Kill God

"Killing Gods. It's not possible..."

Writer: Rob Williams
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 15th January 2017
Printed in: DWC: Tales from the TARDIS 15

Featuring: War Doctor, Alice,

Synopsis

Filled with new purpose, and information straight from the mouth of the War Doctor himself, Alice is closing in on the truth of the Doctor's possible war crime. But can the Master truly be trusted? And will the truth about the Squire finally be revealed? The Time War holds all the answers.

Verdict

Kill God was an excellent comic strip adventure that has continued along the Eleventh Doctor segment of Doctor Who Comic's Tales from the TARDIS very nicely! Now, it has been far too long since I read The Organ Grinder but after reading my own blog entry to freshen the memory of just where the story is currently at, memories came flooding back and I was very excited to be heading back to the Time War. The Eleventh Doctor didn't actually appear but that was absolutely fine as it gave us another adventure with the War Doctor! That is something I always welcome and with these comics, as well as a novel and the audios, this incarnation of the Doctor has now been beefed out with stories and really doesn't feel much like a bonus Doctor now. He's just another one on the list which is brilliant. Of course, John Hurt sadly passed away since I read the last comic strip of the run but the beauty of the comic strip means that the War Doctor will live forever. I thought the characterisation of John Hurt's incarnation was very good and I like how he is rather clueless about who Alice is and what she was doing in the Time War. The continuation from the previous story's cliffhanger was great and I liked the conversation Alice and the Master had regarding gods. I'm a firm non-believer in gods and I think the whole notion is actually quite ridiculous but it works in Doctor Who because at the end of the day it is fiction and that's what I see religion as. Until people can prove otherwise with evidence then I can't see how I'm wrong. Anyway, the young Master still very much intrigues me and that was taken further by the image of the older and more familiar incarnation of the great villain. I think that was just something along the lines of time leakage with the speech also being affected in regards to tenses. That made for some brief difficulty in reading but it was highlighting a point of the Time War so that was not a problem at all. The Overcastes looked very impressive I must say but they didn't really seem to do much. Despite that, they still managed to provide a huge threat and the Doctor's way of dealing them seemed absolutely horrific. It is clear to see why he has revoked his name for this incarnation because to eliminate their threat he was going to make an entire people godless and change their entire history. Alice having to deal with the latest contraption from the Volatix Cabal was intriguing and I'm not even sure you could call what she was being chased by anything close to a Dalek. I loved its referral to the Doctor as the Dark Lord though. That really was brilliant. The idea of the Doctor and the Master having an agreement did seem too good to be true and that was somewhat realised in this story as the latter went his own ways and seeked to escape from the Time War. He knew Alice was from the future so had a route to escape to. But when he entered his own ship of the future and tried to take off, he created a paradox. He soon realised that his future self had concocted the atrocity of a TARDIS and that together with Alice activating the Psilent Songbox meant a disaster for everybody. Timelines were collapsing and merging and there was a complete chronal meltdown. It served as a terrific cliffhanger and I'm looking forward to seeing where things go from here! Overall, an excellent comic strip adventure!

Rating: 9/10

Doorway to Hell Part 3

"I know a villain when I see one, and this one's nicked!"

Writer: Mark Wright
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 9th March 2017
Printed in: DWM 510

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Jess

Synopsis

With the Master taunting the Doctor and luring him into the trap, the Collins family are trapped and separated in Hell. The Doctor is doing all he can to protect them but that means he must do exactly as the Master instructs. With the evil Time Lord planning a trip to a time-locked dimension, what exactly does the Master have planned this time around?

