1990s Strips

Last updated: August 2008.

In the 1990s, the Daleks enjoyed something of a renaissance in the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip, which would continue into the new century, but it got off to something of a slow start....

It would be almost two and a half years before the Daleks properly returned to the comic strip in Doctor Who Magazine. However, they did put in a brief cameo appearance in the 1991 strip entitled...

PARTY ANIMALS







	The Daleks (who appear to love each other rather a lot) are joined at Bonjaxx’s party by a host of familiar faces, some from Marvel’s own back catalogue, such as the Freefall Warriors, Abslom Daak and Doctor Asimoff, and some from beyond, such as Bart Simpson and Sapphire and Steel! *ARTIST:* Mike Collins and Steve Pini. WRITER: Gary Russell. ISSUE: 173. COVER DATE: May 15th 1991. REPRINTS: The Incomplete Death’s Head Issue Two.

BRINGER OF DARKNESS





	For the first time since 1968’s Attack of the Daleks, the Second Doctor encounters the Daleks. Here, instead of being accompanied by John and Gillian, he is accompanied by Jamie and Victoria (who narrates the encounter), but in essence the story is remarkably similar to 1967’s Jungle Adventure in as much as the Doctor finds some Daleks on a planet and destroys them without a moment’s pity. *ARTIST:* Martin Geraghty, Simon Weston. WRITER: Warwick Gray ISSUE: Doctor Who Summer Special 1993.

EMPEROR OF THE DALEKS

Can’t you just tell that 1993 was anniversary year? The epic Emperor of the Daleks is a direct sequel to Nemesis of the Daleks, again featuring Abslom Daak, and introducing Davros in his comic strip debut.

The Daleks plan to use Abslom Daak, who isn’t dead after all, to destroy the Doctor, who has abducted Davros from his trial on Skaro. The Doctor, however, is instead forced into helping the Daleks recover Davros, who has set up base on Spiridon reviving the vast frozen army held there.

ARTIST: Lee Sullivan.
WRITER: Paul Cornell.
ISSUES: 197-202.
COVER DATES: 17th March 1993, 14th April 1993, 12th May 1993, 9th June 1993, 7th July 1993, 4th August 1993.

METAMORPHOSIS





	The Doctor and Ace turn the tables on the Daleks' plot to transform the Doctor (due to his Time Lord genes' susceptibility) and a shipload of 'blank'embryos into Dalek-hybrids with their Mutation-Beam. *ARTIST:* Lee Sullivan. WRITER: Paul Cornell. ISSUE: Doctor Who Yearbook 1993.

TIME AND TIME AGAIN






	Oops! And here’s another strip I forgot all about on the Children of the Revolution feature. The Daleks only make a cameo appearance at the beginning of the strip and in the frames above. This story, which details the Doctor, Benny and Ace recovering the Key to Time for a second time, was told in its entirety in just ten pages. And the Key to Time Season did the same in 26 weeks. You decide. *ARTIST:* John Ridgway. WRITER: Paul Cornell. ISSUE: 207. COVER DATE: 22nd Dec 1993

DALEKS v. THE MARTIANS


	The Daleks want the secret of time travel, but Doctor Who and his companions thwart their ambitions and solve the mystery of the Martian sphinx. As you do.





	*ARTIST:* Lee Sullivan. WRITER: Alan Barnes. ISSUE: Spring Special 1995 An indulgent oddity, as this strip features the Daleks facing Peter Cushing’s Doctor Who, for the first time since 1966. But then the Spring Special was themed around the two Aaru films, so maybe it isn’t quite so strange after all.

...UP ABOVE THE GODS





	A direct sequel to Nemesis of the Daleks (which was some two years prior to this strip), but focused here on Davros in conversation with the Sixth Doctor inside the TARDIS after the latter’s rescue of the former. *ARTIST:* Lee Sullivan. WRITER: Richard Alan. ISSUE: 227. COVER DATE: 5th July 1995.


	DOCTOR POO

The Fourth Doctor, accompanied in the TARDIS by Jamie McCrimmon, scours the universe looking for a nice place to relieve his bowels. He finds himself thwarted by Cybermen, Sea Devils and the Master (who is recovering from a wild night out on Metebelis III), before finally landing on Skaro where he makes use of Davros’ own personal toilet.

Incredibly juvenile, very rude and also rather funny, this one-off one page strip of twenty-five frames features the Daleks and Davros in its final few frames. It is not to be confused with the considerably more innocent (but admittedly not as amusing) Doctor Poo from the 1970s!

ARTIST: Unknown
WRITER: Unknown
ISSUE: June 1996

TARGET PRACTICE

The Daleks and the Cybermen (plus a Sea Devil, an Axon and an Auton, and later a Yeti, Silurian and Ogron) put in brief cameos in this heavily stylised Third Doctor strip.

ARTIST: Adrian Salmon.
WRITER: Gareth Roberts.
ISSUE: 234.
COVER DATE: 17th January 1996.

THE FANGS OF TIME

Along with almost every monster from the 1970s, the Daleks make a fleeting cameo appearance in this charming, honest and deeply nostalgic 1996 comic strip.

ARTIST & WRITER: Sean Longcroft.
ISSUE: 243.
COVER DATE: 25th Sept 1996

RETURN OF THE ELDERS

With no new Doctor Who on television to feed the magazine, it is perhaps unsurprising that Doctor Who Magazine began to look back at previous comic strip successes to fill its pages. This strip forms a direct continuation of the Daleks strip from TV21, and Return of the Elders also marks the return of Ron Turner to the world of Daleks.

The Daleks invade the solar system, but opposition comes from an unexpected source...

ARTIST: Ron Turner.
WRITER: John Lawrence.
ISSUES: 249-254.
COVER DATES: 12th March 1997, 9th April 1997, 7th May 1997, 4th June 1997, 2nd July 1997, 30th July 1997.

Sadly with only one story published, Ron Turner died before he could complete the follow up story Deadline to Doomsday. One page of the unfinished artwork is printed below.

FIRE AND BRIMSTONE

The Daleks attempt to conquer all possible realities by harnessing the powers of the Cauldron. However, things don’t quite go to plan. This is the Eighth Doctor’s first encounter with the Daleks.

ARTISTS: Martin Geraghty (pencils), Robin Smith (inks)
WRITER: Alan Barnes
ISSUES: 251-255
COVER DATES: 7th May 1997, 4th June 1997, 2nd July 1997, 30th July 1997, 27th Aug 1997.

REPRINTS: Reprinted in black and white as part of Doctor Who Endgame, published by Panini in 2005 as a graphic novel. The cover for this publication is shown below.

HAPPY DEATHDAY

Another cameo appearance from the Daleks, this time accompanied by Davros, in this unusual humorous strip. They don’t last for very many frames either.

ARTIST: Roger Langridge
WRITER: Scott Gray
ISSUE: 272
COVER DATE: 15th Dec 1998.
REPRINTS: Reprinted in black and white as part of Doctor Who The Glorious Dead, published by Panini in 2006 as a graphic novel. The cover for this publication is shown below.

The 1990s saw a definite upswing in the number of Dalek strips, perhaps recognising, as the series reached its 30th anniversary in 1993, and with no new Doctor Who on television, their importance in establishing and sustaining it.

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