Star Death (comic story)
Star Death was a backup comic story published in Doctor Who Magazine in 1981. It featured the early days of the Time Lord civilisation and was set during the time of Rassilon and Omega.
It was notable as the first appearance of Rassilon in any medium, as it was released after he was first mentioned in TV: The Deadly Assassin, and before his first television appearance in TV: The Five Doctors. Furthermore, it was notable for depicting the circumstances leading to Omega's imprisonment in the Anti-matter universe as seen in TV: The Three Doctors.
Summary
On the order of Grand Master of the Prydonian Chapter, Rassilon, Lord Griffen and Lady Jodelex await the collapse of the dying star, Qqaba. Fenris, also known as the Hell-Bringer, a mercenary from the future, travels back in time to sabotage the experiment and change Time Lord history. He causes the ships' stasis haloes to fail, leaving Lord Omega doomed to fall into the black hole. However, Rassilon's intervention sees Fenris dispatched and the experiment a success. Fenris' discarded belt provides the much needed technology to use the new energy and will provide a form of directional control.
Characters
References
Individuals
- Lord Griffen belongs to the Elders of Gallifrey.
- Rassilon can spring bolts of power arc from his fingertips, a power called electro-direction.
Technology
- Gallifreyans were provided with starbreaker ships. The flagship of the fleet was Aeon.
- Fenris uses a wave scrambler to sabotage the stasis haloes.
- Fenris is provided with a time-jumper. Rassilon gets inspiration from it to invent directional control of time travel.
Notes
- This back-up strip was introduced by the Fourth Doctor.
- Details about the genesis of Gallifreyan time travel and the disappearance of Omega (TV: The Three Doctors, Remembrance of the Daleks et al.) are expanded.
- This story, along with the comics 4-D War and Black Sun Rising, takes place during the Black Sun War.
- In 2012, Lawrence Miles said, "Alan Moore's back-up strips were an obvious influence on both Marc Platt's view of ye olde Gallifrey and my view of its future."[1]
- Rassilon claiming Fenris' directional controls roots Time Lord society in a bootstrap paradox. Interference - Book One would later assert the Order of the Black Sun was actually a creation of Faction Paradox.
Original print details
- Publication with page count and closing captions
- DWM 47 (4) The End
Reprints
- Reprinted by Marvel in The Daredevils issue 5
Continuity
to be added
Footnotes
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