Devil of the Deep

"All legends have their basis in fact."

Writer: John Peel

Format: Comic Strip

Released: January 1982

Printed in: DWM 61

Featuring: Sea Devil

Synopsis

A legend of the Sea Devils is told by one who experienced it up close and personal. 

Verdict

Devil of the Deep was a great little comic strip adventure to continue my way through the Black Sun Rising collection of backup tales from the pages of Doctor Who Magazine! This collection really does seem to have covered all bases when it comes to the infamous foes in the Whoniverse and the Sea Devils are certainly another race that fit that category. I think it's most intriguing that this comic tale actually pre-dates the broadcast of Warriors of the Deep so it really does show what kind of an impact The Sea Devils had as a serial. That cliffhanger of them rising from the sea is mentioned by so many older fans as one that stuck with them from their childhood so it's no surprise that they were picked as the next returning monster for these backup tales. The story was a simple one and at four pages it really doesn't need to try and be any kind of complex adventure. There's little room to play with but this one managed to do quite a lot in my opinion! I thought it actually shared similarities with Legend of the Sea Devils which is fascinating with the pirates at play and the historic setting! Given this came forty years prior to that Thirteenth Doctor special being broadcast, I wonder if this served as any kind of subtle inspiration for Chris Chibnall when it came to writing it? Knowing the kind of boyhood fan he is I would expect him to have read this comic strip at the time of release so you never know! I thought the pirate tale was fantastic and just incorporating the Sea Devils into legend was terrific. I thought the artwork was really impressive in capturing their likeness and it worked really well well for the Sea Devil present here to be the good guy. It was the pirates who would fill the role of enemy and that actually became a little uncomfortable when they captured the Sea Devil and started probing it and basically attacking it. It couldn't understand why it was being treated as such and that was quite saddening as a reminder of the human race. Deigo de Columba of Cordoba was a good character and it was interesting that the captain recognised the surname right away. He was shipwrecked and stuck on an island for years and years and the captain had sailed with his uncle. That sparked a really good flashback to the Sea Devils and how being thrown overboard didn't mean the end when a Sea Devil could rescue you! That was fascinating and just seeing the artwork for the hands an legs being bound was disturbing as I've always had a huge fear of drowning as being the worst way to die. The struggle and realisation must be horrific. I can't imagine what that's like! I thought the Sea Devil studying the differences on the planet from its own time was really good and I liked how he was just genuinely fascinated by the change of environment and the natural evolution, even if the turtles had stayed exactly the same! The use of the tracker was good as that was going to bring forth a different kind of devil from the sea for Velasque and that saw the end of the ship in devastating fashion. Would it really have taken the Sea Devil with it though if it was just back in its natural habitat? I'm going to lean towards that not being the case. Overall though, a great little comic strip adventure! More of John Peel in this regard please. 

Rating: 8/10