Mortal Beloved

"I can't find a spooky house in the most inhospitable place in the universe and turn my back on it, can I?"

Writer: Dan McDaid
Format: Comic Strip
Released: March-April 2009
Printed in: DWM 406-407

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Majenta

Synopsis

The Tenth Doctor and Majenta land in the grounds of an old house floating in deep space during the galaxy's biggest and most dangerous storm. There they find some terrible secrets and Majenta's past comes back to haunt her. The only problem is, she doesn't have her memories...

Verdict

Mortal Beloved was a superb little comic strip to continue my reading of The Crimson Hand graphic novel! This collection of adventures really is turning into something special with the consistent high standard and I was impressed with how unique this story was. I like to think it was made out of DWM needing a little budget cut when it came to the colour of the comic strips and whilst I don't know if that was the case (I haven't researched), it's something I think is possible. I thought the setting of a house in the midst of an inhospitable storm that spanned light years was excellent and it really did work out well. Majenta's past was catching up with here and I like the possibilities that her lack of memory brings and that was fully on display here. Wesley Sparks was an intriguing character and once the Doctor fixed the systems, what we got was completely unexpected! We were introduced to a whole group of light forms and with them being knowledgeable holograms, that brought a whole bunch of possibilities. The Doctor's reaction to seeing that one of these holograms was in fact Majenta was fantastic and I have to admit that I was very shocked by seeing her enter the story in monotone! It was fantastic. Owl was a terrific character as he brought a lot of humour into the comic strip which is always something that's welcomed. The Doctor quickly asserting his position as the technician was great and I liked how even after all the Doctor had done for Sparktech, Owl still tried to shoot him at the comic's conclusion because of his orders. His aim was off though which was good for the Doctor. The real and decrepit Wesley looked hideous and the way he wanted to marry Majenta now he was reunited with his past love was horrifying. He was creepy and maniacal but that's everything you want in a villain so he worked very well. Majenta's referencing of Thinktwice and The Stockbridge Child was very good and I like how she seems to be getting used to life with the Doctor now. He did have every intention of upholding his part of the bargain in getting her to Panacea but the TARDIS brought them elsewhere. Was the time machine trying to rejig her memories? Or were the mysterious creatures that are tracking her down up to something? I am very interested by the overlapping story arc that's going on and there seems to be some way to go yet which is exciting. The conclusion was exciting with the Doctor reactivating the stormshield but the emotional ending for Majenta and Wesley was rather sad. She said 'I do' just as his files corrupted. Overall, a brilliant comic strip adventure!

Rating: 9/10