First Frontier (novel)

First Frontier (novel) was the thirtieth New Adventures novel, It featured the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Bernice Summerfield. This novel also featured the first in-novel regeneration of a character from the TV series; the Master. It is one of three novels written by David A. McIntee that feature the Master with Virgin Missing Adventures' The Dark Path following in 1997 and BBC Past Doctor Adventures' The Face of the Enemy being published in 1998.

Publisher's summary

Ace raised her blaster. 'You've already killed me once, girl,' Kreer said. 'Didn't you learn anything from that?'

When Bernice asks to see the dawn of the space age, the Doctor takes the TARDIS to the United States of America in 1957 - and into the midst of distrust and paranoia. The Cold War is raging, bringing the world to the brink of atomic destruction.

But the threat facing America is far more deadly than Communist Russia. The militaristic Tzun Confederacy have made Earth their next target for conquest - and the aliens are already among us.

Two nuclear warheads have been stolen; there are traitors to the human species in the highest ranks of the army; and alien infiltrators have assumed human form. Only one person seems to know what’s going on: the army’s mysterious scientific advisor, the enigmatic Major Kreer.

Plot

to be added

Characters

References

Biology

The Master and Ace can detect each other because they are both infected with the Cheetah Virus.
The Master used Tzun genetic engineering to remove the Trakenite DNA from his body to restore him to a full Time Lord.

Cultural references from the real world

The Doctor makes a sly reference to Santa Mira, thus making the film, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, something that actually happened in the DWU.

The Doctor

The Doctor has Majestic clearance with the US government.

Documents

The Master respects Bernice and has read her paper on Martian Feudalism.

Individuals

Ace will be twenty-seven in a few months.
Bernice Summerfield thinks of the Doctor and Ace as her only family.
Bernice imagines the Doctor marrying the TARDIS.
Shadow is the name of a Kitling named by the Master, it took him from the Cheetah World to 1950's America.

The Master

Major Kreer was able to recover enough following his fight with the Doctor on the Cheetah Planet to teleport back to Earth, however the explosion of the planet transported him back 32 years.
The Master regenerates regenerates after Ace shoots him in the back. He turns into someone a little bit taller than his previous body (which had been infected with the Cheetah Virus). The body has a high forehead, glossy moustache, neat beard, aristocratic nose and a lean face, and was intended to resemble actor Basil Rathbone.

Planets

Bandraginus Five was a shipyard for the Vegans.
Before being trapped on the Cheetah World the Master tried to start a war between Antari Two and Antari Three.
The Cheetah World had an atmosphere rich in artron energy.

Psychology

Bernice is immune to the Master's hypnotism.

Species

The Nestene Consciousness controls a section of the Tau Quadrant.
The Tzun are from the planet S'Arl.
The Sidhe are mentioned.

Sports

It is best (supposedly) to have five arms and five legs when using Venusian aikido.

TARDISes

The Master constructs a Stattenheim remote control to retrieve his TARDIS.

Theories and concepts

There is some discussion of dimensional transcendence, which in turn leads to discussions of Gallifreyan warp matrix engineering and Block Transfer Computations.

Time Lords

The Master claims to be a Time Lord of the First Rank.

Vehicles

Ace can fly a Hercules military plane, thanks to what the Doctor refers to as the 'narrow minded military'; keeping things similar in all airborne craft.
Ace also used to fly a spacehopper in the Spacefleet.

Weapons

The Master uses his Tissue Compression Eliminator once more.

Notes

The Master regenerates from the 'Anthony Ainley' body into a new body, which places Destiny of the Doctors some time before this novel.
Sophie Aldred later posed for photographs wearing an outfit based upon the one worn by Ace on the cover of this novel, for her memoir, Ace! The Inside Story of the End of an Era.
A prelude was published for this novel in DWM 216.

Continuity

The Master acquired the Trakenite DNA after stealing Tremas's body in DW: The Keeper of Traken.
The Master last appeared in DW: Survival.
The Sidhe (mentioned in this novel) appear in EDA: Autumn Mist.
The Tzun appear in PDA: Mission: Impractical.
A single Tzun appears in NA: Return of the Living Dad.
Bandraginus Five was mined and squashed to a ball in DW: The Pirate Planet.
The Master reappears to cause havoc for Benny in NA: Happy Endings.
A Kitling last appeared in DW: Survival.
The Seventh Doctor states that Dimensions in Time was a dream.

Timeline

For The Doctor

This story takes place after VG: Destiny of the Doctors
This story takes place before NA: St Anthony's Fire

For The Master

This story place after VG: Destiny of the Doctors
This story place before NA: Happy Endings

External links