Written by Steven Moffat, Directed by Hettie MacDonald
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Michelle Gomez,
Julian Bleach, Jemma Redgrave, Clare Higgins
Transmitted BBC One 27th September 2015

A very enjoyable and assured beginning to the 2015 Doctor Who run hit UK screens in two extra-length instalments earlier this month, but most notably we had a special feature length 'omnibus', which is a rarity for this show on the BBC. Some significant stories of the past have had their edited outings, be they involving Sea Devils, Metabelis Spiders, or Kaleds, Thals and Mutos. 

If you are wondering how different this plays out as an omnibus, the answer is 'not all that much'. The story is strong enough to hold the attention in one sitting, and there is no real need to edit scenes around. Hence we get The Magician's Nephew in the opening credits, and later a caption saying Part 2 - The Witch's Familiar before the next sections play out.

As pointed out by my colleague, this new story works a treat as a sequel to the wonderfully composed introduction to Davros (then played by the late Michael Wisher) and his battle of wits with the Fourth Doctor, i.e. Genesis of the Daleks.

As a follow-up, much inspiration is found in the original and compounded. Macabre Imagery and unsettling themes permeate the onscreen-narrative. Once again Steven Moffat comes up with a wonderfully gruesome idea via the hand mines (a literal device that destroys all humanoid life). But the most disturbing image is the idea of the Doctor being visibly ashamed of his decision to abandon an innocent child, because he knows far too much as an unlimited Time traveller.

The Doctor is given a lot of good line - few better than his rousing recommendation to overcome the 1 in 1000 odds by focusing on the 'one'. Yet Missy is still stealing scenes left and right, sometimes with the help of witty lines but not necessarily always - and played just the right side of stagey - by the very assured Michelle Gomez. And surely it would be more fun to have a Time Lady around anyway? I will unequivocally now declare her as the best Master of the last 35 years. It is also pleasing to have an explanation for her survival from last year's finale, even if that undermines the poignancy of a changed Brigadier saving the Doctor from killing his long-lost friend/worst enemy. 

I admire the episodes' intent to give us three key villains/monsters, if perhaps not the most epic or cosmos threatening main story. Of course some upgraded Daleks are no good, but maybe there is a force other than the Time Lords that may arise to oppose Daleks. If we don't see them torture and kill innocents, it becomes somewhat an abstract concept. Yet this two-parter's ability to bring proper exploration of the Doctor/Davros relationship is very good and acted by a par of expert hands to the best of their ability.

            The whole mystery/mystique over what and who made Davros the normal boy into a genocidal maniac is at the heart of this story, inasmuch as the Doctor wonders just what that period was like so as to made a huge change to one individual. Some of us know of the I Davros audio series and I wonder if showrunner Moffat is letting it link in or not, but perhaps that should not be a big issue when we have a Time War and various timelines left, right and centre these days.

There is some irony though with Davros surviving time and again when a sworn enemy of the Doctor, but only now is that precedent set; the eventual rescue of the boy in order to ensure that mercy is indeed part of the Dalek make-up, no matter how deeply hidden in practice.

As to how well he stands up with having the same actor from 7 years ago. I can firmly say that Julian Bleach is even better this time round with a more thoughtful script for him. He could rant jarringly every other screen moment he had in Journey's End. It may also help he has such a chilling henchman in Colony Sarff to do his bidding, and so he feels he has many cards to play apart from his own Dalek creation.

We do have a lot of location hopping, but it's really the combination of two renegade Time Lords and one amoral genius from a brutally war-torn world that really makes this feel justified as an extended pair of episodes. I also think as an adult fan it is a good thing to make children audience  think of character and themes as much as whacky ideas and flashy spectacle.

Sound and repeated words help generate some real atmosphere in this story: the repeated cries of 'Help Me' to a mentally paralysed Doctor, both back then in early Skaro history, and now in the present narrative, and also 'Davros knows, Davros remember'.  Those catchphrases not only resonated with a Doctor who deep down cares despite a brusque exterior, but surely also many sympathetic viewers. The re-use of classic Dalek sound effects is also never a tired thing, as they evoke all sorts of feelings of foreboding and trouble.

