The mini-series continues with a new doctor and new short story. Doctor Who: Prisoners Of Time #6 follows the trend by introducing the sixth doctor (Colin Baker) and.. a talking penguin. It’s not as bad as it sounds, to be fair. In fact, it’s quite good.

The official description from IDW:

Our yearlong celebration of Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary continues! Mmm, I wonder… aha! It is the Sixth Doctor who takes the spotlight in this issue of a 12-part epic adventure featuring all 11 incarnations of the Doctor! As Peri and Frobisher attempt to free the Doctor from an asylum, not one, but two villains are revealed!

First of all, the penguin is from the older comics and technically isn’t a penguin, which is something I like. It demonstrates Prisoner Of Time’s ability to use material outside of the TV show as well in; this issue features, amongst other classics, the Autons from the revived series. Once again, it offers an interesting plot with a setting the TV show couldn’t take on a budget; all those penguins would cost a lot of money. This issue also teases more of the overall plot, which is something that keeps reader interest going that little bit more.

I can’t find much fault with the writing of Scott & David Tipton, but that may be because I’m not familiar with this era of Doctor Who. That said, the dialogue is fluent and manages to explore new settings and concepts without getting stuck in details. It also harkens back to other aspects of Doctor Who that will please fans. This isn’t, for instance, the first time the Doctor has mentioned his friendship with Houdini.  It’s the little tidbits of fan-service that really makes Prisoners Of Time worth reading.

As for the art, it’s similarly hard to fault John Ridgway’s details but your opinion on subject matter may vary. Ridgway stays true to the look of the sixth doctor which includes the vibrant, multicolored jacket (it was a different time from today’s Doctor Who). That said, bland corridors aside, the bigger backdrops and vistas get the attention they deserve.

Overall, this is a good issue of Prisoner Of Time. It mixes the old and new and shows where the series is going, by celebrating as much Doctor Who as possible, something that’s difficult to argue against.

4/5