unique relationship between the two and setting up both of their story arcs. Jo and Kamelion also get to have an interesting dynamic, with Jo being scared, worried, and sad all at the same time while trying to be brave and fight on with Kamelion just being himself and a rather decent version of the Third Doctor. The Child Master is the last character I want to talk about because while he has yet to appear in the latter half, his time in the first half is spent showing just how far he will fall. He’s a boy who believes that deaths are only acceptable when they are necessary for a plan, that they are regrettable, not enjoyable. He is so starkly different from his future selves that, honestly, I can’t wait to see Big Finish handle his character more, and they had better, I want to know how the Master becomes the monster he is today! So, now that that’s all over, trust me, this first part is spectacular and it really sets the tone for the rest of the story. Big and small scale all at once, funny, emotional, complicated, and, of course… Masterful.

If you came into this expecting the Masters to be poorly acted, then who are you and how have you survived this long? Every Master is on their A-Game, the only reason the main character rating is a 9/10, is because of Jo. Sadly, Jo is a bit off, she isn’t poorly acted per-say, but she just feels a little wrong, like she’s in the uncanny valley of acting where it’s almost bad and almost perfect all at the same time. It’s hard to describe really, but she’s still well-acted, it just rubs me the wrong way. As for the side characters, well, they’re just amazing. From the robots to Kitty, to the man the Bald Master tries to solicit help from, they’re all excellent aside from Korona, who I just personally don’t really care for. But she’s really at worst a 9/10, and with all the other amazing performances, she doesn’t bring the rating any lower than a 10/10. And, for the record, there is one kind of bad guy in this entire story, all 3 parts, even looking at it from the Master’s perspective. The only bad guys don’t really speak, you see, aside from the robots who shoot at the War Master at one point, and they’re just perfect.

The effects of this story are interesting to me specifically, because I don’t hate them and, honestly, I should hate the majority of them. This story uses a plethora of impressionistic effects, of course, it also has plenty of realistic effects thrown in, but the majority are impressionistic, and yet, I don’t hate them. Impressionistic effects usually rub me the wrong way, resulting in my amazement at the effects here, which, despite their impressionistic nature, only ever let me down at certain, highly specific moments, instead of often. During the escape from the Saxon Master’s castle, the effects let me down, giving zero impression as to how Jo escaped with the Masters, as to what exactly the monster outside was, but that wasn’t the biggest issue for me, the issue was with Jo’s escape mostly. You see, the impressionism of the effects doesn’t bother me, it’s the occasional lack of effects at all. Now, some of the more detailed effects also rub me the wrong way, with the lasers used against the War Master being remarkably boring sounding. Another issue, also in a part with Jo, is when Jo and Kamelion are running away from a monster and the monster isn’t really heard, instead, we just hear electric sounds in the background, which I find odd. The monsters as a whole don't have any effects to them really, which I certainly dislike. Now, for the backgrounds, which also are impressionistic, but this time that impressionism is done far better. I still have to knock the background effects down a point for how few they are, but aside from that, they do the job fantastically! The voice effects in this are also fantastic, perfect in fact, especially given a certain thing that one might theorize already by the end of this first part, but that’s not for me to bring up, not until a spoiler section at some point if I choose to at all. The transitions are often musical and always feel well placed, intriguing, and in line with what is occurring either at the place being transitioned to or away from. The music, dear god, the music sets the tone for this entire story. It’s subtle, low-key, and classy, everything it should be. Of course, when it comes to action it’s right on the mark as well, offering some intense beats, but the majority of it is quiet, doing its work in the background rather than the foreground for the most part. The theme, truthfully, is better than any more intense theme ever could be, despite how quiet and tame it is.

Dear god, when you finish this story, don’t immediately judge it, relisten to the entire thing, you will thank me for this! Not only is it just as wonderful and intriguing as the first time around but, you will also find yourself noticing little details that you overlooked at first but that bring the entire story together at the end! Of course, that’s yet to come together in part one, but the pieces are already in place, some of the most important ones in fact. Basically, an amazing story, necessary to listen to it a second time at least to truly understand why it ends the way it ends.

