After all this arguing and bickering I have decided to make a big poll about Missy and whether or not she works well. Michelle Gomez plays her brilliantly in my opinion and is the best Master since Delgado

It wasn't a good or bad idea. But I agree, she was great in the part. I'm actually more interested in the manor that she was introduced.

By having her cameo in every episode, and feeding in just enough red herrings to make it plausibly deniable she was the Master, it created a social atmosphere that helped cusion the blow of any fallout that might have occurred from that decision.

Dunno if it was necessary, but it was a clever choice.
Now Time Lords changing gender isn't such a big deal to most people, so they don't have to worry about too much backlash if they want to cast a woman Doctor in the future

Superb idea. Loved it. Love her. Want her back.

Yes, absolutely!
The concept of Time Lords changing gender on regeneration was already established.
It was only a matter of time before we saw it for ourselves, and why not with the Master?
It would be good to find out one day if "he" had the gender change forced upon him, or it was a conscious choice.
"She" certainly seemed to be very happy about it, which implies the latter!
It does not set any precedent that the Doctor himself will inevitably one day be a woman.

Worked for me. And agree with Dave-H'a last sentence. No more likely than after that line in The Doctor's Wife. Just because it's possible, doesn't mean it'll happen. Most things are possible in Science Fiction!

I loved the idea, especially the fact that she was a superb actress. She played the Master well.

Although I wouldn't want a woman to play the Doctor. That role to me (as a woman) should just stay male. A female Doctor just wouldn't be the same.

It's like humans, just because a few of them change gender, doesn't mean they all do!

Was Michelle Gomez brilliant? Yes, in that classic Who scenery-chewing mould. Highly entertaining.

Was Missy a good character? Yes. Crazy, ruthless, unpredictable, funny and charming - the hallmarks of a brilliant Doctor Who villain.

Did Missy ever feel like the Master? Right, I was adamant I'd say no to this, from the view of someone who's seen all the stories he's been in, and having grown up with him in the 80s. But the more I think about it the more logical it seems: he started as an urbane if megalomaniac kind of chap. Then he became a survivor, in all the worst ways you can survive. After that he just seemed to be trying to get the Doctor's attention - the Master's schemes were always far too elaborate to succeed. And then, by Survival, you got a real glimpse of his psychosis. And this psychosis, madness, whatever it was, was brought to the forefront in the new series, exacerbated by the things that happen to him, and it's escalated.

So I've talked myself round. Missy seemed too out-there to be the Master, but it makes total sense to me now.

It doesn't seem that gender is as big a part of personal identity for Timelords as it is for us humans. There's also, apparently, a random element to regeneration (unless you're in the hands of the Sisterhood of Karn), meaning that any Timelord could end up the opposite gender simply by chance at the next regeneration. Some Timelords are better at controlling it than others. The Doctor is not good at it. Certainly the Master isn't unhappy being female, but neither is he transgendered in the human sense. I.e, I doubt he ever thought he was a female born into a male body. His transformation/regeneration into Missy is just a fact of Timelord life.

Gender identity for Timelords is not the same as it is for us humans.

Yes, she's brilliant

Yes I loved her... Though I think to balance things out a little we should have that 'non-gallifreyan' daughter of the Doctor's turn up as Gene... It would be nice to see someone not a villain play out the swap and convince us in a more rounded way that this is just completely not a big thing in universe.

No hated her with a passion, thought the idea was stupid and just done for publicity and as for that name, Missy ! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH

Well, she couldn't very well keep calling herself the Master now could she

I absolutely would have HATED the idea of a female Master - prior to seeing MISSY!
SHE is an absolute brilliant villain against the 12th Doctor!! He has met this era's 'Moriaty' hasn't he? Love it!!
As for the Doctor becoming female - that is still a NO- NO !!! It will NEVER HAPPEN!

Yes. I think it worked very well, Missy stole the show in the last two episodes. Also it caused debate and unsettled ome people (bizarrely) which is good, views should be challenged.

I wonder if a few years from now you'll be saying the same thing about a female Doctor.
Or not.
Who knows... who nose?

No.
She acted a great role but should have been her own villian.

I think that's what was great about it. She had a ready-made connection and antagonism with the Doctor so it didn't need to be established, and yet the change in gender gave her the opportunity to stand apart from her predecessors.

There needs to be an unsure option here.

Personally, I wouldn't have done it myself but at the same time, I think Michelle Gomez has been excellent in the role so far but I'm still not sure myself if it should've been done.

Yes but we should of seen a regeneration

What I would like explained is did The master choose to regenerate as a female or was it just random. If he chose to be a female then why ?

I have always found it highly amusing when people want an UNSURE or a DONT KNOW option.

By not voting that is your don't know option

The actress was wonderful.

But changing the sex of characters in anything is, like 3D, a gimmick. And it will always be a gimmick. I loathe gimmicks just for the sake of it. If it's not necessary to change, it's necessary not to change.

For that reason, I voted no.

Voted 'no'. I don't like the idea of a female Master, and to be honest, trying to be as objective as possible, I really didn't like MG's portrayal. Far too OTT for me. [edit: Nothing against MG, loved her in other stuff.]

Thinking about it, apart from Delgado, I've never really been a fan of the Master. He's just so... pantomime.

Liked her and how she was portrayed. But there didn't seem to be any point in her being the Master. She didn't even call herself the Master. Just seemed like Moffat trying to make the show his own and adjusting it to his rules by saying TimeLords can change gender. And if anyone says it had already been established before that they can change gender, it had been established during his run of executive producer, and I would put money on it that he asked for that line to be put in 'The Doctors Wife'. Anyway she would have been great if she was just a different character which she basically was anyway. Also they have now thrown away the opportunity to bring Simm back, would have loved to have seen him against a different Doctor other than Tennant.

Personally I still don't think of her as the Master - as much as I'd like to see her as the next incarnation, I just don't feel it when I watch the character.

So to me she seems like a separate character entirely. It was, however, a great performance by MG and a fitting antagonist for series 8.