There is plenty of continuity with classic and modern Doctor Who, and it is mostly done in an elegant and non-indulgent manner. It is a nice surprise to have the Shadow Proclamation back after so long (if very briefly once more). Elsewhere we see Karn once again and how it is now revisited in a transmitted main channel episode (The Night of the Doctor was a brief return for Paul McGann's incarnation as he regenerated with help from the Sisterhood).

But this paying homage to the past would not count for much if we did not have a reliable strong storytelling process which yields an engaging narrative. There is some clever suspense over how the Tardis has become hidden in both parts of this feature. We worry but know essentially that the Doctor always would know his ship and how to call on it when needing it most. Rather more unexpectedly for our grey-haired hero, the reveal of where exactly he has agreed to meet Davros is done beautifully, with Murray Gold's music really selling the shock for the Doctor.

Using Skaro in both past and present is the main anchor for the very busy first part. Of course lots of galaxy-trotting is nothing new in this era but can still be a jolt, and even more so when including the material of the online prequels. The re-use of old style Dalek arches is such a great idea, and I would think any black and white Dr Who followers - who recall the eerie menace of the original Daleks - will be happy. Less impressive to my mind is the re-occurrence of having seemingly all the Dalek versions without any sense of hierachy and so adds little to that conceit brought in from 'Asylum Of The Daleks'.

Cheeky humour is never far away despite overall dark core to this story. Peter Capaldi on guitar is a wonderful moment, and a nice way for the real-life actor to stamp a bit more of himself on this constantly evolving Doctor. Few past regenerations have been very musical, but the Second Doctor was one type to  play more than a few notes on his recorder.

Also funny and avoiding tastelesness is a brief joke over 'did Clara kiss Jane Austen'. It works as a nicely ambiguous character detail as she has not found another boyfriend, and may still be grieving Danny.  And there is a clever  gimmick with planes stopping and being potential bombs. Rather than played for high stakes, it comes off as amusing and typical of the show's frequent irreverance. It is a neat link into  Missy confirming her return in a laidback and fearless way; much like when she first burst onto screen in early episodes of Series 8.

Some elements of the feature are perhaps more vital than others. I liked having Kate Stewart back on-screen (however minus the presence of the real Osgood, who remains officially dead as of now). But really there  is not much for UNIT to do other than have agents killed off by Missy. Also the limited time means little opportunity for character development for Kate. The upcoming story with the Zygons will be a much better sign of where the show wll take this long-established component of the Doctor Who mythos. 

A few other nitpicks must be admitted before I round off. Early on we have the young Davros with no idea as to what his planet called. Maybe he is just too young, or schools are non-existent in this world. But still one would have thought astronomy would exist to a degree given all that we are told in Genesis? Regardless, if Davros had early aspirations to being a great scientist, it certainly didn't happen before he first met the Doctor in his long life.  

As for the withered version of the Dalek creator that we all know (and love to hate), I did not really care much for the way he opens his eyes. For me it seemed a bit of a cheat. It may have been a bold idea on paper, but seems to defy the very clear precedent that he long ago lost his normal vision and so needed an artificial eye-piece. Thus he created the Daleks to have one themselves. Maybe they are fake eyes, as he tampers with himself genetically once again (c.f.The Stolen Earth's display of his body). I just feel, unlike the prolonged laugh with the Doctor, that it was a slightly mistaken breaking of ground.

But overall this is a very strong edition of brand New Who, and a marked improvement both on Series 8's opener. and on its singular story to feature the Daleks. With more multi-parters to come immediately, this could end up being a very different series, but one that consolidates last year's solid return to form for Steven Moffat and all his diligent cast and crew.

WRITER - PAUL CORNELL
ARTIST - NEIL EDWARDS
COLORIST - IVAN NUNES
LETTERER - RICHARD STARKINGS AND JIMMY BETANCOURT
DESIGNER - ROB FARMER
EDITOR - ANDREW JAMES
ASSISTANT EDITOR - KIRSTEN MURRAY
RELEASED SEPTEMBER 23RD 2015, TITAN COMICS

“In a way, this was why I gave her to you in the first place, to make you see – the friend inside the enemy, the enemy inside the friend. Everyone’s a bit of both. Everyone’s a hybrid.”

