Doctor Who and the Star Beast by: Pat Mills and John Wagner with art by: Dave Gibbons

Doctor Who and the Star Beast is written by Pat Mills and John Wagner with art by Dave Gibbons.  It was released in Doctor Who Weekly issues 19-26 (February-April 1980) and is reprinted in its original form in Doctor Who: The Iron Legion by Panini Books.



There are several Doctor Who stories where the ugly alien is not actually the main villain and actually it is a different threat entirely.  Galaxy Four was the first story to really do this plotline with the Rils and the Drahvins, but Pat Mills and John Wagner’s third story for their Doctor Who Weekly run, Doctor Who and the Star Beast, is perhaps one of the more fun explorations of the trope.  The eight issue comic story is one that often gets praise for its creativity which shines through every page.  A spaceship crashes in Blackcastle in 1980 where two teenagers: Sharon Davies and Fudge find the Meep, a fluffy cat-like ball creature in a garden shed.  The Meep is being pursued by the Wrarth Warriors, an insectoid race bent on its destruction, whose plan is to use the Doctor as a human bomb when in the vicinity of the Meep.  As with the other Mills and Wagner strips, Doctor Who and the Star Beast is a story that does not take itself far too seriously, instead focusing more on the wacky adventure as it plays out.  The first thing that stands out with Doctor Who and the Star Beast is the return of Dave Gibbons’ excellent artwork.  After Timeslip was simply traced over promotional photographs, it’s a welcome return to the thicker lines and intricate shading.  Gibbons focuses on dynamic action as laser beams, crashing spaceships, and rushing into danger feature prominently throughout Doctor Who and the Star Beast.  The tone of the story, like City of the Damned, creates a credible threat as the Meep’s tonal juxtaposition between loving and innocent to devious and wicked.



Mills and Wagner improve on previous mistakes by giving Doctor Who and the Star Beast a human connection to its proceedings.  The biggest issue with Doctor Who and the Iron Legion and City of the Damned is that the Doctor was meant to be the audience surrogate, while Doctor Who and the Star Beast has Sharon and Fudge.  Sure they are a bit one note, but having the two human characters both threatened by the Meep, and Sharon being added as a companion to the Doctor, makes the story work.  The pair work as a comedic double act with Sharon being the witty rational one while Fudge is the over the top and comedic one.  Sharon also has the distinction of being the first person of color companion.  Mills and Wagner give Sharon plenty of time with the Doctor throughout the eight issues to develop their relationship.  The backstory of the Meep is that its home planet used to be the stereotypical fluffy bunnies and cute animals who dance and play, when a black star turned the entire planet evil.  This is perhaps the breaking point in the story as the backstory is just a little too ludicrous even for the comics medium, yet Mills and Wagner sell the audience on the idea remarkably well.  They’ve put enough humor into the strip with these one off gags from the Meep being put on a leash so it can go onto the bus to Fudge’s comic book obsession that the ludicrous backstory to the Meep does not seem so impossible. The story ends on a high with the Doctor taking Sharon off to see the universe leaving the reader wanting more.  9/10.