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Doctor Who: Series III #1-4
Doctor Who: Series III, Vol. 1: Hypothetical Gentleman
106-Pages!
Collects Doctor Who Series III #1-4.
The Doctor is back! New York Times bestselling writer Andy Diggle joins Eisner Award-winning artist Mark Buckingham as a shadow being emerges from a machine used to view alternate realities, stealing time from those he touches in order to become "real." Can the Doctor save the Hypothetical Gentleman's latest victim? Then, writer Brandon Seifert and artist Philip Bond collaborate on a story. When the Doctor and Rory, on a boys' night out gone wrong, leave Amy to face the Silence on her own!
Collects Doctor Who Series III #1-4.
The Doctor is back! New York Times bestselling writer Andy Diggle joins Eisner Award-winning artist Mark Buckingham as a shadow being emerges from a machine used to view alternate realities, stealing time from those he touches in order to become "real." Can the Doctor save the Hypothetical Gentleman's latest victim? Then, writer Brandon Seifert and artist Philip Bond collaborate on a story. When the Doctor and Rory, on a boys' night out gone wrong, leave Amy to face the Silence on her own!
104 pages, Paperback
First published March 19, 2013
About the author
Andy Diggle
537 books172 followersAndy Diggle is a British comic book writer and former editor of 2000 AD. He is best known for his work on The Losers,Swamp Thing, Hellblazer, Adam Strange and Silent Dragon at DC Comics and for his run on Thunderbolts and Daredevil after his move to Marvel.
In 2013 Diggle left writing DC's Action Comics and began working with Dynamite Entertainment, writing a paranormal crime series Uncanny. He is also working on another crime series with his wife titled Control that is set to begin publishing in 2014.
In 2013 Diggle left writing DC's Action Comics and began working with Dynamite Entertainment, writing a paranormal crime series Uncanny. He is also working on another crime series with his wife titled Control that is set to begin publishing in 2014.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
July 23, 2013
Thank you to Netgalley and IDW Publishing for an advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review.
It is easy to write and produce bad and mediocre Doctor Who and there is an awful lot of it out there. I am a very devoted fan and I can admit that readily. But not in this case.
Collected in this volume are two 11th Doctor story lines originally published as monthly comics in the IDW Doctor Who range. The first story, "The Hypothetical Gentleman" sees the Doctor trying to visit the Crystal Palace in London for the Great Exhibition. The Doctor, Amy and Rory encounter a strange machine that is on display and get caught up in an adventure that is more than what it seems.
The second story, "The Doctor and the Nurse", is a comedy where Amy, frustrated that the Doctor and Rory seem to bicker with each other a bit too often, orders the two to spend some quality "guy time" together in a Victorian pub. However the Doctor and Rory have other ideas.
I did go into this read with low expectations. I have rarely encountered good Who comics beyond certain good runs in Doctor Who Magazine, and the recent "Prisoners of Time" releases ,which now that I look at the details are also IDW produced. And as you can tell from the score, I was pleasantly surprised. The quality of both stories were high, the artwork was great and the main thing was that it felt like Doctor Who, especially the latter half of Season 6 Who.
"The Hypothetical Gentleman" felt like a Mark Gatiss historical through and through with an intriguing premise and some good one liners. The mannerisms and speech of Matt Smith's Doctor were captured brilliantly, all backed up by spot on yet stylistic artwork.
"The Doctor and the Nurse" is written purely as a comedy. Dangerous, but it works. The sequence of The Doctor and Rory getting deeper and deeper into trouble is hilarious, yet it does not feel contrived or forced. It does parallel comedy sequences from the TV episodes, but here we a given one whole story dedicated to a laugh.
I'd recommend this collection to any Doctor Who fan, especially one who has never picked up a tie-in comic or book before. The style and quality of both stories closely mirror that of the TV series and it would be a great introduction to the world of non-television Doctor Who.
Check out my blog The Periodic Table of Elephants.
It is easy to write and produce bad and mediocre Doctor Who and there is an awful lot of it out there. I am a very devoted fan and I can admit that readily. But not in this case.
Collected in this volume are two 11th Doctor story lines originally published as monthly comics in the IDW Doctor Who range. The first story, "The Hypothetical Gentleman" sees the Doctor trying to visit the Crystal Palace in London for the Great Exhibition. The Doctor, Amy and Rory encounter a strange machine that is on display and get caught up in an adventure that is more than what it seems.
The second story, "The Doctor and the Nurse", is a comedy where Amy, frustrated that the Doctor and Rory seem to bicker with each other a bit too often, orders the two to spend some quality "guy time" together in a Victorian pub. However the Doctor and Rory have other ideas.
I did go into this read with low expectations. I have rarely encountered good Who comics beyond certain good runs in Doctor Who Magazine, and the recent "Prisoners of Time" releases ,which now that I look at the details are also IDW produced. And as you can tell from the score, I was pleasantly surprised. The quality of both stories were high, the artwork was great and the main thing was that it felt like Doctor Who, especially the latter half of Season 6 Who.
"The Hypothetical Gentleman" felt like a Mark Gatiss historical through and through with an intriguing premise and some good one liners. The mannerisms and speech of Matt Smith's Doctor were captured brilliantly, all backed up by spot on yet stylistic artwork.
"The Doctor and the Nurse" is written purely as a comedy. Dangerous, but it works. The sequence of The Doctor and Rory getting deeper and deeper into trouble is hilarious, yet it does not feel contrived or forced. It does parallel comedy sequences from the TV episodes, but here we a given one whole story dedicated to a laugh.
I'd recommend this collection to any Doctor Who fan, especially one who has never picked up a tie-in comic or book before. The style and quality of both stories closely mirror that of the TV series and it would be a great introduction to the world of non-television Doctor Who.
Check out my blog The Periodic Table of Elephants.
August 22, 2017
Quick review for a quick read. I almost forgot that I had this graphic novel as an ARC, but this is a series of two stories centered within the Dr. Who universe. The art ranges from highly detailed and life-like based on the respective incarnation of the 11th Doctor to more animated and lighthearted to suit the mood of the storyline. I think the vast variations in art styles threw me slightly as I was reading through it, but it still held my attention. I liked both storylines overall, with a slight preference for the very first story since it was more cohesive and intriguing. The 11th Doctor is traveling with Rory and Amy when they come across a peculiar series of events that involve people being frozen in time. It turns out to be the work of a dangerous being called the Hypothetical Gentleman, who uses an apparatus to appear and tries to maintain his existence by stealing time from those he touches. It was a cool read and I loved the concept of it. The second story is more lighthearted, having Amy encourage the 11th doctor and Rory to spend more time together using the Tardis. It goes as well as one might expect, having the Doctor and Rory on a series of random misadventures, while Amy ends up on a serious mission of her own in dealing with a plot involving the Silence.
Overall, it was a decent, engrossing read worth the half an hour or so it took for me to read it. I would definitely love to read more in this respective compilation/series.
Overall score: 3/5 stars.
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher IDW Publishing.
Overall, it was a decent, engrossing read worth the half an hour or so it took for me to read it. I would definitely love to read more in this respective compilation/series.
Overall score: 3/5 stars.
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher IDW Publishing.
January 3, 2025
First comic series I’m actively choosing not to finish. The art in the first volume was buns, and why does it set up a cliffhanger at the end of volume 1 that is completely ignored at the start of volume 2???