Although he couldn’t have known this at the time of writing, in having Missy utter these pivotal words towards the climax of “The Witch’s Familiar” last Saturday, Doctor Who’s resident commander-in-chief Steven Moffat almost directly alluded to the discussion point which has arguably been at the heart of Paul Cornell’s grand Four Doctors crossover event: precisely what role do the travelling companions who join the TARDIS crew play in Theta Sigma(s)’ lives, and must we always assume that their impact upon the aforementioned mad man in a box is wholly beneficial? Certainly, there’ve been examples in the past of the Doctors’ allies failing to live up to his occasionally lofty expectations – few would likely contest the hypothesis that Adam Mitchell didn’t do himself any favours in 2005’s “The Long Game”, for instance – and one has to wonder, based on the events of 2009’s “The Waters of Mars” amongst other companionless tales, whether the increasingly fleeting nature of each assistant’s tenure takes its toll upon the series’ one constant protagonist from time to time, but not until now has this intellectually stimulating subject matter been considered any great detail, hence why – in spite of its various shortcomings, déjà vu-ridden sequences perhaps the most prominent bugbear – Titan Comics’ first Who-centric Summer event has made for such delightfully entertaining reading to date.

For those who’ve been struggling to stay abreast of what’s undoubtedly been one of the more convoluted entries in the Whoniverse’s ever-expanding array of time-bending yarns, at the heart of Cornell’s contemplation upon the relationship between the Doctor and his accomplices – better known as the character dynamic which continues to power the programme and its various spin-offs fifty-two years after the former’s inception – lies an alternate version of Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor whose (admittedly already flimsy) moral compass had the misfortune of becoming completely warped at the moment that his Impossible Girl elected to betray him in Season Eight’s much-loved “Dark Water”. Not only that, but rather than live out his days as his previous selves did, namely by searching the universe in search of new recruits, this Valeyard-esque parallel echo opted to voyage across dimensions so as to join forces with the Time War-afflicted Voord and spread an indoctrinatory message of peace across the cosmos.

Keeping up? If not, then fret not, since rather than continually prioritising his narrative’s dense techno-jargon and complex mythology as was the case on occasion in previous issues, Cornell instead takes the approach which worked wonders for him in 2007 with “Human Nature / The Family of Blood”, bringing the relationship at the tale’s heart (in the aforementioned televised serial’s case John Smith and Joan Redfern, though here it’s undeniably the Doctor and Clara) back to the forefront just in time to allow for a real humdinger of an emotional denouement. Precisely how Four Doctors concludes we shan’t of course spoil here for fear of robbing anyone of the satisfaction of experiencing Issue 5 devoid of any foreknowledge, yet suffice to say that the manner in which the piece’s psychologically unhinged ‘villain’ rounds off his dialogue with Coal Hill School’s least reliable teacher since the 1960s will surely bring a tear to both eyes, especially given how neatly the moment complements the true Twelfth’s televised reaction to his friend’s ultimately insignificant backstabbing in the process.

Jenna Coleman’s soon-to-be deceased (unless she overcomes her addiction to adventuring, of course) construct isn’t the only companion involved in drawing Cornell’s meticulously plotted five-part saga to a close, however – Gabby Gonzalez and Alice Obiefune both factor into its resolution just as heavily as Clara and Missy did into “The Witch’s Familiar”, despite all four characters seemingly having met their demises in their respective tales’ previous instalments. Indeed, this reviewer couldn’t be more relieved to confirm that whereas Four Doctors’ penultimate chapter cruelly mishandled the former pair by only having them fulfil a somewhat meaningful role at the very last moment, Issue 5 in contrast affords both of them pivotal roles, with Gabby in particular heading on a trajectory which couldn’t be more vital in terms of how proceedings wrap up. Perhaps another entry in Gabby’s frequently marvellous series of diary writings would have sweetened the deal even further so far as boosting her and Alice’s enhanced contributions, but even so, it’s nothing short of fantastic to see the scribe take heed – at precisely the right moment, too – of the fact that successful Who serials pay just as much attention to the exploits of the Time Lord’s invaluable assistants as to the show’s namesake.

