Check out our reviews of the new Titan Comics Doctor Who adventures with the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors!
Doctor Who‘s eighth series is still a month away, but as the premiere looms nearer, Whovians are clamoring for new Time Lord material. Thankfully, Titan Comics is here to give us the Doctor Who dose we need – with not just one, but two new comic series! Featuring the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors respectively, the latest entries in their New Adventures series are released tomorrow (July 23), but Hypable has been able to read the first issue of each series early, so you can check out our reviews below!
‘Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor’ #1
Featuring bright and brilliant art by Elena Casagrande (and a beautiful cover by popular fan-artist Alice X Zhang), the first issue of the series is written with aplomb by Nick Abadzis with all of the familiar hallmarks of a Tenth Doctor adventure: comedy, danger, and characters we care about. Gabby is a convincing and instantly likable protagonist who makes a worthy addition to the list of the Tenth Doctor’s companions. Her friends and family also make for great supporting characters, which works out well as we spend more of the first issue with Gabby and co. than we do the Doctor.
The psychic demon-like aliens who infest the streets, shops, and stations of New York are an intriguing and unique new threat for the Doctor – but if there’s any criticism to be had it’s that we don’t learn enough about them to truly understand their danger. Still, this is the first of a five part series, and we are given just enough to whet our appetites and keep us coming back for more. By the time The Doctor and Gabriella are finally brought together, we are truly swept up in the adventure of it all and can’t wait for the next issue. Allons-y!
Grade: B+
‘Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor’ #1
As with the Tenth Doctor’s first issue, the cover art is once again beautifully realized by the talented Alice X Zhang, but this time it’s the art and colors of Simon Fraser and Gary Caldwell inside the pages that really shine. The gorgeous artwork is used to tell the story and portray character in ingenious and touching ways, bringing Al Ewing and Rob Williams’s heart-warming story to life in great detail. New companion Alice isn’t just a great character for the comics, but feels like a missed opportunity for the television series. Her saddening back story and initial misery makes for a riveting counterpart to the Eleventh Doctor’s boundless joy and quirkiness, bringing out the sensitive and wise side of the incarnation we all love.
There aren’t much in the way of supporting characters in the first issue, but there is plenty of political satire and commentary. While unexpected, these themes are subtle enough to not feel intrusive and help contribute to the tragedy of Alice’s situation. The first issue isn’t without its’ flaws (the stereotypical cockney-coppers feel a little ham-fisted and out of place for a story penned by British writers), but they are few and far between, and easily outweighed by the beautiful tale which is so expertly woven throughout the issue. In the place of a real sinister threat, we get a self-contained adventure which works every bit as well as many television season openers in spring-boarding a new companion into our hearts and giving us the taste of adventure to come. Here’s hoping the rest of this series is as brilliant as the first issue, as the touching character drama makes this a story that can’t be missed by any true Doctor Who fan.
Grade: A
“Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #1,” and “Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor #1” hit all good comic-book stores July 23, and can also be purchased via the Titan Comics website. A new series starring the Twelfth Doctor follows on Oct. 1.