‘WAR-GAME’
Please feel free to comment on my review.
The Sixth Doctor and Frobisher meet the Draconians
This two-part Sixth Doctor comic adventure is the first one not to be written by Steve Parkhouse. Instead, Alan Mackenzie, well-known for being the editor of ‘Doctor Who Magazine’, is the writer. 🙂
Ian Rimmer edited the comic story whilst Alan Mackenzie wrote it. It’s interesting to talk about this comic story. It’s notable for reintroducing the Draconians who appeared in ‘Frontier In Space’ on TV.
In the story, the Sixth Doctor and Frobisher visit a primitive planet which happens to be Actinon in the 82nd century. They’re soon sold into slavery and they end up on a quest to save someone’s daughter.
The person who’s asked them to save his daughter is a Draconian named Kaon. Apparently, he and his wife crash-landed on Actinon in their own spaceship. They survived and soon lived on the planet.
Kaon became the leader of a small group of barbarians on the planet and he established himself as a warrior among the people. He fathered a daughter named Kara, but his wife sadly died in childbirth.
It was nice to see the Draconians make an appearance in this ‘Doctor Who’ comic adventure. Beforehand, the Ice Warriors and the Meddling Monk appeared in the story ‘4-Dimensional Vistas’. 🙂
I also think this is the first time where we see female Draconians in ‘Doctor Who’. In ‘Frontier In Space’, it was a male-dominated society. Females weren’t allowed to speak among the Draconians. 😦
Kara’s daughter is held captive by the barbarians led by Vegar the Vengeful. I’m wondering if Kara had been beaten and tortured by the barbarians, considering she appears to be in a terrible state. 😐
The reason why Vegar the Vengeful kidnapped Kara is because Kaon took his territory from him when he and his wife crashed onto Actinon. He’s willing to give Kara back in exchange for the land Kaon stole.
Kaon sees the Doctor and Frobisher helping him as an opportunity not only to save his daughter but also to return to Draconia. The Doctor has his TARDIS after all. It doesn’t end well for Kaon though. 😦
In the process of killing Vegar, Kaon is killed in his fight with him. As Kara mourns her father’s death, she elects not to go to Draconia with the Doctor and Frobisher. Actinon is the only home she knows.
Also, I imagine Kara would find life very hard on Draconia, considering the males consider females of small value. You would think that the Draconians would have changed their ways over the centuries.
Mind you, whilst Kaon followed certain Draconian values that involve females and daughters being of small value, he changed his ways after seeing that his daughter had become a ‘fine son’ for him. 🙂
It’s interesting that Frobisher disguised himself as a gaudy barbarian with a naked torso instead of the usual penguin form he adopts, as he and Sixy visit Actinon. Penguins aren’t common on Actinon.
I wonder if Frobisher would sound the same when he became a gaudy barbarian instead of a penguin. He seems to in the comic story, but I wonder if his voice would sound deeper than usual. 😐
Incidentally, when Kaon speaks, there’s emphasis on the ‘s’s in the words he uses in the speech bubbles of the comic. I don’t recall Draconian speaking with more emphasis on the ‘s’s as they talk.
That’s more reserved for the Ice Warriors than for the Draconians when they’re speaking. Maybe it’s just me, but I would have thought Draconians would have spoken more like humans than Ice Warriors. 😐
It would be nice to hear ‘War-Game’ as an audio adaptation featuring the Draconians in it. The Draconians have appeared in the Big Finish audio called ‘Paper Cuts’, so it could happen, couldn’t it?
The Actinons seem human in appearance and Vegar the Vengeful is a rough villain who’s seeking to achieve his own ends. It’s a shame these comic stories aren’t long enough to get to know Vegar as a villain. 😦
It’s funny that ‘Part One’ features Kaon the Draconian making an appearance at the end. Everything gets built up for him to make his debut appearance before he has a prominent role in ‘Part Two’. 🙂
Meanwhile, ‘War-Game’ has been very enjoyable as a comic adventure in ‘Doctor Who’. I enjoyed the Draconians making an appearance in this and it was funny to see Frobisher as a gaudy barbarian.
‘War-Game’ rating – 8/10
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