Speaking of the word “fantastic”, it’s high time that we addressed the singular, big-eared elephant still residing in the room a month on from this otherwise blemish-free (well, thereabouts) storyline – the absence of Chris Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor. Rest assured that whilst Cornell doesn’t suddenly shoehorn in the first of the character’s post-20th Century incarnations in a desperate effort to rival the five or so issues which Titan have already dedicated to him this year, by no means does he outright ignore the huge extent to which the Oncoming Storm and Rose Tyler developed upon the interactions between past Doctors and companions; quite to the contrary, he uses the fact that Eccleston’s war veteran seemingly spent virtually all of his life in Rose’s company to both justify their joint disappearance (of sorts) and progress the finale’s above-mentioned contemplation of the supplemental and detrimental ramifications (particularly the latter) alike of its central players’ dependence upon one another.

In just about any other isolated Who comic-book arc, such a fleeting sequence as that which we’ve vaguely (albeit with good reason) commented on here would doubtless come off as an indulgent digression intended to evoke little more than a sense of nostalgia in the mind of the hard-core Whovian reader, so it’s incredibly telling of Cornell’s near-unparalleled finesse as a spinner of yarns that he takes the moment in question and utilises it not only as a means by which to celebrate the highlights of Doctor Who’s modern revival ten years on from its debut, but moreover to immensely deepen our understanding of how the Doctor’s companions continue to keep his darker moral facets at bay. Matt Smith’s incarnation once speculated in the presence of Sarah-Jane and Jo that the universe might just shiver in the event of his demise, yet on the basis of Four Doctors’ captivating fifth part, it seems safer still to say that if the 2000-year-old Time Lord ever took permanent leave of his travelling assistants, the universe – not to mention the audience – would surely require therapy as a result.

Written by Steven Moffat
Directed by Hettie MacDonald
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Michelle Gomez, and Julian Bleach
Transmitted BBC One 26th September 2015

Rule One: The Doctor Lies.

Previously on Doctor Who…..

Having met a child Davros on an ancient battlefield, the Doctor is running. His last confession is in the hands of Missy (Not Dead, Big Surprise). His confession may or may not be to do with Davros, he’s not letting on why, but he’s pretty sure he’s going to die. Clara and Missy come looking for him. A Snake Man made of Snakes kidnaps all of them and takes them to see the dying Davros, who wants a word. On Skaro. Cue Dalek Guns and dead friends. Doctor beside himself. Flashback/flashforward, the Doctor aiming a Dalek gun at young Davros. *Cliffhanger Sting*.

Rule Two: Steven Moffat loves a wind-up:

Ok, so there was no way that Clara, Missy, and the TARDIS were really toast, was there? Would have made for a very short series, wouldn’t it? Steven Moffat knows this, and really, so do we. We’ve seen the trailer. He also knows that we know. Thus, The Witch’s Familiar opens with a wry reference to those ‘How we did it’ montage scenes from Sherlock, as Missy offers a cheeky explanation of how they survived via a flashback of the Doctor (one of them, anyway) getting out of the same sort of jam. Consequently, Missy and Clara have escaped and are now outside the Dalek City, in Clara’s case - tied up and upside down while Missy contemplates lunch.

Meanwhile, the Doctor is still in the Dalek City, unwillingly continuing his fireside chat with Davros. This is broken up by a brief escape where the absolutely livid Twelfth Doctor manages what none of his predecessors did. He not only gets Davros out of his chair, but he does a bit of cosplay, and takes the Mark 1 Travel Machine for a spin. It’s a fun moment, but doesn’t last. The Daleks mobilise, in a cool moment they pass through their arches en masse like it’s 1966 - and the Special Weapons Dalek TALKS. 

This diversion over, interrupted by Colony Sarff, he’s soon back with Davros (in the only other chair on Skaro), and Davros resumes his spiel. Their conversations in The Magician’s Apprentice were highly reminiscent of their first meeting in Genesis of the Daleks. That story is echoed even more here, Moffat paraphrases Terry Nation, and cleverly turns famous lines on their head, as the Doctor, shamed by his role in the making of his arch-enemy, is on the back foot for a change. Davros plays the Doctor like a stradivarius here, the wily old goat. Yes, he is dying. We learn that his biological link to the Daleks is the reason he can’t die. He lays it on thick, and the Doctor obliges him. 

