The Master was introduced. That moment came in Doctor Who season 3's "Utopia," when the kind and unassuming Professor Yana was revealed to be The Master under the influence of a chameleon arch. Derek Jacobi promptly regenerated into John Simm, who rose to become Prime Minister of Great Britain and turned the Tenth Doctor into Dobby the House Elf. He even found time for a cringe-worthy song and dance number.
The Doctor wins out in the end, of course, but the reveal of John Simm as The Master remains one of modern Doctor Who's best surprises. Although the Yana revelation did indeed shock viewers, The Master's arrival had actually been teased for the entire season. As with "Bad Wolf" and "Torchwood" previously, Doctor Who season 3 was littered with references to "Mister Saxon" and "Vote Saxon." Campaign posters are visible in the background of scenes set on modern day Earth, and Saxon is alluded to by name in "The Lazarus Experiment," "The Runaway Bride" and several other episodes.
Viewers with an affinity for wordplay might've been able to work out Saxon was secretly The Master from these subtle clues alone. "Mister Saxon" is an anagram of "Master No. Six." Indeed, Simm is the sixth version of the classic Doctor Who villain after Roger Delgado, the disfigured Master, Anthony Ainley, Eric Roberts and Jacobi. Figuring out the anagram also could've tipped fans off that another character would be introduced as the fifth Master before regenerating into his Saxon guise.
It all seems so obvious looking back, especially when combined with the Face of Boe's ominous warning that The Doctor wasn't the only Gallifreyan to survive the Time War. Russell T. Davies even had history in of hiding major plot twists within anagrams. In Doctor Who's second season, the Tenth Doctor and Rose keep coming across the word "Torchwood," which eventually leads them to the villainous company who made the colossal mistake of bringing the Daleks and the Cybermen to Earth at the same time. "Torchwood" is an anagram of "Doctor Who" and while this isn't as informative as "Master No. Six," it does tell fans to be on the lookout for mysterious anagrams.
For many, season-long mysteries like Saxon and Torchwood are distant and fond memories, as Doctor Who would soon begin to spread its big mysteries over multiple seasons. The "silence will fall" storyline dominated the Eleventh Doctor's tenure, but the phrase's true meaning wasn't revealed until Matt Smith's farewell episode. Likewise, the Timeless Child was teased in Jodie Whittaker's second Doctor Who adventure, but not fully explained until the finale of the following season. The fact that Saxon and Torchwood are still popular topics of discussion suggests Davies' original format might've been more effective.
Doctor Who returns with "Revolution of the Daleks" this Christmas on BBC.