All in all, a fantastic start to a fantastic story in a fantastic box set which I am so happy I will physically possess soon! The acting is phenomenal, the story is rich, hilarious, and, most importantly, intriguing in more ways than one, the effects, while impressionistic, are beautiful and detailed in their own way, and if one listens to this story only once, they simply won’t be able to catch every magnificent detail, carefully placed by the one true god of this world, James Goss. Now, I am the Master, and you will obey me… LISTEN TO THIS STORY!!!

Original Guesstimate - 10

Total - 10

Plot - 9
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Story - 10
Pacing - 10
Dialogue - 9
Narration - NR
Exposition - 9
Enjoyment - 10
Twist/s - NR
Resolution/s - 9
Ending/s - 9

Acting - 10
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MC/s - 9
SC/s - 10
BG/s - 10
Narrator/s - NR

Effects - 9
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Music - 10
Voices - 10
Actions - 8
Background - 9
Transitions - 10

Replay - 10
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Re-Enjoyment - 10
New Details - 10

Part 2 Review:

Separated across time and space, the many Masters explore their surroundings and find themselves in equally dangerous, if not equally deadly, positions. Missy saves Jo and the two search through a library, looking for answers, whilst reminiscing, meanwhile, the War Master and the Saxon Master explore a dying world in an attempt to save it, elsewhere the Unbound Master and Kamelion watch the destruction of the universe and, soon, another, while yet elsewhere, on a doomed refugee ship, the ship’s mysterious new captain goes head to head with the Bald Master and the refugees who only have 127 days before they begin to starve to death, and finally, in paradise, a snake in a stolen body toys with the Crispy Master and his new sweetheart as they try to live in domestic bliss. As each Master explores their surroundings, they begin to uncover a terrifying tale, one of ineptity, obedience, and utter obedience. A tale that will end in tragedy.

This is easily the worst of the parts of this story. Now, it’s still fantastic, but its effects and acting are the worst that I can remember. The story itself though is brilliant. Each part of the story begins intertwining during this part, as the stakes rise, and we see more or less how each story is going to go, is going to end. The best part is that each piece has its own distinct style to it. Missy and Jo are on a highly comedic adventure as they poke fun at each other and the tropes of Doctor Who as a whole, meanwhile the War Master and the Saxon Master have an action-adventure story, the Unbound Master really just acts as a cameo occasionally, the Crispy Master is still having his slow-burn romance story, but now the Bruce Master is disturbing things, adding a more eerie tone to it, and on the refugee ship we have a politically charged action story as the Bald Master manipulates events to get to talk to the man in charge of the doomed ship. Each part of the story has its own charm, truly, even if there are still some small flaws in the basic story itself, at least in the refugee ship storyline, where the Bald Master gets put in danger thanks to a completely stupid misunderstanding. The Dialogue is also mostly brilliant, but there are plenty of moments that feel off, that just seem like they should have been rewritten to make them sound more natural. Aside from those faults, the plot itself is just fantastic, and, really, until I get to the spoiler section at the end, there isn’t much more to say, since now things are getting pretty important. I can tell you that Missy’s moments were my favorite and that the strong character study elements continue throughout the story, along with the War Master being the single most competent Master ever.

Well, this is gonna be a short section. The main characters have the occasional slip-up especially Jo, at least at the beginning. Aside from those occasional slip-ups though, they are just transcendentally amazing! I mean, the mistakes are few and far between, really. Now, the side characters are a mixed bag. They’re all decent enough. Not one side character is poorly acted, but they range from being about a 7 to about a 9 at absolute best. Kitty has a habit of sounding like she’s calling from or to far away, when she is actually close to other characters, Carola just kinda sounds off to me constantly despite my not really knowing any actual problems with her acting, and the man on the ship often sounds detached from the scene, even if his acting is generally rather fine. The other side characters are basically flawless, from the random masses to the robots. As for any bad guys, there are, as expected, none. Only the monster and the entropy wave are around as proper bad guys, and neither speak.