January 23, 2015
As you probably already realized, I'm a massive fanatic when it comes to Doctor Who. You can find me sprouting out random DW references (Keep your eyes on that statue. I swear it just moved.) and binge watching DW episodes.
Thisgrahic novel comic book includes the 11th Doctor, Amy, and Rory. The dynamic trio taking on the universe. Traveling time and space saving one planet at a time.
There are two stories in this edition. The Hypothetical Gentleman and The Doctor and the Nurse. Both are wonderful but enjoyed the The Doctor and the Nurse more, plot wise. Art wise, The Hypothetical Gentleman definitely won. It was more realistic, while the other was more cartoonish.
The Hypothetical Gentleman features a mysterious couple with weird abilities. Apparently *air quotes* angels from heaven, have told them to build a machine. Well, imagine if angels had a conversation with you, and told you to build this object, would you do it? (I would immediately call the mental institution.) Then the Doctor and his crew comes along and saves the day.
The Doctor and the Nurse was more interesting. Amy tells the Doctor and Rory they need to stop bickering. The solution? A boys night out. While the boys are bonding, Amy encounters the Silence and she has to fix the problem alone. Meanwhile, the boys are having TARDIS issues. This being said, I found this one more comical than the first one.
The Doctor was as cleverly awesome as always. Obviously.
As my first comic book, I have no experience. But, I thoroughly enjoyed this. Worthy of the 4 stars.
I don't have anywhere else to show my love for Doctor Who, so why not here? MAY I PRESENT TO YOU MY TRIBUTE TO DOCTOR WHO IN GIFS:
This
There are two stories in this edition. The Hypothetical Gentleman and The Doctor and the Nurse. Both are wonderful but enjoyed the The Doctor and the Nurse more, plot wise. Art wise, The Hypothetical Gentleman definitely won. It was more realistic, while the other was more cartoonish.
The Hypothetical Gentleman features a mysterious couple with weird abilities. Apparently *air quotes* angels from heaven, have told them to build a machine. Well, imagine if angels had a conversation with you, and told you to build this object, would you do it? (I would immediately call the mental institution.) Then the Doctor and his crew comes along and saves the day.
The Doctor and the Nurse was more interesting. Amy tells the Doctor and Rory they need to stop bickering. The solution? A boys night out. While the boys are bonding, Amy encounters the Silence and she has to fix the problem alone. Meanwhile, the boys are having TARDIS issues. This being said, I found this one more comical than the first one.
The Doctor was as cleverly awesome as always. Obviously.
As my first comic book, I have no experience. But, I thoroughly enjoyed this. Worthy of the 4 stars.
I don't have anywhere else to show my love for Doctor Who, so why not here? MAY I PRESENT TO YOU MY TRIBUTE TO DOCTOR WHO IN GIFS:
April 26, 2018
If I'm not a fan of the artwork, there's not much of a chance that I'll like the graphic novel, either. Part one, "The Hypothetical Gentleman," had illustrations that were very washed-out and bland. It looked a bit like what would happen if I made a picture using pen and watercolors and then left it out in the rain. Needless to say, I was unimpressed. The story was decent, but ended on a cliffhanger that I don't think will be addressed in another issue.
Part two, "The Doctor And The Nurse" featured artwork that did have more detail, but the characters ended up not looking anything like themselves. While reading it I felt disconnected from the characters because I hardly recognized them. The story itself was mildly entertaining, but not enough to make up for everything else.
Part two, "The Doctor And The Nurse" featured artwork that did have more detail, but the characters ended up not looking anything like themselves. While reading it I felt disconnected from the characters because I hardly recognized them. The story itself was mildly entertaining, but not enough to make up for everything else.
March 3, 2017
~2.5 stars~
There were two stories in this graphic novel....The first one I DNFed because of some of the content and some of it was just plain weird--The second one I think was a little better, but definitely not one of my favorites :/
There were two stories in this graphic novel....The first one I DNFed because of some of the content and some of it was just plain weird--The second one I think was a little better, but definitely not one of my favorites :/
April 26, 2017
My first Doctor Who! We own 9 seasons of DW on dvd, and I don't think I've seen one episode all the way through. !! That said, I thought this was entertaining. I'll keep my eye out for more. And okay, okay, I'll watch the series. Gosh!
March 26, 2013
You can find the original review here: http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/03/....
“Something that is a great fun to read for Whovians like myself, but is prevented from becoming a must read by a few key issues.” ~The Founding Fields
Writers: Andy Diggle, Brandon Seifert | Art: Mark Buckingham, Phillip Bond | Publisher: IDW Entertainment
The Doctor is back!
New York Times bestselling writer Andy Diggle joins Eisner Award-winning artist Mark Buckingham as a shadow being emerges from a machine used to view alternate realities, stealing time from those he touches in order to become “real.”
Can the Doctor save the Hypothetical Gentleman’s latest victim?
Also, writer Brandon Seifert and artist Philip Bond collaborate on a story. The Doctor and Rory, on a boy’s night out gone wrong, leave Amy to face the Silence on her own!
Doctor Who is probably one of my favourite TV shows at the moment, falling slightly behind Firefly, The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones in that order, but beating the likes of Sherlock and Supernatural. However, the first volume of the third series of graphic novels published by IDW Entertainment is my first foray into the comics of the Eleventh Doctor, and I was a bit anxious about what to expect. Having requested the title from NetGalley during a period where there was no Doctor Who on Television and after the finale of Amy and Rory in Angels Take Manhattan, I decided that I’d have to put up with my least favourite companion (Amy) of the New Series (All episodes from 2005 onwards) one more time to read a graphic novel featuring the Doctor.
And, well – I have mixed feelings about it. It’s one of those titles that’s not bad, but it’s not good either. The Hypothetical Gentleman is a very meh title. The plot focuses around Amy and Rory in search of a holiday/vacation spot and even sees the return of Christina from Planet of the Dead, a Tenth Doctor Special, ,but unfortunately before that storyline could come to a resolution my review copy seemed to end rather bluntly without any real conclusion.
The Hypothetical Gentleman is the main story here and for me is the more enjoyable one. I would have liked the backup more if it had a proper conclusion, but this reads pretty much like an episode of the TV series, which is what a Doctor Who graphic novel should do. Each volume should be an individual ‘episode’ with a concluding storyline, in my book – and this graphic novel does that element quite well.
Andy Diggle is a veteran comics writer, having written Green Arrow: Year One for DC Comics and is more recently known for his work on the New 52 Action Comics, where he departed the series after just one issue. He even has a character in the TV show Arrow sharing his surname. But this graphic novel didn’t make me have the urge to go out and read more of Diggle’s works immediately like was the case with authors such as Joe Abercrombie and Iain M. Banks, or even in the comics medium, Scott Snyder and Jason Aaron, despite the fact that Green Arrow: Year One has been under my radar for quite some time.
The art in The Hypothetical Gentleman doesn’t help the presentation either and it is clear that there are different styles in this graphic novel which is very noticeable. I’m not a big fan of the different styles myself and neither stood out as being superb and eye-catching, which also let the graphic novel down – as you know, the difficulty of good graphic novels is that they have to have a strong as well as strong artwork, and unfortunately – this graphic novel has neither.
