User blog:Sclera1/Borusa

Borusa is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He was a Time Lord, and a former teacher of the Doctor. Contents [hide] 1 Character Overview 2 Character Appearances 2.1 The Deadly Assassin 2.2 The Invasion of Time 2.3 Arc of Infinity 2.4 The Five Doctors 3 Appearances in Other Media Character Overview Borusa appeared in four serials throughout the course of Doctor Who: The Deadly Assassin, The Invasion of Time, Arc of Infinity and The Five Doctors. Each time, Borusa was portrayed by a different actor, it being implied that the character had regenerated in the time between these serials and thus his appearance and personality were different in each story. It is said that Borusa was one of the Doctor's former trainers when the Doctor was young. Character Appearances The Deadly Assassin When the character was first introduced in The Deadly Assassin, he occupied the post of Cardinal in the High Council, and was portrayed as a good though pretentious person with some political standing on Gallifrey, the Time Lords' home planet. He set about "adjusting truth" in the wake of the Doctor's return to Gallifrey and his defeat of the Master. He sought to, for instance, portray the late Chancellor Goth not as the Master's ally, but as a hero who had given his life to stop the Master. After the Doctor willingly left Gallifrey again, in the Doctor's absence Borusa officially became Lord Chancellor (although the Doctor later claimed this was done "illegally"). The Invasion of Time Borusa appeared again when the Doctor returned to Gallifrey briefly in The Invasion of Time to officially take up the post of Lord President. This was, however, part of a strategy to defeat the Vardans, and once they and the Sontarans had been seen off, the Doctor - now having been officially inaugurated as President of the High Council of Time Lords - departed and left Gallifrey in the hands of Borusa once again. Arc of Infinity By the time of Arc of Infinity, Borusa had regenerated again and had officially become Lord President of Gallifrey. He, along with other members of the High Council of Time Lords, condemned the Fifth Doctor to death, as Omega had attempted to interface with this universe from his own anti-matter universe by using the Fifth Doctor as the bridge, thus endangering the whole of creation. Borusa was even suspected of being the traitor who had sent Omega the Doctor's genetic code; however, he was quickly proven innocent and assisted the Doctor in destroying Omega. The Five Doctors By the time of the 20th Anniversary special, The Five Doctors, Borusa had once again regenerated, which may have unbalanced his mind. He sought, by using the Doctor's first five incarnations, the Time Lord founder Rassilon's fabled secret of immortality for himself so that he might rule Gallifrey forever. It had been prophesied that Rassilon had left clues behind for a successor to follow in his footsteps, and Borusa believed himself to be it. Borusa used a Time Scoop to transport the Doctor (and various companions) to the Death Zone on Gallifrey, using them to clear the way to the Dark Tower where Rassilon was entombed. History stated that to share immortality, would-be challengers had to overcome the obstacles in the Death Zone and solve the Game of Rassilon by removing the ring from Rassilon's hand. As it turned out, the Game was actually a trap to contain power-mad maniacs, since Rassilon reasoned that immortality was a curse rather than a blessing and that anyone who sought it was clearly deranged. Borusa was transformed into a living statue by Rassilon for his efforts; whether the statue survived the destruction of Gallifrey as revealed in "The End of the World" is unclear. Appearances in Other Media The spin off novels Blood Harvest and The Eight Doctors by Terrance Dicks feature further appearances by Borusa. It is confusing to note that, in both novels, Borusa was freed from his imprisonment and given a chance for redemption. Initially, it seems as though the two novels automatically contradict each other, but it is possible that Borusa, following the events of The Eight Doctors- when he was released thanks to the appeal of the Eighth Doctor to help resolve the political conflict inspired by the Sixth Doctor's trial in The Trial of a Time Lord-, returned to Rassilon of his own free will, as he felt he had not paid for his sins yet, and was eventually freed for good in Blood Harvest after aiding the Seventh Doctor, Rassilon and Romana in fighting off the mental influence of a powerful foe. The canonicity of the novels, like other Doctor Who spin-off media, is unclear.