Okay, the effects in this part are far worse than last time around. Last time I could forgive a lot more than I could this time around, so let’s get to the bad stuff before I start handing out compliments. The voice effects are… embarrassing. There are two good voice effects in this entire story. The robots’ voice effect and the ship comms system effect. Aside from those, and the occasional REALLY small effect, every other voice effect is rather crap. The distance effects during the War Master and Saxon Master storyline along with the ones during the Krispy storyline are horrible. Like, they are the worst I’ve ever heard. The music is also lacking. Instead of being nice and quiet, subtle, and interesting, the music feels lacking, holding so much untapped potential, being able to enhance the story so well, but so rarely doing anything at all. Still, when the music does get used, it generally is rather amazing, even if sometimes it is rather bland. Moving on to the action effects… yeah the lack of sounds when it comes to the big bads of the story is more annoying than usual here. I mean, the monster rushes past the Unbound Master’s literal spaceship and there is literally no effect. I just can’t forgive that. I really can’t. The thing is, aside from the lack of effects when it comes to the monster and the entropy wave being worse than before, the effects are brilliant. They’re actually really detailed, from the scraping of forks on plates to the littlest footstep. Oh, and there are the occasional iffy effects on other things, like on a certain disappearance and when a bunch of crackers pour out of a robot. The background effects are also amazing, with fire crackling, explosions occurring, and wind whirring all setting the mood of each scene perfectly. You always know where you are and what’s going on around you, and that’s special. Still, the lack of monstrous sounds in the background will always be a negative for me. The transitions are diverse as they come, going from chimes to drums to the intro being repurposed, and they’re just brilliant. The only problems with them come from the fact that the occasional transition seems a little too much like an actual effect, instead of a transition, such as one particularly annoying transition during the Missy and Jo storyline.

I honestly disliked this part a lot more this time than last time, but coming back again, I suspect I’ll find myself a little more appreciative of it. Now, there is less that you notice a second time around in this part, but there are some really important bits that you’ll miss on your first go through. Oh, and you should know one of the twists in this story by now. By the end of this part, one of the twists should be obvious to you. All in all, the replay value is pretty good here, even if it isn’t as amazing as it was in the previous part.

I wish I could tell you more about the story, but I’d start giving things away, so this part’s review is far shorter than the previous one’s and, especially including the spoiler section, the next two parts of this review will be nice and long again. Now, for the overview… the plot is *chef’s kiss* and the conversations are so well written and exposite so much about the characters so perfectly, that, honestly, it makes it clear that James Goss could just write a conversation as an entire audio drama and it would be the best thing Big Finish ever released. The acting is phenomenal, aside from some of the big side characters being annoyingly average. The effects are the worst part of this, but honestly, the majority are great, it’s just that the bad effects are so annoying and noticeable that it hurts the overall story a great deal. This part doesn’t offer as much on a second listen as the previous one, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t an amazing part with a lot to give. All in all, this is another great part, even if it is, perhaps, the weakest part. Now… onto the most intriguing part of the story and the bonus scene (it’s the same as the YT clip.)

Original Guesstimate - 10

Total - 9

Plot - 10
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Story - 9
Pacing - 10
Dialogue - 9
Narration - NR
Exposition - 10
Enjoyment - 9
Twist/s - NR
Resolution/s - 10
Ending/s - 10

Acting - 9
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MC/s - 10
SC/s - 8
BG/s - NR
Narrator/s - NR

Effects - 7
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Music - 7
Voices - 4
Actions - 8
Background - 9
Transitions - 9

Replay - 8
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Re-Enjoyment - 9
New Details - 7

Part 3 Review:

It’s all coming to a head now. Kamelion has a plan and it’s asking for help from as many Masters as it possibly can, but sadly there are few who will listen to it. The War Master wants to do his best to stop all of this chaos from coming about, to begin with, the Crispy Master just wants to live a happy eternity with his love, Kitty, Missy is out doing her own chaotic thing, trying to survive her own mess, the Unbound Master is doing his best to stop the entropy wave from spreading, even if it costs Gallifrey and asking the Daleks for help, and, last but not least, the Bald Master is successfully ruling his refugee ship. The Master will win. But which team of them will succeed? And what exactly is the entropy wave? Everything is about to come out, and the universe will never be the same.

