Otherworldly mysteries beyond the Doctor’s understanding are the focus of Russell T Davies’ second Doctor Who era. Over the course of two seasons, Doctor Who introduced new god-like characters such as Maestro and Lux. It has similarly reintroduced classic era villains that appeared only once, such as Sutekh in Season 1, and the Toymaker in the 60th Anniversary special, “The Giggle.” Now, Doctor Who may have hinted at which classic era villain may be Mrs. Flood’s true identity.
Season 2, Episode 5, “The Story and the Engine” is unlike any other Doctor Who story. Set in Lagos, Nigeria, The Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) visits an old friend named Omo at his barbershop. Curiously, Omo has an unusual guest: a barber with a mysterious engine that powers itself on people’s stories. Though the Barber never reveals his true identity, his narrative strongly hints at the Master of the Land of Fiction returning.
The Master of the Land of Fiction, Explained
Originally debuting in the 1968 Doctor Who serial “The Mind Robber,” the Master of the Land of Fiction existed in his own realm outside the universe. Like the Toymaker, he also had complete control of everything within his domain, including the fictional characters and mythological creatures the Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton) and his companions Jamie and Zoe encountered.
Unlike the Toymaker, however, the Master of the Land of Fiction was actually a mortal man. In fact, some unseen entities abducted him from Earth and brought him to the Land of Fiction to generate creative energy. He was also controlled by “The Master Brain,” the realm’s central computer, which the Doctor destroyed to set him free.
For fans familiar with “The Mind Robber,” the Season 2 episode, “The Story and the Engine,” constantly makes it seem like the Barber is this forgotten villain. Like the original Master of the Land of Fiction, the Barber also started out as a normal human being, given the task of creating myths. He was also seemingly at the mercy of the engine, which looks an awful lot like the Master Brain from the classic series. He also admits to being responsible for creating the gods known throughout human cultures, such as Anansi and Loki, both trickster gods.
The Barber even gets a similar ending to the original Master of the Land of Fiction when the Doctor manages to free him from the engine’s grip. The latter action also brings Omo’s barbershop to Earth from the realm it was trapped in. Though the Barber is ultimately not revealed to be the Master of the Land of fiction, he may still be a harbinger of the real deal. But who could that person be? If Russell T Davies is following the same narrative structure of both the 60th Anniversary specials and Season 1, chances are fans have already seen the Master of the Land of Fiction in the form of Mrs. Flood.
Mrs. Flood Could Be the New Master of the Land of Fiction
Though Mrs. Flood didn’t make her debut until “The Church on Ruby Road,” she may have been manipulating reality since the ending of the 2022 Doctor Who special, “The Power of the Doctor.” Though former companion Donna Noble explained the Doctor returning to a previous face for their 14th incarnation as “returning home”, that may not be all there is to this particular regeneration.
For starters, Doctor Who has yet to explain why the Doctor’s clothes also changed during regeneration. Many fans took this as the first major clue something wasn’t right. Additionally, Doctor Who still needs to address the Meep’s comments about their “boss” taking interest in a being with two hearts in the first 60th Anniversary special. Doctor Who also introduced the Not-things as beings from beyond the universe in the second special, and fans have noted similarities with the Midnight entity. The latter reappeared in the third episode of Season 2, “The Well,” seemingly as part of Mrs. Flood’s plans.
There’s also the reintroduction of the Toymaker in the final special. The latter had managed to trap a version of the Master (the Time Lord) in his gold tooth, with a female hand later picking up. Mrs. Flood herself even commented in the final two episodes of Season 1 that she still had plans that had not yet come to fruition. She even commented she knows how the Doctor’s story ends. These are all plot threads that are still dangling that could all be a part of Mrs. Flood’s larger machinations.
Season 2 has one more subtle clue that may have revealed Mrs. Flood’s identity earlier: the idea of the Doctor being trapped in a story. The second episode, “Lux,” first introduces this idea, complete with a Mrs. Flood cameo. Currently, the Doctor thinks this adventure is his only run-in with being trapped in a story. But it is likely the entirety of Russell T Davies’ second era is all one big story crafted by the Master of the Land of Fiction. Interestingly, Mrs. Flood may still have one more twist up her sleeve.
Since the Land of Fiction requires a “master” to control it, it may have been taken over by the Doctor’s old archenemy, effectively giving the name “Master of Land of Fiction” a double meaning. It would also explain Mrs. Flood’s whimsical, but twisted behavior, which is consistent with all of the Masters of the modern era. There’s also the fact that Mrs. Flood is able to travel to different points in time, suggesting she has a means of time travel. The fact that Mrs. Flood has also been the neighbor of the Fifteenth Doctor’s two companions also suggests they are characters she may have created for her Doctor story.
Whether Mrs. Flood turns out to the Master of the Land of Fiction, or the Doctor’s old archenemy controlling that realm, only time will tell. But when examining all the clues together, there’s nothing to suggest that Mrs. Flood isn’t somehow involved with the Land of Fiction. Even less so after “The Story and the Engine” delivered the biggest homage to “The Mind Robber.”
