A Religious Experience (comic story)
A Religious Experience was a comic story by Tim Quinn and the first story in the Doctor Who Yearbook 1994. It featured the First Doctor and Ian Chesterton.
Summary
The First Doctor and Ian are enjoying an evening stroll along the beach on the planet Seetar in the Malachi System, when they are approached by a group of savages. A giant worm-like creature emerges from the sand and the savages begin to worship it. The worm appears ready to eat one of the natives but Ian intervenes distracting it with his torch and blinding the creature by throwing a cricket ball into its eyestalk.
Following their defeat of the creature the natives begin a celebration in the travellers honour. They are offered fruit and the savages prepare a human sacrifice. Ian prevents this sacrifice and they quickly return to the TARDIS where Barbara and Vicki are waiting. They wonder whether they will have had any lasting influence on the culture.
Many years later the Seventh Doctor arrives on the planet to find that human sacrifice has continued and they worship images of his former self, Ian and the TARDIS. The Doctor makes clear that it is time for these sacrifices to finally come to an end.
Characters
References
- The Doctor visits the planet Seetar in the Malachi System for the first time. He and Ian are the first space or time travellers ever to visit the planet.
- The Doctor states, "Well, I won't be needing this cricket ball just yet".
Notes
- In the credits, John Ridgway's name is misspelled as "John Ridgeway".
- This story's portrayal of the Doctor is unusual, especially for a '90s story. In one example, the Doctor refers to himself and Ian as gods based "purely on intellect alone" when compared to the "primitive minds" of the natives of Seetar.
- Vicki is mentioned by the Doctor, but is never actually seen as, according to Barbara, she is still asleep.
Continuity
- The Doctor refers to his previous visit to Quinnis in the fourth universe (AUDIO: Quinnis), stating that it had twice the indigenous life and a purple sea. The Doctor's visit to the planet Quinnis was first referenced in TV: The Edge of Destruction.
- The Doctor refers to Susan and contemplates whether he was right to leave her on Earth in TV: The Dalek Invasion of Earth.
- Ian refers to his encounters with Daleks (TV: The Daleks, The Dalek Invasion of Earth) and Saracens. (TV: The Crusade)
- When Ian sees the savages about to carry out a human sacrifice, it reminds him of the events of TV: The Aztecs.
