Weapons of Past Destruction Part 5

"It creates a bubble around the planet, speeding up time. Everything inside crumbles to dust within minutes."

Writer: Cavan Scott

Format: Comic Strip

Released: 11th February 2016

Printed in: DWC: Tales from the TARDIS 03

Featuring: Ninth Doctor, Rose, Captain Jack

Synopsis 

The Ninth Doctor, Rose and Captain Jack are in trouble. Separated from each other amidst the battle between the Unon and Lect which could create a new Time War, this time-manipulating and violent threat may prove too much, and it could cost the Doctor his brain!

Verdict 

Weapons of Past Destruction concluded in fantastic style here with this brilliant fifth part. Prior to reading the story finale it required quite a lot of rereading with four parts to get through and even though it hasn't been that long since I read and blogged parts three and four, knowing this was the finale I thought it would be beneficial to read the story as a whole to finish it. I'm now very glad that I did that as everything tied together and we had a good and action-packed finale! The characterisation of Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor was very good as it has been throughout this story and I think Cavan Scott has been very clever in capturing the atmosphere of both a story including this incarnation and also that of Series 1. It felt right at home within that first series of the revival which is exactly as it should have been. We had mentions of Time Lords and Daleks which by now Rose was at home with and even though this is set shortly after Captain Jack's arrival to the TARDIS team in The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances, the knowledge he has of the Time War and Time Lords is intriguing. But I think with Jack we tend to forget that he comes from the 51st century so his knowledge would obviously be vast and then you can add to that the fact he's a member of the Time Agency so he's jumping around time enhancing that knowledge. I've loved some subtle moments where Jack has challenged the Doctor's leadership and authority in this story and it occurred again in this part. The moment at the end where the Doctor just looked and smiled at his companions was stunning and I think these comics are trying to shed the light on the softer and less sinister side of the Ninth Doctor which is very good. I liked Rose's role in this story and I loved the twist regarding the cliffhanger of the last part. Through Rose, we actually learned a great deal about the Lect and I liked that they staged the transmatting of the Doctor. He wasn't too thrilled with everything that went on but he was soon okay with Rose's actions after the Lect were revealed to really be Excrothians. The Doctor was horrified by what had happened to the species and through the telekinetic connection, a lot was learned of the history between the Lect and Unon. The latter wanted to take the place of the Time Lords and would use violent to ensure that nobody got access to controlling time as the Time Lords once did. Jack's visit to the void was intriguing and the foreshadowing of Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways, with Jack getting exterminated but then subsequently returning to life, and Children of Earth: Day Five with Jack sacrificing his own grandchild for the human race was rather dark. That's the beauty of having comic strip stories with past TARDIS teams released over a decade after they appeared on television as you can incorporate elements of their future which was seen with the image of the War Doctor previously and now these with Jack's. It's just very clever and it really does add a lot to the story. The climax seemed to come pretty quickly but with the action that came with it and the Doctor offering a fresh start, it was a good end to a great comic strip adventure. I had no idea that there were initially only these five parts of the Ninth Doctor's comic strip run with Titan Comics and I'll have to wait until at least April for them to continue. I'm not sure where this is going to leave the crossing over with DWC and the Tales from the TARDIS but I hope Titan do things well. It could get messy but I trust that they know what they're doing (I hope!). Overall though, a marvellous comic strip debut for the Ninth Doctor and co! 

Rating: 9/10