Kane’s Story, Abel’s Story, The Warrior’s Story, and Frobisher’s Story
are written by Alan McKenzie with art by John Ridgway and lettering by Annie
Halfacree. They were released in Doctor Who Magazine issues 104, 105, 106, and 107 (August, September,
October, and November 1985) and are reprinted in their original form in Doctor Who: Voyager by Panini Books.
The collected edition of Voyager
cuts off with a four-part arc with individual issue titles an no overall title
which transitions to the strip for the first time bringing in a television
companion in Peri Brown and moving away from having a single writer with Alan
McKenzie leaving the magazine in the middle of the next story which John Ridgway
will finish writing. Kane’s Story,
Abel’s Story, The Warrior’s Story, and Frobisher’s Story
all contribute small elements to a greater whole while being self-contained, picking
up on a lot of the ideas introduced in Funhouse and expanding the cosmic
horror into melding with an evil human empire.
The Skeletoids are the alien race which are terrorizing the galaxy that
the Doctor, Peri, and Frobisher must defeat.
Alan McKenzie is again writing under the pen name as he did with Funhouse
due to still being the editor when these stories were commissioned. It’s still McKenzie’s style and there’s clearly
an attempt to make one final mark on the strip before he leaves the strip completely.
Kane’s Story is essentially the setup of the state of the galaxy,
with the Skeletoids dominating the two great empires of Daleks and Cybermen and
making their way to the third, the Draconian Empire. The Doctor and Frobisher crash on the
outskirts of the conflict where they meet Kane, an ex-professor of
phenomenology and his story is one where we get the first shades of the works
of H.P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft’s work
would often have an academic in some pseudo-scientific field and this story is
no different, but these shades are only further intensified in the following
issues. The backstory makes the Skeletoids
a credible threat and once the story moves off planet to New York, 1985 we
bring Peri on board as a way to help. McKenzie
writes passerby reactions to the Doctor’s arrival as perhaps the most
interesting the comic strip has, thinking he must be an actor or a clown especially
with that coat. That coat wasn’t ever
really commented on in television stories which makes for an interesting little
additive. Now there are some flaws, some
of the pacing of the second half outside of the story doesn’t help it work as a
frame story and Peri is characterized weirdly at the top as she’s apparently
working as a secretary and quits. 8/10.
Abel’s Story is the installment where the Doctor doesn’t really
appear but that isn’t actually an issue in this one. Yes, the final page or so has the Doctor,
Peri, Frobisher, and Kane all in the TARDIS travelling towards the planet Xaos
which will be the setting for The Warrior’s Story while we follow Abel
Gantz, an alchemist who is lost in space and mutated with telekinetic abilities
trapped underground and being led to the Valley of the Gods where a prophecy of
six representatives will gather to save the universe. The mutation of Abel Gantz directly calls
upon Lovecraftian imagery, as well as the blending of alchemy with some semblance
of science. Add on top of that the previous
issue’s exploration of psychic powers at the start of the story makes for an
interesting story. This is also the
issue where John Ridgway’s artwork perhaps shines the most as it is allowed to
go into the horrific abstract places of cosmic horror that should be praised
and injecting emotion into the abstract.
9/10.
The Warrior’s Story explores Draconian culture, continuing a lot of the
ideas, as the Warrior is Kaon, one of the Draconians from War-Game which
greatly assists in the cohesiveness of the last few stories, though that is
still in the future for Kaon. Kaon’s an
interesting character and McKenzie does some interesting things in regards to
fleshing out the honor system of Draconians, he is making his way to the Valley
of the Gods for his own honorable purpose and to fulfill the prophecy. This is the story that fully explains the
prophecy as well as explores the fact that forces are converging at the Valley
to defeat the Skeletoid menace. It’s
simple, but executed so well that it just works. 9/10.
Frobisher’s Story finally brings us back to the perspective of the
Doctor, that being the one real flaw of the previous two issues. The six champions are gathered and there is a
big battle against the menace to destroy them while the forces of the universe
repel them. There is such scale in this
story, something that Steve Parkhouse was also able to do but did it in such a different
way that McKenzie’s vision is one that hits different. Frobisher as the point of view character for
the story is a stroke of genius as the companion has been the breakout
character for the strip, being fondly remembered to this day despite leaving
the strip in 1987 and only having sporadic appearances since. He still managed to appear in an audio
drama. The actual defeat of the
Skeletoids and the explanation of the prophecy falls just a bit flat, the
prophecy is just a plot device and the six characters included don’t really
have a unique reason for being involved in the plot. It easily could have been the Doctor, Peri,
and Frobisher on their own with the other characters just being there. It’s still a great little installment. 8/10.
Overall, this grouping of
four stories manages to end the Voyager collection on a high continuing
the strong streak that has made up the Sixth Doctor’s time in the seat of the Doctor
Who Magazine comic strip and closes an era as The World Shapers
begins the tradition of rotating authors every story. 8.5/10.
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