Now, before we reach the final part, let’s talk about that glorious youtube video. You see, that scene goes between parts 2 and 3, and it’s also included as a bonus when you purchase Masterful. So, to put it simply, it’s camp, hilarious, and it really gets you excited for the rest of the story and the story that is to come in part 3. Speaking of, it’s time to move on to part 3, the single best part of Masterful. FIGHT ME!
Can I say that I misjudged this part when I first listened to it? Because I did. This is the best part of the entire story. Without a doubt. This part is WHY you HAVE to listen to it again, because while it feels weird the first time around, the second time around, when you get to put it all together, it is perfection. The part begins with the wrapping up of every one of the separate stories while Kamelion asks different Masters to join him. We see the Bruce Master manipulate the Crispy Master, we see the Young Master try to save a life while the Bald Master rules over his newly acquired refugee ship, we see the War and Saxon Masters bickering in a car, and Missy gets to decide if she wants a friend or not. Once that’s over, we move on to the castle again. The Masters are together again, and they talk, relax, and, in the end, try to fix their mistakes. I know this is the shortest one yet, but let’s get a little detailed to fix that up, okay? The pacing is a little quick, with the Saxon Master realizing that he’s being manipulated in mere moments, having the Crispy Master suddenly trust the Bruce master for no real reason, those both are kind of annoying, but moving on from that, the pacing is utter perfection. The exposition just at the beginning of the castle segment of this part is rather iffy as the War Master lays out what we’ve already figured out as being the story behind the Entropy Wave. The thing is, the big twists at the end, they don’t bother you on a second listen, because everything makes sense the second time, once you notice all the little, now that you relisten, obvious details. This part is emotional as can be, the dialogue is thick with detail and empathy and emotion, the relationships are so well explored and every character feels 10x as real and fleshed out as they ever have before. I can’t say anything else though, not right now, not until the spoiler section, just you wait for that, it’s gonna be crazy. I swear to god, it’ll probably be the length of a review in and of itself. Oh, I will say #Krispy4life!!!

The acting is perfect. The emotional deaths of different characters, the conflict in their voices as they speak, the venom dripping from the Masters’ tongues, it’s all perfect. The side characters have the occasional line that isn’t perfectly delivered, but it’s easily forgivable, honestly. Every single actor left at this point is phenomenal, I don’t know why this WOULDN’T be perfect. Just, we stan all of these guys and gals, they’re all just great and their performances bring this story to life.

Well, the guy behind the effects was really holding out for this glorious part! The biggest improvement is the effects of the monster/entropy wave. They start off rather usual but with a little more oomph to them, but by the end, we hear it scream, roar, crash into things, we hear it move, we hear it do everything. It’s still impressionistic, but it’s flawlessly so. Every other effect is generally perfect too, though there are enough ones that are pathetic or quiet that I have to hold the rating back from being a 10/10. The music is also the best it’s been, with some proper 10th and 11th Doctor era epic music, and the subtle music is still noticeable as it makes scenes sadder, happier, tenser, and more! I mean, it does everything music should be, and I LOVE IT! Oh, and the music knows when to cut out, and when to fade out, and when to just stay back and wait for the right moment to come in. The voice effects are, just to put it plainly, perfect. That’s it, they’re perfect. The background effects border on flawless, but there are many moments that are quieter than they should be, especially with the monster… still… But hey, that doesn’t do too much to one’s enjoyment! The transitions, like every other part of this part, are perfection! No matter what form they take, they’re as enjoyable as any other part of the story and they always set the mood wonderfully. Basically, the effects, like every other part of this part of the story, are basically flawless.

