Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Roberta Ingranata
Colourist: Enrica Eren Angiolini

35 Pages

Published by Titan Comics February 2020

Issue 2 of the Thirteenth Doctor's second year as a Titan Comic book maintains the quality from the opening episode.  Still in London 1969 and trying to figure out why the TARDIS would risk a paradox by bringing them to the same time and place as when the Tenth Doctor and Martha were trapped there without the TARDIS, things begin to build momentum as Martha finds the shop she works at has been robbed, and her coworker has gone missing...and then discovers the Thirteenth Doctor watching her. 

Martha confronts her, and she decides to come clean and admit she is the future incarnation of her friend.  This obviously puzzles Martha, but she seems to at least buy it a little.  She and the Doctor then decide to investigate all these missing people. 

The rest of the gang are trailing the Tenth Doctor, and his machine that goes ding begins to work, and they notice he may be heading towards the TARDIS. Their TARDIS.  If he finds it, he may believe it is his and then they would be stranded in 1969.  Yaz takes the bold measure of trying to confront the Doctor.  She pretends she is a Time Agent (believable cover story based on previous adventures in these comics), but the Tenth Doctor is able to easily blow that cover story...but before the three of them can manage to distract him from the TARDIS, he warns them to turn around...and try not to blink. The Angels are in 1969! 

This was a solid issue.  I thought it was well paced, I enjoyed both the Thirteenth/Martha sections and the Tenth/Trio bits.  I also felt it had a great little cliffhanger. If they manage to have an ending that doesn't feel like it is racing to the finish line, this will be the strongest effort of this book so far.

Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Roberta Ingranata
Colourist: Enrica Eren Angiolini

33 Pages

Published by Titan Comics January 2020

I was sort of disappointed in the first "year" of Titan Comics run for the Thirteenth Doctor.  It had great art, some decent concepts, but it always seemed to be set up for an issue or two, then an ending was constantly rushed. In fact, while so many seemed to be decrying that the show was now awful and disappointing, I was finding it to be rather decent, and it was the comics I was disappointed in.  But, it wasn't all bad.  Just felt like the heart of the stories were glossed over in favor of quick endings.

So now it is a new year, and they've begun a new "season" of sorts for the Thirteenth Doctor. I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt.  It has started off decent enough.  But I've been burned before. Then again, maybe this is why I tend to read Trade paperbacks, at least then I get the whole story.  As I read issue to issue, I think I hate the pacing of it. 

That is neither here nor there, the story has the TARDIS landing in 1969 in London (missing their Woodstock target), and the Doctor is sure the TARDIS has put them their for a reason...as she knows that this is also the same time her Tenth incarnation and Martha Jones were briefly trapped there by the Weeping Angels (see Blink).  So she decides to investigate.  She takes on the task of checking up on Martha and sends the companions to tail the Tenth Doctor. 

It's a fine start, though beyond the fun of seeing the Tenth Doctor and Martha and getting to see their lives when trapped for months in '69...I can't say it had much of a story beyond the cliffhanger involving Martha's shop coworker getting zapped away by the Angels. Here's hoping they really go for it this time around. 

Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Rachel Stott
Colourist: Enrica Eren Angiolini

30 Pages

Published by Titan Comics 22nd May 2019 

The latest arc involving alien flesh eaters and a mysterious podcast gets wrapped up in the latest issue of the The Thirteenth Doctor. It wraps the story up in a nice quiet bow.  For a story that was about trekking through various time periods to solve a mystery, it ends in a surprisingly simple way.  The reveal of who is behind the podcast seems pretty obvious, but it doesn't really play it as some extra big threat.  

Overall I would say this story was decent and could be a good read, but it also feels like they just tired of the plot, and wrapped it up quickly to move on.  I'm not sure there was a better way to end the story, but I can't help but feel like the initial reveal that something bigger and more mysterious was going on than a simple threat of alien flesh eaters feels dry and forgettable in the way the story concludes.  

Once again the art has been great, the characters are all there in the writing, but the plot just doesn't seem like it truly came together for Jody Houser this time.  There were solid premises but no real meat to it.  I mean it ended and I had no feelings about it whatsoever. I wouldn't even call it a unsatisfying conclusion, just a totally forgettable one.  

