Comic Info
Comic Name: Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time
Publisher: IDW
Writer: Scott Tipton/David Tipton
Artist: Simon Fraser/Lee Sullivan/Mike Collins/Gary Erskine/Philip Bond/John Ridgway/Kev Hopgood/Roger Langridge/David Messina/Giorgia Sposito/Elena Casagrande/Matthew Dow Smith/Kelly Yates
# of Issues: 12
Release Date: 2013
Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time #1
Reprints Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time #1-12 (January 2013-November 2013). Someone is hunting Doctor…or more accurately, his companions. The Doctor in all his incarnations finds someone is picking off his friends one by one and the man always seems to know the Doctor’s next step. As the Doctor regenerates, he must remember the threat and work with his past lives to find out who has targeted him and why!
Written by Scott Tipton and David Tipton, Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time is part of the 50th Anniversary celebration of Doctor Who which first aired on November 23, 1963. With art by a large collection of artists, the series was collected in three volumes and one massive twelve issue collection.
This is a really fun series for Whovians who have followed the Doctor in more than just the modern Doctor Who which launched in 1963. The series stretches back deep into the Doctor’s past and features tons of characters that have had lives of their own as the Doctor’s companions.
I am a big companion fan. As interesting as the Doctor is, he’s often only as good as who is travelling with him. This series focuses on his most popular companions and it is really nice to see some of them return. Characters like Sarah Jane, Barbara, Ian, and Leela get to mix with Amy Pond, Rose, and Martha…It is fun to get to see some of the characters who travels were cut short return and “learn” what became of the Doctor after his voyages with them.
Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time #12 (Variant)
The only problem is that the time seems very fleeting and by focusing on the most popular companions some of the less defined characters like Mel, Dodo, or even the malign Kameleon could have been explored more. We know a lot about the popular companions and it is great to see them back, but I’d love to know more about some of the “lost” companions that never really got in the spotlight.
This is also a problem with the finale of the series as well. *****Spoiler Alert***** It is revealed that the time travelling villain is Adam from the Ninth Doctor’s travels. Adam is a very recent villain and will appeal to watchers of the new series, but I think someone like the Time Meddler or the Rani would have been fun since it has been a while since they have been active. Plus, they had to throw the Master in there for kicks.
Doctor Who: Prisoners in Time is worth seeking out. It is a quick and fun read and a nice homage to the 50th anniversary. I kind of wish that the writers had been closer to the creators of the series to know more about the War Doctor and how the end of the 11th Doctor would arise. It isn’t necessary, but it could have been worked into the story in an interesting way that would be even more of a bonus to the readers and fans of the show (which also could have spurred more show fans to become comic fans). The series does have me yearning for more comic book series focusing on the first eight Doctors…I can hope.
