Top Of The Pile: Doctor Who - Black Death White Life

Black Death White Life is the latest of IDW's generally magnificent Doctor Who one-shots, soon to be collected in Through Time And Space.

The 10th Doctor and Martha are heading for a Beatles concert in 1969, but accidentally arrive 300 years early during a mysterious plague outbreak (30 years after the last recorded outbreak of the Black Death).

Realising that the plague is some alien infestation, The Doctor hears of an "angelic" faith healer at the local church, and goes off to investigate, leaving Martha to tend to the sick.

Unfortunately, Martha falls victim to the plague thanks to the incredible Macro-virus aliens, certainly some of the most spectacular and 'alien-looking' aliens in the known Whoniverse, while The Doctor is with the alien 'angel' at the church (an Immunoglobulin, the enemy of the Macro-virus, but sadly not so impressive).

While the talk of the Immonoglobulin's homeworld, Flesh Planet of Mimosa 3, is very evocative it co-incides from the story's shift from its original creepy Gothic atmosphere to a very mudane, by-the-numbers "alien war" science-fiction scenario.

Although Charlie Kirchoff's script rallies with an interesting re-examinatination of The Doctor's attitude to war, it's clear that this story would have benefitted by not being constrained to a single issue.

Perhaps with a second issue, Kirchoff could have developed the story in a more interesting direction (and perhaps given the aliens more interesting names), and given it the depth and originality that is suggested by the opening pages of Black Death White Life.

Previous Doctor Who one-shots in this run from IDW, to be collected in Through Time And Space, were:

• Cold-Blooded War (10th Doctor & Donna)
• Room With A Deja View (10th Doctor)
• Autopia (10th Doctor & Donna)
• The Time Machination (10th Doctor - with a cameo by the 4th Doctor & Leela)
• The Whispering Gallery (10th Doctor & Martha)