Tooth and Claw

"The fiend would live again."

Writer: Alan Barnes
Format: Comic Strip
Released: September-December 1997
Printed in: DWM 258-261

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Izzy, Fey

Synopsis

Fey Truscott-Sades has summoned the TARDIS and with it the Doctor and Izzy to an unnamed location in the Indian Ocean. Things are afoot as monkeys roam searching for blood. The consequences for the Doctor will be dire as Varney's plan unravels...

Verdict

Tooth and Claw was a very good comic strip to continue along the Endgame graphic novel! I was fascinated by the name of the story given that it would also be the title of a Tenth Doctor episode during Series 2, but there weren't really any similarities! The televised one had a giant werewolf, but this comic strip had monkeys! That was quite a contrast and it was fun to have them in the story at all. I really enjoyed the setting of a remote island in the Indian Ocean and it was intriguing that it wasn't even mapped. I liked that concept a lot and having that coupled with the 1939 setting was fantastic. The atmosphere throughout was marvellous and I really liked how this was similar to an Agatha Christie type whodunnit. It didn't become the whole focus of the story as I expected from the way part two began, but I still liked what we got. It was almost like a comic strip version of The Haunting of Villa Dioti! Everything about it just worked well and evoked an eery feeling which worked terrifically well. I thought Varney was a very good villain and I thought it was brilliant to have him even pictured with Hitler towards the end! That was good and showed the depths he was willing to go. I had no idea that this would be the first appearance of Fey Truscott-Sade and I was intrigued that even though this is her first appearance in the DWM comic strips, she obviously has a big history with the Doctor. She even knows about Gallifrey and has a whistle that can call the TARDIS at will. The Doctor's reaction after opening the door after being called was very good. I thought his characterisation was very good throughout. Izzy had something of a weak story as she was overshadowed a little by Fey and didn't get to do a great deal which was a slight shame. The use of blood in the adventure was decent and whilst it might have been overused a little, the idea of ancient spaceships being powered by it and then taking over their pilots was quite spectacular! I was surprised that revelation came so late, but the way it tied everything up with the volcanic eruption and the monkeys and how Varney came to be utilising them was marvellous. I was a big fan and I only wish it came sooner to allow for more of an impact. The cliffhanger at the end of part three was really good with the Doctor having been taken over, but then the way part four started with him still having his senses and the taking over being purely physical seemed a bit misleading. The ending was a full of excitement and action, but it seemed a little repetitive with how the rest of the graphic novel's stories have finished. The explosion and everything reverting back to the normal as the Doctor quite literally fed Varney a bit of his own medicine was decent and certainly looked impressive. Speaking of the way things looked, I did think the black and white nature of the artwork made some characters slightly difficult to differentiate which was a shame, but of course that didn't really impact the quality of the story. There were some misses, but definitely more hits and I loved the way this ended with Fey ushering the Doctor into the TARDIS and planning on attempting to get them to Gallifrey! I look forward to seeing the Eighth Doctor on his home world and what kind of predicament that will have him in. I do hope Izzy will get a chance to shine as well. Overall though, a great comic strip story!

Rating: 8/10