Midnight Feast

"That's the smell of success."

Writer: George Mann

Format: Comic Strip

Released: May 2018

Printed in: Free Comic Book Day 2018

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Alice

Synopsis

Alice is less than impressed by the Doctor's racket making a midnight feast. Whilst she sleeps, he ventures for the perfect meal.

Verdict

Midnight Feast was a pretty average little comic strip story to conclude my reading of the 2018 Free Comic Book Day bonus print! I blogged the beautiful Catch a Falling Star yesterday but thankfully I have already read The Armageddon Gambit back in 2018 as part of the Seventh Doctor graphic novel from Titan Comics that collected their stories for that incarnation. So just like that this issue is complete! It's been a delight to read this as an eBook from BorrowBox and the resources of libraries continue to just be magnificent. I'm so grateful and forever indebted to them for everything I have been able to blog free of charge. Hopefully it never ends! Whilst my love of Gabby as the Tenth Doctor's companion made that run of Titan Comics very special to me, I was less enthusiastic about Alice in the same role for the Eleventh Doctor. She never felt like she fitted in with this incarnation to me so this was less of a fun return to a series I haven't dipped into for a very long time now. I thought the characterisation of the Eleventh Doctor here was really strong as he was a little over then top and enthusiastic about making a midnight feast. I just find Alice a little boring I think which doesn't suit this Doctor at all! Instead of joining in with the excitement or going off to join him on his food travels, she just goes back to bed? That's hardly great companion material is it? They're not wanting to go off exploring which I just find a little annoying. Travel! See things! I might just a andwich! That might just be the thing I despise the most. My girlfriend is a huge fan of it but I call it cat food. It's horrible stuff and I don't think I could physically put it in my mouth. The smell is more than enough to make me gag and when I make it for my partner on pasta, the moment any juices get on my hands I feel absolutely grotesque. I can't stand the stuff! The smell on my fingers, everything. It's just truly awful stuff. So I think the fact that she then entices the Doctor into having a tuna sandwich makes me dislike Alice even more as a companion now! The story itself wasn't anything special but I mean there really is only so much that can be done with five pages. I must admit that a story centred on food would not be what I expected from a George Mann authored adventure, so that was certainly unique! I would say though that it was definitely in character for the Eleventh Doctor to be chasing food. I was surprised though that he didn't get on well with the serving of fish fingers and custard! Seeing a Zygon suited up in their best Victorian garb at the diner was great but I do think there was a bit of a missed opportunity here to showcase other aliens and monsters. Why toy with just one familiar monster and feature unheard of ones like the Hoomis and the Vake. Why not the Sontarans and Rutan Host? I felt that would be a much better fit and could have injected some strong humour. Nevertheless, the Doctor returns to his TARDIS for the smell of a tuna sandwich and somehow it's appealing. Horrific. Still, a decent bonus and all the more for free. 

Rating: 6/10