The Wishing Well Witch Part 2

"It's pulling her back, even as she's trying to claw her way further in..."

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 20th October 2016
Printed in: DWC: Tales from the TARDIS 12

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Gabby, Cindy

Synopsis

The Doctor, Gabby and Cindy investigate 'the Wishing Well Witch' in the town of Dewbury... only to find what lurks in the well is something far worse, and more strange, than the legend! It's an unearthly terror, cast through a schism in the universe... and it's tearing the town apart!

Verdict

The Wishing Well Witch concluded in excellent style with this brilliant second and final part of the story! I really was impressed with what I read and I was very close to giving it the perfect rating and whilst it ultimately wasn't quite worthy of it, I think it was definitely one of the better comic strip adventures from the Tenth Doctor's run with Titan Comics. Of the three that are currently printed in Doctor Who Comic's Tales from the TARDIS, I would say that this segment has consistently been the strongest and I ultimately do think that's down to having a wonderful companion and just keeping things simple when it comes to a story arc. With the addition of Cindy to the TARDIS team, the adventures have been refreshed and we now see a different side of Gabby now she's the senior companion of the pairing. That was evident here and I liked how when Cindy had made contact with the Witch, that wasn't actually a Witch, she was so concerned for her friend. The way she kept herself focused was good and I liked her determination to fix things and realised that she was needed to aid the Doctor. As per usual with a multi-part comic strip, I reread the first part a couple of hours prior to reading the second part continuation and I liked how things just carried on immediately from the previous comic strip's cliffhanger. I thought that was an effective part of the storytelling and I thought the whole pace of this second part in particular was fantastic. The characterisation of David Tennant's Tenth Doctor was very good and I liked how disappointed he was with Cindy's condition when it came to him showing off in the TARDIS. The reveal of the time trace that he had picked up upon in the last issue was great and the Doctor being thrust back to what he thought might have been the Dark Times on Gallifrey was magnificent. The truth behind the Witch was superb and I loved how it was seven children, possibly Time Lords, that had become one but arrived on Earth in different times after an unprotected trip through the vortex. The Doctor seeing the untempered schism was a big shock I must say but I was absolutely thrilled by it! The reaction the Doctor had was intriguing and with the mention of Sutekh in the previous part, I think there could be a connection. I look forward to seeing things pan out but for now I'm happy to just sit back and watch them unfold. Cindy not being able to get her words out was good but like Randall, she kept some of her wits about her when the Witch had taken something she thought was needed to repair. The Witch telling the Doctor to "regenerate me" was very powerful and a line that I just loved. I think that was heightened by the Doctor's reaction as once that was mentioned there was obviously some kind of Time Lord involvement or connection. I liked the ambiguity surrounding the Witch and it did look pretty impressive when in its horrifying form. Cindy feeling herself again after returning to the TARDIS was good and I absolutely loved that she coined Gabby's phrase of gizmo when it came to referring to some of the Doctor's wacky tech. He'd added a filter to the time scope so everything would revert back to normal, which was obviously something so simple for a Time Lord like the Doctor, and Cindy and Gabby's reaction to things being put back to normal was very good. The whole village was safe once again and Randall was rather joyous but the Doctor was anything but. He had saved the day yet again but had seen something that horrified him, Could things really be connected to Ancient Gallifrey? I sincerely hope they are as any exploration of the Time Lord's home planet in the new series is most welcomed by me. Overall, an excellent comic strip adventure!

Rating: 9/10