A Crisis In Various Timelines – Advance Review Of Doctor Who: Lost Dimensions/Alpha

It’s all gone a bit Crisis on Infinite Earths for the Doctor in this jump-on one-shot heralding a huge multi-Doctor team-up from Titan Comics. A swirling, devouring white hole seems to be destroying everything in its wake, traveling through time and space as Doctors past and present, as well as a star-studded cast of well known faces from both the TV and the expanded universe of the comics, succumb to its powers.
And, along the way, the Doctor’s Daughter drops in to illuminate current Doctor, the Thirteenth, to her concerns, dressed in a very cool looking Gallifrey-inspired spacesuit. It’s a great look merging Gallifrey designs with super-suit aesthetics to create a very memorable, dare I say ‘iconic’ look for her. I hope it sticks around for a while.

It’s an issue aimed at kickstarting an 8 part story and so it was never going to reveal too much other than the universe-shattering power The Doctor and friends have to face down this time round. But, as a who’s-who of Doctor Who characters, it’s an issue that Whovians will love, cramming in as many previous incarnations of the Time Lord as was possible but still allowing the script, by George Mann and Cavan Scott, to breath.
It’s a very satisfying read with some great artwork provided by Rachel Scott, who nails the varied characters’ likenesses but also their mannerisms too, bringing them alive on the page. And, given the plethora of characters gracing this issue’s pages, that’s a remarkable accomplishment from Stott.

The Thirteenth Doctor is given the main stage in this first issue, although as this story progresses in the varied titles Titan Comics are currently producing, different Doctors will have to deal with this threat in their own fashion. For now though, the danger is clear and present with UNIT almost immediately at the scene when The Doctor’s Daughter crash lands into Bristol University. By the end of this issue, the mindless, all-consuming white hole is not necessarily what we think it is either. The last page will tell you more if you chose to pick it up this week on its release.

And, with it being only an 8 part cross-over, it won’t break the bank should you wish to invest in this run, unlike other summer events from bigger companies. It also makes it a nifty size to eventually collect in two decent sized trade paperbacks too, if you’d rather.
For me though, the excitement is the initial comic book release date. And, after reading this promising first issue, I won’t be able to wait several months for the trades to materialise. Without my own TARDIS, I’m going to need to do this the old fashioned way and travel to my local comic book store this Wednesday.
Doctor Who: Lost Dimensions/Alpha is out this Wednesday the 30th of August priced $3.99.