TV Comic

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TV Comic was a weekly magazine published by Polystyle Publications, Ltd. in Britain from 1951 to 1984. It printed Doctor Who strips from 1964 to 1979.

History

Throughout the TV Comic strips, the Doctor was primarily called "Dr. Who" by his companions and the narration. For convenience, the later-established incarnation numbering schema is used on this page to disambiguate between, for instance, William Hartnell's Dr. Who and Patrick Troughton's Dr. Who.

The TV Comic strips are notable for introducing a number of original characters, including companions and aliens. Original companions included the Doctor's grandchildren, John and Gillian, as well as Arnold. As the comic rights to the Daleks were initially held by competing magazine TV Century 21, original villains called the Trods were used in their place; however, in 1967 the Dalek rights reverted to TV Comic, the Daleks were shown to massacre the Trods in The Trodos Ambush.

From the years 1971 to 1973, new Doctor Who comics were instead printed in TV Comic's sister magazine, TV Action/Countdown.

Beginning with TVC 1386 in July 1978, old TV Comic Second and Third Doctor strips were reprinted with new art showing the then-current Fourth Doctor's face. This modification and reuse of preexisting material continued until TVC 1430 in 1979, when the rights to Doctor Who comics moved to Marvel Comics UK's new magazine Doctor Who Weekly. The TV Comics run of concluded with TVC 1430 on 11 May 1979.

Comic stories

William Hartnell's Dr. Who

Title Featuring Printed in Released
The Klepton Parasites John and Gillian 674-683 9 November 1964-11 January 1965
The Therovian Quest 684-689 16 January - 22 February 1965
The Hijackers of Thrax 690-692 1 - 15 March 1965
On the Web Planet 693-698 22 March - 26 April 1965
Untitled Police officer 696 12 April 1965
The Gyros Injustice John and Gillian 699-704 3 May - 7 June 1965
Challenge of the Piper 705-709 14 June - 12 July 1965
Prisoners of Gritog Holiday Special
1965 		1 July 1965
TV Terrors Monica, Buttons, Cuthbert 709 12 July 1965
Moon Landing John and Gillian 710-712 19 July - 2 August 1965
Time in Reverse 713-715 9 - 23 August 1965
Lizardworld 716-719 30 August - 20 September 1965
Prisoners of the Kleptons Annual 1966 1 September 1965
The Caterpillar Men
The Ordeals of Demeter 720-723 27 September - 18 October 1965
Enter: The Go-Ray 724-727 25 October - 15 November 1965
Shark Bait 728-731 22 November - 13 December 1965
A Christmas Story 732-735 20 December 1965 - 10 January 1966
The Didus Expedition John and Gillian 736-739 22 January - 12 February 1966
Space Station Z-7 740-743 19 February - 12 March 1966
Plague of the Black Scorpi 744-747 19 March - 9 April 1966
The Trodos Tyranny 748-752 16 April - 14 May 1966
The Secret of Gemino 753-757 21 May - 18 June 1966
The Haunted Planet 758-762 25 June - 23 July 1966
Guests of King Neptune Holiday Special
1966 		1 July 1966
The Gaze of the Gorgon
The Hunters of Zerox 763-767 30 July - 27 August 1966
Deadly Vessel Annual 1967 1 September 1966
Kingdom of the Animals
The Underwater Robot 768-771 3 - 24 September 1966
Return of the Trods 772-775 1 - 22 October 1966
The Galaxy Games 776-779 29 October - 19 November 1966
The Experimenters 780-783 26 November - 17 December 1966

Patrick Troughton's Dr. Who

Third Doctor

After TVC 999, the Doctor Who strip was moved to Countdown (ultimately called TV Action) for a couple of years, returning to TVC only in issue 1133.

Fourth Doctor

Edited reprints

(mostly Third Doctor stories, these were altered to feature the Fourth Doctor)

Other uses

TV Comic used the Doctor and the Daleks in four known back-up comics, featured in a section titled "Pick of the Jokes." One notable aspect was that these jokes appear to follow licensing restrictions: for instance, Daleks did not appear in these comics until TV Comic obtained permission to put them in comics.

These comics are:

The Doctor fights with a police officer, wanting to get to his TARDIS.
Two Daleks talk, in TV Comic 798.
  • TVC 696, the Doctor attempts to get back to the TARDIS, or perhaps just a police box, but is blocked by an officer.
  • TVC 740: the Doctor enters a police box, only to find an officer exiting. The Doctor responds "Oops! Sorry! Wrong box!"
  • TVC 794: In an otherwise non-Who strip, a child carried a small Dalek on a leash.
  • TVC 798: Two Daleks talk, one speaking of their Trans-sister

Special issues

TV Comic

First Doctor

Second Doctor

Third Doctor

Fourth Doctor

TV Comic Annual

First Doctor

Second Doctor

Third Doctor

Fourth Doctor

External links

v • e
First Doctor TVC comic stories
Neville Main era
(November 1964 -
September 1965)
Weekly strip
Holiday stories
Annual stories
Pick of the Jokes
TV Terrors
Bill Mevin era
(September 1965 -
April 1966)
Weekly strip
Pick of the Jokes
John Canning era
(April 1966 -
December 1966)
Weekly strip
Holiday special
Annual
Canning's run on TVC continues until 1971,
with a second run 1975-1979.
v • e
Second Doctor TVC comic stories
1966
Weekly strip
1967
Weekly strip
Holiday Special
Annual stories
All stories feature John and Gillian.
1968
Weekly strip
Holiday Special
Annual stories
John and Gillian feature until Invasion of the Quarks, when they are replaced by Jamie.
1969
Weekly strip
Holiday Special
Annual stories
Jamie disappears after Martha the Mechanical Housemaid, leaving the Doctor alone. The Doctor's exile begins in Action in Exile.
All weekly stories drawn by John Canning, continuing his creative run from the First Doctor in 1966 to the Third Doctor in 1971.
v • e
Third Doctor Polystyle comic stories
Early TV Comic
Countdown/
TV Action
Late TV Comic
TV Comic specials
Holiday
Annual
TV Action specials
Annual
Polystyle specials
v • e
Fourth Doctor TVC stories
1975
Weekly strip
Specials
Stories feature Sarah-Jane
1976
Weekly strip
Specials
Stories feature Sarah-Jane, except The Mutant Strain and Double Trouble.
1977
Weekly strip
Specials
Leela features from The Orb to The Aqua-City
1978
Weekly strip
Specials
All stories The Duellists onwards are reprints.
1979
Weekly strip
All stories are reprints
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