The Then and the Now

📝6/10

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

MY SCATTERED AND TOTALLY IRRELEVANT NOTES:

The second year of the Eleventh Doctor comics kicks off with a storyline tied to the Time War, offering an intriguing premise. It’s fascinating to see the Doctor confront an alien race he had previously doomed during his time as the War Doctor. While the first issue is heavy on setup, it introduces several notable elements: The Squire, a lively and Shakespearean companion from the Doctor's War days, and a brief scene confirming that the Curator is a future incarnation of the Doctor.

The reveal of Abslom Daak at the end of the first part is a fantastic nod to long-time fans, bringing back a deep-cut favourite from the Doctor Who Magazine comics. Meanwhile, Alice, the grounded and pragmatic companion, now finds herself caught between the Squire’s enthusiasm and the chaos of Daak, a chainsaw-wielding maniac on a revenge mission.

The Malignant, a brutal force supposedly created by the Doctor, adds a dark edge to the story. The Then and the Now, with its time-repelling nature, is an interesting concept. These two feel more like teaser villains since they vanish almost as soon as they’re introduced.

This story primarily serves as a setup for the larger arcs of the second year, which means it leans heavily on exposition and lacks significant action. However, it does succeed in establishing a colourful and dynamic cast of characters. That said, the art style is a bit of a struggle—it feels overly simplistic and unappealing, which detracts from the overall experience.

The Time War, The War Doctor, and Paradoxes, oh my.

There's a lot going on here, and all of it great (apart from maybe the art in a couple of places). First and formost, Abslom Daak is a great character to bring onto this TARDIS team, Eleven is already a bit of a more cerebral doctor, and Alice being a librarian also leans a bit more into the intelligent rather than the action heavy. Abslom isn't stupid, but he's definitely more of a brawn before brains kind of character and works brilliantly set across from the other two, plus bringing back an iconic Doctor Who comic character is always going to be fun.

What we get of the Time War is great, hearing about the ramifications of The Doctor's visit to the planet, seeing War for a few panels alongside an as-of-yet unnamed child is intriguing, and the fact that he's seemingly responding to the current events of the comic is even moreso. There's also the mystery of Squire, who is she, why does she remember War but Eleven doesn't remember her, why doesn't she remember her age and how is she 18 or 19??

And then the paradox creature as well is great, the idea that this is what you become if you go back in time and ruin all the fixed points in your life intentionally, the fact that someone did that to themself purely to take down The Doctor.

All in all, a really fun story