Titan Comics Kick Off Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor with "Terrorformer"

"Terrorformer" is the first comic book representation of Doctor Who as portrayed by Peter Capaldi, and, given what I've seen of the current series and the new Doctor's eccentricities, writer Robbie Morrison has accurately captured the essence of this version of the Timelord from Gallifrey.

The Doctor and Clara arrive on Isen VI, chose for Clara's skiing lessons because of it's icebound climate. Only Isen VI isn't so icebound any longer -- it's a lush tropical paradise, thanks to a team of engineers laboring in the employ of a multi-kajillionaire who wants his own planet. And as is to be expected, the technology goes in an unexpected direction.

Morrison's story has a lot of humor going for it. The whole planet-building business brings to mind Magrathea from Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, and the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" sendup was absolutely hilarious! The dialogue is top notch, and reads more like an actual Doctor Who episode than a "comic book based on Doctor Who" (the latter often failing in the past to adequately bring that je ne sais quoi unique to the Doctor).

But the thing that makes the humor of Doctor Who so unique is that it's often delivered in times of great horror and danger -- and "Terrorformer" has both of those things down pat, with death and destruction abounding.

Dave Taylor is also to be commended, not only for his renderings of The Doctor and Clara, but for his unique alien races and lush landscapes that make up the setting of this adventure.

Titan Comics' debut of the Twelfth Doctor is sure to make a splash with Doctor Who fans, and this reviewer eagerly awaits the next chapter of this story.