Island of Death

"That was one of the things she liked about the Doctor. Arrogant at times, yes, but always honest."

Writer: Barry Letts

Format: Novel

Released: July 2005

Series: PDA 71

Featuring: Third Doctor, Sarah, Brigadier

Synopsis 

"He would learn nothing from the internal organs - and for a very good reason: there was nothing there. The dead girl's body was literally just skin and bone."

A New Age cult worships a hideous God - or is it a demon? - called the Skang. What possible connection can it have with the mysterious corpse on Hamstead Heath?

Sarah Jane Smith enlists the help of the Third Doctor and the Brigadier, and their investigations take them halfway across the world, to a remote island that has been turned into a paradise for the followers of the cult. 

But the island is not what it seems, and neither is the Skang itself; and the Doctor and his companions are faced with the task of saving not only its devotees but the whole of mankind from a loathsome death. 

Verdict 

Island of Death was a fantastic read for what is incredibly my first original novel to feature the Third Doctor! I'm way over 500 blog entries now but it's only with this story that it's my first. I've obviously read many Third Doctor Target novelisations by now so I'm more than comfortable with this incarnation in prose but just not at this extended length. I thought the characterisation of Jon Pertwee's Doctor was superb throughout and Barry Letts captured the mannerisms of the great actor magnificently. I liked how he made Sarah the focus of this story and although she wasn't narrating, most of the events seemed to be perceived from her point of view. That allowed the bickering that comes with the Third Doctor and the Brigadier to be just as delightful as it always was on screen. The relationship between that pair is wonderful and I love how angry the Doctor makes the Brigadier. He seems to do it unintentionally but I'm not always convinced. He surely knows what he's doing most of the time and I noticed that in prose that feeling came across quite strongly. The characterisation of the Brigadier I imagined as actually being quite difficult but Nicholas Courtney was captured marvellously. The dialogue was absolutely spot on and I loved the humour of seeing what the Brigadier would be like high! That ability of the Skang was intriguing but it was certainly effective. They could show you absolute paradise and euphoria when actually what was there was nothing more than mediocre at best. I thought the journey to Stella Island was very good and I liked the events that came with the lengthy trek in having Alex on board. He'd been given an excision and was stuck in pure human form. Of course, at this point the truth about the Skang had only been hinted at but I liked the anger he vehemently ventilated. He was distraught at the punishment handed out by Mother Hilda but by boarding the Hallaton and directing the crew to the location, he would have a second chance. Redemption was definitely on his mind but he got more than that. His plan worked brilliantly as he actually deposed Mother Hilda! Only hours after being accepted back as a Skang, he was now their leader! The way he positioned himself was very clever and his allegiance with Brother Dafydd worked a treat. There were a lot of interesting relationships in the story. Jeremy took quite a fancying to Emma and he thought he could see himself marrying her until she jumped ahead of him in the queue and became the first victim of the Skang massacre. Thankfully, it was a full scale massacre that never came. Humans having two-thirds water inside our body was actually a main reason for the Skang deeming the human race a failure. The descending of the Great Skang wasn't as impressive as it could have been but it was still a good moment. I was intrigued by Sarah's thoughts about Sammy whom she obviously had a love interest in! Another thing that shocked me was the Doctor using the word orgasm. I've not got a problem with that at all as the use of it was just brilliant. He was trying so hard to rile Mother Hilda but it was to no effect. She stood firm. Her explanation of the Skang becoming almost fused with the human personality they took over was a very interesting concept of species. They had a whole togetherness about them but by planning on taking over the human race they would take on all kinds of different personalities. The plot played out very well and I enjoyed the pace a lot. The climax was quite fortuitous for the Doctor in that the TARDIS had humorously not brought them to Bombay but the piece he was repairing actually sent each Skang into a completely different time loop. After the horrific death of Emma, the Doctor found the resolution. Overall, a fantastic novel. 

Rating: 9/10

The Movie

"I was dead too long this time..."

Writer: Matthew Jacobs 

Format: TV 

Broadcast: 27th May 1996

Series: 1996 TV Movie

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Seventh Doctor

Synopsis 

New Year's Eve 1999. Earth is about to run out of time...

Returning home to Gallifrey with the remains of his arch enemy, the Master, the TARDIS is forced off course, plunging the Doctor into the middle of a street gang's gun battle in downtown San Francisco. 

Critically wounded in the shoot out, the Doctor has to regenerate to save his own life. And he's not the only one - the Master too has a new body with which to wreak havoc, and his ultimate goal is to take the Doctor's own existence. 

As the clock counts down to the start of a new millennium, the Doctor has to stop the Master destroying all life on Earth. But at what cost...? 

Verdict 

The Movie is a fine example of a Doctor Who story and I'm still stumped to this day why we didn't get an Eighth Doctor reboot with Paul McGann! His performance is magnificent and despite some criticism from fans, I love this story and I think it's brilliantly written. Other than The Night of the Doctor minisode, which I think should have been made into a full length episode, this is all we've got of Paul McGann on screen. He's just superb and he only improves in the audios which is natural with him growing into the role. This was another watch for me with my cousin whose knowledge of Doctor Who is growing greatly lately. Following on from his first Fourth Doctor story yesterday with Destiny of the Daleks, I've added the Eighth Doctor to his list of stories with each Doctor now and that just leaves the first three incarnations for him to watch now. We'll get there for sure. This story really captures Doctor Who but also certainly has the feel of a movie which is incredibly important. It's action packed, well paced and full of eventful ongoings. My cousin really likes the Seventh Doctor so he questioned me right away as to why Sylvester McCoy looked a lot older from his original tenure back in the late '80s. I then had to explain about the cancellation and he seemed to understand which was good. The scenes in the TARDIS with the Seventh Doctor were good and I think one sometimes forgets that it was actually this incarnation that redesigned the TARDIS interior so drastically. I must say though, it looked incredible. There was quite a lot of humour mentioned about the interior in The Four Doctors but I'm a big fan of it. It just looks so impressive. I really loved the new materialisation sequence and I'd have liked that to have been taken over into the 2005 arrival. It's clear that this movie sets the tone for the revival starting in Rose with the everyday life situations, more movie-like stories and production and the hint of romance with the Doctor. He certainly seems to be smitten with Grace! Now, in my opinion Grace should not be considered as a companion. She's absolutely brilliant in the story and her relationship with the Doctor throughout is fantastic but she flat out declines to be companion at the end of the movie so how can she be considered one? The Doctor seemed to like kissing her! This story sparks huge debate in that it's claimed that the Doctor is half-human. That fact is pretty much forgotten throughout continuity and it could just be taken as post-regenerative trauma, which as my opening quote suggests, would be quite surreal this time around. The Doctor forgot who he was for quite a considerable time. The story behind the Master was very good and I loved the visible continuation from Survival. The Master seemed to have wasted all thirteen of his lives and after being exterminated on Skaro, the Doctor was taking his remains home. But even in death, the Master could not be trusted. He had a plan and took over another body in the form of Bruce. Eric Roberts plays a ruthless and fantastic Master in my opinion. He really brings aggression to the role which at this point in his life is something I'd expect. The regeneration itself was unique and quite gruesome but the moment the Eighth Doctor emerges from the morgue is superb. The attire is brilliant and I'm glad to see the sonic screwdriver was back! I liked the An Unearthly Child reference too. The way the Master tricked Chang Lee was excellent but his plan was audacious to say the least! He'd open the Eye of Harmony, take the Doctor's body and his remaining regenerations and destroy the planet with it! The New Year's Eve setting of 1999 is clever and I like how this is a hint of a Y2K prelude. The Master defeating himself by letting the truth slip was typical and the Doctor was just about safe thanks to heroics by Grace. The Master was consumed by the Eye of Harmony, which then brought back Grace and Chang Lee, but the Doctor wanted to save him. The story of fighting off death came beautifully full circle for Grace. Overall, a wonderful story and more than fitting of a Doctor Who movie! My cousin enjoyed once more which was a bonus, and I loved it. 