My first outing of a Doctor Who graphic novel has turned out to be a fairly average experience. The storyline turns out to be a bit random, with lots of stuff crammed in and whilst it may have the pace of a recent Moffat stories such as The Wedding of River Song, the finale of Series 6 of the TV show, it lacks the awesomeness factor that that episode boasted. I wasn’t drawn into this graphic novel like the way I was drawn into the TV show, but it was far from the worst comic that I’ve read (That honour goes to Superboy Volume 1 by Scott Lobdell) and it was actually a fairly fun read throughout, and I probably won’t be sticking around for the next one.
VERDICT: 3/5
“Something that is a great fun to read for Whovians like myself, but is prevented from becoming a must read by a few key issues.” ~The Founding Fields
Writers: Andy Diggle, Brandon Seifert | Art: Mark Buckingham, Phillip Bond | Publisher: IDW Entertainment
The Doctor is back!
New York Times bestselling writer Andy Diggle joins Eisner Award-winning artist Mark Buckingham as a shadow being emerges from a machine used to view alternate realities, stealing time from those he touches in order to become “real.”
Can the Doctor save the Hypothetical Gentleman’s latest victim?
Also, writer Brandon Seifert and artist Philip Bond collaborate on a story. The Doctor and Rory, on a boy’s night out gone wrong, leave Amy to face the Silence on her own!
Doctor Who is probably one of my favourite TV shows at the moment, falling slightly behind Firefly, The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones in that order, but beating the likes of Sherlock and Supernatural. However, the first volume of the third series of graphic novels published by IDW Entertainment is my first foray into the comics of the Eleventh Doctor, and I was a bit anxious about what to expect. Having requested the title from NetGalley during a period where there was no Doctor Who on Television and after the finale of Amy and Rory in Angels Take Manhattan, I decided that I’d have to put up with my least favourite companion (Amy) of the New Series (All episodes from 2005 onwards) one more time to read a graphic novel featuring the Doctor.
And, well – I have mixed feelings about it. It’s one of those titles that’s not bad, but it’s not good either. The Hypothetical Gentleman is a very meh title. The plot focuses around Amy and Rory in search of a holiday/vacation spot and even sees the return of Christina from Planet of the Dead, a Tenth Doctor Special, ,but unfortunately before that storyline could come to a resolution my review copy seemed to end rather bluntly without any real conclusion.
The Hypothetical Gentleman is the main story here and for me is the more enjoyable one. I would have liked the backup more if it had a proper conclusion, but this reads pretty much like an episode of the TV series, which is what a Doctor Who graphic novel should do. Each volume should be an individual ‘episode’ with a concluding storyline, in my book – and this graphic novel does that element quite well.
Andy Diggle is a veteran comics writer, having written Green Arrow: Year One for DC Comics and is more recently known for his work on the New 52 Action Comics, where he departed the series after just one issue. He even has a character in the TV show Arrow sharing his surname. But this graphic novel didn’t make me have the urge to go out and read more of Diggle’s works immediately like was the case with authors such as Joe Abercrombie and Iain M. Banks, or even in the comics medium, Scott Snyder and Jason Aaron, despite the fact that Green Arrow: Year One has been under my radar for quite some time.
The art in The Hypothetical Gentleman doesn’t help the presentation either and it is clear that there are different styles in this graphic novel which is very noticeable. I’m not a big fan of the different styles myself and neither stood out as being superb and eye-catching, which also let the graphic novel down – as you know, the difficulty of good graphic novels is that they have to have a strong as well as strong artwork, and unfortunately – this graphic novel has neither.
My first outing of a Doctor Who graphic novel has turned out to be a fairly average experience. The storyline turns out to be a bit random, with lots of stuff crammed in and whilst it may have the pace of a recent Moffat stories such as The Wedding of River Song, the finale of Series 6 of the TV show, it lacks the awesomeness factor that that episode boasted. I wasn’t drawn into this graphic novel like the way I was drawn into the TV show, but it was far from the worst comic that I’ve read (That honour goes to Superboy Volume 1 by Scott Lobdell) and it was actually a fairly fun read throughout, and I probably won’t be sticking around for the next one.
VERDICT: 3/5
February 23, 2014
This collection contains two Doctor Who stories, which are very different from each other.
First is "The Hypothetical Gentleman", a story about a being causing strange goings-on shortly before the opening of the Great Exhibition. It opens with a bizarre and random bit featuring a Nazi time-traveller which seemed randomly shoe-horned in. The story itself is OK but we never get the full truth about what was going on. Doctor Who stories should really have their mysteries solved unless the story demands otherwise (like The Satan Pit two-parter) and here we really should have been given some answers. I really liked the art on this one, it capture a decent likeness of the characters whilst still managing to give the comic book feel.
The second story, entitled "The Doctor and the Nurse" is rather different. It's almost a comedy story and is unlike what we'd ever see on the screen. The tension between Rory and the Doctor in the TARDIS is unbearable so Amy demands they get together to bond. Inevitably they try to skip forward in the TARDIS and end up going all across time and space before they make it back, although they certainly do bond. Amy meanwhile gets caught up in a bizarre historical event which involves an agent of the Silence.
The story just wouldn't work as an episode but as a comic book I think it does work. It's good fun and still has some great Doctor Who moments in it. The cartoony art-style doesn't worry too much about character likenesses but it fits the story perfectly.
Across both the stories I must say that the writers really did a good job at capturing the voices of the characters and putting in some sometimes quite subtle Who references. I also really liked how they dealt with some problems largely ignored in the show itself, like the tension between the Doctor and Rory and the feelings Amy has about losing her daughter. It could have gone very wrong but I think these bits really work here and give us things the TV series just didn't have time for (as far as I can gather these stories are set somewhere in between episodes of Series 6).
Not an essential collection by any means but an enjoyable read for those who liked Series 6 of Doctor Who.
First is "The Hypothetical Gentleman", a story about a being causing strange goings-on shortly before the opening of the Great Exhibition. It opens with a bizarre and random bit featuring a Nazi time-traveller which seemed randomly shoe-horned in. The story itself is OK but we never get the full truth about what was going on. Doctor Who stories should really have their mysteries solved unless the story demands otherwise (like The Satan Pit two-parter) and here we really should have been given some answers. I really liked the art on this one, it capture a decent likeness of the characters whilst still managing to give the comic book feel.
The second story, entitled "The Doctor and the Nurse" is rather different. It's almost a comedy story and is unlike what we'd ever see on the screen. The tension between Rory and the Doctor in the TARDIS is unbearable so Amy demands they get together to bond. Inevitably they try to skip forward in the TARDIS and end up going all across time and space before they make it back, although they certainly do bond. Amy meanwhile gets caught up in a bizarre historical event which involves an agent of the Silence.
The story just wouldn't work as an episode but as a comic book I think it does work. It's good fun and still has some great Doctor Who moments in it. The cartoony art-style doesn't worry too much about character likenesses but it fits the story perfectly.
Across both the stories I must say that the writers really did a good job at capturing the voices of the characters and putting in some sometimes quite subtle Who references. I also really liked how they dealt with some problems largely ignored in the show itself, like the tension between the Doctor and Rory and the feelings Amy has about losing her daughter. It could have gone very wrong but I think these bits really work here and give us things the TV series just didn't have time for (as far as I can gather these stories are set somewhere in between episodes of Series 6).
Not an essential collection by any means but an enjoyable read for those who liked Series 6 of Doctor Who.
