Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #12 - A Preview/Review

Faking the death of his companion Tara Mishra and setting up Rose Tyler as an examiner from Earth, The Doctor framed himself for murder and arranged to be sent to The Hesguard Institute - an Arkham Asylum in space for the most wretched examples of humanity. Why? So they could all investigate the new "Bad Wolf" process that purges people of their negative emotions and projects those emotions into emotionally blank beings called Sin-Eaters.

Unfortunately, the process had unforeseen side-effects when applied to a Time Lord who has done a lot of things he regrets. And now The Doctor's dark side is rampaging around what remains of The Hesguard Institute...







This second half of Sin-Eaters may have the fastest downturn in quality I've ever seen in a two-part comic book series. The sloppy, unfinished artwork of Adriana Melo is a large part of the problem, with the horrifically rendered gestalt Doctor from the final page of the last issue now rendered as a simplified Space Hulk.

I can usually suffer Melo's art for a good Cavan Scott story, but Scott isn't at his best this time around. His characterization is shockingly off, with The Doctor disturbingly undisturbed at the prospect of destroying a space-station full of relative innocents and Rose Tyler - whose courage impressed even The Doctor - reduced to the role of a panicky bimbo who says they need to talk about "acceptable safety standards"!

Martha Jones lovers may be pleased by this story but the vast majority of Doctor Who fans won't be.

Final Analysis: 4 out of 10. It's a nice take on Jekyll and Hyde and the caricatures of Christopher Eccleston in close-up are spot on. But that's about the only good things I can say about this comic.



Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #12 releases on April 26, 2016.
Ask for it at your local comic shop or purchase it on Comixology.com.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #10 - A Preview/Review

The Ninth Doctor, Rose, Jack and Tara head to Brazil on the next stop of their trans-temporal mystery tour. The Iara have long been thought a Brazilian myth but when these unearthly merfolk prove to be aquatic aliens making an unscheduled stop on planet Earth, the TARDIS team must establish their intentions and broker peace across the water barrier!




The second and final chapter of Slaver's Song proves a satisfying conclusion to one of the most interesting Doctor Who stories in recent memory. The setting of 17th century Brazil is novelty enough to set this apart from the countless stories set in modern-day London but Cavan Scott's script (based on a story by Scott and artist Adriana Melo) features a fair amount of dramatic irony as conquistador slavers suddenly find themselves fighting aliens of a similar mindset to their own.

Adriana Melo's artwork is somewhat erratic in this outing, with some panels where the inks seem too heavily applied and a few odd facial expressions. Still, the action is well choreographed and Marco Lesko's colors suitably eye-catching throughout.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #10 releases on March 1, 2016. 
Ask for it at your local comic shop or purchase it on Comixology.com.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #9 - A Preview/Review

The Doctor has little love for slavers. Yet as the saying says, "misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows." There is misery aplenty in 17th century Brazil when The Doctor and his companions stumble across a conquistador camp besieged by monsters.

As The Doctor and Tara - a UNIT medic who stowed-away on the TARDIS after their last adventure - look into the monsters, Captain Jack Harkness and Rose Tyler go off investigating a link to Jack's forgotten past. A past that apparently involved his posing as a Jesuit priest on behalf of The Time Agents!






Even in the comics it is a rare thing to see Doctor Who tackle historical stories outside of a European setting. For that reason alone is this first chapter of Slaver's Song notable. Brazilian artist Adriana Melo teamed with writer Cavan Scott on plotting the story for this issue, presumably suggesting a story based on the rich and troubled history of her own nation.

Ignoring the novelty, this is a damn fine comic. Scott remains one of the strongest writers to tackle The Doctor and his friends since Titan Comics took over the license. Melo's artwork - while losing some detail in the far distance shots - remains largely excellent. And my only complaint about colorist Marco Lesko is that the shade of brown-gold he uses for Rose's eyes leaves her looking like a Cheetah Person from Survival.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #9 releases on Janyary 18th, 2017. 

Ask for it at your local comic shop or purchase it on Comixology.com.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #8 - An Advanced Review/Preview

Things have grown even more dire for The Doctor's friends back in the 1970s. (Or was it the 1980s?) A plague of giant monsters have England under siege but The Brigadier is nearly powerless to act thanks to the political interference of an insufferable nobleman. Worse yet, UNIT is on the brink of being taken-over by the for-profit mercenary group Albion and being exposed to the world by a quisling UNIT officer!




The writing continues to be the strongest aspect of Titan Comics' Ninth Doctor series. Cavan Scott perfectly captures the spirit of the Ninth Doctor era and blends it perfectly with the aesthetic of the Third Doctor UNIT days, crafting one heck of a ripping yarn! As a Doctor Who fan who counts the Christopher Eccleston and Jon Pertwee incarnations among my top five favorite Doctors (don't ask me to decide where to count them, though!), I loved seeing the classic UNIT team in action alongside Scott's original characters Sgt. Osgood and Lt. Mishra, who are as rich and well-developed as Harry "The Imbecile" Sullivan and Sgt. Benton. And there's something magical about how The Brigadier quietly notes the change in his old friend and how he acts like an officer rather than a scientist now.