Rating: 10/10

Destiny of the Daleks

"This moment is unique in the universe - Davros lives!"

Writer: Terry Nation

Format: TV 

Broadcast: 1st - 22nd September 1979

Season: 17.01

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II

Synopsis 

When the Doctor and the recently regenerated Romana arrive on a radioactive planet, the Time Lord has the strangest feeling that he has been there before. Exploring the ruins of an old city, it is not long before they discover the disturbing truth. The TARDIS has materialised on Skaro - original home to the evil Daleks. But who are the mysterious Movellans and what terrible treasure are the Daleks seeking? The answer lies deep beneath the city...

Verdict 

Destiny of the Daleks is a magnificent story to open the seventeenth season of Doctor Who! I really do like this story and it almost seems like it's forgotten in some quarters due to it not being the only Dalek encounter for the Fourth Doctor. This was another watch with my fast-growing seven year old cousin who is expanding his Who knowledge greatly by watching Frontios, Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways, Blink and The Time of the Doctor! He's certainly used to regeneration now so he thought the opening scene was rather funny! I must admit, I do like it and I think it's very intriguing that it appears Romana is regenerating by choice after she sees a body she rather liked in The Armageddon Factor, a story that was nicely referenced. Regeneration being a choice seemed to be further confirmed in Last of the Time Lords. However, after my recent reading of Heart of TARDIS, I like how this again went some way to confirming that the choice of body wasn't available if regeneration was forced as has been the case every time the Doctor has regenerated. He's usually falling off buildings, saving companions or getting shot! This is such a good debut for Lalla Ward in the companion role and she looks absolutely sensational doing it. She's just beautiful and her fashion sense is magnificent as she looks divine in her attire. I love how she had her own long scarf but she made it look rather elegant. Lalla simply looked gorgeous. It was great watching this with my cousin as after watching Revelation of the Daleks and Remembrance of the Daleks with him relatively recently, he loved the part two cliffhanger in which Davros returned. I imagine on broadcast that would have been fantastic if the fact was kept hidden but to me it was the cliffhanger of part three that I thought was best. The chemistry between Tom Baker and Lalla Ward was captured instantly and together they may just form my favourite TARDIS pairing. There's no doubt in my mind that the latter, in this incarnation, is my favourite companion of all time. She portrayed emotion and aggression in response to the Daleks excellently and I also love the fact that she's a Time Lord, and in terms of Gallifreyan knowledge a more intelligent one. K9 being repaired was quite a comical start. I liked the Movellans but I'm not sure anyone would buy that they were just as good as the Daleks! The idea though was superb in that computer logic would always mean a stalemate. So the Daleks seeked to find their creator to make them organic again and break the deadlock as they would deviate from logic. Davros would have none of that though! I also liked the foreshadowing of the two sets of Daleks when he commented about the Supreme Dalek title needing to be disputed. There was peril in the ranks already. Tyssan was a very good character and I liked the story development he went through during the four episodes. At first he seemed evil by hunting Romana but once he was brought aboard the ship by the Movellans, the truth behind him was revealed and it was far from evil. The setting of Skaro was great and I liked the references to The Daleks and Genesis of the Daleks very much. The Doctor's reaction to finding out where they were was superb. Tom Baker gave a dazzling performance and the change in actor for Davros wasn't bad at all. The sight of the Daleks being decorated in explosives was magnificent and I quite liked the way the Doctor made Davros hit the trigger that would blow them up once they were clear of the Movellans. The climax really was good and I liked how Davros was dealt with. Overall, a superb story and my cousin really enjoyed his first Fourth Doctor story! He found him hilarious which was lovely to see. 

Rating: 9/10

Screams of the Jungle Part 2

"You want me to trust you? You're wearing the face of my dead boyfriend."

Writer: Jonathan Morris 

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 20th August 2015

Printed in: DWM 490

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis 

The Doctor and Clara are in peril. The former is being chased by what appears to be a T-Rex and the latter is shocked that her dead boyfriend Danny Pink seems to have been resurrected! But what truth lies with the spirits of the jungle?

Verdict 

Screams of the Jungle continued magnificently in the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine. I'll get to the comic strip in a minute but I think it's a great shame that the wonderful magazine and Colin Baker aren't seeing eye to eye. The interview wasn't actually that nice to read with the actor who portrayed the superb Sixth Doctor taking a shot at DWM because of the Mighty 200 poll which placed his debut story The Twin Dilemma at the bottom. I'm not sure I understand his point in not having favourites as I think every single Whovian has a favourite Doctor, story and monster! Most of us have lists! I've praised Colin Baker numerous times in this blog but I wonder if he ever came across it, would he not like it because I give each story a rating? His debut story would certainly be up in the higher end of ratings as despite its unpopularity, I really like his debut. The only viewing I've had got it a 9/10. In my opinion, how anything scores lower than Love and Monsters is beyond me, but that's for a blog on another day. The magazine really looks to be a good one and I've actually read a lot of it, it's just taken me a while to get to reading and blogging the comic strip! That comes just over a week since the magazine was released. I'm looking forward to the new series preview very much and the cover really has got me in the mood for Series 9 which begins not far from now on September 19th! It's stunning and I'm looking very forward to seeing what DWM has to offer with the Secret Diaries of the Master. I'm sure that'll be an interesting feature. The promotion feature on the new 'Complete History' collection that will be released may persuade me to get it but with university on the horizon I just can't see that I'll be able to afford it! It's going to be a struggle to keep up the collection of DWM and DWC (providing I can find a supplier of the latter!). The feature on the translation in Doctor Who stories should be interesting also. I'm particularly looking forward to the previews of the three upcoming novels that form the intriguing arc of the Glamour Chronicles. I can't wait for those! Now, back to the comic strip and I thought it was absolutely superb this month. After part one, which had to follow the brilliant Blood and Ice, I was a bit skeptical on whether this story would deliver. I've not been a huge fan of Jonathan Morris in the past but he has produced a sublime second part here. After a great cliffhanger, we finally had the best characterisation of Clara in DWM yet in my opinion. She was disgraced to see that somebody would be a Danny imposter! I loved it. Clara is a wonderful companion on television and hopefully DWM follows DWC in the way she's characterised. They're getting there and my favourite post-revival companion seems to be getting fair treatment in the comic strip stories now. The team of the Doctor, Mr Hitch, Wiremu and Gela went through quite a lot in this segment of the story! There was torment, adventure and death. The hunt for the Hadax Ura wasn't as straightforward as they first thought. The truth of the superweapon was revealed in horrible fashion. It was created to stop the war, but how it would go about succeeding that was horrific! It would wipe out both sides and use them for its own gain. The revelation that the jungle was computerised was a shock and I loved how the water represented the data streams. The characterisation of the Twelfth Doctor was once again outstanding as it always seems to be in DWM. The cliffhanger was once again marvellous with Clara apparently going under cybernetic transformation! At one point in the story I thought the Cybermen would return but I'm glad that's not the case now. Clara seems to be in some serious trouble now though! I'm anticipating the next bumper issue of DWM and part three of the comic strip very much. 