January 23, 2013
Dr. Who III Volume 1
Andy Diggle and Mark Buckingham
Diamond Book Distributors
Pub Date: Mar 19 2013
I received a free digital copy from Diamond Book Distributors by requesting on Netgalley.com
I LOVE Doctor who, I am a Whovian and I was thrilled to be able to read this. And it proved to be very doctor who -ish. It was all a bit random, a LOT of random things fixed into it without any meaning, it felt a bit too random in my opinion, they could have cut down of all the things and then make sense out of some.. It was all over the place. Yet, the doctor tends to be all over the place. And some episodes are way better than others, so take it as you like it, eh?
But.....
Did my copy end mid story? The very last page of my copy was inside a story? Is it a glitch? A whole in time and space? What? Fix it, I wanna know what happens!
Favourite quote paraphrased: your whole history with Amy is you turning up years later
November 18, 2013
The Hypothetical Gentleman. A slow start to the new Doctor Who series, not helped by the digression to fight Nazis at the start. The Victorian setting is somewhat interesting, and there's some interesting mystery at the end of the comic, but it's a bit of a slog to get there [6/10].
The Doctor and the Nurse. Contrariwise, the second story it's great. It's funny, it's got Amazing Amy adventures, it's got the Doctor and Rory bonding, and it's got great series continuity with the Silence. What more could you want? It's a darn shame that Brandon Seifert isn't the regular writer for this series! [8/10].
The Doctor and the Nurse. Contrariwise, the second story it's great. It's funny, it's got Amazing Amy adventures, it's got the Doctor and Rory bonding, and it's got great series continuity with the Silence. What more could you want? It's a darn shame that Brandon Seifert isn't the regular writer for this series! [8/10].
February 18, 2024
I have a LOT of buffy comics (which includes angel comics), some saga comics, and nk jemisin's far sector green lantern one off. and this. which I probably won't keep because I don't want to get into owning a bunch of doctor who comics.
this is 11th doctor, matt smith, with amy and rory. there are two different stories with two different artists and writers, the way comic books love to do for some reason. the art is better in the first one, the story is better in the second one. the first one...it's just too rushed for my taste. there's a nazi archeologist straight out of indiana jones and a phoenix egg. the doctor seems to know all about what's going on. he recognizes the nazi, he knows the identity of a corpse, he knows that what the corpse is clutching is a phoenix egg and not a radioactive soccer ball, which is what it looks like, so that's all easy peasy, and then a different storyline with fake mediums who have been hijacked by some being who speaks high gallifreyan and is trying to come into being in this dimension by stealing life energy from people - basically the doctor is trying to find out who is behind it all and meanwhile things get more and more dangerous until amy crudely saves the day. then there's a horror movie style cliffhanger ending which may or may not be addressed in some other comic somewhere, but not in this volume, because the next story is about amy trying to get rory and the doctor to bond. they can't bear to be alone together, which wasn't really my recollection of how they were on the show, and they get into a lot of trouble trying to avoid the bonding with a time jump while amy runs around courageously on her own.
one other thing - there was a part in the first one where they were going through an exhibit and the doctor was like, how marvelous, look at all these treasures from the four corners of the british empire, this won't be matched until they go to space and start the second british empire. I found that quite jarring, that the doctor would be a sort of cheerleader for imperialism - it just stuck out as sort of propaganda, whether intended or thoughtless, with the idea that britain's only greatness lies in colonizing and exploiting other peoples, which is unfortunate to say the least.
it was fine, but it's meant to be part of a series, and I have enough to do tracking all the buffy and angel comics through their different publishers and series and I'm not going to make that investment with doctor who. this year I am putting on a big push to read all the books I own that I haven't read. I basically don't want that number to ever be above 10, and right now and for the last 25 years it's been between 50 and 100. we're in the high 60s now and some of the books have been on my shelf for years, so I am trying to clear them out instead of going to the library and reading stuff that is maybe more enticing than old books I've been looking at for years on my shelf. some of the books on the shelf are big fat nonfiction books and those are going to bog me down, so I'm trying to build momentum by reading some of the newer stuff, novels, poetry, shorter fiction - and this comic book.
this is 11th doctor, matt smith, with amy and rory. there are two different stories with two different artists and writers, the way comic books love to do for some reason. the art is better in the first one, the story is better in the second one. the first one...it's just too rushed for my taste. there's a nazi archeologist straight out of indiana jones and a phoenix egg. the doctor seems to know all about what's going on. he recognizes the nazi, he knows the identity of a corpse, he knows that what the corpse is clutching is a phoenix egg and not a radioactive soccer ball, which is what it looks like, so that's all easy peasy, and then a different storyline with fake mediums who have been hijacked by some being who speaks high gallifreyan and is trying to come into being in this dimension by stealing life energy from people - basically the doctor is trying to find out who is behind it all and meanwhile things get more and more dangerous until amy crudely saves the day. then there's a horror movie style cliffhanger ending which may or may not be addressed in some other comic somewhere, but not in this volume, because the next story is about amy trying to get rory and the doctor to bond. they can't bear to be alone together, which wasn't really my recollection of how they were on the show, and they get into a lot of trouble trying to avoid the bonding with a time jump while amy runs around courageously on her own.
one other thing - there was a part in the first one where they were going through an exhibit and the doctor was like, how marvelous, look at all these treasures from the four corners of the british empire, this won't be matched until they go to space and start the second british empire. I found that quite jarring, that the doctor would be a sort of cheerleader for imperialism - it just stuck out as sort of propaganda, whether intended or thoughtless, with the idea that britain's only greatness lies in colonizing and exploiting other peoples, which is unfortunate to say the least.
it was fine, but it's meant to be part of a series, and I have enough to do tracking all the buffy and angel comics through their different publishers and series and I'm not going to make that investment with doctor who. this year I am putting on a big push to read all the books I own that I haven't read. I basically don't want that number to ever be above 10, and right now and for the last 25 years it's been between 50 and 100. we're in the high 60s now and some of the books have been on my shelf for years, so I am trying to clear them out instead of going to the library and reading stuff that is maybe more enticing than old books I've been looking at for years on my shelf. some of the books on the shelf are big fat nonfiction books and those are going to bog me down, so I'm trying to build momentum by reading some of the newer stuff, novels, poetry, shorter fiction - and this comic book.
January 25, 2025
https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-hypothetical-gentleman-by-andy-diggle-mark-buckingham-brandon-seifert-and-philip-bond/
Two completely different stories in a single album here, both featuring the Eleventh Doctor with Amy and Rory, both pretty firmly tied into the sequence of events in the TV series.
“The Hypothetical Gentleman”, by Andy Diggle with excellent art by Mark Buckingham, starts with a somewhat disconnected section fighting Nazis in London in 1936, and then takes the team to 1851 and a time-stealing monster. I found the pacing of squeezing two stories into the space for one a bit odd, but the 1851 bit of the story worked perfectly well as Doctor Who.
The second half, “The Doctor and the Nurse”, is written by Brandon Seifert with art by Philip Bond. I didn’t warm to Bond’s art which seemed to me cartoonish and not really looking like the characters. The story is a comedy about the Doctor and Rory having some guy time together, while Amy finds herself dealing solo with the Silents infiltrating the TARDIS. Comedy Who can go horribly wrong, but this one sticks the landing.
Two completely different stories in a single album here, both featuring the Eleventh Doctor with Amy and Rory, both pretty firmly tied into the sequence of events in the TV series.