Unfortunately, artist Adriana Melo returned this month, delivering her worst outing yet. Previously, Melo's work on this title has been over-inked, sloppy and rushed. Her work for this issue goes beyond that, producing panels which look as if a layer of ink was hurriedly applied to a rough pencil sketch. I know Melo is capable of producing quality work (you can see quite a lot of it on her website) but it seems the rigors of a monthly comic may be beyond her talents.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #8 releases on December 21st, 2016.
Ask for it at your local comic shop or purchase it on Comixology.com.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #6 - An Advanced Review/Preview

Having just saved 2016 San Francisco from an anomaly that was transforming people into gargoyles, The Doctor, Rose Tyler and Captain Jack Harkness are now hot on the trail of the cause. The path leads them - and one of the unfortunate victims - to England in the 1970s... or is it the 80s? In any event, some of The Doctor's old friends from UNIT are already on the case but will they be able to cope with yet another incarnation of The Doctor showing up to interfere in their work?




Cavan Scott's script for this issue will prove a real treat for fans of the Third and Fourth Doctor eras. It's great fun to see The Ninth Doctor butting heads with Harry Sullivan. And the mystery behind the gargoyles is a gripping one.

Unfortunately, Adriana Melo's art continues to be problematic. While she does quite well in depicting the characters in close-up, her work is erratically inked. Soft lines are left on The Doctor's face whilst every bit of Rose Tyler's face is horrifically outlined, creating a character that looks less like Billie Piper and more like someone wearing a mask from The Purge. And some of the distance shots are little better than first draft sketches in terms of detailing. Still, the color art by Marck Lesko is top-notch but this is definitely a book you'll buy for the story rather than the art.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #6 releases on September 5th, 2016.
Ask for it at your local comic shop or purchase it on Comixology.com.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #5 - A Review

Once upon a time, Mickey Smith was an idiot. Time and travels with The Doctor changed that. Ten years later, "Mickey The Idiot" has a wife (another former companion of The Doctor) and together they are two of the few people on Earth capable of dealing with alien menaces independent of UNIT and Torchwood.

When strange energy emissions in San Francisco transform several people - including his wife - into gargoyles after briefly giving them super-powers, Mickey knows he needs to call The Doctor for help. There's just one problem - The Doctor who answers the call is the one from 10 years in his past, who still only knows him as Mickey The Idiot! So now Mickey has to help The Doctor save the day while keeping The Doctor ignorant of his wife's identity and staying out of the sight of The Doctor's companions. No pressure.


Unfortunately, this second half of The Transformed doesn't live up to the concept presented in Part One. Cavan Scott abandons the farcical humor of bouncing the 2016 Mickey Smith off The Ninth Doctor in favor of straight up action. This might work if the plot didn't require Rose and Jack to act uncharacteristically stupid, beyond the point of mere recklessness.

A large problem is the artwork, which seems uncharacteristically rushed.  While Adriana Melo's close-ups look fair enough, most of the action sequences are little more than sketches. Indeed, were it not for the color art of Matheus Lopes, I'd think I was looking at the rough sketches made before the final artwork!

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #3 - Advance Review

The good news is that an attempt by The Slitheen to disrupt a peace conference on the planet Clix has failed. The bad news is that - in an attempt to strengthen the bond between the worlds involved - the Slitheen agent involved has been sentenced to death by hunting... along with their hostage Rose Tyler, who was wrongly identified as an accomplice!

Naturally, The Doctor is ready to move the stars themselves to save his companion. But a bigger problem awaits him, as someone besides The Slitheen is also out to ruin the conference in a most fatal way! An unthinkable alliance may be the only thing that can save everyone...

Everything about the Ninth Doctor series astounds me. Cavan Scott has perfectly captured the voices of each of the individual characters from the series. And the artwork by Adriana Melo and Matheus Lopes looks amazing!

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #3 arrives in stores on June 29, 2016.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #2 - Advance Review

Receiving mysterious messages from yourself is hardly the most unusual thing to happen on The TARDIS, but it does prompt The Doctor, Rose Tyler and the amnesiac Captain Jack Harkness to follow a strange signal seemingly sent by Captain Jack himself. The trail leads to a world where The Doctor - or someone very much like him - is a reality TV sensation. Now, as Jack and The Doctor are arrested for causing a public nuisance, Rose has tracked down the fake Doctor and discovered that he's one of their old enemies, The Slitheen, in disguise...



The Ninth Doctor is one of my favorite incarnations of The Doctor, so I was quite pleased when this monthly series was announced following last year's Ninth Doctor mini-series. I was doubly pleased when it was announced that Cavan Scott, who penned said mini-series, would be staying on as the writer for the monthly book. Scott's script feels just like a lost Series One episode. The artwork by Adriana Melo - while a little over-inked at some points - proves largely enjoyable and presents the action of the story well. And the colors by Matheus Lopes are well-chosen throughout.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor #2 is due out May 25th, 2016.