Pinball Wizard (comic story)

Pinball Wizard
Doctor:	Tenth Doctor
Companion(s):	Rose
Main setting:	Unnamed planet
Key crew
Publisher:	BBC Magazines
Editor:	Moray Laing
Writer:	Davey Moore
Artist:	John Ross
Colourist:	Adrian Salmon
Letterer:	Paul Lang
Release details
Printed in:	DWA 15
Release date:	17 October 2006
Format:	Comic - 1 parter (6 pages)
DWA comic stories
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Pinball Wizard was a Doctor Who Adventures comic story featuring the Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler.

Summary

While dodging the Erewon Armada, the Doctor realises that the TARDIS' Xion crystals have been jolted out of line. The slippage caused the passivator to go into flux and leak coolant into the aethiopathic chamber, leading to the positioning system overheating. The TARDIS needs a big jolt.

Luckily, the TARDIS lands inside a giant pinball machine with a strong 1960s American theme (including the Statue of Liberty, fast food mockups, baseballs, cars and route signs). Ironically, this giant pinball table is being used to punish Gameslaves (people who spend too much time playing computer games) by forcing them to take part in a giant, real-life game by being encapsulated in one of the game's balls. Spectators decide whether the "player" gets to live, based on their game performance.

The Doctor and Rose watch Track R Ball play the game, but Rose mistakenly gets to play the game instead of Joyce Tick. The Doctor, flashing his psychic paper, gets to take control of the game. He manipulates the ball to strike the TARDIS. The ball drops down a hole and the Doctor frees Rose. Both of them make a hasty escape in the TARDIS, which now works properly.

Characters

• Tenth Doctor
• Rose Tyler
• Joyce Tick
• Track R Ball

References

• The Doctor says that he spent a lot of time playing pinball back in the 1960s.

Notes

• The DWA comic strip adventures were aimed at a younger audience and the artwork and colours were bold and bright, reflecting the tone of the magazine.
• Self-contained, one-part stories were the norm in the early issues, later being expanded to two-parters.

Original print details

Publication with page count and closing captions

• DWA 15 (6 pages split 4/2) MORE ADVENTURES NEXT ISSUE!

Continuity

to be added

External link

• Pinball Wizard at the Doctor Who Reference Guide