The Golden Ones

"Of course! How could I be so stupid?! The tonic increases the number of links between neurons - and what are the links between neurons called? Axons!"

Writer: Jonathan Morris

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 18th August 2010

Printed in: DWM 425-428

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy

Synopsis 

In Japan, children are addicted to the new drink and TV show Goruda. A drink that makes them telepathic... and strangely golden!

Verdict 

After some twitching and adjustment with a new Doctor, with The Golden Ones it seems like this Doctor's comic strip era has finally kicked off in full with this sublime adventure! I'm not going to wait to talk about the main talking point of the story, but Axos returned! For whatever reason, I didn't collect DWM back in 2010 (that has by now changed) so the return of a great classic villain had eluded me. And to add to my transparency, I somehow failed to read the blurb of my The Child of Time graphic novel collection, something I did after reading this story, which revealed the return of the Axons. I'm so grateful to my carelessness for not having found out about the return as I literally shouted 'WHAT?! NO WAY!' upon the cliffhanger of part one. I was absolutely thrilled to see the Axons return as the return of a classic villain in new who is always a special occassion, even more so when it's kept a surprise! The plan of Axos was tremendous in this story and I loved the use of Goruda in promoting the brain tonic. The way the drink, thought to be water, connected children telepathically (I didn't understand why adults weren't affected) and gave Axos a private army to help his aim in consuming Earth. He'd previously attempted before but was defeated by the Doctor and trapped in a time loop, something that was nicely referenced, even if they somehow bypassed the explanation of how the Axons escaped the time loop put on them in The Claws of Axos. The references to that TV serial were very good, and expected, with it being the enemy's first appearance since it's original story. The artwork of Axos was just majestic and brought back a memorable classic villain in superb fashion. I absolutely adored how the Doctor was working for UNIT once again and despite his usual intention not to, I loved how he took on the mission because Martha called. A new body but the same compassion for those he cherished. Just the fact that the Eleventh Doctor and Martha have had interaction is incredible and momentous, why couldn't we have seen that phone call at the start of the comic strip! Had it occurred then I think I'd have had no hesitation in giving this adventure the extra rating mark it needs. The references to Martha's remarks about the Doctor being prone to causing trouble was fully shown with the subway incident in comical fashion. I really liked the use of Axonite throughout the four parts and how it was used to animate nearly everybody if it wanted. The Axon army of children was a daunting idea and the amount of death in the story was quite surprising but it just showed how evil these aliens were, especially to the new viewers of Doctor Who who may not have explored the classic series in great depth. Chiyoko was an extremely intriguing character! So many questions about her were not answered. Just who is she? What was her relationship with Axos and Mr Kin? And how did she have the power to promise Earth to the Axons? After her prophecy of sorts at the Axon demise, I get the feeling we haven't seen the last of her. She seems innocent and to the Doctor she has the potential to be incredibly dangerous. Mr Kin was a terrific character and I liked his affiliation with Axos and how he was used to threaten the Doctor by the giant alien squid, out of his true form. I'd also like to complement Morris on throwing in lyrics from a Mika song, very clever! It put a smile on my face for sure. Now, here's where I have to talk about some negatives. I don't think it's actually to do with the blogged story but maybe the Eleventh Doctor comic era thus far. I noticed it in Supernature which I could let slide but now two stories later I'm not impressed with the apparent misrepresentation of Amy. The dialect just isn't what Karen Gillan portrays superbly on screen and I don't even think the illustrators are getting Amy's hair or clothing correct! I hope things improve in future 11th/Amy stories. The additional characters were all tremendous and I liked the contrast of Japanese and UNIT. The Tokyo setting was marvellous and it's something I don't think has been done before when it certainly should have been! The climax was enjoyable and I thought the rising of Goruda slightly resembled Last of the Time Lords. The demise of Axos was brilliantly executed by the Doctor. I can't see Axos making a comeback anytime soon after the devastating destruction here! 

Rating: 9/10