Dear. God. Okay, I thought I knew how much more sense this would make on a second listen, but oh dear God did I know nothing. I mean, a first listen makes this ending pretty decent, but when the ending comes about a second time, it makes perfect sense. Every part of it makes sense. The twists are all foreseeable, the plot points are clear, everything is clear, everything is clearer. I mean, this is the best part of the entire story, and it WAS my least favorite! This ending is so much better a second time, once you figure out what the foreshadowing is, once you know it’s coming, because this story borders on perfection, and I love that.

I love this part. I love it so much. The plot? UTTERLY PERFECT! The acting? Perfect. The Effects? Perfect. The Replay Value? IN THE STRATOSPHERE! This is honestly now my favorite audio drama I've ever heard, and I don’t think anything will ever be able to change that. This story has left its mark on my mind. Just, enjoy, that’s all I can say, really. Now, to wrap everything up. Also, this is now a Crispy Master x Kitty fan account #Krispy4life!!! #KRISPY4LIFEORDIE!!!

Original Guesstimate - 9

Total - 10

Plot - 10
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Story - 10
Pacing - 9
Dialogue - 10
Narration - NR
Exposition - 9
Enjoyment - 10
Twist/s - 10
Resolution/s - 10
Ending/s - 10

Acting - 10
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MC/s - 10
SC/s - 10
BG/s - NR
Narrator/s - NR

Effects - 10
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Music - 10
Voices - 10
Actions - 9
Background - 9
Transitions - 10

Replay - 10
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Re-Enjoyment - 10
New Details - 10

Overview Review:

The Master said he won, he brought most of his former selves together to party, and maybe to kill them to extend his own life, but then Missy, the uninvited madwoman revealed the truth and set into motion a grand, deranged scheme. Split across time and space, the different Masters and a very out of her depth Jo Grant are about to learn the dark truth of themselves and of the Master’s cruel plot, all while a Master from another universe tries to put a stop to the end of every universe by any means necessary. The Master is doomed, they always are, they will always be evil and they will always fail… won’t they?

“To wipe out creation by design is a triumph, by accident it’s a tragedy.”

Well, this is certainly a different story than one might expect. I mean, it’s James Goss, but this is something special, even from him. This is a character study of every Master; James Goss inspects why each Master is the way they are, he looks at their capability to do good, what drives them, how they began, and if they could possibly save the universe from themselves. This is an intricate look at the face of evil in every form it takes. It has so many hilarious moments, heartwarming moments, and heartbreaking moments, that truly, it’s a rollercoaster from second to second, minute to minute, and hour to hour. The ending, while it may feel absurd and rather rushed on a first listen, winds up being so much better, so much more fleshed out, on a second listen, and that’s amazing. Seeing the Master fall in love, become a hero, bicker with their former self, and try to save the universe is just amazing. Every Master is used to perfection, every story is expanded upon to just the right degree, and every joke or sappy line is followed up by a jab of cruelty and sadness. Jo and Kamelion also play their roles fabulously, with Jo befriending Missy and the two having a lovely adventure as Missy tries to find out why the Doctor keeps companions around, and with Kamelion being used and abused throughout the entire thing all while having his own cunning and evil to him that really makes you invested in them as a character, and the way the Masters treat him really makes you disgusted in them. Each Master gets to be what they are to the nth degree, with the War Master being the competent, sane, psychopath who is always a few steps ahead, always manipulating things, always trying to win, to keep the universe in one piece, while the Saxon Master is an utter mad man with a failed scheme to save his own life currently causing the destruction of the universe all while he acts like a petulant, overconfident child. Missy is completely nuts, completely funny, and is totally a cannibal after everything she said in part two, while the Unbound Master is a relatively decent-hearted person who just wants to rule and save the universe despite the price. The Bald Master is camp as can be, sadistic, and totally rational aside from when his emotions run wild which contrasts perfectly with the Young Master who just sees himself as the smartest kid in the room, the one who everyone NEEDS to listen to or else everything is going to go wrong; he’s driven by a belief that if you listen to him, everything will be better, that’s why he wants to rule the universe, and that’s why he doesn’t kill freely, he behaves as he has to, kills when it’s necessary, not when he wants to have some fun. The Bruce Master is a manipulative, cruel charmer who takes potshots at the love life of the Crispy Master who finds himself acting homely, loving, and happy, after so much time in pain, after so much time angry. Jo is sly, adorable, and comedic, as you would expect, and Kamelion is surprisingly independent and funny as well as being a subservient, evil robot. Now that I’ve gone over all I can while keeping it spoiler-free… it’s time for the spoiler section… it’s gonna be pretty long, so get ready.