“The Hypothetical Gentleman”, by Andy Diggle with excellent art by Mark Buckingham, starts with a somewhat disconnected section fighting Nazis in London in 1936, and then takes the team to 1851 and a time-stealing monster. I found the pacing of squeezing two stories into the space for one a bit odd, but the 1851 bit of the story worked perfectly well as Doctor Who.
The second half, “The Doctor and the Nurse”, is written by Brandon Seifert with art by Philip Bond. I didn’t warm to Bond’s art which seemed to me cartoonish and not really looking like the characters. The story is a comedy about the Doctor and Rory having some guy time together, while Amy finds herself dealing solo with the Silents infiltrating the TARDIS. Comedy Who can go horribly wrong, but this one sticks the landing.
February 14, 2019
Doctor Who. Volume 1, The hypothetical gentleman
Doctor Who: Series III #1
“I reeeeally wouldn’t touch it [weapon] if I were you. You see, your Nazi mythology got it wrong – along with everything else.”
Doctor Who: Series III #2
“Her body convulsed as if POSSESSED … and drawing! Such drawings. BLUEPRINTS for some great machine..”
Doctor Who: Series III #3 - The Doctor and the Nurse
“Chronomagnetic pulse!”
“What, like an Electromagnetic pulse, for frying electronics - only with ‘Chronos’? What’s THAT do?”
“It fries TIME MACHINES!”
Doctor Who: Series III #4
“Mock us all you want. Interfere with a FIXED EVENT – and all of SPACE AND TIME WILL COLLAPSE. What happens TODAY is what was ALWAYS going to happen today” – some agent of The Silence
Doctor Who: Series III #1
“I reeeeally wouldn’t touch it [weapon] if I were you. You see, your Nazi mythology got it wrong – along with everything else.”
Doctor Who: Series III #2
“Her body convulsed as if POSSESSED … and drawing! Such drawings. BLUEPRINTS for some great machine..”
Doctor Who: Series III #3 - The Doctor and the Nurse
“Chronomagnetic pulse!”
“What, like an Electromagnetic pulse, for frying electronics - only with ‘Chronos’? What’s THAT do?”
“It fries TIME MACHINES!”
Doctor Who: Series III #4
“Mock us all you want. Interfere with a FIXED EVENT – and all of SPACE AND TIME WILL COLLAPSE. What happens TODAY is what was ALWAYS going to happen today” – some agent of The Silence
September 14, 2024
I figured I'd try my hand at some of the older IDK publications and with respect I can kind of see why we moved onto publishing through Titan. It's not a bad story or bad drawings, however they aren't exactly correct either if that makes sense. It's hard to be exact in drawing comic versions of real life actors but the second story in particular doesn't resemble any of the trio. As muted and stylized as the first story was at least it was pretty accurate character design and characterization.
June 2, 2013
When my daughter and I got hooked on the Doctor last winter, we had years of TV episodes to catch up on. We’re still not quite there, but caught up enough that the space between episodes feels really long. So when I discovered IDW publishes a monthly DOCTOR WHO comic, I grabbed the first issue for her without hesitation. That was issue #5. We had missed the first 4 issues.
Luckily, not long after I started collecting the comics for her--it really was for her, I only just recently, 5 months later, read them myself--I found the collected edition of those missing first 4 issues, DOCTOR WHO: The Hypothetical Gentleman.
This was a really good collection, a very Doctor Whovian story, with some really impressive art.
The story takes place in London 1851, with Emily and Charles. Emily works as a medium, only she doesn’t really commune with spirits. Instead, she is able to read a person’s past and future and use that information to tell them what they want to hear. Then one day she’s stricken by a presence she thinks is an angel and, using angelic knowledge, drafts plans for a machine that Charles is then able to build. Finding themselves out of money and in danger of winding up on the streets, they sell the machine to a museum, which is where the Doctor and the Ponds come in.
The Doctor decides to take Amy and Rory on a trip to see The Great Exhibit at The Crystal Palace. There they discover this mysterious machine is affecting those who come in contact with it, freezing them in time. The Doctor sets out to solve the mystery and discovers it wasn’t an angel giving this information to Emily but an other-dimensional being who is stealing time from people in this dimension in order to cross over. And since the Tardis is one big time-battery, the “hypothetical gentleman” sets his sights on her.
This was a very good story and typical Doctor Who, however my one and only problem was it was too short. Originally spanning 4 monthly issues is fine, but when read all at once, it takes less time to get through this story than a typical episode of the TV series, and this compression of story-time shows. It felt at times as if we were skipping over things like character development, plot points and logical revelations in order to make sure we’d reached a satisfactory conclusion by the end of the allotted pages. I know the Doctor is one for making leaps in his thinking to get from point A to point D sometimes, but this was stretching things a bit thin for me.
Still, the characterization was on-point for the Doctor and the Ponds, even down to Amy’s frantic scream in the middle of an action sequence. The Doctor’s dialogue didn’t come across as too flippant or jokey, just the right amount of eleventh Doctor in there. Andy Diggle can definitely write a good Doctor Who story.
Mark Buckingham provided the art and while I wasn’t sold on the first couple of pages as it felt a little rustic and crude, once the story started moving, Buckingham began to shine. The bottom left panel on page 23 is spot-on Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor.
The collection is backed with another story, “The Doctor and the Nurse” by Brandon Seifert with art by Philip Bond and Ilias Kyriazis, originally published in DOCTOR WHO SPECIAL 2012. In this one, Amy decides the Doctor and Rory haven’t had enough bonding time and they need a boys’ night out, so they go to London 1814. She orders them to have a few drinks and get to know each other better while she’s out seeing the sights. The Doctor and Rory, not keen on the idea of having to sit and bond for several hours, decide to jump ahead in time a few hours and meet up with Amy again and bypass the entire bonding thing.
But, as usual, things go awry and they wind up in 1940 instead, saving Ian Fleming (who goes on to base James Bond on Rory Williams) during the Blitz before trying again to get back to 1841 and Amy. Meanwhile, Amy spots a very curious sight: a old man wearing an eye drive heading into a brewery moments before the brewery explodes, causing he great beer flood of 1841. The Doctor and Rory are further delayed when the Tardis basically runs out of gas, but eventually everyone reunites just in time.
This was another good Doctor story, but I don’t think Seifert has quite the grasp of Eleventh Doctor characterization that Diggle does. The art was also lacking in comparison to Buckingham’s portrayals in the first story. That’s not to say it was bad art, it just didn’t capture the characters quite like the other story. In fact, it looked more like an issue of a DOCTOR WHO: THE ANIMATED SERIES comic, if such a thing existed.
All in all, this was a good trade paperback collection and I definitely think it was worth the money. Then again, I could have thought it sucked and as long as my daughter liked it, it was worth the money. However, I did enjoy it and it only made me more eager to read the rest of the monthly issues she had collected. While it’s only a temporary substitute for the Doctor Who TV series, IDW always turns out quality work--what I’ve read of their output, that is--and the Doctor Who comics are no exception. “The Hypothetical Gentleman” is top quality work and is sure to please any Whovian.
Luckily, not long after I started collecting the comics for her--it really was for her, I only just recently, 5 months later, read them myself--I found the collected edition of those missing first 4 issues, DOCTOR WHO: The Hypothetical Gentleman.
This was a really good collection, a very Doctor Whovian story, with some really impressive art.