Verdict

Doorway to Hell continued in excellent fashion with this terrific third part of the story! Once again, it has been a while now since my last blog but March is actually turning out to be the most prolific of the year but I think I will be limited in my entries until at least the summer, but I do think there is a distinct possibility that this will be the future for Doctor Who Verdict moving forward sadly. Now, I know this issue of Doctor Who Magazine was released nearly three weeks ago now but after catching up on the previous two issues and a trip to Ireland in between has meant that I have only now opened its pages. This comic strip story is the only feature that I have read but as always I will give my thoughts on what looks set to be another excellent issue of the magazine. They're lucky that given the recent price rise the content has improved over the last few months so I will continue to collect the magazine with no qualms. Doctor Who Comic, something else I need to catch up on, has been on hiatus recently but that looks set to return this week and with it being released on a different day to DWM now I think the expense won't look so bad. This issue's cover is fittingly tributed to John Hurt who sadly passed away recently. He of course played the iconic War Doctor in The Day of the Doctor and a number of subsequent audio adventures that really were fantastic and I am hoping to purchase what would be his final performances in the Casualties of War boxset this summer. I'm sure the magazine has done a great job in paying tribute to the legendary actor but that's not the only feature I'm looking forward to reading. The Home Taping piece sounds very intriguing and the advancement of technology is something I am mightily interested by given the age I have grown up in but Doctor Who's experience of it is something I can't quite recall. The only encounter I have is asking my Nan to tape The Doctor's Daughter episode on VHS as it broadcasted as I was out playing with friends. The Dramatic FX feature on The Invisible Enemy should be very intriguing and I'm also looking forward to the feature on Sydney Newman and who was truly the creator of Doctor Who. Surely there should be a definitive answer to that? Anyway, back to the comic strip itself and this has been a part I have been looking forward to reading for sometime now because of the presence of the original Master who was of course played by the superb Roger Delgado. I thought it was great that we finally got this Master and the Twelfth Doctor meeting face to face and that image really did put a smile on my face. That is the beauty of the comic strip format as you can do just about anything you want. I liked how we got this story's placement from the perspective of the Master and it would take place after Frontier in Space. This is important as it's a story for this incarnation of the Master after his last appearance on television. I was intrigued that he thought the Twelfth Doctor was actually the fourth incarnation and he neatly referenced the events of The Pestilent Heart in referring to what he thought caused the Doctor's regeneration. Little did he know. The Collins family being in Hell (I'll roll with it for now) was interesting but with the Master mentioning a time-locked dimension, I am intrigued to see where they actually are. The cliffhanger presented a lot of danger and I really am looking forward to part four now to see what happens! Overall, another brilliant continuation of the story!

The Gift

"Not all visitors to your planet intend to do harm..."

Writer: Rupert Laight
Format: TV
Broadcast: 19th-20th November 2009
Series: SJA 3.06

Featuring: Sarah Jane, Luke, Clyde, Rani, K9

Synopsis

When the Slitheen's latest scheme to destroy Earth for profit is foiled, another family from the Slitheen's planet arrive - the Blathereen. Though they seem helpful, can they be trusted? As a generous gesture of peace, the Blathereen gift the gang with a plant called Rakweed, which could end world hunger. However, the Rakweed goes wild, spreading spores about London and infecting people, including Luke. Sarah must fight alone, not only to save the Earth, but also her son. Meanwhile, Clyde smuggles K9 into school to help him cheat on a test, and he, Rani and the metal dog find themselves trapped in the school - surrounded by Rakweed. Can the team work together across Ealing - and Antarctica - to prevent Rakweed from devouring the entire planet?

Verdict

The Gift was a great little finale of the third series of the Sarah Jane Adventures spinoff. I must say that this series has been another good one and whilst it may not have quite matched up to the first two series in terms of ratings, it did not falter and it also featured the first appearance of the Doctor in a spinoff! I really liked how this story started straight in the midst of the action with Sarah and the gang running after the returning Slitheen who were returning for the first time since The Lost Boy which served as the finale of the first series. Well, they had featured in the short story of From Raxacoricofallapatorius, With Love but this time they were back in a full story. However, they wouldn't last very long at all. I like how they seem to be the recurring monsters that SJA is now associated with but their stay in this story was a short one. That was because we were introduced to the first on screen appearance of the Blathereen. Now, they had featured in a story before in the shape of the Ninth Doctor novel The Monsters Inside but it was great to finally be able to actually see them. They were noticeably different to the Slitheen in appearance and they sure did make short work in disposing of the Slitheen and saving the Earth from being split and compressed into a giant diamond. I do like how the Slitheen's motive are always driven by money but based on past failures I do question why they keep returning to Earth, knowing that they have the Doctor or Sarah Jane to deal with. The Blathereen giving Sarah a gift in the form of Rakweed was intriguing and despite their good appearance, the idea of Sarah and the gang running into a friendly family of the same species as the Slitheen just seemed too good to be true. Clyde was sceptical throughout the story whilst Rani seemed to be rather accommodating. Sarah Jane's instincts told her that she agreed with Clyde but the prospect of curing world famine was too much for her to turn down. She accepted the gift and after an analysis from Mr Smith, everything appeared to be safe. Of course as viewers we knew that something was going to wrong soon, otherwise we wouldn't be watching and it duly did with a Rakweed mutation. It engulfed Luke making him ill for the first time in his life and the deadly spores soon spread throughout London. I found it a little random that the Blathereen were sat watching this pan out in Antarctica and I found the absence between their appearances in each part, especially once we knew their intent, a little surprising and I think it did slightly hurt the story. K9 was absolutely wonderful though and I loved how Clyde wanted to use him to cheat on a biology test. The frosty relationship between K9 and Mr Smith is excellent too. Clyde and Rani working out what it was that killed off the Rakweed was good and Sarah applied the finishing touch to the resolution as she knew that the terrible wailing was its communication. If that was stopped then the Rakweed was disposed of. Mr Smith and K9 joined forces to produce the frequency that destroyed it across London and then some ingenuity from Sarah soon put a stop to the Blathereen once they returned to the attic. As Clyde put it, they farted themselves to death which is something I'm sure the younger viewers of the show would have enjoyed hearing. Overall, a very good little series finale!

