Party Animals (comic story)

Party Animals
Doctor:	Seventh Doctor
Companion(s):	Ace
Featuring:	Fred, Fourth Doctor, Sixth Doctor
Main enemy:	Beep
Main setting:	Time Vortex, Maruthea
Key crew
Publisher:	Marvel Comics
Editor:	John Freeman
Writer:	Gary Russell
Artist:	Mike Collins (pencils), Steve Pini (inks)
Letterer:	Glib
Release details
Number of parts:	1
Printed in:	DWM 173
Release date:	18 April 1991
Cover date:	15 May 1991
Reprinted in:	TIDH 12, The Good Soldier
Format:	Comic
DWM comic stories
← Previous	The Mark of Mandragora
Next →	The Chameleon Factor
DWM "New Adventures order"
← Previous	Under Pressure
Next →	The Chameleon Factor
Stories reprinted in The Incomplete Death's Head
← Previous	The Cast Iron Contract
Next →	Priceless!

Party Animals was a Seventh Doctor comic strip published in Doctor Who Magazine.

Summary

The Doctor and Ace travel to Maruthea for Bonjaxx's birthday party. Whilst there he encounters old friends and enemies, and has a glimpse of his future.

Plot

to be added

Characters

• Seventh Doctor
• Ace
• The Doctor
• Ria
• Bonjaxx
• Death's Head
• Fourth Doctor

References

The Doctor

• The Seventh Doctor claims that the Rani and her giant mouse came to his graduation party.

Foods and beverages

• The Doctor drinks water.
• A Sontaran has a can of Sontaran Up.

Individuals and species

• There are numerous species, mechanical beings and individuals present at Bonjaxx's party:
  • The Seventh Doctor and Ace walk past a group of tiny penguins outside of Bonjaxx's bar. In the bar, two Daleks, a robot bus conductor, Ivan Asimoff, a Cybermat, Worf arm wrestling an Ogron, Sapphire and Steel, Shayde, Captain Britain (1970s costume), Bart Simpson, a Draconian, a Silurian wearing a dress, a Werelok, Axel Pressbutton, Abslom Daak, a Wrarth Warrior, a Sontaran, the Freefall Warriors (Machine Head, Cool Breeze, Big Cat, and Bruce), and a Melkur are present.
  • When the Doctor Ace take seats, the Hulk, a Ferengi, Darth Vader, Death's Head, a Quark, the Silver Surfer, Adam Warlock, and a Kalichura are seen.
  • As the Doctor and Ace meet a mysterious stranger and his companion, Cusick and Doot walk past. A Vervoid, a Posicarian, a Kalik, and an Ice Warrior are also part of the crowd as a drunken Meep starts a fight.
  • As the fight escalates, the Destroyer, Jetsam, the chainsaw-armed Chief of the Cannibals, Captain Britain (1980s costume), a Defender, Morbius, Combat Wombat, the Master, and Catavolcus are caught up in it. (A balloon in the shape of the Mekon in seen in the background.)
  • As the fight continues, a Telosian Cyber-Controller, Captain UK, a Robot Yeti, a Cheetah Person, Vol Mercurius, a Sensorite, Vesuvius, an Alien Guard an Alpha Centauran are also in the fray. Ace uses her baseball bat against the Kandyman. As the Doctors and their companions leave the bar, an Experimental Prototype Robot K1, a White Robot, a Chumbley, Emma Peel, Meltron, Captain Britain (1990s costume), John Steed, and a Wirrn are seen.
• Ace has a new baseball bat.

Locations

• The trick to getting to Maruthea is apparently not to be there at all, causing you to be so.

Technology

• One of Bonjaxx's gifts appears to be the same shape as K9.

Time Lords

• The Seventh Doctor asks his future incarnation if they ever repealed the First Law of Time.

