Hogan Reviews

So two stories ago we saw the (re)introduction of Kroton The Cyberman, then the previous story we resumed following The Doctor and Izzy, so now it’s only natural that our next story sees the two come together! The Company of Thieves is more of a light-hearted affair, which given the story that’s about to come next, only makes sense! Is it good though, or does it exist purely to set up something greater? Let’s find out!

We re-join The Doctor and Izzy on their travels as they arrive in 17^th Century Japan, so expect samurai swords, constant referring to one’s sense of honour and … a non-copyright version of Godzilla and Astro Boy? Yes, it’s quite the odd story, but more importantly, it sets up a new major character for his key appearance in the big story of this run. So… let’s take a look!

We quickly make a detour from the travels of The Doctor and Izzy as the next story in this run is “Unnatural Born Killers”, but in order to understand THAT story we have to look at two far older backup strips called “Throwback: The Soul of a Cyberman” and “Ship of Fools” (thankfully included in this graphic novel!) as all three stories tell the tale of Kroton the Cyberman, a member of the Cyber Race who regains his humanity and searches for friends and meaning, his original memories lost. Interested? Read on! … Not interested? Skip it, but you’ll be wondering who the hell Kroton is in a few stories time…

We return to the Eighth Doctor DWM comic strips for a run that will cap-off the black and white comic era, and do so with a bang! First we get a story that is most infamous for bringing Dr. Grace Holloway back from the TV Movie, something most entities, including the likes of Big Finish, haven’t been able to do (due to the character’s mixed ownership). The Fallen also introduces something far more significant, but I’ll get to that in the spoiler bit…