Capaldi continues to be a revelation. He rages and swaggers, yet shows sympathy for his ailing foe, trying to help him in his dying hours, even as confusion and disbelief loop around those eyebrows. Julian Bleach almost has us feeling sorry for Davros, turning Season Eight’s “Am I a good man?” question around on him. We even see his eyes, which we always assumed he didn’t have. They share a laugh together. But, even in an episode of Doctor Who that dares to show us Davros’s eyes, that reinvents the Daleks biology, that casually throws in a reference to a relative we never dreamed of - Moffat doesn’t go that far. Davros is still thoroughly rotten to the core and has been playing him. It’s a trap, Davros never intended to die, and the Doctor ends up giving away regeneration energy to him and his creations.

Rule Three: Missy is a compulsive liar.

Meanwhile, outside the walls, the two-hander going on between Clara and Missy is just as central as the one between the Doctor and Davros. The odd couple make their way to the Dalek City through the sewers, where we learn the icky truth of Dalek drainage, which will eventually prove the undoing of the Daleks on the surface. Their exchanges are electric, Clara is smart, but ever so straight-laced, while Missy is freewheeling and more dangerous than ever, as Michelle Gomez, preamble over, really gets going. She can’t be trusted in any way, shape, or form. One of the traits that Moffat has introduced is a tendency, like Heath Ledger’s Joker in The Dark Knight to casually reel off multiple explanations passed off as truth. She tries to kill Clara more than once, then, in an echo of Oswin’s fate in Asylum of the Daleks, locks her inside the casing of one. Here we learn more about what it’s like to be inside one, and this is no Ian Chesterton-hiding-inside-a casing deal. Missy puts her through her paces in the same way Davros puts his prototype through the motions in Genesis. The language of a Dalek is different to ours, it doesn’t translate, certain words will only come out as Exterminate. When Dalek-Clara finally comes face to eye-stalk with the Doctor, she can only, desperately try to say her name - which comes out as “I am a Dalek”. Missy tries to persuade the Doctor to kill her, in-between attempts at cosying up to the Daleks (“The bitch is back”). It’s only Clara’s desperate cry of “Mercy”, that alerts the Doctor to who’s under the hood, and that the word Mercy is even in the Dalek dictionary. And then the Doctor runs again, as Missy smiles sweetly at the Daleks and says that she’s got an idea.

This takes us back to that cliffhanger, where the Doctor returns to that battlefield encounter with the child Davros, tooled up. Needless to say, it’s the hand-mines that get it, and he leads the child that will one day grow up as his arch-enemy (don’t tell Missy, she’ll scratch his eye out) by the hand away from his doom, and the word Mercy finds its place in Dalek lore. 

Obviously Davros is still going to grow up to be that man. Something awful will happen to him, but something else, and another day. There are still questions to be answered that will probably be answered in about ten weeks time, and Missy will undoubtedly be back at some point, having not been ‘killed off’ for once. Speaking of which.....the Doctor seems pointedly more worried about Clara possibly dying than ever before. Is this the hidden arc of the series? Who knows. Surprises to come no doubt. In the meantime, let’s savour this, the best two part story Doctor Who’s had in years, riffs, silver Daleks, sewers, ray bans and all.

Written by Steven Moffat
Directed by Hettie MacDonald
Starring Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Michelle Gomez, Julian Bleach, Jemma Redgrave, Clare Higgins
Transmitted BBC One 19th September 2015

We leave on a cliffhanger where the Doctor's left trapped, alone, and defenseless, his friends apparently exterminated, and at the end of his rope. He reappears, somehow, on that ancient battlefield - apparently so desperate that he's training a Dalek gun at the child Davros. And with that, Doctor Who brings back two more old friends - the killer cliffhanger, accompanied by the return of the 'sting', leaving you with your heart in your mouth until next week.

WRITER - PAUL CORNELL;
ARTIST - NEIL EDWARDS;
COLORIST - IVAN NUNES;
LETTERER - RICHARD STARKINGS AND JIMMY BETANCOURT;
DESIGNER - ROB FARMER;
EDITOR - ANDREW JAMES;
ASSISTANT EDITOR - KIRSTEN MURRAY
RELEASED SEPTEMBER 2ND 2015, TITAN COMICS