The story takes place in London 1851, with Emily and Charles. Emily works as a medium, only she doesn’t really commune with spirits. Instead, she is able to read a person’s past and future and use that information to tell them what they want to hear. Then one day she’s stricken by a presence she thinks is an angel and, using angelic knowledge, drafts plans for a machine that Charles is then able to build. Finding themselves out of money and in danger of winding up on the streets, they sell the machine to a museum, which is where the Doctor and the Ponds come in.
The Doctor decides to take Amy and Rory on a trip to see The Great Exhibit at The Crystal Palace. There they discover this mysterious machine is affecting those who come in contact with it, freezing them in time. The Doctor sets out to solve the mystery and discovers it wasn’t an angel giving this information to Emily but an other-dimensional being who is stealing time from people in this dimension in order to cross over. And since the Tardis is one big time-battery, the “hypothetical gentleman” sets his sights on her.
This was a very good story and typical Doctor Who, however my one and only problem was it was too short. Originally spanning 4 monthly issues is fine, but when read all at once, it takes less time to get through this story than a typical episode of the TV series, and this compression of story-time shows. It felt at times as if we were skipping over things like character development, plot points and logical revelations in order to make sure we’d reached a satisfactory conclusion by the end of the allotted pages. I know the Doctor is one for making leaps in his thinking to get from point A to point D sometimes, but this was stretching things a bit thin for me.
Still, the characterization was on-point for the Doctor and the Ponds, even down to Amy’s frantic scream in the middle of an action sequence. The Doctor’s dialogue didn’t come across as too flippant or jokey, just the right amount of eleventh Doctor in there. Andy Diggle can definitely write a good Doctor Who story.
Mark Buckingham provided the art and while I wasn’t sold on the first couple of pages as it felt a little rustic and crude, once the story started moving, Buckingham began to shine. The bottom left panel on page 23 is spot-on Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor.
The collection is backed with another story, “The Doctor and the Nurse” by Brandon Seifert with art by Philip Bond and Ilias Kyriazis, originally published in DOCTOR WHO SPECIAL 2012. In this one, Amy decides the Doctor and Rory haven’t had enough bonding time and they need a boys’ night out, so they go to London 1814. She orders them to have a few drinks and get to know each other better while she’s out seeing the sights. The Doctor and Rory, not keen on the idea of having to sit and bond for several hours, decide to jump ahead in time a few hours and meet up with Amy again and bypass the entire bonding thing.
But, as usual, things go awry and they wind up in 1940 instead, saving Ian Fleming (who goes on to base James Bond on Rory Williams) during the Blitz before trying again to get back to 1841 and Amy. Meanwhile, Amy spots a very curious sight: a old man wearing an eye drive heading into a brewery moments before the brewery explodes, causing he great beer flood of 1841. The Doctor and Rory are further delayed when the Tardis basically runs out of gas, but eventually everyone reunites just in time.
This was another good Doctor story, but I don’t think Seifert has quite the grasp of Eleventh Doctor characterization that Diggle does. The art was also lacking in comparison to Buckingham’s portrayals in the first story. That’s not to say it was bad art, it just didn’t capture the characters quite like the other story. In fact, it looked more like an issue of a DOCTOR WHO: THE ANIMATED SERIES comic, if such a thing existed.
All in all, this was a good trade paperback collection and I definitely think it was worth the money. Then again, I could have thought it sucked and as long as my daughter liked it, it was worth the money. However, I did enjoy it and it only made me more eager to read the rest of the monthly issues she had collected. While it’s only a temporary substitute for the Doctor Who TV series, IDW always turns out quality work--what I’ve read of their output, that is--and the Doctor Who comics are no exception. “The Hypothetical Gentleman” is top quality work and is sure to please any Whovian.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 11, 2025
Since family members are fans, I thought I'd try a graphic novel to see if Dr. Who would grab me any more in this format, but was disappointed. And the Volume 1 on the cover was misleading, since it doesn't make sense unless you know the characters and themes....
August 4, 2017
A nice graphic novel with my one of my favorite Doctor's
August 11, 2018
The art in the two stories is totally different but great in each case. Two fun and funny Doctor Who stories.
March 11, 2019
Was not really a fan of this one...
February 9, 2020
I enjoyed reading this, but I must confess that a week later I can't remember a thing about it.
Library copy.
Library copy.
January 2, 2017
This book has two separate stories in it with two different creative teams.
The first story, "The Hypothetical Gentleman" is written by Andy Diggle with the art by Mark Bucking ham, and the art is very good. Buckingham capture Matt Smith beautifully. The story does include some discussion of some of the more troubling events for Amy and Rory dealing with the true identity of her daughter and not being able to raise her. It's not discussed much, but I appreciate it being brought up. The story itself, involving the Doctor fighting an invader from another dimension in Victorian London felt just very bog standard for a Doctor Who story. Nothing really special, though the twist the end leaves open the possibility that it might have consequences for other stories.
The second tale, "The Doctor and Nurse," has Amy sending the Doctor and Rory on a boys night out. They decide to avoid that fate by time travelling and true hilarity ensues as they can't get back to Amy and Amy has to battle the Silence on her own. This is a very funny and enjoyable story even though much of what it has about the Silence isn't quite accurate, though this was early in their development. Overall, this really pleasant and fun story makes the entire book worth buying.
The first story, "The Hypothetical Gentleman" is written by Andy Diggle with the art by Mark Bucking ham, and the art is very good. Buckingham capture Matt Smith beautifully. The story does include some discussion of some of the more troubling events for Amy and Rory dealing with the true identity of her daughter and not being able to raise her. It's not discussed much, but I appreciate it being brought up. The story itself, involving the Doctor fighting an invader from another dimension in Victorian London felt just very bog standard for a Doctor Who story. Nothing really special, though the twist the end leaves open the possibility that it might have consequences for other stories.
The second tale, "The Doctor and Nurse," has Amy sending the Doctor and Rory on a boys night out. They decide to avoid that fate by time travelling and true hilarity ensues as they can't get back to Amy and Amy has to battle the Silence on her own. This is a very funny and enjoyable story even though much of what it has about the Silence isn't quite accurate, though this was early in their development. Overall, this really pleasant and fun story makes the entire book worth buying.
March 3, 2017
Reading Challenge (Advanced) #7 - with an eccentric character.
May 23, 2017
What a lovely start of a new series in the Doctor Who Comic Series.
This book contains 2 stories. 'The Hypothetical Gentleman' and 'The Doctor and the Nurse'. Two stories both very interesting, with both very different themes. So, let's review them!
The Hypothetical Gentleman was a nice story with a bit of a dark ending. It starts with a bit of background story of 2 people who will have their role for the plot, and the Doctor who meets them at the perfect timing. I first thought the 'Hypothetical Gentleman' was a reference to the Doctor himself, but I couldn't be more wrong. The antagonist was (and still is) a total mystery, which a hoped to get some more details on. A man who feeds himself with time energy, and has the ability to stop people in a specific moment is pretty awesome. But at the end of the story, you know you haven't seen the last of him.
The Doctor and the Nurse was another title I got completely wrong. When I thought it would be about the Doctor meeting a nurse and maybe fall in love with her, it was actually a reference to Rory. We see a side of the Doctor and Rory which isn't explored a lot in the series. The Doctor and Rory don't get along well, and Amy is sick and tired of their discussions. I was pleasantly suprised to see a special historic moment which almost never gets mentioned anywhere else. I won't spoil which one, but I can tell you it's a fixed moment in time... Or not completely?
