Absorption

Ursula Blake in the process of being absorbed. (TV: Love & Monsters)

Absorption was the process by which the Abzorbaloff, an Abzorbalovian, ingested his victims. (TV: Love & Monsters)

Nature

Abzorbalovians had the ability to absorb life forms by touching them. Historians who had been allowed access to the "Monster Vaults" of the databanks in the Doctor's TARDIS observed that every part of an Abzorbaloff's body "from head to toe" was in a constant state of suction, thus consuming any living thing upon contact. This ability was compared to a bacterium or a tapeworm, all essentially parasitic in nature, and to the Krillitanes acquisition of physical abilities from other species.

The heads of the Abzorbaloffs' absorbed victims remained alive and conscious within its digestive tract and only when it had completely drained their brains were their heads fully assimilated into its "greenish, living calcium "fleshy corpulence". Absorbed victims would retain their consciousness and appear as faces within an Abzorbaloff's skin for several weeks at least. Positions ranged from the stomach, shoulders, waist, thighs, chest, back and even buttocks. Once fully digested, the faces of said victims, while clearly deceased, were still somewhat visible. Abzorbalovians could fart due to their digestion, similar to humans and the gas exchange of the Raxacoricofallapatorians. When a being was absorbed, their knowledge and experiences were also absorbed, which apparently affected how they tasted. (TV: Love & Monsters, PROSE: The Monster Vault, The Time Traveller's Almanac)

The Abzorbaloff absorbs Ursula Blake through the arm. (TV: Love & Monsters)

Historians claimed that Abzorbaloffs sought the thoughts and experiences of other lifeforms as their own thoughts and experiences were "profoundly dreary". Abzorbaloffs liked to pride themselves on being gourmets. Their greed was so great that they often could not help blowing their cover by absorbing too many victims, which was identified as a major weakness. (PROSE: The Monster Vault) Indeed, "Victor Kennedy", after joining LINDA, absorbed Bliss and Bridget Sinclair before absorbing Colin Skinner, after which he was exposed as an Abzorbaloff by Ursula Blake and Elton Pope. (TV: Love & Monsters)

As the Abzorbaloffs were constantly drawing sustenance through their skin, they naturally wore little more clothing than a thong, sharing a predilection towards needing to be naked with the Slitheen family of Raxacoricofallapatorius. However, as the Abzorbaloffs absorbed other creatures into their body, the Slitheen tactic of hiding inside other creatures was beneath contempt. Whilst in the form of "Victor Kennedy", the Abzorbaloff claimed to suffer from eczema so as to avoid being touched; historians believed that the Abzorbaloff's appearance was concealed by a type of morphic illusion, and that he only appeared to be a wearing a suit whilst in disguise. (PROSE: The Monster Vault, TV: Love & Monsters)

History

Ursula is absorbed into the Abzorbaloff's body, joining past victims in various states of digestion. (TV: Love & Monsters)

In 2007, the Abzorbaloff, disguised as a human named "Victor Kennedy", absorbed his secretary after finding LINDA's website in his office. (WC: Tardisode 10, PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac)

Appearing at LINDA's base on Maccateer Street, Victor joined the group and absorbed Bliss after asking her for a word in private; her face ended up embedded into his posterior at the right buttock, leaving her subject to him farting on her and leaving her barely able to breathe or speak. Some weeks later, Victor used the same ploy to absorb Bridget Sinclair, whose face ended up on his right shoulder.

At least one week later, Victor absorbed Colin Skinner after convincing him to remain to track down Bridget with him as Ursula Blake and Elton Pope left the group; his face ended up in the left side of the Abzorbaloff's lower abdomen. When Ursula and Elton returned, they discovered the Abzorbaloff, who revealed his absorption abilities and his victims. By threatening to absorb Jackie Tyler to get to the Doctor he tricked Ursula into being absorbed and went to absorb Elton as well. The absorbed LINDA members were encouraged by the Tenth Doctor to fight back and pull at the Abzorbaloff's stomach. Elton then broke his limitation field, causing his absorption abilities to go out of control and melt him into the Earth. His absorbed victims, except Ursula, died with him. The Doctor had his sonic screwdriver to key into the absorption matrix and separate Ursula from his remains. Though, as the Doctor noted, it was too late for total reconstruction, Ursula was salvaged as a face embedded in a slab of concrete. (TV: Love & Monsters)

The Abzorbaloff was survived by his father who, in 2009, confronted the Doctor. Having already absorbed three human victims, it was this Abzorbaloff's intention to "guzzle up [his] smushed up remains" after leaving him to the Krakanord, after which he would absorb "every little meatbag" on Earth, only to be melted by the Krakanord. (WC: The Genuine Article)

Behind the scenes

Lines from the script of Love & Monsters ^[+]Loading...["Love & Monsters (TV story)"] which are not present in the finished episode shed a light on the experience of those absorbed by the Abzorbaloff; Ursula says that she feels "sort of... calm", Skinner says it feels "strangely peaceful" and Bridget claims that there is no pain, whilst Bliss' response is muffled.

Though the script uses an s in the spelling of the process, later sources such as DWM 371 and TEDW 5 use a z, distinguishing "abzorption" from forms of absorption both in the Doctor Who universe and the real world.