-SPOILER SECTION START-

Who’s ready for me to ramble on and on about how amazing this story is and why? I AM! Okay, so, let’s start with the ending. The monster being the Master. It’s insane, it makes no sense, it’s a copout of dumbness, right? Wrong. It’s foreshadowed so sneakily throughout the entire thing! It’s foreshadowed from the very moment that the War Master says that the Masters are always hungry! There are constant references to hunger, and the monster is constantly spoken of as a final form, as pure evil, pure hunger. The entire story is about the Master, what they are at their core, and the monster is the personification of the Masters’ hunger for power. It is a constantly hungry creature of utter destruction. I mean, what would happen if someone consumed their past to grow into a godly being in a dying universe? I mean, some serious shit would surely happen, and honestly, turning into a massive fuck-off monster is probably the best possible outcome when you think about it! I can’t compliment James Goss enough for actually foreshadowing that twist so well! And speaking of the all one planet twist, it’s done really well too!

We get to see bits of the history of this dead world, we see how each of the Masters is given a chance to do something special, all connected to the complete story. The twist that the two dead women were Kitty’s children isn’t foreshadowed much, but it’s still really painful and makes sense when that particularly cruel twist is revealed. I mean, the fact that we are at an apocalypse, a refugee ship, a cabin surrounded by a forcefield, and a post-apocalyptic jungle of decay is just brilliant and it kinda hints from the very beginning that this is all interconnected.

Oh, and Missy’s arc is just brilliant. One: Missy x Unbound Master is almost a better ship than Krispy, and two: her just befriending Jo for 2 and a half hours until she decides that friendship is overrated and JUST FUCKING MURDERING HER is amazing. And, I mean, it makes sense that she’s behind it, since she’s the only one doing nothing, just chillaxin’ maxin’ with Jo, having a good time, whilst all the others are going through a specialized trial. Also, the fact that Missy refers to a part of her disguise that then goes on to be used to give the Crispy Master the appearance of a rather normal man instead of his usually crispy appearance. It’s small touches like that that just make this entire story a beautiful, intricate piece of work. I really can’t praise this story enough, I REALLY just can’t! Oh, and the fact that this story manages to end doing He Who Wins better than He Who Wins makes me so happy! I mean, I love Antigenesis, but He Who Wins, despite being amazing, isn’t nearly as brilliant as the ending of Masterful. Honestly, I don’t know how James Goss made an even more pyrrhic victory than the one in He Who Wins.

