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A review by aelsherif
Doctor Who: 12 Doctors 12 Stories by Eoin Colfer
4.0
I quite enjoyed this collection of short stories, featuring a story for each of the first 12 Doctors. Not being familiar with some of the reincarnations and villains of the classic Doctor Who, this served as a nice introduction to some elements I wasn’t aware of without being too overwhelming given the stories’ short length.
For the most part, the writers were able to capture their reincarnations’ essences, definitely the collection I needed to rekindle my Doctor Who enthusiasm and maybe encourage me to do a quick rewatch.
A Big Hand For The Doctor by Eoin Colfer:
I didn’t like this one, apart from the Doctor’s affection towards his granddaughter, neither the plot nor the sci-fi was anything close to remarkable.
The Nameless City by Michael Scott:
Really nice, I find this book igniting my desire to know as much of Doctor Who as possible, being introduced to Jamie who seems theoretically to be a very good match to the Doctor, and the Archons, villains in the age where Gallifrey was relevant and their origins still explored. The writing was really good, characters are nice but I felt the ending in this one came a bit out of nowhere.
The Spear of Destiny by Marcus Sedgwick:
One of my favourites; vikings, fake history, mythology, the Master and a very good companion in Jo.
The Roots of Evil by Philip Reeve:
The Fourth Doctor is the one I know the most out of ClassicWho, and he didn’t disappoint as a character, not a big fan of Leela though. I found the story amusing and the tree plot was creative along with the reference to Eleven’s episode which I quite enjoyed. Wanted something more for Four, but I guess that was ok.
Tip of the Tongue by Patrick Ness:
I like the stories where the Doctor is not heavily involved, this one was weak though. Felt like a Goosebumps story.
Something Borrowed by Richelle Mead:
My introduction to the Rani, quite an interesting character, I’m surprised she didn’t turn up in NuWho. Not very original but it’s always nice to see people who had known the Doctor for some time. Not very memorable.
The Ripple Effect by Malorie Blackman:
I liked this one, good Daleks which are actually good and not acting part of a plan posed for a good plot. I always find stories where the Doctor actually changes his mind about something even so slightly proves to be an interesting read. I also liked the style of the writing, I may try out something by Malorie Blackman sometime.
Spore by Alex Scarrow:
I found the concept of a bacterial-type organism that preserves intelligent beings quite interesting. The resolution was not the most satisfying and it all went down a bit too easily.
The Beast of Babylon by Charlie Higson:
My least favourite, there isn’t a real story and it reminded me of series eleven’s writing. I didn’t like the Starmen not Babylon. I enjoyed the new companion and incorporating the plot into the storyline of series 1 was a nice touch.
The Mystery of the Haunted Cottage by Derek Landy:
The story about how the Doctor and Martha are trapped into a storybook out of Martha’s childhood reads. Loved it, Ten’s character was captured perfectly and the plot, while not really original, was so much fun. Seemed to have one too many references to books and stories for a moment there, Martha’s character here was so much cooler than the boring, lame one I remember from the series. The writing in this one was so good, another author I will be keeping an eye for.
Nothing O’Clock by Neil Gaiman:
That was brilliant, the Kin were fantastic as the villain and the plot and story would make an incredible episode, especially since it fits so well with what was happening in series 5 and 6. Hands down the best story in the collection.
Lights Out by Holly Black:
I guess it was ok but I felt that the author didn’t really get the tone of Twelve correctly, and it turns out this was published a mere two month after his first episode, so I guess that makes sense. The story is weak but very well told, the impact of the Doctor was very small and I wasn’t sure which episode was the one referenced in the story.
For the most part, the writers were able to capture their reincarnations’ essences, definitely the collection I needed to rekindle my Doctor Who enthusiasm and maybe encourage me to do a quick rewatch.
A Big Hand For The Doctor by Eoin Colfer:
I didn’t like this one, apart from the Doctor’s affection towards his granddaughter, neither the plot nor the sci-fi was anything close to remarkable.
The Nameless City by Michael Scott:
Really nice, I find this book igniting my desire to know as much of Doctor Who as possible, being introduced to Jamie who seems theoretically to be a very good match to the Doctor, and the Archons, villains in the age where Gallifrey was relevant and their origins still explored. The writing was really good, characters are nice but I felt the ending in this one came a bit out of nowhere.
The Spear of Destiny by Marcus Sedgwick:
One of my favourites; vikings, fake history, mythology, the Master and a very good companion in Jo.
The Roots of Evil by Philip Reeve:
The Fourth Doctor is the one I know the most out of ClassicWho, and he didn’t disappoint as a character, not a big fan of Leela though. I found the story amusing and the tree plot was creative along with the reference to Eleven’s episode which I quite enjoyed. Wanted something more for Four, but I guess that was ok.
Tip of the Tongue by Patrick Ness:
I like the stories where the Doctor is not heavily involved, this one was weak though. Felt like a Goosebumps story.
Something Borrowed by Richelle Mead:
My introduction to the Rani, quite an interesting character, I’m surprised she didn’t turn up in NuWho. Not very original but it’s always nice to see people who had known the Doctor for some time. Not very memorable.
The Ripple Effect by Malorie Blackman:
I liked this one, good Daleks which are actually good and not acting part of a plan posed for a good plot. I always find stories where the Doctor actually changes his mind about something even so slightly proves to be an interesting read. I also liked the style of the writing, I may try out something by Malorie Blackman sometime.
Spore by Alex Scarrow:
I found the concept of a bacterial-type organism that preserves intelligent beings quite interesting. The resolution was not the most satisfying and it all went down a bit too easily.
The Beast of Babylon by Charlie Higson:
My least favourite, there isn’t a real story and it reminded me of series eleven’s writing. I didn’t like the Starmen not Babylon. I enjoyed the new companion and incorporating the plot into the storyline of series 1 was a nice touch.
The Mystery of the Haunted Cottage by Derek Landy:
The story about how the Doctor and Martha are trapped into a storybook out of Martha’s childhood reads. Loved it, Ten’s character was captured perfectly and the plot, while not really original, was so much fun. Seemed to have one too many references to books and stories for a moment there, Martha’s character here was so much cooler than the boring, lame one I remember from the series. The writing in this one was so good, another author I will be keeping an eye for.
Nothing O’Clock by Neil Gaiman:
That was brilliant, the Kin were fantastic as the villain and the plot and story would make an incredible episode, especially since it fits so well with what was happening in series 5 and 6. Hands down the best story in the collection.
Lights Out by Holly Black:
I guess it was ok but I felt that the author didn’t really get the tone of Twelve correctly, and it turns out this was published a mere two month after his first episode, so I guess that makes sense. The story is weak but very well told, the impact of the Doctor was very small and I wasn’t sure which episode was the one referenced in the story.