Doctor Who review: The Ninth Doctor is caught between Time Lords and Vampires in Monstrous Beauty #2
By James Aggas
The second part of Doctor Who comic story Monstrous Beauty sees the Ninth Doctor caught between the armies of the Time Lords and the Vampires. But what’s happened to Rose?
After a lengthy start in the previous issue, the second part of Doctor Who comic story Monstrous Beauty kicks things off at a fast pace. Finding themselves in the middle of an ancient war between the Time Lords and the Vampires, the Ninth Doctor and Rose have been separated – each caught by one of the opposing armies. Can the Doctor find a way to rescue his companion?
Remaining entirely focused on the Ninth Doctor and his new friend Androkan, this part of the story – the second of only three, I should add – is very much an A to B part. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that, especially if you’re avoiding throwing too much into the story at once.
And Scott Gray does a pretty solid job of it. After years of writing for comics, he knows how to keep a story simple when it needs to be. Even while needing to tie Monstrous Beauty into Time Lord Victorious, Gray remains focused on telling a straightforward adventure story.
The Doctor finds himself caught between Time Lords and Vampires in the second part of Monstrous Beauty.
Courtesy BBC
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Blending sci-fi and horror
What really helps with keeping this part exciting is the artwork. While the war itself might not be too heavily explored in terms of writing, we get to see a lot of cool things thanks to John Ross’s artwork. In particular, we get further glimpses of the Vampires and their Coffin Ships – a strange mix of both stylized Gothic cathedrals and spaceships, something that feels strangely appropriate to a story like this. We also get to find out just a little more about the Vampires and their monstrous ways, too.
It all builds to quite an interesting cliffhanger. In some ways, it’s somewhat predictable, at least if you’ve seen a few good vampire movies. (Fright Night certainly leaps to mind.) But it’s still a satisfying pay-off, and I’m eager to see how this story concludes in this month’s latest issue.
Monstrous Beauty has been told in the pages of Doctor Who Magazine, specifically in issues 556, 557, and the latest issue 558. Expect us to review the third and final part of this exciting story soon.
Next. Who are Abby and Zara? – An introduction to Wicked Sisters. dark
Have you enjoyed Monstrous Beauty? Do you think it’s a good mix of both science-fiction and horror? Do you think the war between the Time Lords and Vampires should be explored further? Let us know in the comments below.