I’m really surprising myself by selecting a licensed comic as one of my top 5 of the year, as these aren’t usually my thing. I even heavily debated picking this up when it launched due to that. Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor however side-steps many of the usual problems by focusing on delivering a great story with likeable characters, suitable for anyone regardless of your level of Who knowledge.
Mirroring the shows format of mostly done-in-ones with a few two part stories, the comic offered up a huge level of variety and creativity in its adventures. They never felt stale and made every issue an absolute treat to read. Its biggest strength however was the introduction of new companion Alice Obiefune, a slightly older woman struggling with depression. Not only was she a brilliant character in her own right, but introducing a new companion offered the series a lot of free reign outside the conventions of the show, allowing for great character development, and also allowed the writers to reintroduce elements of the show for potential readers to climb on-board with any prior knowledge. Couple this with some fantastically expressive art from Simon Fraiser and it’s really not a hard sell.
With elements of fairy tales, harsh truths and sci-fi escapades, this was a truly fresh, fun filled comic that should be on any science fantasy fan’s radar.