The End of Time

"Events that have happened are happening now."

Writer: Russell T Davies

Format: TV 

Broadcast: 25th December 2009 - 1st January 2010

Series: 2009-10 Christmas/New Year's Special

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Wilf

Synopsis

It is the Tenth Doctor's final journey — but his psychotic nemesis, the Master, has been resurrected on Christmas Eve! Each determined to cheat death, the battle rages from the abandoned wastelands of London to the mysterious Immortality Gate, whilst the alien Ood warn of an even greater danger approaching, as a terrible shadow falls across the entire universe.

With the sound of the drums growing louder in the Master's head and an ancient trap closing around the Earth, the Doctor and Wilf must fight alone. Sacrifices must be made, the Time Lords have found a way back from beyond the Time War, and the deadly prophecy warns: "He will knock four times."

Verdict 

The End of Time is a phenomenal story and a worthy way for the Tenth Doctor's tenure to end. David Tennant really was brilliant as the Doctor and I'm not surprised why in the view of the casual fan, he is seen as the best. However, despite my loving of him and the fact he was my first ever Doctor, he doesn't actually rank in my top three Doctors. There's no disputing he's excellent and this story is fitting for his sendoff. After the build up dating all the way back to Planet of the Ood, it did return. He did knock four times. The Doctor's song did end. It started off in great fashion with everyone having bad dreams about the Master. After the horrible events of The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords, which were nicely flashbacked to, they'd forgotten all about the horrors of Harold Saxon, or at least most of them had. This was an intriguing viewing for myself for two reasons. The first was the fact I was watching with my cousin, who I hadn't seen for over a month thanks to A-Level results and sorting out university, and this was his first story to feature the Master and also his first in which the Doctor regenerates. I brought up a choice of stories for him but I quickly eliminated that choice when we were on the bus home from town, in which I excellently found the novels of Hope, Skypoint, Doctor Who and the Zarbi and Terror of the Autons for all less than £5! A steal. But he asked me how the Doctor changes so to suit me with my sporadic rewatch of the 2009 Specials also, I decided on this story for my viewing. The other reason this watch was interesting because it was my first viewing since The Day of the Doctor aired and the concept of the Time War was drastically changed. Dialogue within this story ties in with the Anniversary special magnificently which is a relief. Gallifrey was returning at a point before it was saved in the 50th celebration episode so to me everything made sense. I loved the mention of the Doctor possessing the Moment and for the first time I could picture that in my head as being the War Doctor and actually seeing the events! The cliffhanger to part one was incredible and on broadcast I really was stunned. The Time Lords were coming back! Oh, and the entire human race was now the Master. I almost forgot about that bit. The idea of the Immortality Gate was excellent and I thought the mansion setting was superb. It really was a good focus point. Bernard Cribbins gave a sensational performance and for me he was definitely a companion in this story. People argue that the likes of Astrid, Jackson and Christina are companions but I wholeheartedly disagree. However, Wilf certainly is in this story. His pensioner search party of the Doctor was just magnificent! Minnie was hilarious. I was thrilled to come up to my grandparents to find that my cousin had discovered that Doctor Who was shown on Watch and the Horror Channel and he has since viewed about 12 episodes! They were mostly Ninth and Tenth Doctor stories but he's also added another incarnation to his watch list after he told me he'd seen Snakedance! I was delighted to hear this and I have definitely converted him into a Whovian. I had to try and explain why Donna had forgotten the Doctor without spoiling her swansong which wasn't easy but he didn't ask too many questions. The flashbacks to most of Series 4 were good though the added threat of her remembering the Doctor to the cliffhanger, which would cause her to die, was superb. The Master was arguably at his most disturbing in this story after his resurrection went horribly wrong. All he could do was die, and that's what the Master fears most. Lucy's cameo was a fantastic one. I liked the references to Voyage of the Damned and Partners in Crime and the action packed scenes of the missile attack were marvellous! My favourite moments were probably the scenes on Gallifrey, which are phenomenally rare in the revival era, so it was nice to see that they were restored temporarily. Timothy Dalton played Rassilon sublimely and it's magnificent to see the effects the War were having on the race. Their ascension plans were pretty disturbing and it's no wonder the Doctor put an end to it all. The use of the Gallfreyan exclusive diamond, combined with implanting the drumming into the Master as a child, as means of a pathway out of the time lock was incredible. I loved the dialogue between the Doctor and Master in discussing things when they were children. That's wonderful to think about. The drumming of the Master being the heartbeat of a Time Lord was fantastic and I loved how it served as a possible reason for his madness during his life. The Time Lords were to blame. At least we had some sort of possible explanation. Rassilon arriving and reversing the Master's altering of the human race was brilliant but I loved the audacity of the great villain to want to change every Time Lord into himself as well! His opinion on saving the Time Lords soon changed. The moment the Doctor and Master told each other to get out of the way was simply stunning and at the end of it all, it seemed the Master would see the final days of the Time War. In cutting the link though, radiation was flooded into the chamber which housed Wilf and it was critical. He knocked four times for someone to let him out. The Doctor thought he had survived, but the prophecy had come true. Of course the Doctor would save Wilf. It was his honour. The Doctor soaked up the radiation in torment but once all was done, he could put off regeneration but not for long. He got his reward in an incredible flurry of scenes in which he was saying goodbye to Martha, Mickey, Sarah Jane, Joan Redfurn's descendant, Donna and Rose. It was the perfect farewell. But it was time for a new song now. The regeneration sequence was incredible and despite the Tenth Doctor not wanting to go, the Eleventh Doctor arrived in quite spectacular fashion! A fitting end for Tennant. Superb. 

Rating: 10/10

Party Animals

"Perhaps I should start calling you Dorothy..."

Writer: Gary Russell 

Format: Comic Strip

Released: May 1991

Printed in: DWM 173

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis 

The Seventh Doctor and Ace attend a party full of sorts of personalities, many of whom the Doctor has previously encountered. But with the arrival of an old friend, both past and future, things certainly get interesting...

Verdict 

Party Animals was a superbly bonkers little comic strip! This continued my reading of The Good Soldier graphic novel in magnificent fashion and after my perhaps skepticism on whether the latest collection of comic strips would be any good after Fellow Travellers, I'm certainly being proven wrong if the last two stories are anything to go by! I think I was initially worried that after reading the sublime collection in Voyager that this wouldn't live up to expectation but with this story being a great follow up to The Mark of Mandragora, it seems I'm sorely mistaken. I'm delighted about that though and I'm excited by the prospect of having the title comic strip yet to come. I really liked the start of this story which is where the opening quote came from and it's one that I just absolutely adore! Ace constantly referring to the Doctor as Professor is one thing that really irritates me about her and is probably a large reason why she's my least favourite companion of all time. That's not his name and despite her continuously being told that, she still persists with the incorrect title. It really does annoy me so for the Doctor to turn the tables and try and annoy Ace by calling her Dorothy, which is actually her name so it differs from her calling him Professor, which she instantly wasn't happy about. Now she was in the position she puts the Doctor in and she didn't like it. Maybe she'd call him his proper name now? I bloody hope that's the case! There was no real plot to this story other than a great big party and I don't know why but I just loved it! It was clustered and disorganised but it was just so much fun. Considering this story only had six pages to play with it did rather a lot! We saw Daleks apparently thinking of love, Draconians and even a nice throwback to Polly the Glot! Ace got to club a Sontaran which I'm sure she would have enjoyed! However, I thought the artwork of Ace was pretty horrendous which was a real shame. She looks so detailed on the cover artwork but once inside, in this story particularly, Sophie Aldred was not captured greatly at all. I think that's a real shame in a story such as this where so many past villainous and characters were captured wonderfully. The Kandy Man, Minotaur and Ice Warrior were illustrated fantastically. It was like a trip down memory lane with all these characters popping up! It even seemed that the Melkur wanted to join the party which was quite a shock I must say after the events of The Keeper of Traken. I was also very intrigued to see what appeared to be Bart Simpson in the amalgamation of many alien races that had assembled at this party. The characterisation of the Seventh Doctor was once again nailed and thus far in the graphic novel a job well done has been achieved in terms of that. I quite liked that the Rani got namedropped but I wasn't quite sure about the story surrounding Shaman Khan. I did like the final page though I must admit in it being the Doctor's future and his past. The cameo shot of the Fourth Doctor was tremendous and I do love seeing past incarnations of the Doctor crop up in comic strip stories. It's so simple how it can be achieved so I like that it's taken advantage of. It definitely should be. Overall, as I said at the top the best way to describe this comic strip is just superbly bonkers! It definitely impressed me especially with it only being six pages and I'm now really looking forward to seeing how the rest of the graphic novel pans out! 