Much as the Doctor has dabbled with parallel Earths, dimensions and the like in serials gone by, rare has been the occasion upon which he has come face to face with an alternate version of himself during these ventures into the unknown. After all, despite its containing a domesticated version of Rose Tyler (not to mention a near-uncanny facsimile counterpart to our Earth’s Davros in the form of one John Lumic), the so-called realm of ‘Pete’s Earth’ depicted in 2006’s “Rise of the Cybermen / The Age of Steel”, “Doomsday” and later 2008’s “Journey’s End” showed no signs of featuring its own Time Lord protector until the real Rose brought her newfound metacrisis-formed spouse into the fold. Chances are that this prolonged absence of parallel incarnations of Doctor Who’s seemingly unique titular protagonist has come down to fear on the part of past incumbent writing teams at the prospect of scuppering up fans’ ever-precious regeneration numbering lists, especially given that the introduction of John Hurt’s ironically beloved War Doctor in 2013’s “The Day of the Doctor” – as well as its similarly acclaimed Paul McGann-starring prologue minisode – caused such a stir amongst the show’s hardened and sophomore followers alike.

Whatever the reasoning is or was behind this ongoing unwillingness to introduce Doctors from other dimensions, however, clearly Paul Cornell didn’t get the memo in this instance, at least if the penultimate instalment of his anything-but-unambitious Titan Comics crossover arc – “Four Doctors” – is any reasonable indication. Having set about last issue with his contemplation of the notion of the turning points in Theta Sigma’s many lives forging alternate realities wherein never before seen versions of the Oncoming Storm have moved forward from the events of “The End of Time”, “The Wedding of River Song” and “Dark Water” on vastly different trajectories to their ‘real world’ selves, the man perhaps best known for conceiving Bernice Summerfield continues to defy expectations by delving ever deeper into the psyche of a wizened Twelfth Doctor whose path was forever altered by his decision to cast aside Clara Oswald after her reckless attempts to convince him to resurrect “P.E.”.

The result? Well, for starters he does a fine job of clarifying exactly how this could-have-been take on our supposedly incorruptible hero came to be, how he and the three incarnations we’ve been spending time with these past four issues can occupy the same universe as well as how the Voord’s fateful conversation with Hurt’s combat veteran in Issue 1’s Time War-set prologue came to influence the future actions of Marinus’ oft-forgotten inhabitants, all of which will doubtless represent much appreciated moves in the readership’s eyes given how convoluted this near-complete series’ plot arc is seemingly fast becoming (just look at the dense ‘Previously…’ section’s deployment of several details regarding the Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors’ present whereabouts which were barely touched upon as Issue 3 rolled to a close). This need for clarification regarding numerous loose narrative threads from previous chapters does inevitably have a slight impact on Issue 4’s pacing in that the first quarter or so essentially comprises of an extended explanation from the aforementioned dark manifestation of Capaldi’s incarnation, although given that Cornell somehow effortlessly integrates his tale into Who’s recent mythology by connecting his antagonist’s millennium-spanning scheme to the events of both the Time War and “Day”, to complain about an only somewhat clunky (and doubtless necessary) initial exposition dump does admittedly seem rather churlish in hindsight.

In that case, let’s not dawdle on this edition’s minor structural faults, instead focusing on those strengths which continue to render “Four Doctors” as scarcely less than a gripping crossover yarn. In critiquing the somewhat predictably corridor chase-led Issue 2, this reviewer still discovered hope aplenty in the form of lead artist Neil Edwards’ consistently visually mesmerising contribution to proceedings, to the point where yours truly speculated that even in the event that the arc as a whole failed to impress, at least repeat ‘viewings’ would still allow readers to revel in the series’ sumptuous aesthetics if nothing else. Suffice to say that nothing’s changed in this respect – Cornell isn’t exactly known for delivering sub-par denouements (just give “The Family of Blood” another watch for all of the necessary evidence), but if the manner in which his latest Who outing concludes doesn’t quite satisfy on the level that most might have hoped, then it’s safe to say that based on his pitch perfect rendition of the Voord’s campaign for peace, his ability to transform what could have been visually mundane chases through futuristic spaceships’ innards for Alice and Gabby into thrilling races against time, and his unyielding attempts to distinguish the three Time Lords at the storyline’s helm by drawing each as authentically and yet as dynamically as possible, there’s little reason to suspect his work here won’t win him countless rounds of metaphorical applause come the final issue’s publication next week.

