The Final Quest

"The grim joy of battle."

Writer: Steve Moore

Format: Comic Strip

Released: November 1979

Printed in: DWM 8

Synopsis

The Fourth Doctor tells a tale from the Gallifreyan archives of a Sontaran out for revenge. 

Verdict

The Final Quest was a terrific little comic strip story to continue my reading of The Return of the Daleks graphic novel collection of back-up tales! I think the back-up tales idea is so good and would absolutely be something I would love to see return to the pages of Doctor Who Magazine, even if it was just in prose rather than a full on comic. But I'm so glad that in these early issues of what was then Doctor Who Weekly, they were keen to explore the world beyond the Doctor and after the Daleks in the graphic novel's titular story and the Cybermen in Throwback: The Soul of a Cyberman (which I blogged back in 2021), it feels only right that it was the turn of the Sontarans! I thought the Fourth Doctor acting as the narrator to bookend the four-page story was great stuff and definitely just gives it that feeling of being contemporary to the time when it was released. I do think that's important and it isn't just a needless appearance. It's very rare that I blog a story where I don't include my usual 'Featuring' line above the synopsis but I don't think Ketsu warrants that with this being his singular story! I could almost just put Sontarans but the fact he's named and the only of the race to feature takes away that ability for me. I thought the Doctor referencing Linx and The Time Warrior was a nice touch although surely with the story basically being extracted from the archives on Gallifrey that The Invasion of Time was the reference to make? I'm being picky there of course and I actually enjoy the quirkiness of the Fourth Doctor referring to a serial in which his previous incarnation featured. I liked the concept behind Ketsu as a vicious Sontaran and knowing what we do about their race that's an impressive feat! I like how Sontarans are bound by honour so for someone as revered as Ketsu to be disgraced in having a defeat was excellent, especially when nobody else was around to see it! As far as Ketsu was concerned, he hadn't been defeated and him deleting all evidence of the event was impressive. But knowing Sontarans like we do, that wasn't going to be enough and he would be out for revenge. He was on a quest to find the ultimate weapon to put right the wrong that plagued his dreams. Even seeing a Sontaran sleep felt different but I really liked how it was made clear he was doing so to preserve energy. A Sontaran doesn't simply rest! I liked how Ketsu felt like he was always one step ahead of the game and in arriving on Aleph-777 to finally find the weapon that will rid him of Levanaxus nightmares, he was eager to pursue. He was so intent on revenge and finding the weapon he so desired to rid himself of his defeat that he didn't realise he was clearly in a trap. He went off hunting straight to Omega-666 knowing that the locals couldn't get beyond the next star in their solar system and encountered an inhabitant who was goading the Sontaran. That was fun to see and I knew what was coming immediately but it was still a fine moment. The Omega Green Plague certainly looked deadly and the imagery and illustration of it consuming Ketsu as he was soon to die was quite spectacular even in black and white! Overall, a really strong use of the Sontarans and their desire to war and a brilliant example of how to tell a story with a limited page count. A great read! 

Rating: 8/10