-SPOILER SECTION END-

The acting here is phenomenal. You have 8 glorious actors playing one of the most interesting and camp characters to ever exist, I mean, they all kill it, even Milo Parker, who really proves that he’s an amazing actor and that we NEED more of the Young Master. We get to feel the venom, the adoration, the indecision in every sentence each of the Masters says! Jo and Kamelion also kill it, with Jo sounding so energetic and so sly throughout the entire thing all while Kamelion is just his absurd self. The side characters aren’t as great as the main characters, but they’re still amazing, with Aurora playing two amazing characters, one of whom has a less than pleasing voice, but the acting is still on point! The robots are great, the poor butler is hilarious, Sardo has his ups and downs, but he’s a believable character with some fine acting behind him, Kitty is just a sweet old woman, even if she has some poor line delivery, especially in part two, and the Lumiat’s cameo is just hilarious, with her being completely perfectly camp. The only bad guys are really some security drones and some non-speaking entities, but the drones are just plain perfectly acted, so, yeah, there you go. The acting is just great. As expected.

Oh boy, this is gonna be a long part… So, the music is something special, largely being really subtle, but still really amazing. Often the music is used properly to enhance scenes and it gets left out when its inclusion would harm a scene, but sadly occasionally the music just feels like it’s missing or like it’s too quiet and subtle. The intro music is really awesome too, not because it’s epic, but because it’s so smooth, suave, and classical, really capturing the essence of the Delgado Master. The voice effects are almost always brilliant. Really. But during the second part, they become embarrassingly crappy, at least the distance effects do. That’s all I can really say about that. The action effects are… interesting. They are generally rather impressionistic, something I don’t usually like, but here it feels different somehow like there’s enough detail that it just feels right, unlike most impressionistic effects. Now, there are certainly some issues with the effects, mostly being in part two, but in general, the monster and the entropy wave have next to no effects on them, giving them very little presence. They generally still can be felt and noticed, but I have to air my grievances about it, or this review wouldn’t be any good, now would it? The background effects are basically solid 9s throughout the entire story. Sometimes there should be more there, but they always do their job, they always tell you where you are, and they always feel nice and comfortable, not too detailed, but just subtle and warm, especially the fireplace effect XD The transitions make me so happy, they’re basically all perfect. I mean, some wind up seeming too much like they could be actual effects or like they aren’t as unique or as specific as they could be, but those moments are few and far between. Yeah, not gonna lie, I thought that this part would be longer… huh.

Well, this part is gonna be rather short all things considered, since most of what I WOULD say here is highly spoilery, so it’s in the spoiler section… still, I can tell you how I feel about the replay value, even if I can’t go into much detail. This story requires 2 listens before you make any proper judgments on it. Seriously. The first time around, it’s great, but the ending leaves a bitter taste in your mouth, it feels rushed and absurd, but upon your second listen through, the foreshadowing becomes so clear and the massive twist at the end becomes so much more understandable, so much more epic. I love the ending now. It’s just phenomenal and thematically perfect for this story. Give the story a second chance if your first listen made you a little confused and/or bitter. Please.
All in all, this is a consistently brilliant story. The middle certainly has a dip in quality, but by the end, the story is running smoothly. The plot is detailed, intricate, and will make you feel every emotion under the sun, all while the acting makes you feel like you could listen to these storylines for hours and hours and still not get bored. The effects are impressionistic, but they don’t bother me as much as I would expect. That being said, the entropy wave and the monster really could have benefitted from having some more impressive and noticeable effects on them. Now, to end this off… relisten to this. Please. Listen to it a second time before you judge it. I’m sure I sound like a broken record, but it will be worth your time to do so.

“I saved the universe...”

Original Guesstimate - 10

Total - 10

Plot - 10
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Story - 10
Pacing - 10
Dialogue - 9
Narration - NR
Exposition - 9
Enjoyment - 10
Twist/s - 10
Resolution/s - 10
Ending/s - 10

Acting - 10
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MC/s - 10
SC/s - 9
BG/s - 10
Narrator/s - NR

Effects - 9
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Music - 9
Voices - 8
Actions - 8
Background - 9
Transitions - 10

Replay - 10
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Re-Enjoyment - 10
New Details - 9

-=- If you want to see more of my reviews, some of my craziness, my thoughts on stories I've experienced but not reviewed, and the important libtard things I share around because I'm a filthy liberal snowflake, check out my Instagram page @deadmainmanmax -=-