Road Rage

"I'll suck this world into a different cosmos!"

Writer: Craig Donaghy

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 13th August 2014

Printed in: DWA 352

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis 

Clara is rushing to meet the Doctor who has required her services urgently but she gets trapped in deadly traffic, quite literally as the road rises and tries to engulf the planet into another dimension! 

Verdict 

Road Rage was a pretty good little comic strip considering it was from the Doctor Who Adventures range rather than the more adult targeted and feature length stories of those in Doctor Who Magazine. With this issue released before the airing of Deep Breath, I liked how it allowed Clara to take the centre stage for the entire comic. I'm not sure why I used the word 'entire' there seeing as the whole story was only spread over 4 pages. I know the magazine is aimed at the very young fans but surely they'd want a story lasting more than 4 pages, would they not? Clara riding the motorcycle as she did in The Day of the Doctor was terrific and I like how a prominent part of The Bells of Saint John has continued. The idea of a road not really being a road but instead an alien monster was intriguing to say the least! The way it monstrously rose up to engulf the planet into another dimension was good but the courage from Clara was marvellous! She just accepted the situation and took on the road monster herself, not even calling for the Doctor. The resolution contradicted itself a little I felt as despite the tail following Clara wherever she went, surely for the road monster to engulf its tail Clara would have had to sacrifice herself? I'm not sure, the idea was there but the way it was carried out wasn't quite sufficient. The moment Clara returned to the TARDIS was good and although we didn't see the Twelfth Doctor's face, it was clearly he who took Clara's hand and humorously mentioned the road monster and how, as he thought, had destroyed itself. Overall, extremely short which is something that puts me off this comic range, but it was quite fun and I liked how Clara was of centre stage. 

Rating: 7/10