25 years ago, Paul McGann made his debut as the 8th Doctor in the 1996 Doctor Who movie. Say what you will about the film (and there’s a lot that can be said), but he made the role his own as the character developed through audio dramas and other expanded material until he regenerated in The Night of the Doctor.
Now, in celebration, we’re getting a new comic tying in several of the Doctors that came after. So let’s see how this new story goes, with the occasional spoiler.
Written by Jody Houser
Illustrated by Roberta Ingranata
Colored by Warnia K. Sahadewa
Lettered by Comicraft’s Richard StarkingsCELEBRATING THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE EIGHTH DOCTOR’S DEBUT!
Trapped in a parallel universe, Rose Tyler believed her adventures with the Doctor were over. Now, pulled by a mysterious energy into this reality, she must work with two Doctors – the eighth Doctor and the eleventh Doctor – to end the tyrannical rule of the warmongering BAD WOLF EMPRESS!
“Empire of the Wolf” is a story that builds off of several Doctor Who plot points. We have Rose Tyler, initially introduced as the companion to the 9th Doctor in the 2005 revival, wherein the phrase “Bad Wolf” was scattered across time and space to serve as a warning until Rose absorbed Time Vortex energy and temporarily took on that name (along with the cosmic power that comes with it). Rose was later trapped in an alternate timeline, but eventually got a partially-human duplicate of the 10th Doctor to keep her company, giving her story a happy ending at last.
So naturally, this comic continues on from there with some new happenings, including an alternate timeline where Rose is the Bad Wolf Empress. (Yes, alternate timelines and realities happen in Doctor Who nearly as much as time travel does.)
But wait, there’s more! We also get pre-Time War 8th Doctor and the 11th Doctor (right after Amy and Rory left but before he met Clara), so there are characters and plot points from at least four Doctors’ worth of stories coming in here.
It’s gonna be a lot to juggle. So how does the first issue handle it?
Okay, so story-wise, this issue is all setting up what’s to come. It starts bringing the characters together, introduces story elements, and starts building up questions that it will have to answer down the line. As such, some things feel a tad random, like a brief Sontaran invasion of 20th century London that disappears as quickly as it starts.
Yet overall, it still manages to pull the characters together properly, while setting their goals and stakes. It even flows well enough through the different points, using effective transitions between scenes like one Rose calling out for the Doctor while an alternate Rose wakes up shouting his name. This moves the story nicely through each of the different beats to complete the setup.
It helps that Jody Houser has plenty of experience writing the “Doctor Who” comics, including plenty of 13th Doctor stories and the “Missy” comics. So her grasp of the characters, their voices, and their overall driving motivators are as solid as always. There’s a distinct difference between the different Doctors, with their own speech patterns and mannerisms, all of which Jody has captured nicely.
So what about the artwork? Roberta Ingranata has the less than enviable job of having to turn live action characters into comic book form, and… does a perfectly good job at it. The characters retain their distinctive features, like the shapes of their faces and their styles, without compromising style.
The shading effects also add to the detailing, adding light contours around the characters’ faces and scenery. Sometimes the other details can be inconsistent, such as scenes where the 11th Doctor’s shirt is drawn with much more attention to detail than his face, but it doesn’t detract from anything.
Similarly, the scenery is given a decent balance. Scenes like the London streets are well decorated with their buildings and cityscapes, although the shots inside the TARDIS can feel a little scarce. But given shots like Empress Rose’s kingdom, which impressively create new worlds, I’d say it evens out in the comic’s favor.
Continued belowThat can be said for the various aliens as well, even if they just appear in single panels. There are some unique and creative designs on display. I’m particularly fond of D’pau, Rose’s diminutive assistant.
All the while, Warnia K. Sahadewa’s color work adds vibrant life to each page, utilizing bright tones that reflect the color schemes of the characters from the show, or help make alien worlds feel even more unique. It goes well with the shading effects, utilizing different shades of the same color to make the shapes pop.
So, with all that said and done, how is “Empire of the Wolf” #1? Well, to put it simply: it’s fine. It starts off the story well, has a good grasp of the characters, and the artwork is enjoyable. This issue just starts the story, so there’s nothing groundbreaking yet, but it’s good to see the various characters from Doctor Who’s history start being brought together. I look forward to seeing how the 8th Doctor, 11th Doctor, and Rose work together as this story progresses.
Final Verdict: 6.5 – A perfectly enjoyable comic that kicks off what’s sure to be an exciting comic storyline, paying tribute to many years of Doctor Who history and celebrating the 8th Doctor’s legacy.
