Grant Morrison's Doctor Who #1

When I first saw an episode of the Doctor Who TV show on a local PBS station, I was mystified.

I had heard of the show, and I knew it was a huge favorite on the BBC, but frankly, it didn't make sense. An eccentric guy flying around in a phone booth, facing bargain basement monsters? I gave up almost immediately.

Thankfully, Harlan Ellison came to my rescue. I read an essay he'd written about the show, in which he explained the basics of the show. After reading it, I gave the show another try - and I loved it. I've been a fan ever since.

For those who missed that essay, here's my poor attempt at recapping the concept of Doctor Who: the lead character (who never refers to himself as "Doctor Who" - he just calls himself "The Doctor") is a Time Lord, a member of a long-lived race that discovered how to move through time and space with the aid of a device called a Tardis. The Doctor's Tardis is stuck in the shape of a Police Call Box (which, to an American audience, looks like a blue phone booth). It's much bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. The Doctor and his ever-changing friends and companions travel through space and time, righting wrongs, saving the universe and thwarting evil plans. Oh, and The Doctor gets killed every now and then - but he's able to regenerate in a new form (which happens to look like a different actor), and his adventures continue.

It was designed to be a children's show, providing educational and moral guidance - but it's also a heck of a lot of fun for grownups, too. The newest version of the classic show is a huge hit on the BBC, and is enjoying quite a bit of success over here.

Which brings us to this comic: Grant Morrison's Doctor Who. Unfortunately, IDW doesn't include any background information about the stories included in this comic, but as near as I can tell, these predate Morrison's work at DC and Marvel.

I believe both incarnations of The Doctor in this issue appeared before Tom Baker, the version I first saw in the late '70s (thus, he's "my" Doctor Who). There are two short stories in this comic, and each one shows some of the promise of what we'd see in the future from Morrison. The stories are fun, clever, and often unexpected.

The first story is drawn by the excellent John Ridgway, who provides some outstanding cinematic images, as he takes us to alien worlds. The second story is an early effort by Bryan Hitch, and while it's a bit rough compared to his modern work, it's still a strong effort.

The stories are full of the kind of intelligent and imaginative adventures that are so much a part of Doctor Who. You don't have to be a fan to enjoy it - but fans will absolutely love it.

Grade: B+