The Betrothal of Sontar (comic story)

The Betrothal of Sontar
Doctor:	Tenth Doctor
Companion(s):	Rose
Main enemy:	Colonel Snathe
Main setting:	Serac
Key crew
Publisher:	Panini Comics
Writers:	John Tomlinson, Nick Abadzis
Artist:	Mike Collins
Release details
Number of parts:	3
Printed in:	DWM 365-367
Release date:	5 January - 2 March 2006
Cover date:	1 February - 29 March 2006
Reprinted in:	The Betrothal of Sontar
Format:	Comic - 3 parts
DWM comic stories
← Previous	A Groatsworth of Wit
Next →	The Lodger

You may be looking for the ship or the graphic novel.

The Betrothal of Sontar is a Doctor Who Magazine comic story featuring the Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler.

Summary

The Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler land on the icebound world of Serac where they encounter the Sontaran crew of the Betrothal of Sontar, a mining vessel commanded by Colonel Snathe, whose quest for the "Worldbane", a source of incredible power, has driven him insane. As the Doctor attempts to help Snathe find the Worldbane — mainly in order to recover the TARDIS — Rose befriends Lerox, an unusual Sontaran who possesses a conscience, and who holds the key to saving not only the Doctor and Rose, but the homeworld of Sontar itself.

Plot

to be added

Characters

• Tenth Doctor
• Rose Tyler
• Snathe
• Lerox
• Skagg
• Krege
• Stakk
• Syke
• Slygg
• Thanatos
• Xtal

Worldbuilding

• The Doctor says he once had to swim naked in the English Channel after losing a bet with Oliver Reed.
• Rose compares the Sontarans to the Mitchell brothers, which the Doctor remarks is "not far off".
• The Doctor tries to invoke Stockholm syndrome.
• Within her possessions, Rose has photos of Jackie Tyler, Mickey Smith and the Ninth Doctor.
• Upon seeing his quarters, Rose thinks Snathe might be a goth.

Notes

• The first words spoken by the Tenth Doctor in his comic book tenure are; "Naaah, souped-up metabolism, warm as toast! Listen, I once had to swim the English Channel totally starkers!"
• As The Betrothal of Sontar predates the Sontarans' first appearance in post-2005 Doctor Who in The Sontaran Stratagem, which featured a radical redesign of the Sontaran uniform, the battledress of the Sontarans shown are reminiscent of those from the classic series.
• When the Doctor sees his TARDIS being taken by the Sontarans, he appears to break the fourth wall to address the readers of DWM by saying: "I don't believe this, we've been here ― What? ― five seconds? What's the universe coming to?!"

Continuity

• The Doctor asks Rose to call him "Fred" to hide his identity from the Sontarans. The Fourth Doctor had previously tried to bestow the name Fred upon Romanadvoratrelundar as an alternative to calling her "Romana". (TV: The Ribos Operation)
• The Doctor describes the Sontarans to Rose as "nasty, brutish and short", the same description the Third Doctor gave to Sarah Jane Smith. (TV: The Time Warrior)