REVIEW: Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #1 (Comic Book)

In honor of the tenth anniversary of new Doctor Who, Titan Comics are releasing a five-part mini-series starring the Ninth Doctor. It had been awhile since I’d read a Doctor Who comic, so I thought this would be a good starting point for me. Due to Christopher Eccleston’s brief tenure on the show, there is not a lot of tie-in media with his Doctor. After going to five stores (I am quite persistent), I was finally able to secure a copy of the first issue. That night I tore into it like the excited fan boy that I am. I love comics because they can give us stories that would be well beyond the restraints of a television budget. Would this first issue deliver fantastic artwork and crackling dialogue?

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“Weapons of Past Destruction” is written by Cavan Scott, who has a strong reputation having written for Big Finish and other tie-in media for the past several years. This story takes place shortly after ‘The Doctor Dances‘ and features the Doctor, Rose, and Captain Jack. I was very excited to have a new adventure with this particular TARDIS team as they only had three adventures together on television. In ‘Boom Town,’this crew had already formed strong bonds, so it was nice to see them in the early stages of working together.

The Doctor takes Rose and the Captain to Excroth, a planet whose people are masters of science and art. Upon arriving, they discover that the planet is wiped out and are pulled into a giant spacecraft. Immediately, we are thrust into the action for the remainder of the comic as the TARDIS team is caught in between two warring races. We don’t learn anything at all about what is happening yet regarding their robotic captors or the beings attacking the ship.

My strongest compliment is how well writer Cavan Scott captured the three main characters. I thought he did an exceptional job of getting the Ninth Doctor right. The dialogue between the Doctor and Captain Jack was humorous while still having an air of tension about it. This definitely felt like two people who were still coming to terms with each other. It was definitely refreshing to see a pre-Torchwood version of the good Captain who is clearly just having fun with all of it. Rose wasn’t captured quite as well, but I chalk that up to her character not having a lot to do in this issue.

The one area that is a slight letdown is the artwork. There were panels that captured the main cast beautifully while others not so much. There were also a couple of important scenes where I was lost for a moment on what was happening. I think these points could have been made a bit clearer. These issues aside, I thought it was a good read and a nice flashback to the first series. My curiosity will definitely lead me to pick up the second issue later this week.

Next: Everything You Need for Tea Time with the Doctor!

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