Villordsutch reviews Doctor Who Classics #2…
“This series presents Doctor Who strips never before reprinted, and in color for the very first time! In this issue, the complete “Invaders of Gantac” story featuring the Seventh Doctor, written by Alan Grant (Judge Dredd, Batman)!“
From the pen of the great Alan Grant (Judge Dredd, Lobo, Batman etc.) comes an exciting tale about bureaucratic aliens as they take over the planet Earth in search for the “Great Treasure of Zantar Wrouth!”. The artists that create the world are Martin Griffiths (ThunderCats, The Punisher) and Cam Smith (The Hulk, Cam13) and they do a great job of it too.
Now Doctor Who Classics #2 is a fun read and takes us back to British comics where art stayed within the panels and every panel was full of action. You are left with no dark silences, no ominous black pages with a weeping man in the corner. The comic is packed. Buying this comic gives you your money’s worth straight away. I’m positive I cannot stress enough how much I enjoyed reading this. It’s like your mum has given you a box of comics which you owned as a small boy and you’re allowed to sit and read them.
The Doctor (Seventh incarnation) arrives to what he believes is a friend’s birthday party, but it isn’t and he interrupts the Gantac invaders as they attempt to interrogate a fleeing flea ridden tramp called Leapy. The Doctor manages to distract the invaders with his now angry birthday present and takes Leapy for a bite to eat in a café full of dead people. We learn that the Gantacs are looking for the Treasure of Zantar Wrouth. The Doctor finds this highly amusing as they have gotten the wrong planet.
The Gantac aliens, I felt, have roots in another race – the Vogons (The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy) as throughout their scenes they are quoting amazing orders from “Order 9A. Where possible, escapers to be interrogated prior to execution” to “Order 7M. No jokes” and they are used to add humour through-out the story.
Alan Grant has managed to turn the enslavement and death of the people of Earth into an incredibly British outing. Added to that, the artwork drawn and painted on paper from Griffiths and Smith makes this comic outstanding. A brilliant read of old British work and I’m glad I could. Thank you IDW for making my day.
Villordsutch is married with kids and pets. He looks like a tubby Viking and enjoys science fiction. Follow him on Twitter.
Originally published April 10, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
