Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Sami Kivelä
Colorist: Valentina Bianconi
Letterers: Richard Starkings and Tyler Smith
Cover Artists: Jay Anacleto & Romulo Fajardo Jr; Photo;
Flops; Sami Kivelä; Nipuni
Editor: Jonathan H Wilkins
Art Director: Oz Browne
Publisher: Titan Comics
Price: $4.99
Release Date: November 5, 2025
The Doctor is a Time Lord from Gallifrey. He loves fashion
and fixing problems. He also loves people of all species, even if they're
unfashionable. So after robots abduct Belinda Chandra from Earth, the Doctor
tries to take her home. Strangely, he cannot find his favorite planet. Did an
alien species that writes atrocious poetry destroy Earth to make way for a
hyperspace bypass? Or did someone transport the planet elsewhere and rename it
Ravalox? Let’s grab our sonic screwdrivers, leap into Doctor Who: The Prison
Paradox #1, and see!
Story
The Doctor once called the Shadow Proclamation outer space
police. Like the Nova Corps, the Shadow Proclamation also runs a prison
service. Their most feared prison is Panoptopolis. Like the USS Cygnus, the
prison perches at the periphery of a black hole. Prisoners do their porridge
without arousing the warden’s ire. Or like Maximillion, BOB, VINCENT, and their
Human companions, inmates take a one-way voyage through the event horizon. No
one voluntarily visits the Panoptopolis. Unless you’re a Time Lord, and you’re
trying to rescue someone.
In Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox #1, the Doctor sneaks aboard
a shuttle heading toward Panoptopolis. Once he arrives, he attempts to befriend
others. The inmates prove reluctant, as prisons operate on fear. But the Doctor
has taken steps to ensure he arouses the warden's ire, and he knows he'll need
friends to rescue Belinda Chandra.
Dan Watters imbues his story with colorful characters, an
interesting setting, and intense action. Readers learn why the Shadow
Proclamation took Belinda there and see how the Doctor defies a corrupt system.
While the bulk of the story follows the Doctor, we also discover Belinda's
plight. Robots abducted her. Someone took away her planet. Belinda isn't taking
this third abduction lying down. Still, in Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox #1,
everyone has their breaking point.
Art
Sami Kivelä surrounds the ringed space station with inset
panels of the shuttle arriving and a view inside. The Doctor sits on a bench,
his hands chained to the floor, beside a tooth-like Adipose and gassy, green
Sliveen. Seated nearer the hatch, a purple cephalopod and a multi-armed cyborg
frame the trio. Rock-creatures like Ben Grimm with horns direct them inside
with their cattle prods. Before mingling with the rest of the prison population
in the dining hall, the Doctor gazes up at an eyeball security camera. And like
the Atraxi, he demands they release one of their prisoners to him.
Valentina Bianconi links the Doctor's orange-brown coat with
the orange-tan rocky guards. With a purple Tentaculon and a green Sliveen for
company, the Doctor stands out among the prisoners and guards in Doctor Who:
The Prison Paradox #1. Yellow makes its presence felt in this lavishly colored
story. The latest visitors enter beneath a yellow-and-black warning line. They
pass through a brownish-yellow hall. The rock guards scan a white card adorned
with yellow. As they enter a cafeteria filled with yellow-uniformed inmates, a
yellow-eyed security camera watches.
Richard Starkings and Tyler Smith fill white dialogue
balloons with uppercase black dialogue. The narrator speaks into light-yellow
boxes, while the rocky guards use cloudy, light-yellow balloons. The words grow
bold for intonation, swell for raised voices, and never shrink. Despite ample
opportunities, sound effects wait backstage until the climactic confrontation.
Yet a lowly character speaks the loudest, even if it is a squeak. Thanks to
Titan Comics for providing a review copy.
Now, let's take a look inside:
Final Thoughts
Like the Panoptopolis, fear can imprison us in chains of our
own making. In this story about the temptations and abuses of power, the Doctor
inspires the imprisoned by urging them to ignore their fears in Doctor Who: The
Prison Paradox #1.
Rating 9.8/10
For all the cover art see my preview of Doctor Who: The Prison Paradox #1.