Until then, though, rest assured that Cornell continues to complement Edwards’ masterfully engaging imagery with similarly compelling dialogue, not least by having both the Time Lords who give this particular arc its name and their faithful companions discuss one of arguably the most fascinating issues to arise in Who’s recent history: that of destiny. Whilst 2009’s set of Tenth Doctor-murdering Specials famously dealt with this very subject matter through their sustained exploration of the true meaning behind Carmen’s ominous prophecy regarding a song ending and four taps’ worth of knocking, Issue 4 goes one step further in continually examining the ramifications of Tennant, Smith and Capaldi’s incarnations seemingly being doomed to become the newly-revealed alternate version of the Twelfth Doctor thanks to the latter’s sinister machinations, an intriguing concept which the scribe uses to its fullest despite us knowing full well that the true Twelfth will surely emerge from next issue unscathed, ready to face both his second year of Titan escapades as well as the remainder of Season Eight’s multitude of adventures. Some might well lament the fact that the prolonged nature of said contemplation leads to this second-last chapter coming off as something of a dialogue-driven rather than an action-led instalment, especially given that Cornell hasn’t exactly been averse to spending significant chunks of time with his characters keeping their feet firmly on the ground as they talk business (in a manner of speaking, anyway), but judging by the potentially devastating final panels involving Alice and Gabby’s desperate sprint for the TARDIS’ welcoming doors, such qualms will more than likely be brushed away near-instantly next time around.

Speaking of the human beings unlucky enough to stand at the Doctors’ side here, it couldn’t hurt to think for a moment on the areas in which Cornell might find room for improvement post-“Four Doctors”, not least since one such area is that of the roles – or lack thereof – which Clara et al have played so far. No one’s denying that in a narrative titled after a quartet of eternal aliens who find themselves battling a menace who knows them all too well, the Impossible Girl and friends were always going to fulfil slightly inferior functions in the grand scheme of events, but at the same time, lest we forget, much of the power of Who’s post-2004 televised outings has come from its emphasis on how each Doctor’s diverse range of travelling assistants both literally and metaphorically brings him down to Earth in both his darkest and finest hours, making Cornell’s election to have Clara, Alice and Gabby effectively play second-fiddle for the vast majority of Issue 4’s running time seem bemusing at best. Worse still, whilst the latter pair do at least receive one moment to shine in the form of a touchingly brief exchange surrounding what the other party should tell their respective Time Lord accomplice in the event of their demise, that can’t compensate for the uncharacteristically shoddy handling of a subsequent cliff-hanger which rivals “Death to the Daleks” Part 3 for its sheer incoherency. All that’s before one even begins to dwell on the concerning lack of effort on Cornell’s part to afford the Twelfth Doctor and Clara more than a single panel to discuss the potential for their relationship to crack in the future (a startling omission when you think about it) or to afford the Voord much more than foot-soldier status in those moments where we’re seeing their actions as opposed to gleaning exposition regarding their back-stories from Capaldi’s equivalent to the Valeyard, though this reviewer can’t help but suspect these seemingly innocent bystanders might yet reveal some darker motives for their attempts to effectively seize the universe’s free will through subtle psychological indoctrination.

Yet as ever, picking nits in the framework of a largely robust instalment can seem far too easy and more often than not can therefore give an inaccurate impression as to the instalment in question’s overall quality. Indeed, whilst the chinks in “Four Doctors”’ armour are still very much there to see for those who scrutinise each issue closely enough, its merits rarely fail to shine through that much more brightly with each passing chapter. Not once has Cornell failed to capture the individual quirks of Tennant, Smith or Capaldi’s takes on the (supposed) Last of the Time Lords, nor does Edwards seem set to let up with his constantly stunning renditions of set-pieces both action-orientated and personal, lending weight to the persistent sense that we’ll ultimately be left with a finely-tuned, gloriously visually bombastic piece of graphic science-fiction that, despite its shortcomings with regards to its secondary constructs’ characterisation (or lack thereof), at least mirrors the philosophical audacity of its writer’s strongest Doctor Who tale by far, “Human Nature / The Family of Blood” (not to mention the similarly inspired original New Adventures novel of the same name), something which still absolutely can’t be said of the vast majority of TV-inspired graphic novels on the market right now.