Luckily, a new issue will come and with it a brand new story.  Hopefully the next one will reignite the flame.  

Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Rachel Stott
Colourist: Enrica Eren Angiolini

29 Pages

Published by Titan Comic 1 May 2019

The mystery of the history podcast and the flesh eating monsters continues, with Time Agents swooping in to investigate how the Doctor is wrapped up in it all.  The agents turn out to be the time traveling scientists that were so integral to the first story of this Thirteenth Doctor line. The Doctor seems to be a through line for this popular history podcast, and the Agents want to no why.  They also have the issue of the flesh eating monsters, who have evolved after feeding off the flesh of humans for so long, including one that is seemingly immortal due to having bit the Doctor.  

The story builds nicely from where the previous issue left off.  Taking the cliffhanging mystery and naturally building upon it. Seeing the agents turn out to be the duo from the first story from this series, and how their long time at the Time Agency has changed them since we last met.  It also (and pardon this) fleshes out the monsters a bit.  And leaves us wondering how this podcast will tie it all up. 

It is a strong installment in the latest comic adventures, and if we have to wait a long time for the show to return to the air, at least there is a solid regular comic adventures for the Thirteenth to fill in the gap. 

Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Rachel Stott
Colourist: Enrica Eren Angiolini

31 Pages

Published by Titan Comic 10 April 2019

What I enjoyed about Issue 6 of the “Thirteenth Doctor” line from Titan Comics, is that it felt like it was going in one direction, but in the last few moments opened up to make this story bigger in an interesting way. Issue 5 had introduced us to a new setting, introduced a new guest character, and in the end the new monster of the week. It seemed like it was set up for a story in this setting.

Then this issue seemed to wrap it up. Sort of felt like a Doctor Who ending, monster defeated - onwards to the next adventure. But then our gang lands in another spot in history that the companions all know from the same podcast they learned about of the last era...and the same monsters are here...then some Time Agents show up.

When it was wrapping everything up, I initially thought "well this seems to be just a humdrum two-parter" and thought reviewing it might be hard, but that extra set up at the end gave me hope.  Our heroes are on a brand new adventure, one with more intriguing threads to follow than some monsters in the dark in a quiet wartorn village centuries ago.  Now there are the monsters, but also Time Agents, and a mysterious podcast which seems to be exploring the strange world s the TARDIS is now landing them in.

I thought the last issue was fine, but it had mostly been story set up, so it didn’t particularly grab me. This issue pushed it in a new direction, one that left me interested to see where it all leads.

Writer: Jody Houser
Artist: Rachel Stott
Colorist: Enrica Eren Angiolini & Tracy Bailey

26 Pages

Published by Titan Comics 6 March 2019

The fifth issue of the ongoing Thirteenth Doctor comic book from Titan begins a brand new adventure for the Doctor and the gang.  This time they land in a small village in 1500s Europe, during the Guelders Wars.  This isnt a period of history I am really familiar with, but no matter, there is an alien menace that gets involved!

****I try not to dive into too many details, but Spoilerphobic Folk Beware****

The village seems deserted, but they find one woman on the run, her name is Magda.  Through her they find that an army is apparently on the way, and accroding to rumors, they have the help of demons.  Demons implies Aliens to the TARDIS team, so they are ready to take them on.   And they eventually find a bunch of flesh eating monsters hiding away...so aliens confirmed!  And while she is beginning to talk to much, and alien bites the Doctor.  As cliffhangers go, this one is kind of lame, but there have been much worse in the long legacy of this franchise. 

This issue is all about the set up of the new storyline, and as such it is really all about building up our new setting introducing the current problems, introducing some the guest character, and eventually unveiling the monster of the story.  It can be difficult to review the first issue of a story.  It's like writing a review for the first 15 minutes of a movie.  Sure...I could say it's good or bad, but at the same time I have no idea where any of this is going, so how can I judge the story on the whole. 

What I can judge is that the writing of the characters is still top notch, and the art remains excellent.  As long as Houser and Stott are running this show, I will be satisfied to keep reading each and every issue.