Old Girl: Aftermath

"You have many friends, you're well-loved, you attract only the best and most well-intentioned..."

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Format: Comic Strip
Released: 30th March 2017
Printed in: DWC: Tales from the TARDIS 16

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Gabby, Cindy

Synopsis

Tested by Anubis at the far reaches of the universe... is he following in the genocidal footsteps of his father?! Reality invaded by the old. angry gods of Primeval Time! The Doctor, Gabby and Cindy have their work cut out for them, as the endgame of Year Two begins!

Verdict

Old Girl started off in terrific style with Aftermath serving as a stunning opening part of the story! This one really does look to be an epic and at five parts, with a year's worth of build, I really am hoping for big things from this second year finale of the Tenth Doctor comic adventures! I do hope that the current TARDIS trio remain in place for the third year of stories, or at the very least Gabby remains, as the team are brilliant together and that was highlighted in this comic strip. Cindy was still very much feeling the effects of Roscoe's death in The Jazz Monster/Music Man and she does seem devastated that she can't go back and change things. Gabby knows how she feels after meeting Jamie in The Weeping Angels of Mons so it's good that Cindy has someone who knows how she's feeling. I really liked the opening of this story with Maria reading the Doctor's palms. I am quite surprised that he let her do that but some of her comments were wonderful. I really liked her description that I took as my quote from the story of the people the Doctor meets and takes on his travels. I also found it interesting to see how much trust Maria has placed in the Doctor without him even knowing it. He can't go telling the whole truth about where he and Gabby go but she knows that he has good intentions and it won't be his doing if Gabby isn't safe. This story has been building ever since The Fountains of Forever/Spiral Staircase/Sins of the Father and I am glad that the Doctor is now finally dealing with his luring promise to Anubis. The fact that he is the son of Sutekh always leaves the possibility open that his intentions are actually evil but the cliffhanger has really got me thinking now, which is an excellent thing. The Shining Horizon setting was brilliant and it was great to see Dorothy Bell once again. Her relationship with Gabby in this part of the story was a particular highlight but I was also intrigued by her interaction with Anubis. It quickly turned from being the peace-loving conversing it initially appeared to be. The idea of looking into parallel universes and picking the best possibilities really struck me as an intriguing concept but Cindy and Gabby hearing Roscoe's jazz through one made me think the windows aren't all they're set out to be. Cindy wanting to go with the Doctor to the Primordial Universe to Amenthes was good but just what they'll find on the power facilities of the Osiran's homeworld in ancient times I'm not too sure. That is, if they get there at all. The Tenth Doctor having another 'impossible!' remark moment was fantastic and I like how that signifies real danger. His explanation that the map of time and space had literally changed before their eyes was superb and I can't wait to see how that is explained and put right. Gabby being shown the statue of Sutekh by Dorothy was very good but I liked how she wasn't just happy with seeing the front. She wanted to go all the way around and view it from all angles. Except, she got a bit more than she bargained for as all was not as it seemed on the Shining Horizon. Sutekh's statue had been graffitied with a number of statements. The general consensus being that Sutekh lives and will soon arise. An excellent cliffhanger to a brilliant opening part of the story!