Bonus Humour Strip Mini-Review:

As if it wasn't enough for Cornell to pen all five instalments of "Four Doctors" all on his lonesome, he's moreover the mind behind the series' variety of accompanying bonus strips, with his contribution this week coming in the form of a neat skit titled "The Doctors Do...Classic Comedy". Once again displaying the rather cute and oh-so-quaint anime-esque art style implemented by Neil Slorance in issues gone by, this brief three-panel yarn easily fulfils its purpose of humorously juxtaposing Capaldi's Doctor with his "I'm so sorry"-uttering and bowtie-donning predecessors so as to hilariously showcase the tonal constrasts between the three incarnations. The only real caveat here is that Cornell appears hell-bent on referencing specific sketches from hit genre efforts gone by, a decision which will doubtless leave slightly more youthful fans - such as this reviewer - in the dark if they're unaware of the source material which is apparently being parodied.

Writer - Paul Cornell, Artist Neil Edwards
Colorist - Ivan Nunes,
Letters - Richard Starkings and Jimmy Betancourt
Assistant Editor - Kirsten Murray
Editor - Andrew James, Designer - Rob Farmer
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After some temporal shenanigans in early 20th century Paris, the three most recent Doctors have found themselves on the planet Marinus and at the mercy of the Voord, who despite their partnership with the War Doctor in the Time War are again up to no good.. and are far more powerful than ever before!

Before continuing onto new developments I must fully pay tribute to the writer/artist combination, and their ability to really produce goods any self-respecting reader would hope fore. Paul Cornell and Neil Edwards have maintained my interest as well as I could have hoped and continue to litter the epic story they have forged together with exciting cinematic action, witty dialogue and enjoyably unobtrusive nods to the past. We almost get another 'timey-wimey' but Cornell is astute enough to recognise just how clichéd that is becoming, and so makes a 'stutter' joke out of it instead. This confident self-awareness is really a boon for the modern-day culture of being a Doctor Who aficionado (for whichever brand of the sprawling story one cares for inside and outside of television format).

The most enthralling hook in this latest 'event' issue is the exploration of a so-called 'continuity bomb' which both furthers the main plot but also furthers the required multi doctor adventure aspect of referencing past events. We get a glimpse of Wilf meeting a sorry end, and the resultant come-uppance for a thoroughly detestable version of the Doctor who would not graciously accept his fate. Rather less disturbingly is the Doctor who will pass on with stoicism, but even then this is not laudable as his final end at a possessed River's hands allows the converging of all time and reality and thus the victory of the Silence.

But of most relevance to the actual story advancing for our 6 protagonists, is the unveiling of a potential future scenario where the latest Doctor has aged considerably and seems rather cranky over being let down. The motivations of this new doctor are very much held to account by the contemporary one, and the accuracy of his cynicism definitely is verified by the time of the startling final panels.  

It is good to have some proper threat from the Voord, who were one of the very first monsters in classic Who to rather meet the stereotype detractors had of the program and its ability to actually scare little children. What also is involving is the mystery over how none of the three Doctors are able to really remember much about the original TARDIS crew's trip to Marinus and the quest for the various Keys. A reference to the sea of acid is made but it is just a fleeting memory-ghost and nothing too substantial.

The re-mixing and matching of different Doctors to companions and their reactions to the dynamics is a very enjoyable bit of characterization work that makes the story more than just a giddy romp. The confidence of Clara to tell the other two humans about the complex nature of the Doctor is yet one more great bit of consolidation for a companion who I have always liked, and has never been allowed to stagnate into mediocrity by any writer of decent ability or above.

And this issue has Alice involved with a bit of narration and her clear-headed, matter-of-factual stance is rather refreshing after the more emotive and giddy reactions of Clara and Gabby. I have made no secret of my high regard for Alice and her strong involvement in virtually every Titan comic book she graces month after month. So coming to her at issue three was certainly worth the wait, and now I can only hope all three companions put in a bit of a concerted team effort with their Doctors to end the latest huge threat facing the universe and the timelines.

BONUS HUMOUR STRIP:

The Meeting is another winner from the guest contributor Paul Cornell, who this time is assisting the dependably funny Rachael Smith. With many a former companion involved in a meeting that resembles an 'Alcoholics Anonymous' there is great scope for some fun nods to past companions. And they all have their own take on the riveting experience of time travel which they blurt out, when Alice is hesitatingly trying to convey her own views.