Rating: 8/10

Other Lives

"I've never really thought of myself as a family man."

Writer: Gary Hopkins
Format: Audio
Released: December 2005
Series: Main Range 77

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Charley, C'rizz

Synopsis

London, 1851.

Scene of the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations.

Scene also to a plot to unseat the government, dethrone the monarch and start a republic.

If the Duke of Wellington himself is to be believed...

While the Doctor and Charley are drawn into the murky world of nineteenth-century politics, C'rizz struggles to maintain his dignity against growing odds.

What begins as an attempt to prevent murder quickly becomes a desperate race to avert revolution. Separated from the TARDIS, the travellers are left to wonder if they'll get their own lives back or be forever entangled with the lives of others.

And who is Mrs Georgina Marlowe? What need does she feel the Doctor can satisfy?

Verdict

Other Lives was a terrific little audio adventure that has hopefully got me right back into the swing of things when it comes to listening to Big Finish. This was actually my first audio in well over three months and I don't think I've had a break anywhere near as long as that since I started this blog back in 2013. Hopefully I can fit in a few more longer stories whilst university work isn't too demanding but for now it was just nice to be back doing some performed Doctor Who from the Classic era. I quite liked the fact that this story was simply a pure historical and there aren't enough of them around nowadays which I think is quite a shame. Obviously, I could be a little biased in that comment as I am currently halfway through my studies for a History degree but they always impress and very rarely, if ever, fail. This adventure focused on the Great Exhibition of 1851 which is an event I know quite a bit about after studying it at A-Level and then returning to it in two of my university modules this academic year. I had no idea what the story entailed other than the name and its CD cover as I never read a synopsis before listening so I was quite happy to have a story based around an event I know pretty well. However, I did have an ironic laugh when I realised that would be the case as by listening to this audio I was trying to escape from History for a little bit! It seems to be following me everywhere at the moment though but that's okay. A lot has occurred in the recent stories involving this trio so it was really nice to just get a one-off adventure featuring them. There was no overlapping theme like we had with the Divergent Universe story arc and instead we just got a pure story which I thought was a real positive. Paul McGann was once again superb as the Eighth Doctor and these audios really are wonderful in giving us a whole timeframe and storyline involving the most unluckiest of incarnations. We may have only got to see him twice on screen but these audios are proving just how fantastic the Eighth Doctor really is. Charley was once again wonderful and I really have loved her as companion ever since her arrival in Storm Warning. She was delighted to be able to visit the Great Exhibition and I thought her relationship with the Duke of Wellington was one of the story's highlights. C'rizz is slowly improving and whilst I don't think I'll ever be his biggest fan he did provide a bit of humour here because he was so out of place, That was of course understandable given where he is from but it wasn't nice to think of him being paraded around as a freak I must admit. My favourite aspect of the story was probably the relationship between the Doctor and Georgina. That was really intriguing to see play out and I loved the cliffhanger to part two where she referred to the Doctor as being her husband. Of course, the Doctor was not her beloved Edward but she seemed to be trying to convince herself that he was which was strange. The Doctor was clearly uncomfortable but felt sorry for her. The way the TARDIS went missing was good and I liked how that provided us with a sense of danger for the story but I did feel a little more was needed in terms of explanation for its arrival at the end of the story. Overall though, a very good audio adventure!

Rating: 8/10

Doorway to Hell Part 2

"The Doctor is a threat to you all..."

Writer: Mark Wright
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 9th February 2017
Printed in: DWM 509

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Jess

Synopsis

The Doctor is investigating strange accounts of men being turned into glass and he has found the culprits in the form of Bio-Tech Assassins. But they are merely pawns in a wider game being played by the Master, in his original form, and with the Collins family being subjected to his masterful experiment, can the Doctor cope with losing his TARDIS just as it is back within his reach?