Rating: 9/10 

The Mark of Mandragora

"The Helix is like a cuckoo in the nest, making the place its very own, making us the intruders..."

Writer: Dan Abnett 

Format: Comic Strip

Released: November 1990 - April 1991

Printed in: DWM 167-172

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace

Synopsis 

London. The end of the twentieth century approaches... perhaps more literally than anyone expects. Allied with UNIT, the Doctor and Ace have unlocked the secret of the Falling Star nightclub. That secret is raw energy of the Mandragora Helix, preparing to infect Earth with its infernal power...

Verdict 

The Mark of Mandragora was a simply stunning comic strip adventure to continue along my reading of The Good Soldier graphic. With the preludes that came with it, I have split the blog entry as you can see below and wrote my comments immediately after reading. 

Darkness Falling

This comic strip takes on a unique format in that it has not one but two preludes printed in the pages of DWM prior to its official beginning. With each prelude just three pages, there's no way I can count each of them as a separate story instead I'm including in the overall comic strip adventure as a whole. With build up like this, I really hope it lives up to the hype! I'm not sure I would be a fan of the DWM each of these preludes were printed in as the comic strip is a large reason why I purchase the magazine so to only get three pages of comic strip would have been quite disappointing, even if the Brigadier was featured! UNIT was in big trouble, and even with the great man looking more like his old self than what we saw in Battlefield, he was hoping for the help of the Doctor. I get the feeling he'll soon be on his way...

Distractions 

Now this was a wonderful prelude to the overall comic strip adventure! The Seventh Doctor and Ace had arrived into the picture and would you know it, Ace was upset. She'd been wondering about the TARDIS for four hours and the Doctor hadn't bothered trying to find her. I can't say I blame him. But she did manage to find her way to the secondary control room which was magnificent to see once again! That really is a throwback to the Fourth Doctor era! We had a superb flashback and reference to The Masque of Mandragora, and it appears that the deadly Helix is back for revenge! It's been biding its time and growing with each visit of the TARDIS, and now it appears ready to strike! Let the adventure begin! 

The Mark of Mandragora

Now this was more like it! A simply stunning adventure that more than made its mark. Pun absolutely intended. I really did love this comic strip and there's no doubt that this was a triumphant return for the Mandragora Helix. I really did like The Masque of Mandragora, but I've only watched it once and that was probably three years ago now. However, I have read the novel within the last year and I absolutely loved that! I liked the continuity from the aforementioned TV story in that it was set roughly 500 years after those events. Despite the waiting game, the Helix still remembered the Doctor and the defeat he caused in their last encounter. However, this time it was the Helix that had the advantage of using the Doctor's TARDIS against him. That advantage though would be the cause of defeat. I really liked Captain Frost being part of UNIT but I was surprised that the Brigadier didn't appear more prominently. He only had cameo roles which I thought was a shame. We could have had an extension of Battlefield, a story that was neatly mentioned, in that the Seventh Doctor and Brigadier could join forces once again. Although I haven't read The Iron Legion, I loved the reference to it and the fact that they were referencing a comic strip adventure that was released 160 odd issues before the one the reader was holding! The audacity! I thought it was brilliant. I also liked the reference to Fellow Travellers and that story can now have an added subtly to the title as we know the Mandragora was waiting and rebuilding in the TARDIS. The drug Mandrake being used throughout London was clever and I liked how it would hide the mention of the Mandragora as it used its previous name. Stranks served as a very good villainous enemy and I liked the dialogue he and the Doctor exchanged. I wasn't struck on the artwork for Ace but I thought the characterisation of her was excellent. They also absolutely nailed Sylvester McCoy's Seventh Doctor which was fantastic to see. I thought the cliffhangers were very good and the pace of the story was perfect. I was quite surprised that the Doctor accepted defeat but in the end he got lucky. The TARDIS prevented the Mandragora from reverting the Universe to its own design by being the weak link. It hiccuped and actually saved the Doctor! I bet that got mentioned at one point during unseen conversation in The Doctor's Wife. I liked how the Doctor was utterly depressed when he thought the TARDIS was gone forever, disintegrated into nothingness. He'd reluctantly agreed once again to join UNIT which I bet he wasn't thrilled about. But then ebullience came together as the TARDIS came to him and Ace and put a smile on the Brigadier's face as he knew they were off adventuring once again. Overall, a stunning comic strip adventure! This graphic novel must be something special if this gets topped. 

Rating: 10/10

The Face of Evil

"How could he be so cheerful when he'd just been condemned to an agonising death?"

Writer: Terrance Dicks

Format: Novel

Released: January 1978

Series: Target 25

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Leela

Synopsis 

"When Xoanon gets desperate enough, he's going to destroy everything..."

Thinking the controls are set for Earth, the Doctor is surprised when the TARDIS lands in a huge primeval forest where chaos reigns - chaos for which the Doctor is partly responsible. This is home to the Sevateem and Tesh tribes, who are constantly engaged in savage wars to appease their god Xoanon. Through meeting Leela, the young female warrior brandished by her tribe, the Doctor discovers that the constant raging battles between them are instigated by none other than Xoanon, in reality an all-powerful giant computer. With Leela as his companion, the Doctor must not only battle with Xoanon, but reconcile the differences between the two tribes - who are both intent on subjecting them to their savage law. 