The first story showed us things we are used to from the series (and maybe a bit tired of?) like: Rory 'dying', Rory who wants to do plan something with his wife but can't because the Doctor comes with a whole different idea,...
While the second story showed us things we barely saw in the series, like: Rory and the Doctor not liking each other at all, Amy demanding them to spend time together without her,...
I hope the next volumes will be as good and interesting as this one was.
A recommendation for every Whovian!
This book contains 2 stories. 'The Hypothetical Gentleman' and 'The Doctor and the Nurse'. Two stories both very interesting, with both very different themes. So, let's review them!
The Hypothetical Gentleman was a nice story with a bit of a dark ending. It starts with a bit of background story of 2 people who will have their role for the plot, and the Doctor who meets them at the perfect timing. I first thought the 'Hypothetical Gentleman' was a reference to the Doctor himself, but I couldn't be more wrong. The antagonist was (and still is) a total mystery, which a hoped to get some more details on. A man who feeds himself with time energy, and has the ability to stop people in a specific moment is pretty awesome. But at the end of the story, you know you haven't seen the last of him.
The Doctor and the Nurse was another title I got completely wrong. When I thought it would be about the Doctor meeting a nurse and maybe fall in love with her, it was actually a reference to Rory. We see a side of the Doctor and Rory which isn't explored a lot in the series. The Doctor and Rory don't get along well, and Amy is sick and tired of their discussions. I was pleasantly suprised to see a special historic moment which almost never gets mentioned anywhere else. I won't spoil which one, but I can tell you it's a fixed moment in time... Or not completely?
The first story showed us things we are used to from the series (and maybe a bit tired of?) like: Rory 'dying', Rory who wants to do plan something with his wife but can't because the Doctor comes with a whole different idea,...
While the second story showed us things we barely saw in the series, like: Rory and the Doctor not liking each other at all, Amy demanding them to spend time together without her,...
I hope the next volumes will be as good and interesting as this one was.
A recommendation for every Whovian!
January 29, 2013
Ooh, Doctor Who in comic book format! I had to check this one out. I don't really keep up with comics, though I love them.
The story definitely fits in the Whovian universe. If someone who did not know Doctor Who picked up this book and read, or even skimmed it, they'd definitely get a fair representation of what the doctor and his companions are all about. There's plenty of time travel for a book of its size. An anniversary vacation gone awry. Shrunken cities. Animals. Beer. Cybermen. Amy's boys avoiding a forced boys night out. A fuel shortage. In other words a typical day in the life of the doctor.
Amy and Rory really just wanted a normal'ish vacation. What they got was a wrong turn in space and time. A couple who appear to be run of the mill charlatans scamming people into believing they're contacting the dead when really something far more sinister is happening. By the time our trio get out of there you actually find yourself hoping, for their sake, that Amy and Rory really will get a nice vacation but this is the tardis crew, always running from one misadventure to another. 1800s London is next, the site of the great beer flood - the perfect place for the boys to bond over a drink, so says Amy. This leaves us with room for two adventures as the crew is split up as Amy is not going to aid in the male bonding.
The multiple styles of art from story to story can be a bit jarring. The dialog, while fairly consistent with the show, can occasionally feel just a little off. Overall though, a solid Doctor Who story, especially good as filler during the long breaks in the television series.
* Disclaimer: I received this book at no cost in order to review it. I offer no guarantees of a positive review, though I only request books that I think I’ll like so as not to waste my time.
The story definitely fits in the Whovian universe. If someone who did not know Doctor Who picked up this book and read, or even skimmed it, they'd definitely get a fair representation of what the doctor and his companions are all about. There's plenty of time travel for a book of its size. An anniversary vacation gone awry. Shrunken cities. Animals. Beer. Cybermen. Amy's boys avoiding a forced boys night out. A fuel shortage. In other words a typical day in the life of the doctor.
Amy and Rory really just wanted a normal'ish vacation. What they got was a wrong turn in space and time. A couple who appear to be run of the mill charlatans scamming people into believing they're contacting the dead when really something far more sinister is happening. By the time our trio get out of there you actually find yourself hoping, for their sake, that Amy and Rory really will get a nice vacation but this is the tardis crew, always running from one misadventure to another. 1800s London is next, the site of the great beer flood - the perfect place for the boys to bond over a drink, so says Amy. This leaves us with room for two adventures as the crew is split up as Amy is not going to aid in the male bonding.
The multiple styles of art from story to story can be a bit jarring. The dialog, while fairly consistent with the show, can occasionally feel just a little off. Overall though, a solid Doctor Who story, especially good as filler during the long breaks in the television series.
* Disclaimer: I received this book at no cost in order to review it. I offer no guarantees of a positive review, though I only request books that I think I’ll like so as not to waste my time.
March 19, 2013
*Vworp vworp* This is my first foray into the world of Doctor Who graphic novels and I have to say I’m just okay with it. It’s still fun to read and it’s great seeing the Doctor during the long breaks that Moffat and the BBC force us to endure, but like with episodes this one is only okay.
There are actually different art styles in this and the difference is very noticeable, and while neither really bothered me there was something off about each of them that kept me from enjoying it. Once is more dynamic and serious and the other is very…eleven (for those unfamiliar with the reference, it’s kind of goofy and awkward). Then of course comes the stories themselves, which are fun but a bit forgettable.
Amy and Rory are ever in search of their vacation spot and of course the Doctor doesn’t seem to quite get it right, leading to trouble and fun. We even get to see Lady Christina again, unfortunately it would seem my review copy ended directly in the middle of that story and I didn’t get to read the conclusion. I think my favorite story in this one is the main story, Hypothetical Gentlemen, in which the Doctor take Rory and Amy to see the Crystal Palace in Hyde Park and finds some trouble (of course!). The conversations is pretty consistent with the characters we know and love from the show, but there were moments where it seemed a tad off and just didn’t fit.
I think that it’s worth the read if you are dying for more Doctor Who during the off-season or if you simply must own all the Doctor Who stuff you can get, but I didn’t see this one as being something absolutely necessary.
I received this from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
There are actually different art styles in this and the difference is very noticeable, and while neither really bothered me there was something off about each of them that kept me from enjoying it. Once is more dynamic and serious and the other is very…eleven (for those unfamiliar with the reference, it’s kind of goofy and awkward). Then of course comes the stories themselves, which are fun but a bit forgettable.
Amy and Rory are ever in search of their vacation spot and of course the Doctor doesn’t seem to quite get it right, leading to trouble and fun. We even get to see Lady Christina again, unfortunately it would seem my review copy ended directly in the middle of that story and I didn’t get to read the conclusion. I think my favorite story in this one is the main story, Hypothetical Gentlemen, in which the Doctor take Rory and Amy to see the Crystal Palace in Hyde Park and finds some trouble (of course!). The conversations is pretty consistent with the characters we know and love from the show, but there were moments where it seemed a tad off and just didn’t fit.
I think that it’s worth the read if you are dying for more Doctor Who during the off-season or if you simply must own all the Doctor Who stuff you can get, but I didn’t see this one as being something absolutely necessary.