Verdict

Doorway to Hell continued in sublime fashion with this simply superb second part of the story! This really is shaping up to be my favourite Twelfth Doctor comic strip adventure yet from the pages of Doctor Who Magazine as it really does have all of the ingredients for a spectacular story. Now, I'll get back to the comic strip itself but as per usual with my blog entries (no matter how late) I like to talk about the magazine itself and this does look to be another very interesting issue. I've already some of it with Steven Moffat's column always providing some good humour. I loved his response to a fan pointing out an error with The Husbands of River Song and his comments about Captain Jack were also well-humoured. I liked the little preview we got of the upcoming series but this week we have had an incredible trailer released and a publicity image of what to expect from the series finale and to say I'm excited about the return of the original Mondas Cyberman from The Tenth Planet would be an understatement. That story is one of my all time favourites and that first design of the great enemy has always been my favourite so to see them return after over fifty years will be an enormous treat. I'm also looking forward to seeing Missy's involvement in that finale after she will have already appeared in the series. I also seemed to spot the Classic design of the sonic screwdriver in the trailer which has only enhanced my excitement and I am very intrigued to see why that will make a return. Back to the issue itself and I'm looking forward to the interview with Rufus Hound which is very cleverly titled. The indefinable magic feature also looks set to be a very good read. The annual survey is something I love doing as well so I'm really looking forward to critiquing the past year of Doctor Who there. Now back to the comic strip itself and I am actually surprised it took me as long as it did to get reading this comic strip story after the cliffhanger of part one. However, I wanted to make that I read the previous issue before starting the next so as a reward for submitting an essay today I decided the time was right to finally see just what the original Master is up to! Roger Delgado's original incarnation of my favourite enemy returning in a Twelfth Doctor comic strip is just wonderful and it just highlights the beauty of this format. It truly is magnificent. We had brilliant references to the recent stories from DWM involving the Doctor's encounters with Jessica Collins and I liked how easily the Master convinced convinced the Collins family that he wasn't a bad guy in the slightest. He obviously knew all about the Doctor but was merely playing the family for some strange experiment. I do love though that the Master was up to something given the story was set in the 1970s. He could usually be found on Earth at this point! I'm looking forward to seeing him cross paths with the Twelfth rather than the Third Doctor though and I do hope that we get that in the next part. The Doctor certainly knows who he's up against now based on the cliffhanger with Gayle being subject to the tissue compression eliminator. The Doctor had fallen for the distraction of the Bio-Tech Assassins and with him out of the picture, the Master had pounced upon the TARDIS, just as it was back within the Doctor's reach. While all that had gone on though, it appeared that the Collins family, now separated from Max, had somehow arrived in hell. Overall, a terrific part and I can't wait for the third instalment!

Mona Lisa's Revenge

"This isn't anything like a straightforward art theft."

Writer: Phil Ford
Format: TV
Broadcast: 12th-13th November 2009
Series: SJA 3.05

Featuring: Sarah Jane, Luke, Clyde, Rani

Synopsis

Strange forces bring the Mona Lisa, on exhibit at an art gallery in London, to life. Clyde, Rani and Luke are at the gallery on a school trip as the painting rampages with a Sontaran blaster taken from another painting. Sarah comes to the rescue but ends up trapped in a painting and it's all down to Luke, Clyde and Rani to save the day. The Mona Lisa searches for her brother, a painting so terrifying it shouldn't be looked upon, The Abomination...