Verdict 

The Face of Evil was a tremendous novelisation of one of the first Classic era adventure I'd ever watched! I remember first watching this story on television on UKTV Gold I think it was, something wonderful like that! I enjoyed it then as I was first getting into the Classics and after rewatching during my 260 day run of watching the lot, I really did like it. I bought the novel for a mere £2 which is beyond a steal as that's less than the RRP! It's a prized piece of my collection and it was excellent portrayed in novelised format by the genius at work himself - Terrance Dicks. I love his work in the Targets, and the original novels actually with greats like Players and Endgame. He just knows how to set out and pace a novel but it also feels like the television story at the same time which I think is important. I loved how he included an explanation for the face on the mountain being the Fourth Doctor and not a previous incarnation. At the time it perhaps raised a question as there was never a time where the Fourth Doctor travelled alone until the story immediately before this. I thought Leela was the star of the novel, and rightly so. She's such a great companion. Her primitive nature matched with the wit and humour of this incarnation of the Doctor makes them quite a pairing. Reading the story in which they meet, it's lovely to see that they immediately have the chemistry that would make them a much loved TARDIS pairing. I have the novel of The Talons of Weng-Chiang to read with this pairing and that certainly is one I'm looking forward to. The story of Leela over the course of the novel is wonderful as she goes from being banished for blasphemy to forcing her way into the TARDIS. The Tribe of Sevateem was very good but I loved the revelation that came with them and the Tesh. Over generations, Sevateem had gained its name by deviating from Survey Team, the name which was on one of the holy relics of Xoanon. Tesh had also deviated from techs, the technician wing of the original colonists that came to this planet. It was quite ironic how the Sevateem and Tesh were both the same race, just separated by being descendants of different parts of the crew! This novel reminded me a little of Night of the Humans, not quite on that scale but it was certainly close. They'd created a whole religion based on a wrecked colonist spaceship. Thankfully there was no Wild West worshipping going on this time. Leela's reaction when she first met the Doctor was magnificent. Despite her blaspheme, she couldn't deny that standing right in front of her was the Evil One. Not the Master who she'd later meet in The Evil One, but the Doctor! I loved the characterisation of the Doctot and you could really just read it in the voice of Tom Baker with ease. That's when the characterisation in novels and comic strips is good in my opinion. He seemed to take on being this great evil one with extraordinary calmness! The guest characters were all very good and I really liked Neeva. His particular place on religion and the word of Xoanon was intriguing. I really liked Calib too as Leela seemed to believe that he was the strongest member of the Tribe. She had respect for him and I admired that. U loved the Doctor's reaction to seeing his face carved into the mountain and he really did see that things had taken a turn for the worse now! I really loved the references to Planet of the Spiders and Robot in explaining how the Fourth Doctor had come to this place before when he was still suffering from the trauma of his accelerated regeneration. That was a magnificent deviation from the TV story. The threat of the invisible monsters was excellent and I liked the barriers holding them out. The references to The Hand of Fear and The Deadly Assassin were stunning and it was nice to see that the Doctor missed Sarah being by his side complaining about their latest location. He obviously missed having a companion but that was all change now! After the thrilling climax, Leela bundled her way on board! A great ending to a wonderful novel. 

Rating: 9/10

The Big Bang

"You know there's no such thing as stars."

Writer: Steven Moffat 

Format: TV

Broadcast: 26th June 2010

Series: 5.13

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory, River

Synopsis 

The Alliance has trapped the Doctor in the Pandorica. The TARDIS has exploded with River inside. Rory has shot Amy and the cracks have swallowed everything but the Earth and the Moon. 

The fate of all existence lies in the hands of a little girl who still believes in stars.

Verdict 

The Big Bang is fantastic fifth season finale and an excellent conclusion to the story already started in The Pandorica Opens. It expertly closes a lot of story arcs from the past 12 episodes, but in typical Moffat fashion, it potentially leaves us with more questions than answers! I remember when watching this on broadcast, which I can't believe is over five years, and I was quite shocked by how different it was to the story's first part. After the incredible cliffhanger, the resolutions are all pretty simple really. The Doctor escapes the Pandorica thanks to his future self and what must be a paradox. In doing so, he instructs Rory to place Amy in the Pandorica as that will force her to stay alive which, after being shot by her soon to be Auton husband, is exactly what she needed! River being trapped in the exploding TARDIS, which wonderfully acted as the replacement for the Sun in this timeline with the absence of the stars. I loved how the Alliance miserably failed to save the universe and once more it was left to the Doctor to save all of creation. The idea of the TARDIS exploding at every point in history was incredibly audacious from Moffat. At just one point in time you'd wonder why it would cause a threat to the whole universe, but with it at every point in history the threat was gigantic. History was falling apart and the Doctor, Amy, Rory and River were only surviving by being at the heart of the storm. I really like Amelia and despite being the younger self of Amy, I love the differentiation between the pair that comes with simply extending her name to what it fully is. I loved how she was the girl that believed in stars. In this timeline, the stars had never existed. The Richard Dawkins reference was quite funny I must say, that was a real nice inclusion. Rory committing himself to 2,000 years of guarding his soon to be wife in her perfect prison was quite incredible I must say! I thought it was really nice of the Doctor to show his admiration of that at the pair's wedding. With the Doctor destined for the other side of the cracks, closing them for good and allowing the universe to be fully rebooted, I absolutely adored the comparison of the TARDIS to the well known wedding craze of having something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue because well, the TARDIS was all of them! The way the Doctor saved himself by implanting ways for Amy to remember him once he was erased was magical. The scene being repeated from The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone was simply stunning and this time we knew what it meant! That caused a bit of confusion during that story but it just lead up to something beautiful here. I thought the Doctor being at Amelia's bedside and telling her the story of the TARDIS was sublime as well! I really liked how this episode followed suit of the previous by having a lone enemy. Only this time it wasn't a Cyberman, it was an Underhenge Dalek! The restoration field of the Pandorica had brought the Dalek back. Now, the Doctor had one of his most dangerous, incredible and audacious plans to save the universe ever! He was going to fly and pilot the Pandorica straight into the heart of the TARDIS explosion and release the restoration field at every point in history! The comparison to cloning from a single cell was really good. It of course worked and just about all was back to normal. For the second time now, the Doctor escaped regeneration following being exterminated by a Dalek. The ending was really nice with the TARDIS trio finally reunited. Overall, a sensational finale! 

Rating: 10/10

The Pandorica Opens

"Everything that ever hated you is coming here tonight."

Writer: Steven Moffat

Format: TV 

Broadcast: 19th June 2010

Series: 5.12

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory, River

Synopsis 

A Van Gogh painting ferried across thousands of years offering a terrifying prophecy, a message on the oldest cliff-face in the universe and a love that lasts a thousand years: in 102 AD England, Romans receive a surprise visit from Cleopatra Nearby, Stonehenge hides a legendary prison-box. As it slowly unlocks from the inside, terrible forces gather in the heavens. The fates are closing around the TARDIS. The Pandorica, which contains the most dangerous threat in the Universe, is opening.

Verdict 

The Pandorica Opens is a simply stunning opening episode of the sublime two-part fifth series finale! It's the culmination of endless references over the past eleven episodes in a magnificent way. The opening pre-credits sequence is fantastic with major characters from past episodes this series all coming together to warn the Doctor of what was to come. It starts with a throwback to Vincent and the Doctor with the infamous artist in torment about his latest vision which inspired his latest painting, 'The Pandorica Opens'. Then we head back to Victory of the Daleks with Bracewell and Churchill, of which the latter ends up phoning River Song some 3,000+ years in the future. I absolutely love River Song and Alex Kingston is just wonderful and the chemistry she has with Matt Smith is beyond good. Her escape once more is quite comedic which I like. That then takes us back to The Beast Below with Liz 10, who obviously appreciated what the Doctor did and would help him undisputedly. River grafitting the oldest known words in the universe was just typical of the magnificent woman. This leads us to the Romans in 102 AD. I love that setting but the irony of such a primitive setting for all these alien races to arrive is superb. The build up to the opening of the Pandorica was excellently paced and I like how the threat of the dismembered Cyberman offered something else to just simply the waiting game. The humour of the threat of the arm and head was good and I loved the look on the Doctor's face once he realised who was on their way for the Pandorica. The formation of the Alliance was stunning and what a collection of the Doctor's greatest past enemies! Drahvin, Draconians and Slitheen to name a few! The legend of the Pandorica was simply sensational and the description of the Doctor was such an intriguing viewpoint. To the enemies, the Doctor brings them their darkest day continuously and that's why the Doctor didn't know what was contained within the Pandorica. He wasn't the wizard that tricked it into the Pandorica - he was the one that got tricked. I adored the scene where the Doctor gives the speech to the assembled spaceships with Matt Smith being simply marvellous. He really is my favourite Doctor. Rory's return was incredibly good on broadcast, some five years ago now, and the Doctor missing the obvious was so typical of this incarnation. The cliffhanger is one of the best of all time with Rory apparently killing Amy with all the Romans marvellously disguised as Autons. River was in the TARDIS as the foreshadowed blowing up that caused the cracks occurred with her trapped inside. And ultimately, Daleks, Cybermen, Sontarans and many others assembled together to trap the Doctor in the Pandorica. They would save the universe from the Doctor. It was simply stunning! Just how would the Doctor escape this trap that was perfectly devised from Amy's childhood? We had great references to The Eleventh Hour, Flesh and Stone and The Hungry Earth and I liked the spoilers mention once more. The audacity of Steven Moffat to bring together the most alien species ever in one episode in the form of an Alliance is just genius of the great man! He even chucked in Silurians and Judoon who might not really be associated as being enemies after their TV revival episodes. I remember loving this story on broadcast and after rewatching now, I loved it just as much. I'm once again looking forward to the conclusion once again! That story is where the overall rating will appear. 