Notes

• As the Seventh Doctor materialises on Maruthea, another TARDIS is seen dematerialising. Only the leg of the pilot is seen, who says, "What makes you think there's a friend of yours in my TARDIS?" as they kick a small penguin out of the TARDIS. The striped pant leg suggests this is either the Fifth or Sixth Doctor, the latter of which travelled with Frobisher.
• The likeness of the "future Doctor" is based on Nicholas Briggs, who portrayed the Doctor in the Audio Visuals series of unlicensed audio dramas; his companion Ria also first appeared in the Audio Visuals.
• A Werelok, a Kalichura, and Meep are seen in this story. It is not explicitly said if they are Brill, Melanicus, or Beep the Meep, prominent members of their respective species.
• Ships seen docking at Maruthea include: Kill-Wagon (Star Tigers, et al.), Big Cat's ship, (COMIC: Doctor Who and the Free-Fall Warriors) the USS Enterprise (Star Trek), Thunderbird Three (Thunderbirds), and a flying saucer (Gerry Anderson's UFO).

A new view of Bonjaxx's birthday party. (COMIC: The Incomplete Death's Head)

• Not only does this story feature cameos of beings from TV Doctor Who and DWM comic stories, it features cameos of beings from franchises (normally) outside the DWU: Worf and a Ferengi (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Sapphire and Steel (Sapphire & Steel), Bart Simpson (The Simpsons), Axel Pressbutton (Dark Star, Sounds Magazine, Warrior), the Hulk, Death's Head, the Silver Surfer, Adam Warlock, Cusick and Doot, Captain Britain, and Captain UK (Marvel Comics), Darth Vader (Star Wars), the Mekon (Eagle, 2000 AD, Virgin Comics), Emma Peel and John Steed (The Avengers).
• Two individuals are largely obscured by dialogue balloons. As seen in the colourised version, one is a humanoid figure in a red uniform sitting with Hulk and the other is a man with a grey moustache and beard and carrying a bindle. They are likely Captain Scarlet and Catweazle, the main characters of the British TV shows Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons and Catweazle, respectively.
• Abslom Daak is explicitly present in this story, as is his ship Kill-Wagon. The Draconian and Ice Warrior in this story could be Salander and Harma, respectively, part of Kill-Wagon's crew from COMIC: Star Tigers. Additionally, Vol Mercurius is seen holding a Sensorite in the bar fight.
• Captain Britain is seen three times in this comic, each appearance corresponding to his 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s costumes. While they are never seen in the same panel, this could indicate that Captain Britain is attending this party at different points in his timeline, just like the Doctor.

Another view of Bonjaxx's birthday party. (COMIC: The Incomplete Death's Head)

• This story was reprinted in issue 12 of The Incomplete Death's Head. The final two issues of the framing device run concurrently with Party Animals and show new images of Bonjaxx's birthday party. Bonjaxx, the Seventh Doctor, a future incarnation of the Doctor, Captain Britain, a Sontaran, a penguin, a Dalek, the Silver Surfer, the Hulk, Bruce and Death's Head are seen in both stories.
  • New individuals seen at the party include Doctor Strange, Doctor Octopus, Scarlet Witch, Namor, Random, Warlock, Knave, Jester, Doctor Doom, the Thing, Rocket Raccoon, Thor, the Human Torch, Volstagg the Voluminous, Conan the Barbarian, Spider-Man, Lucas Bishop, Ghost Rider, Tigon Liger, Stacy Arnheim, Guillermo Perez, and Apocalypse.
• The concept of the Doctor encountering characters from other franchises would be revisited several times in the future in non-canonical charity stories such as Dimensions in Time (featuring characters from EastEnders), One Born Every Minute (a crossover with both Call the Midwife and 'One Born Every Minute') and, most similarly, the multi-franchise game LEGO Dimensions.

Continuity

• The Doctor finally arrives on Maruthea for Bonjaxx's birthday party. (COMIC: Echoes of the Mogor!, Time and Tide, Invaders from Gantac!, Nemesis of the Daleks, PROSE: The Infinity Season)
• Shayde is present at Bonjaxx's birthday party where the Seventh Doctor meets a future incarnation of his. Shayde would later encounter the Eighth Doctor and would take on the appearance of this future incarnation when the Doctor faked his regeneration. (COMIC: The Final Chapter, Wormwood)
• The drunk Meep was told by Shaman Kahn that the Freefall Warriors would be at Maruthea and wants to claim the reward. Shaman Khan was last seen crashing into an asteroid belt, thus losing a race against Big Cat. (COMIC: A Ship Called Sudden Death)
• Bonjaxx resembles the Molags, a Dæmon-like race seen in COMIC: Menace of the Molags.