Verdict

Mona Lisa's Revenge was a great little story to get me back into performed Doctor Who (well, a spinoff) after a lengthy absence! This is my first blog entry of a performed story since Christmas Day and even if this was The Sarah Jane Adventures, I must say that it was great to be doing something that was not a comic strip! Now, don't get me wrong I do love the comic strip format but when it's all you have done for over two months it can become a little tedious. Sadly, it's all I've had time for lately with the surge of assignments that come with being a second year student at university but I am just happy that I have been able to do what I have done thus far in 2017. I was worried I wouldn't do anything at all and now after a three month absence I'm back in the third series of the terrific spinoff that is SJA. I thought the premise of this story was honestly quite daft but somehow Phil Ford made it work quite well. Could the Mona Lisa really be an alien entity? Well, it appeared so! That idea in itself just seems barmy but this wasn't the first time the Mona Lisa has been central to a story in the Doctor Who Universe. City of Death is of course remembered for featuring the famous painting and although that story was audaciously brilliant, it didn't quite go as far here as bringing the figure of Mona Lisa to life! And on top that, she was armed with a Sontaran blaster! I thought the character development of Clyde in this story was very good and when I thought about what he was like in the first series of this spinoff, you can certainly see how much more grown up is by this stage of the third series. He needed Luke to enter him into the art competition but Clyde was actually quite proud of his talent, especially because it won his class a trip to see the Mona Lisa. The relationship between Luke and Sarah Jane was intriguing and I didn't ever expect to see them end up arguing over a messy room. They did of course make up by the end of the story which was always expected but it was good to see that dynamic and the acknowledgement that it did exist. Harding was quite a humorous character I found which was intriguing because I don't think that was the intention. He was literally in love with the painting of the Mona Lisa and after working his whole life towards the goal, he finally brought it to his beloved gallery. But his love for the painting made him blind to the potential happiness right before his eyes in the form of Miss Trupp. Her getting stuck in the Mona Lisa was quite silly but it seemed to work. Her reaction once getting freed was fantastic though. The hunt for Mona Lisa's brother, known as the Abomination, was pretty decent and I liked the story behind where this piece of artwork got its name. Luke brilliantly came up with a resolution to ensure that the Abomination was never freed and that Mona Lisa was returned to her painting whilst everyone trapped in paintings was brought back to reality. And that was bringing a drawing of K9 to life. I thought that was a very clever resolution and it worked terrifically well. This story was not really hurt by Sarah Jane's absence in part two and I think that's testament to how good the characters of Luke, Rani and Clyde are. Overall, a very good story!

Rating: 8/10

Sub Zero

"Suddenly, without warning, the 'dream' becomes a nightmare!"

Writer: Gerry Haylock
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 12th January 2017
Printed in: DWM 508

Featuring: Third Doctor

Synopsis 

As a guest of a US Polar weather station, the Doctor is involved in the mystery of a missing nuclear submarine. But while the Doctor and Lieutenant Davis are away on a reconnaissance fight, the station is attacked - by Daleks!

Verdict

Sub Zero was a terrific comic strip adventure and has served as quite the bonus feature in the 508th issue of Doctor Who Magazine! Now, I've almost finished reading the magazine itself and I have gone out and purchased the latest issue but as time and scheduling would have it, my assignments have started building up again now so I'm not sure when I'll be able to get back around to reading the magazines. Thankfully this morning though I was able to read this comic strip and I was absolutely delighted with it! I love how all out the team behind DWM went to dedicate an issue to the 1970s and I really do think they have done a stellar job. Even the comic strip of Doorway to Hell was linked in wonderfully and now we actually get given a revamped and updated version of this comic strip adventure that was released during the 1970s, long before the arrival of Doctor Who Magazine. I can certainly see why this story was popular as it was fantastic! We had a well paced and exciting build and of course the show's most famous enemy in the form of the Daleks. I really liked the setting of Antarctica and how that developed into Australia as the story went on was magnificent. The characterisation of the Third Doctor was very well done with Jon Pertwee's likeness captured very efficiently which I always think makes for a better adventure. I must admit, I was glad to be doing something from the Classic era of Doctor Who and if memory serves me correctly, this is the first time I have done something pre-2005 this year. Granted my blogging has been very limited this year but that is rather unusual for me. I'm also getting a little tired of the comic strip format so I'm hopeful that my next blog, which hopefully won't be too long away, will be some performed Doctor Who. However, I do have a whole issue of Doctor Who Comic to catch up on as well as another issue of DWM out next week. Anyway, the story itself was full of excitement and considering the story is now 45 years old, I was very impressed with the artwork. The designs of the Daleks themselves were brilliant and it was good to see the Third Doctor in action against his greatest foes in a story released before Day of the Daleks. I also enjoyed the subtle reference to The Evil of the Daleks and it was nice to see the Daleks on Earth once again. Their destruction of Sydney was superb and the Doctor being unable to prevent that aspect of their attack highlighted just how deadly the Daleks truly can be, as if we needed convincing at all. Lieutenant Davis served as a good companion for the story and I liked the teamwork that he and the Doctor shared in defeating the Daleks. The nature of the comic strip itself was strange with events going from left to right across two pages but I did like how each double page acted as a part and we had a mini cliffhanger quite often. Some of them were very good, especially the emergence of the Daleks. The Doctor getting involved in present day Australian politics was intriguing and the trust he managed to gain so quickly was typical of the Time Lord. I really liked that. The defeat of the Daleks came a little bit suddenly but it worked very well I must say. I found it quite humorous to see the Daleks helpless in the snow but the linkage of the ice doors to an ancient tale was excellent. Overall, a wonderful little comic strip and a great gift from DWM!

Rating: 9/10