Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Volume 7 - War Of Gods

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Georgia Sposito
Publisher: Titan Comics
112pp
 On sale: December 12

There is no shortage of false gods in Doctor Who. Whether it’s the Osirans or Akhaten, cultures are often caught in the snare of an alien being powerful enough to manipulate them into believing in their divinity. Luckily one person is always there to break the spell, reveal the truth, and banish the alien overlords for all time. This person is centuries old and travels all of space and time with a myriad of friends picked up along the way. This person may be the ultimate false god of the entire Doctor Who canon.

    At first, it seems odd to epilogue a volume titled WAR OF GODS with a small story about The Doctor and Gabby getting stuck in London. They’ve just prevented the end of everything (again) by stepping in between a soon-to-be-resurrected Sutekh and Anubis. Why not end the collection there? Clearly, the war in question is between father and son - not to mention the splinter versions of Sutekh mucking up The Doctor’s plans at every turn. Once the war is over, wouldn’t it make sense to close out the collection with everything back to normal?

    Well, not really. Nothing in The Doctor’s life is normal. Not only due to his alien biology, time/space travel machine that’s bigger on the inside, and ability to rewrite every cell in a Time Lord’s body. All those elements factor into the lack of normality in The Doctor’s life, but what really complicates things is the fact that The Doctor is the smartest, quite often oldest, dangerous, and kind person in any given situation. Companions come and go, they help in a multitude of ways, but in the end, decisions have to be made and The Doctor is the only one capable of making those decisions.

    Usually, those decisions are correct and reality is saved. There is always a cost, however, and The Doctor’s long life requires the debt of endless decisions be paid with great pain over an exhaustive period of time. The Doctor may have saved countless lives, but the few lost in battle still walk with him across the centuries.

    A God could, perhaps, hold themselves above grief - see the bigger picture, comprehend that their course of action was the only worthy one worth taking and if the ends justify the means? Well…

    The Doctor, however, is not a God. One might think so at first glance. Look at all the incredible things The Doctor can do! Witness the bravery! Take in the wisdom! The Doctor is the smartest, most powerful person in the room, but The Doctor is just a person. People feel pain. People can’t take in the big picture. The only thing that matters to a person are the people they hold close. When the ones they love perish because of their own actions, it hurts, breaks the heart. The Doctor has two hearts, which means twice the capacity for love and agony.

    Nick Abadzis’ huge WAR OF GODS story opens with incredible art by artist Georgia Sposito, that transports the reader to impossible places. It is epic storytelling on the grandest of scales, leading to a bittersweet climax about self-sacrifice. The Doctor limps from this adventure physically intact and emotionally battered. It’s as if he’s wondering why does this always happen? Why can’t I do better? Why am I not perfect?

That is the true war being fought in this volume seven of Titan’s Tenth Doctor line. Sutekh and Anubis are not Gods. Their conflict is immensely spectacular, but it is hardly a war. Wars are never so neatly resolved. Wars have casualties. The Doctor’s struggle to keep moving in the face of all his personal tragedies, the companion casualties sacrificed by his heroism, rages constantly, and that is what this volume is really about.

Through that prism, it is easy to see why it is crucial that the final story, REVOLVING DOORS, is included here. By bringing him back to London, the Tardis has put him at ground zero, forcing him to face the loss of his friends in order to rise above the pain and do what only he can, save someone and keep moving forward.