Doctor Who and the Pirates

"I am the very model of a Gallifreyan buccaneer!"

Writer: Jacqueline Rayner 

Format: Audio

Released: April 2003

Series: Main Range 43

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Evelyn 

Synopsis 

All aboard, me hearties, for a rip-roaring tale of adventure on the high seas!

There'll be rum for all and sea shanties galore as we travel back in time to join the valiant crew of the good ship Sea Eagle, braving perils, pirates and a peripatetic old sea-dog known only as the Doctor!

Gasp as our Gallifreyan buccaneer crosses swords with the fearsome Red Jasper, scourge of the seven seas and possessor of at least one wooden leg! Thrill as Evil Evelyn the Pirate Queen sets sail in search of buried treasure, with only a foppish ship's captain and an innocent young cabin boy by her side! Marvel at the melodious mayhem which ensues as we sail the ocean blue!

And wonder why Evelyn still hasn't realised that very few stories have happy endings...

Verdict 

Doctor Who and the Pirates was certainly an interesting audio adventure! Prior to listening, knowing that this story was by the wonderful Jacqueline Rayner, I was expecting something different from the norm and boy did she deliver! We had a bloody musical! Now, I loathe musicals but the start of part three where the Doctor gave his starring performance as a Gallifreyan buccaneer really did put a smile on my face. Colin Baker was just magnificent and there's no doubt in my mind that he's my favourite Doctor on audio. I don't think anybody comes close to him in this format. I imagine the cast really did have a lot of fun performing this adventure but I must admit, after the third or fourth different musical song I had grown tired of the humour. The story lost its seriousness at that point and I do hate to criticise Jacqueline Rayner, but thankfully she swung me back around with an excellent final part. I quite liked the idea of the Doctor and Evelyn telling this story back in a somewhat similar fashion to what would become the Companion Chronicles format, and that obviously allowed the musical nature of the third part as the pair tried to have some fun in telling what became quite an emotional story. That's the beauty of Jacqueline Rayner's writing, she has something so barmy and fun mixed in with something as horrifying as the way Jem's story came to an end. Evelyn really couldn't deal with the fact that on a technicality she had caused his death. After all was done she just wanted to go home and have a break from seeing all of time and space. For an elderly woman, she's certainly gone through quite a lot since joining the Doctor in The Marian Conspiracy! I mean, she's met the Daleks twice! But this story seems to have taken the most out of her. I found it interesting that she went to Sally, one of her students, to talk about the events. I'm all set to move out in just over five weeks for a History degree myself and I really won't be pleased if my lecturer comes knocking on my door! I couldn't blame Sally at all for wanting the pair to leave. I like the idea of doing a pirate story and I really did like how all the stereotypical characteristics were thrown in but then explained. I loved part one and it seemed that Jacqueline Rayner was mocking her own story in wondering if there was any real story after around half an hour of listening! The highlight for me though, despite my loathing of musicals, was the Doctor's first musical song in which there were numerous references to The Daleks' Master Plan, The Ark, The Invasion, The Dominators and The Claws of Axos. I do love a past story reference, no matter how it arises, so it was nice to also hear mentions of The Keys of Marinus, The Krotons and State of Decay. Outside of the song, the reference to The Visitation was excellent and I found it intriguing that the Doctor didn't like to talk about that. He was responsible for the Great Fire of London but his fifth incarnation didn't seem to care too much at the time and was in a hurry to leave! He's obviously had time to dwell on his actions. Jasper served as a very good villainous character and was your typical Pirate villain - or at least what I'd expect one to be. Captain Swan was brilliant and the climax was very clever with the treasure map being inside the compass. I'm intrigued to see what Evelyn does in her next story as she went through a lot here. Overall, despite the musical mayhem, a fantastic adventure. 

Rating: 8/10

Spore

"The Spore had arrived more than a thousand years before he was born. Several hundred thousand Time Lords had died..."

Writer: Alex Scarrow

Format: Novella

Released: November 2014

Series: 12 Doctors, 12 Stories: 08

Featuring: Eighth Doctor

Synopsis 

An alien pathogen attacks a small town in the Nevada desert and as the population is reduced to a seething mass of black slime, the Doctor realises it is the same virus that almost wiped out his own race, the Time Lords...

Verdict 

Spore was yet another excellent novella from the wonderful 12 Doctors, 12 Stories collection. I really do like this collection and I think the postcards that come with the set are really magnificent. It certainly gives the collection a unique feeling and I'm so glad that I waited and was able to receive this gift for Christmas rather than getting the original large paperback. Having each story in its own little novella is certainly a much better option in my opinion. It was no surprise to me that the Eighth Doctor travelled alone in this story so I would think it was placed somewhere close after The Movie. However, my knowledge of the Eighth Doctor is somewhat limited as in my audio running he's still travelling with Charley. I love that pairing so I'm hoping that doesn't end anytime soon but in saying that I'm really looking forward to getting to the Eighth Doctor Adventures with the magnificent Sheridan Smith. But that's for another time and way in the future - but the blogs will one day appear here! For this story, it was similar to the Tenth Doctor 2009 Specials in that we had a character fill the companion role but wouldn't actually become the companion. That was despite it being teased at least once. Evelyn Chan was a fantastic character it's got to be said and she instantly got along with the Doctor. Well, actually in saying that she first pointed a gun at his head. The ease at which the Doctor can get someone to agree to what he wants to do is magical. It really is wonderful to read (or watch and listen depending on the format). The Doctor arriving in the Nevada desert was good and I liked what appeared to be a reference to a story that I'm yet to blog (or probably own). The Doctor had come here before in 1947 so I look forward to hopefully seeing what happened on his last visit. The threat of the Spore was very good indeed and the fact that it wiped out hundreds of thousands of Time Lords certainly showed just how deadly it could be! I liked how the Doctor read about the incident in a book but of course he was hereditary immune thanks to the breakout occurring a thousand years prior to the Doctor's birth. I was quite surprised and pleased to see that the Doctor mentioned something his mother used to say about him when he was young. That's an extremely rare thing to happen so I do enjoy any family references the Doctor makes. Although the Doctor may not look back on his time as UNIT's scientific adviser, it can certainly help him in some situations as was the case here in quite comedic fashion. It helped him out of a sticky situation with the police. The description of the Spore outbreak was quite gruesome and the Doctor somewhat admiring the stages of the Spore was intriguing. The third stage where it would seek intelligence was most interesting. The Time Lords found the answer to the question they seeked but the Doctor knew humanity hadn't quite developed the understanding to answer correctly. They'd get there in a few decades but for now they couldn't. The Doctor trying to explain this to the Spore was good but I just loved how as a last resort he simply lied and convinced them that he could answer on humanity's behalf. It was simple and it worked as an effective climax. Evelyn was safe as was the rest of mankind! The Doctor wondering off back to the TARDIS at the end was a nice way to finish. Overall, another great novella! 

