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"Utopia" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 16 June 2007 and is the eleventh episode of series three of the revived Doctor Who series. This episode, the first of a three-part story, sees the return of Jack Harkness and the Master. The Master regenerates during the course of the episode, so he is played by two actors.

Synopsis

As Captain Jack Harkness reappears in the Doctor's life, the TARDIS is thrown out of control to the end of the universe — where a lonely Professor is working on a means to save the remnants of humanity. But will the vicious Futurekind thwart his plans?

Plot

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The TARDIS lands in Cardiff to refuel from the Rift. The Doctor explains that due to the Rift's recent activity, refuelling should take less time than the previous visit: in fact, only about 20 seconds. Captain Jack Harkness runs towards the TARDIS, and the Doctor hurriedly dematerialises it. Jack grabs onto it as it vanishes and causes it to hurtle out of control to the end of the Universe.

After landing in the year 100 trillion, on the planet Malcassairo, the Doctor, Jack, and Martha are surprised to find life - a human being hunted by the Futurekind, mutated cannibalistic humans (who are, according to Professor Yana, what the humans will become if they don't reach "Utopia"). Joining the lone human, they make their way for a silo, to travel to "Utopia" - the last home of the human race. They reach the silo, and are admitted on the grounds that their teeth are not like those of the cannibals.

The Utopia project is headed by Professor Yana (and his insectoid assistant Chantho), and they are desperate for help as the rocket destined for Utopia is unable to take off: and the Doctor claims not to recognise the "new science" technology. These problems are worsened by a Futurekind saboteur's presence in the silo, who vandalises the controls to prevent take off. The Doctor and Jack try to help - the Doctor works in Yana's control room while Jack makes final preparations in a heavily irradiated room - his immortality proves a great asset to the humans. While Jack is doing this, the Doctor talks to him about Jack's immortality, and why he abandoned him on Satellite Five. Finally, the rocket is able to take off, and does so to Utopia, leaving the Doctor, Yana, Martha, Jack and Chantho on the planet's surface.

A subplot has Yana hearing drums inside his head - a condition he has had since birth, with the drums getting louder recently. Words such as "regeneration" and "TARDIS" only exacerbate the problem. This is noticed by Martha, along with a watch of the exact same design as John Smith's watch in "Human Nature". She inquires about it - he had owned his entire life, since he was found as an orphan near the Silver Devastation. Subsequently, she immediately goes to inform the Doctor, which leaves Yana alone with the watch. Yana then opens the watch, allowing the Time Lord biodata stored within to enter his body.

When the Doctor hears about this, he first refuses to believe it, but as Jack and Martha try to explain to him, Martha mentions the Face of Boe's dying words and the Doctor realises in horror; 'Yana' is an acronym for the words "You are not alone". He races toward Yana's office, hindered by Yana locking the door and allowing the Futurekind into the silo. When his assistant Chantho threatens him with a gun, Yana coldly tells her that Professor Yana was only a fabrication, one that has been living for too long. As he attacks Chantho with a live power cable, he reveals that he is not the Professor: he is the Master.

The Doctor breaks into Yana's office, but not before the Master enters the Doctor's TARDIS. He then locks the Doctor out. As Jack and Martha struggle at the door to keep the Futurekind out, the Master stumbles through the TARDIS to the console. Having been mortally wounded by Chantho – who had retained enough strength to shoot him - the Master regenerates into a younger body, whose voice Martha says she recognises. Martha recognises the voice as he taunts the Doctor. Before the Doctor can think of an adequate plan, the Master leaves in the TARDIS, stranding the Doctor, Martha, and Jack in the distant future with the Futurekind beating at the door.

Cast

• The Doctor — David Tennant
• Martha Jones — Freema Agyeman
• Captain Jack Harkness — John Barrowman
• Professor Yana/ The Master — Derek Jacobi
• Chantho — Chipo Chung
• Padra — René Zagger
• Lieutenant Atillo — Neil Reidman
• Chieftain — Paul Marc Davies
• Guard — Robert Forknall
• Creet — John Bell
• Kistane — Deborah Maclaren
• Wiry Woman — Abigail Canton
• The Master (Regenerated) — John Simm

Cast notes

• This is Derek Jacobi's third involvement in Doctor Who and second time playing the Doctor's nemesis. The first was in the September 2003 audio drama Deadline, where he played a screenwriter who believes himself to be the Doctor. The second was several months later, in the webcast Scream of the Shalka, where he played an android version of the Master. David Tennant also had a minor, uncredited role in Scream of the Shalka.
• John Bell is a nine-year-old who won a Blue Peter competition to appear in this episode.

Continuity

• Prior to this episode, Captain Jack was last seen at the end of the Torchwood episode "End of Days" looking off-screen while the familiar sound of the TARDIS is heard in the background. The Torchwood team find Jack gone, and the place in a mess. The Doctor notes that the Rift has been active recently, which was due to Abaddon escaping through the Rift in "End of Days".
• Martha enquires about the earthquake in Cardiff a couple of years ago, and the Doctor claims "a bit of trouble with the Slitheen", referring to the events of the 2005 episode "Boom Town" He also states how he was "a different man back then" referring to the fact this happened when he was the Ninth Doctor.
• One of the items in Jack's backpack was the severed hand of the Doctor. This was first seen in "The Christmas Invasion", when the hand was cut off by the Sycorax leader, and was a recurring item of the Torchwood Three Hub set.
• This episode contains clips from "The Parting of the Ways", "The Christmas Invasion", "Human Nature" and "Gridlock". It also features dialogue from The Daemons spoken by the deceased Roger Delgado, the first actor to play the Master, and the trademark chuckle of the deceased Anthony Ainley, who portrayed the Master for eight years during the 1980s.
• The name "Yana" is an acronym of "You Are Not Alone", the Face of Boe's final words in "Gridlock" - his existence proves the Face's final words.
• The Doctor previously claimed to be a "Doctor of Everything" in Spearhead from Space and described the human race as "indomitable" in The Ark in Space.
• The Professor, the name that the Master takes on as a human, was a nickname given to the Seventh Doctor by his companion Ace.
• This is the second regeneration seen within the modern series, the first one being in "The Parting of the Ways".
• This is also the first time the Master has undergone a regeneration on-screen. In The Keeper of Traken, he possessed Tremas' body to keep his thirteenth-self alive. And in the the TV movie, he took the form of a 'morphant' liquid snake and possessed the body of Bruce. It is unclear how he received a new regenerative cycle.

Production and pre-broadcast publicity

• This is the first episode of Doctor Who to feature John Barrowman's name in the opening credits.
• Music cues originally composed for Torchwood are heard in the background of this episode, notably a variation of the Torchwood theme tune played when Jack runs torwards the TARDIS and a motif played when Jack lies dead having ridden on the TARDIS through the Vortex.
• This episode was not announced to be part of a three-parter until the Totally Doctor Who episode the day before.

References

1. "Doctor Who UK airdate announced". News. Dreamwatch. February 27, 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
2. ^ "Doctor Who - Fact File - "Utopia"". Retrieved 2007-06-17.
3. "A New Doctor, A New Dimension?" (HTML). Retrieved 2007-06-11.
4. "Jacobi confirmed for Dr Who role". BBC News. BBC. 25 January, 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
5. "Future Boy". News. BBC Doctor Who website. June 7, 2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
6. ^ "End of Days". Torchwood. Season 1. Episode 13. 2007-01-01. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)

• Tenth Doctor episodes