A collection of old and more modern stories, the Doctor Who 100 Page Spectacular does exactly what it says on the tin: 100 pages of Doctor Who action.

The official description from IDW:

Thrill to these classic Doctor Who tales with a focus on the CYBERMEN, the villains from the current crossover with Star Trek: The Next Generation! Includes the quintessential tales “Junkyard Demon,” “The World Shapers,” “Genesis,” “Revelation!” and much, much more!

The easiest way to review this is to simply look at each story individually. The first story, Junkyard Demon, originally printed in 1981-1982, follows the fourth Doctor. A surprisngly deep story, the plot is interesting enough, showing some of the more unusual science fiction concepts in Doctor Who. Of course, it may seem dated now, but it all adds to the charm.

Moving on, Autopia is from 2009, following the tenth Doctor. The story touches upon familiar elements of the modern TV show, as well as the concept of sentience and free thought. Despite being wrapped up far too quickly, it is none the less a quirky and engaging story.

The third story, The World Shapers, features the sixth Doctor. Its an interesting concept, similar to Junkyard Demon. With a fair amount of action and suspense, this is one of the better stories, if only for the exciting cliff hanger at the end; its unforunate that, as a assorted collection, Doctor Who 100 Page Spectacular never touches upon the plot that The World Shapers hints at.

Moving on, Space Squid follows the current, eleventh regernation of the Doctor. A quirky romp, this story has some hard concepts to believe (although if you belive the talking penguin from The World Shapers, a talking robot dinosaur isn’t much different). Yet the science fiction take on religion and cults emphasises Doctor Who‘s fun natured approach to more serious concepts.

Finally, The Collector returns to the fourth Doctor. Another quick romp with some loose science fiction concepts, this is perhaps one of the weaker stories; its not as fleshed out in comparison to the others, with a lot of ‘magic technology’ that isn’t really explained. Still, its enjoyable none the less.

So, with five different stories focusing on four different Doctors, this is certainly alot for one book. A combination of Doctor Who past and present, most fans will definately want to give this a read.

4/5