Rating: 9/10

The Dark Flame

"Beware of the Dark Flame..."

Writer: Trevor Baxendale 

Format: Audio

Released: March 2003

Series: Main Range 42

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Ace, Bernice

Synopsis 

A thousand years ago, the evil Cult of the Dark Flame infiltrated every star system in the galaxy. In the history books the Cult is legendary, its despotic leader a terrible memory.

But for some the Dark Flame still burns.

For some, its horrifying power is the ultimate goal.

All that is required is for the right people to be in the wrong place and time.

An archaeologist and his robot are on the poisonous world of Sorus Alpha, where they will uncover a hideous relic. The Doctor and Ace are on their way to the deep space research centre Orbos, where Professor Bernice Summerfield is soon to start the countdown to universal Armageddon.

Four acolytes of Evil.

Three mad scientists.

Two companions.

One Doctor.

Verdict 

The Dark Flame was an excellent audio adventure. It was a real joy to listen to from start to finish as it was just a really solid and consistent story. It's not going to light the world alight in being one of the best stories of all time, but it tells a great story and I like how it serves as the second sidestep from Big Finish into the territory of the Virgin New Adventures novels. I liked this trio in their previous appearance together in The Shadow of the Scourge and this served to be a similar standard. I really do like Bernice as companion and I must delve into her travels in the novels. I do own one novel where she travels alone with the Doctor, Transit, but I am yet to read it. I have a mass of reading to get through but I don't like reading two books consecutively hence me changing formats after yesterday's reading of Heart of TARDIS. She offers something different to the TARDIS team and when placed in a trio of the a Seventh Doctor and Ace, she really is magnificent. I've become quite tired of the pairing that was seen during the last two TV seasons, they're my least favourite pairing sadly, so adding a new dynamic with Bernice made me enjoy a Seventh Doctor story so much more! Speaking of which, I thought Sylvester McCoy was absolutely brilliant in this audio adventure! He really gave a strong performance which was really good to hear. Ace didn't have much to do in this story as compared to past adventures, but I shouldn't admit that I quite enjoyed it when she got beaten up by Bernice! I really don't like her as companion. I just don't and I think it's too late now for that to change. I did enjoy the reference to Remembrance of the Daleks though I must say. That's by far Ace's best story in my opinion. I quite liked the Doctor's reminiscing of Mel's departure in Dragonfire. I do love Mel despite her limited TV adventures but the audios I've done with her I've very much enjoyed and she remains my favourite Seventh Doctor companion. Although, if Bernice joins up for some more stories that could soon change. I really liked Lomar in this story and she shared a role I've come to really enjoy over the last 42 audio adventures. The lead guest female role of sorts never seems to fail and it didn't disappoint here. Remnex had quite a story in this adventure! He was a past friend of the Doctor, then he got murdered and then became the host of Vilus Krull! The Cult of the Dark Flame was a really good idea and I loved the chill factor that came with them! Thought long deceased, but the remains would still hold some power. The army of the bones of past followers was pretty disturbing! Joseph was a really great character and I liked how simply he sacrificed himself to allow the others to live. The Doctor fiddling with time to change the way Remnex died and to ammend Bernice's withering hand was rather sneaky I must say, but he had to make use of the Dark Flame somehow! The flame itself was pretty difficult to comprehend. How can there be black light? I guess that's the beauty of other universes. But we need not worry anymore thanks to the Doctor and a very good climax. Overall, a very solid and enjoyable audio story.

Rating: 8/10

Heart of TARDIS

"It hasn't been much of a day for stopping the unstoppable forces of evil. I have to admit I'm a bit stumped."

Writer: Dave Stone

Format: Novel

Released: June 2000

Series: PDA 32

Featuring: Second Doctor, Jamie, Victoria, Fourth Doctor, Romana I, Brigadier

Synopsis 

In the American Midwestern town of Lychburg, something is afoot. Its citizens are being killed in expressively horrible and brutal ways and the police don't have a clue who's responsible. The only suspects are a mysterious and sinister stranger, who calls himself the Doctor, and his young companions Jamie and Victoria.

The Fourth Doctor and Romana, meanwhile, have been summoned by the Gallifreyan High Council. A force has been unleashed into the space/time continuum... a force so unimaginably terrible that it is set to rip the universe itself apart and plunge it into primal, screaming chaos from which nothing will survive. 

Of course, since something of this nature happens every other day of the week, the Doctor's really far more interested in finding out what's happened to a close personal friend, who seems to have vanished under mysterious circumstances. And quite right, too. The fate of a universe plunging into fetid and unending chaos can look out for itself for a change...

Verdict 

Heart of TARDIS was a pretty decent read but sadly it didn't live up to my expectations. It was a novel I had been in search of for quite some time so I was absolutely delighted to find it Comic Guru, a great little shop in Cardiff. I probably overpaid a little but despite me not enjoying it as much as I'd hoped, it's still a prized possession of mine in my increasing collection. I'm slowly but surely getting through these novels but with me set to move out and heading to university in just over five weeks, I have no idea what time will be like and if novels will be available to me for pleasure reads. I must admit, I was not a fan of Dave Stone's style of writing. There was no need for some of the swearing that appeared in the novel and I actually found him somewhat sexist a little. The earring euphemism for Romana's breasts just had absolutely no place in a Doctor Who novel. No matter the format, this is still a family audience. I really objected to that. I also didn't get the whole Appendix segment to end on in which he seemed to depict a sex scene with Ace. It just made no sense and for me it was a sour way to end. It had barely any relation to the novel. But anyway, the story was good and certainly had its positives but there were also negatives which brought it down to what I would consider a relatively poor rating. The reason I longed after this novel should be apparent just from the cover, which I must say is superb. Who wouldn't want to read a novel featuring both the Second and Fourth Doctors? However, I was extremely disappointed to find that they did not meet. It was even avoided! Although, the Fourth Doctor and Romana hiding under the TARDIS console from the Second Doctor, Jamie and Victoria is quite a comedic image! I like the idea of the Fourth Doctor and Second Doctor having a loosely connected adventure but did we really need both in the novel? I would argue that we didn't purely based on the fact that the chapters with the Fourth Doctor were much longer than those with the Second. The characterisation of the characters in this novel was mostly good with the female companions particularly shining. Stone managed to capture Victoria pretty much perfectly and although it goes against popular opinion, I prefer this trio to when she is replaced by Zoe. It's a rare occasion for me to do a story with Romana I and that's probably because it's narratively difficult to place stories between the Key to Time sixteenth season. I've only seen each of those stories once and the only other story I've done with this incarnation of Romana is The Aunty Matter so she's probably my least known companion which is quite ridiculous really. However, I really liked how she was presented here but I maintain that she doesn't come anywhere close to her successor of Lalla Ward's second incarnation. She did provide some humour and the wonderful bantering that seems natural with the Fourth Doctor no matter the companion! Jamie's characterisation was a bit of a mix but to be honest he didn't have a huge role in the story. The Doctors were characterised pretty well but the Fourth was captured much more realistically than the Second. I really enjoyed Romana's foreshadowing of her regeneration in Destiny of the Daleks based on the princess she met in The Armageddon Factor. It really rose to an intriguing concept that regeneration could be chosen. It would certainly keep in line with some dialogue in The War Games. It just appears that forced regeneration, which as it goes happens pretty regularly for the Doctor, makes deciding on appearance pretty difficult. The Collectors were a very mysterious bunch and I liked how they were sold on the fact that the Daleks even hid away from them and made it look like Skaro had been destroyed. Wblk was the subject of quite a lot of humour from the Doctor and Romana which I liked. I absolutely loved that the Doctor immediately abandoned the search for the Key to Time when it seemed that the Brigadier was in trouble. That was a really nice touch and despite all the bickering between the pair during the Third Doctor's exile, the Brigadier really did mean a lot to the Doctor. That was seen wonderfully in Death in Heaven. The Jarakebeth weren't what I was expecting after the build up to be revealed as the enemy. I liked how they didn't like their name to be spoken but I was expecting something more dramatic. The climax was actually decent and I really liked Romana's distaste at the decor of the Second Doctor's TARDIS console room. I can't recall it being too different from the one she's used to but bantering across regenerations, even by companions, is something I adore. It's just a shame I didn't get that here with the Doctors not meeting as I hoped! There were negatives but there were certainly positives that made up for things to still give the novel a far from disastrous rating. 

