The Dragon Lord Part 2

"I'm an old man, playing out a childhood dream. Don't deny me my one chance to live out that dream for real."

Writer: Steve Lyons 

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 7th January 2016

Printed in: DWM 495

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis 

The Twelfth Doctor and Clara are under threat from a respective dragon, in the middle of what appears to be an enigmatic place. It's a Space Age mixed with medieval times. Just what is going on? And can it be stopped?

Verdict 

The Dragon Lord concluded in what can only be described as an average way. It was nothing special at all and absolutely ranks as the worst Twelfth Doctor story to date, which I think is a real shame. More on the comic strip itself in a bit but for now let's talk about the first issue of Doctor Who Magazine in 2016! Prior to blogging, I am yet to read any of the content other than the comic strip itself and the letter from the editor, but this looks to be an issue I really am looking forward to. Having picked up a day after release, it has taken me a little longer than usual to delve into the magazine but that's down to a looming essay I've had since Christmas and my reading of Engines of War over the weekend. I'm really looking forward to the extended preview of The Diary of River Song as that is an audio collection I really am anticipating. I'm not sure yet if I will purchase it immediately but I can't envisage myself taking too long to buy it. The first issue of the year is always a good one as it includes the 2015 Survey this time around and I really am looking forward to these results in a few issues time. I'm baffled that Heaven Sent/Hell Bent is being included as two separate entries, and I won't be taking notice of any Wikipedia change, but I do envisage that the three Maisie Williams stories will all perform well, hopefully with the latter on top of the poll. Mummy on the Orient Express was my favourite episode of Series 8 and that won the award last time around so hopefully my trend can continue. The Weetabix Cards feature looks set to be an intriguing little read and that really will be an interesting insight into Doctor Who's past. As I'm currently studying a History degree, I like to think of them as primary sources for the Classic era. I'm excited to read about that. Galaxy Forum is something I always enjoy and with the focus being on the final episodes of the last series, it'll be interesting to see what others made of it. I do hope the reactions are positive. Steven Moffat's column is always good-humoured and I'm also looking forward to the Public Image segment which I look into avidly, especially with the decrease in viewers this past year. The Fact of Fiction is not something I usually read I must admit, but I might be tempted with the story being explored Death to the Daleks. It's a very good Third Doctor adventure and I would be intrigued to learn more. Anyway, back to the comic strip itself which the blog entry is titled after all. I tend not to blog non-fiction items of the Whoniverse, such as bookazines or books like the Visual Dictionary, as I don't really buy them, but I feel DWM is unique and should feature on my blog. I just hope they improve the comic strips in recent issues because recently they haven't been great. I mean, the likes of Spirits of the Jungle and The Highgate Horror have been pretty good, but not great and that's what I'm looking for from these comic strips. With DWC performing so well recently, it really is putting this magazine's comic content to shame. I didn't even like the artwork in this one which is a real rarity. Steve Lyons seemed to write this all over the place and I really didn't know what was going on in some places. It was very muddled. The inclusion of dragons wasn't the best move and I really do think it should be housed in DWA. The resolution from the cliffhanger was poor, the story itself was poor and the Dragon Lord, whom the story is named after, turned out to be dead. It didn't make much sense to be. Thankfully the characterisation of the Twelfth Doctor and Clara acted as a saving grace, but even the climax and ending seemed very stalled. It just didn't do much for me sadly and I was bitterly disappointed. Better next issue please! 

Rating: 5/10