I received this from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
September 23, 2013
I thought I was downloading Doctor Who Series 1: Winter's Dawn, Season's End from Netgalley, but the book that downloaded was Doctor Who Series 3 Volume 1: THE HYPOTHETICAL GENTLEMAN. No problem. It was just the eleventh Doctor instead of the tenth, and a partial comic book season instead of a full one.
THE HYPOTHETICAL GENTLEMAN contains two stories. The first is the eponymous "The Hypothetical Gentleman," wherein the TARDIS takes the Doctor, Amy, and Rory to Victorian times. The story involves con artists, a machine to the other side, and a few strange turns. It's fairly similar to an episode of the series. I wasn't a huge fan of Mark Buckingham's art. He's a fine comics illustrator, but he just seemed to be trying to hard to match the appearance of the actors. He did fine with the Doctor and Amy, but his Amy was never quite right. And all the close-ups of the Doctor felt similar, instead of offering distinct emotion.
"The Nurse and the Doctor" involves a forced guys' night out, which turns into quite the adventure through time. Meanwhile, Amy gets stuck in the Great Beer Flood. I liked that Philip Bond went with a more cartoon-inspired style, like something from Young Justice. It wasn't my favorite look, but I wasn't distracted by it. This is a fairly lightweight story, a little mini-adventure that would never make it to the screen. It was fun to visit the characters again, but nothing overly exciting.
All in all, this graphic novel will entertain fans between seasons, but certainly doesn't stand on its own. Even for fans, it isn't essential reading. I recommend just checking it out from the library if you're interested in it.
THE HYPOTHETICAL GENTLEMAN contains two stories. The first is the eponymous "The Hypothetical Gentleman," wherein the TARDIS takes the Doctor, Amy, and Rory to Victorian times. The story involves con artists, a machine to the other side, and a few strange turns. It's fairly similar to an episode of the series. I wasn't a huge fan of Mark Buckingham's art. He's a fine comics illustrator, but he just seemed to be trying to hard to match the appearance of the actors. He did fine with the Doctor and Amy, but his Amy was never quite right. And all the close-ups of the Doctor felt similar, instead of offering distinct emotion.
"The Nurse and the Doctor" involves a forced guys' night out, which turns into quite the adventure through time. Meanwhile, Amy gets stuck in the Great Beer Flood. I liked that Philip Bond went with a more cartoon-inspired style, like something from Young Justice. It wasn't my favorite look, but I wasn't distracted by it. This is a fairly lightweight story, a little mini-adventure that would never make it to the screen. It was fun to visit the characters again, but nothing overly exciting.
All in all, this graphic novel will entertain fans between seasons, but certainly doesn't stand on its own. Even for fans, it isn't essential reading. I recommend just checking it out from the library if you're interested in it.
August 1, 2013
Best Bits: I am a total Whovian, aka I love Doctor Who. So, when I had the chance to read a comic featuring the newest doctor and his companions I was super excited. I really enjoyed getting to see two different artists and two different stories. It gave each one a fresh feel, and just like each episode is written by various people, this felt like each illustrator was getting their chance to put their spin on this amazing series. The first story, Winter's Dawn, ends with a big of a cliffhanger, so I'm hoping that it will be resolved during a follow-up comic. The second takes place during the London Beer Flood (this really happened). What I loved about both is that they feel like they could be episodes that never made it to production. I can just imagine how they would be acted, scene transitions, and can almost imagine the character's voices in my head. Plus, I love Rory. I know that I'm going to enjoy any stories with him in it, especially if he's supposed to be bonding with the doctor.
Nit Picks: When I saw this on Netgalley it was marketed as a comic featuring Ten (the Tenth Doctor, portrayed by David Tennant; my favorite doctor). It was a tad confusing, but I can't hold that against the two comics here, which I found immensely entertaining. There are also some points during The Hypothetical Gentleman where the characters do lose become less recognizable, which for some may be a bit jarring. Still, if you love the Doctor, I say grab this story and prepare to be entertained.
Nit Picks: When I saw this on Netgalley it was marketed as a comic featuring Ten (the Tenth Doctor, portrayed by David Tennant; my favorite doctor). It was a tad confusing, but I can't hold that against the two comics here, which I found immensely entertaining. There are also some points during The Hypothetical Gentleman where the characters do lose become less recognizable, which for some may be a bit jarring. Still, if you love the Doctor, I say grab this story and prepare to be entertained.
March 24, 2013
Last year my family and I had the pleasure of discovering Doctor Who for the first time. It was love at first sight with the whole family. Now as I impatiently await the next new episode, I find myself drawn to books based on the show. So needless to say this graphic novel held great appeal to me.
What I really liked about this book:
It has the Ponds in it! They are two of my favorite companions of all time. I loved seeing them back in action with The Doctor. I think the author did a good job with keeping up with the characterization and personalities of all the characters. The story-lines are okay. They're not nearly as complex and detailed as other stories that I have read, but they're enjoyable all the same.
What I didn't really like:
The artwork. I thought is was just okay. There were times that the characters looked expressionless. In one part Amy was irritated, but she had the same look on her face when she wasn't. I think one of the most important attributes of graphic novels is to be able to depict the characters emotions in the art frames. I've not read many graphic novels, but the ones I have read seemed to have more details to the pictures. It's not awful, but it could have been better.
Overall, I did enjoy it. It got me a quick Doctor Who fix while I'm waiting for the second half of season 7.
Read more at http://www.2readornot2read.com/2013/0...
What I really liked about this book:
It has the Ponds in it! They are two of my favorite companions of all time. I loved seeing them back in action with The Doctor. I think the author did a good job with keeping up with the characterization and personalities of all the characters. The story-lines are okay. They're not nearly as complex and detailed as other stories that I have read, but they're enjoyable all the same.
What I didn't really like:
The artwork. I thought is was just okay. There were times that the characters looked expressionless. In one part Amy was irritated, but she had the same look on her face when she wasn't. I think one of the most important attributes of graphic novels is to be able to depict the characters emotions in the art frames. I've not read many graphic novels, but the ones I have read seemed to have more details to the pictures. It's not awful, but it could have been better.
Overall, I did enjoy it. It got me a quick Doctor Who fix while I'm waiting for the second half of season 7.
Read more at http://www.2readornot2read.com/2013/0...
February 19, 2014
Okay so this could have been so much better! The first story, “The Hypothetical Gentleman” felt completely unfinished* and the second story, “The Doctor and The Nurse” was just meh, it went for the comical route over the science fiction awesome adventure route. Both stories suffered from some pretty terrible artwork.
The first story was turning out to be amazingly awesome and then it ended VERY abruptly with no resolution whatsoever. It was like the writer didn’t know where they were going, got lost, and just gave up.
The second story was very cartoonish in both plot and appearance, it didn’t really work for me, something was missing it just came off like cheesy fanfiction.
*2/18/14
The "Hypothetical Gentleman storyline is completely ignored in the second volume and then randomly returns in Doctor Who Series 3 Volume 3: Sky Jacks
The first story was turning out to be amazingly awesome and then it ended VERY abruptly with no resolution whatsoever. It was like the writer didn’t know where they were going, got lost, and just gave up.
The second story was very cartoonish in both plot and appearance, it didn’t really work for me, something was missing it just came off like cheesy fanfiction.
*2/18/14
The "Hypothetical Gentleman storyline is completely ignored in the second volume and then randomly returns in Doctor Who Series 3 Volume 3: Sky Jacks
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