Rating: 7/10

The Weeping Angels of Mons Part 2

"These aren't the sort of angels you want to be touched by."

Writer: Robbie Morrison 

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 13th August 2015

Printed in: DWC #7

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Gabby

Synopsis 

The Doctor and Gabby are trapped in the chaos of World War One, where trench foot is the least of their worries. With the TARDIS seemingly scattered across No Man's Land and the sonic screwdriver in the hands of the military, the Doctor and Gabby must now convince the skeptical Captain Fairbairn that they are not spies - or face the firing squad! Far from the trip to paradise Gabby was hoping for, they're stuck in a desolate wasteland where even the statues are deadly. Can the Time Lord's companion make it out alive?

Verdict 

The Weeping Angels of Mons continued in excellent fashion with this second segment of the four part epic! It's the longest story of Doctor Who Comic yet and I'm already looking forward to seeing its conclusion in the next issue in September with both parts being printed in the same edition! That's going to be sublime I think. I've loved the elements of the story so far with a magnificent returning enemy in the Weeping Angels and a mass of historical reference! Just four days after meeting the conditions of my offer and confirming my place for a History at Bath Spa University, I really enjoyed the continuation of historic mentions. We of course had the ongoing setting of the First World War and the Battle of the Somme but then poor old Wullie getting sent back to 1879 just as the train to Dundee was sent tumbling with the bridge. Not only that though, we got flashes of those sent back in time by the Weeping Angels in Ancient Rome and the 16th century whose fates didn't go well at all. The Doctor looked instantly worried once he knew the Weeping Angels were here. World War One in the midst of the trenches was the perfect hunting ground for them. People were dying by the minute so it's not exactly going to be noticeable when the Angels zap a couple of soldiers back in time. I loved how the Doctor seemed disgusted by the whole affair of this war and he seemed to echoe his comments upon arrival during the same period in The War Games. It does make me wonder sometimes why the Doctor puts so much effort into saving humanity and Earth if he feels the way he does about war. All humanity seems to do is fight each other! I thought Gabby was absolutely wonderful as companion in this part and she's just the perfect example of a comic strip companion. Revolutions of Terror gave her a fantastic backdrop and after her being overwhelmed by the capabilities of the TARDIS in The Arts in Space, she's now really settled into her own and I'm just loving her. The cover story she made up to Captain Fairbairn was absolutely magnificent and I think that's a real defining moment for Gabby as companion. I thought it was quite nice that Jamie obviously took a liking to Gabby and he was definitely not the best at talking to girls who were especially beautiful as in Gabby's case. I loved the Doctor's mention of Jamie! It's not often we get a reminiscing of past companions with the last I can remember being in The Crimson Horror with Tegan getting a mention. I really do like it when past Classic companions get namedropped in a revival era story. The cliffhanger was superb and it's certainly going to be a difficult one for Gabby to get out of that's for sure! I'm liking the threat of the Weeping Angels and they're certainly working out magnificently in comic strip format. I was a bit skeptical that they'd only work on television but this story is proving me wrong. I can't wait for the double header conclusion next month! That's where the rating will come for what is surely an epic. 

The Infinite Astronaut

"There will be no cheating, Doctor. No breaking the rules. The rules of war... are sacred."

Writer: Al Ewing 

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 13th August 2015

Printed in: DWC #7

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Alice, Jones, ARC

Synopsis

Interstellar dogfights still rage in the skies over London! 

When Alice is forced into a high-stakes solo challenge that could end the conflict, she'll need to muster everything she's learned on her travels with the Doctor in order to succeed - and even that might not be enough!

Has the Doctor made a grave mistake - or is it all part of a larger plan?

Verdict 

The Infinite Astronaut was a decent conclusion to the story already started in The Eternal Dogfight. I'm not sure why a two-parter has two different writers for each comic strip adventure but it really did give it a feel of separation. I'm not sure I'm a fan of that as I think if I'm giving a combined rating, for comic strips the story really should have the same name and be by the same writer. Or at least a co-writer! There wasn't an awful lot made out of the Eternal Dogfight between the Astrons and the J'arrodic which was a shame. The main focus was on the apparent resurrection of Alice's mother. It wasn't explained how Alice got to the ship which was a real blunder I think but thankfully the story as a whole was still very good and scores an extremely positive rating. It's testament to the quality of Doctor Who Comic thus far that no story has been lower than this rating. If it continues like that then I'll have absolutely no complaints! After the hugely successful Space in Dimension Relative and Time, I really thought the Eleventh Doctor adventures of the comic would kick on but the TARDIS foursome just seems a bit clustered and not suited to Matt Smith's incarnation at all. I did love his reaction to ARC being a ball though. That was wonderful. I feel Rob Williams did a better job of characterisation than Al Ewing and I feel that overall the former is certainly the better writer. I quite liked how Alice knew that her mother wasn't actually back from the dead because she failed to recognise Jones who was her all time favourite singer. That's when Alice got some determination and we finally saw some strength from the character. Maybe this horror meeting with what appeared to be her mother can help her move on from the loss. She flew into the reality of totality which did look absolutely incredible but I wasn't convinced by the fact that she simply could do what other astronauts couldn't. What made her, someone not trained at all and apparently doing a two person's job, so special that other astronauts couldn't achieve? It being revealed that her mother was actually the Talent Scout was pretty much expected after the 'Serve You' reference in the first part. It seems that ongoing story arc is going to consist for most of the Eleventh Doctor comic run, however long that may be! I do like the idea of doing extended editions and getting a whole story for just £1 extra is fine by me! We'll soon catch up with the USA hopefully. But four stories for a fiver is the much cheaper option. The origin of the Eternal Dogfight was great and it was quite similar to a lot of arguments for religion. I won't go into religion as I despite it but it was just so simple. I'm thankful there wasn't much similar to The First Sontarans here as there were similarities in their war with the Rutans in the first part. The climax seemed a tad rushed but the two part story as a whole was very good indeed. I do hope Alice moves on now and I hope we get some sort of direction for Jones. I still believe there's something more for ARC but for now it appears we're back off to SERVEYOUinc.

Rating: 8/10