ADVANCE REVIEW! Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #4

Where will the Doctor and Gabby go on her first trip into space? Read on to find out.

The official description from Titan:

In exchange for the invaluable assistance she offered defending New York – and to say sorry for dropping into her life like a tornado! – the Doctor has promised Gabby one trip – just one trip! – in the TARDIS.

With the whole universe laid before her, all of time and space, where will Gabriella Gonzalez choose to go? What will they find when they get there… and can one trip in the TARDIS ever be enough?

More importantly, the Tenth Doctor has been hurt by the fate of his companions before – and recently! With Donna still fresh in his mind, can Gabby convince him that he shouldn’t travel alone, for just a little while longer?

As we enter the second arc of Titan’s New Adventures with the Tenth Doctor, we get a rather unique tale. Centring around art, the Doctor takes Gabby to an alien art gallery, with there being some spooky moments along the way. It is however the unique style of storytelling that makes this tale so unique, with the humour within allowing for a very fun series of events.

Nick Abadzis displays a different method of storytelling in this issue, with the majority of the tale being shown through the letter in which Gabby has written her thoughts. Feeling very fun, and quirky this different style of storytelling certainly hits some high notes, with it giving an engaging tone to this new arc. The story itself also proves very gripping, with certain elements fitting in with the post-Halloween season nicely. I do however hope that things return to normal with the next issue, as though this has been a fun new way of telling a Doctor Who story, I feel it’d quickly become tiresome.

Due to the rather unique style of storytelling we we’re ultimately treated to two different styles of artwork. In addition to regular artist Elena Casagrande, we’re also treated to some art from colourist Arianna Florean, who produced the art within Gabby’s sketchbook. Both styles proved utterly captivating, with the detail of Gasagrande’s and charm of Florean’s giving a very engaging tone. I also loved how both merged with each other, with the alternation between styles feeling extremely fluid.

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #5 sees the start of a brand new tale, with the quirky tones, and unique storytelling allowing for an immersive vibe. There are also some spooky tones in the mix, and along with the mystery it makes this tale somewhat befitting of the post-Halloween season. Highly recommended.