By Rob McCow

Doctor Who and The Free-Fall Warriors
 

Doctor Who and The Free-Fall Warriors was presented in issues #56-57 of Doctor Who Monthly. The reprint for US Marvel Doctor Who Comic was split between issues #11 and #12 in late 1985. The Free-Fall Warriors fly again in the Doctor Who graphic novel ‘Dragon’s Claw’, published in 2004 and available from Panini Books.
 

Writer – Steve Parkhouse

Artist – Dave Gibbons

Editor – Alan McKenzie
 

This story introduces the Doctor.

It’s Doctor Ivan Asimoff! Hurrah!

Asimoff is a betentacled, green-skinned science fiction writer from Sigma. He has a bubbling enthusiasm for science fiction, although this is tempered by his cautious nature. He recognises the Doctor as a Time Lord and is keen to see his time machine, but is wary of taking a ride with the Free-Fall Warriors. Asimoff is also keen on food, ice cream in particular. He lives with his Auntie.

The Doctor (Tom Baker, Time Lord variety) and the Doctor (Ivan Asimoff, Sigma variety) hook up with the Free-Fall Warriors, four slightly bizarre stunt pilots. There’s Big Cat, the leader of the gang, he’s got a tiger’s head. Bruce is the experienced, shark-headed warrior; his ship is capable of skimming the surface of a sun. Cool Breeze is the aloof and mysterious android, who is perfectly integrated with his ship’s systems. Machine Head’s head is a long, pointed pyramid, shaped exactly like his ship. It’s Machine Head who takes the two Doctors up to show them some serious flying! The Free-Fall Warriors are an awesome team, proud, wild and more than a little dangerous, but they’re definitely the good guys.
 

The Doctor approaches a planet, blasting defenders and preparing for his assault, but his ship is brought down by ground defences. To make matters worse, he finds that he doesn’t have another Five Mazumas for the arcade machine. He orders a Triplovian Sundae (on a Sunday!) to get some Mazumas in the change.

The Doctor is having a holiday at the Festival of Five Planets. At the ice-cream bar, he meets Doctor Ivan Asimoff, science fiction writer, who recognises him as a Time Lord and asks to see his time machine. However, a shark-headed man is assaulting the TARDIS, having mistaken it for an arcade machine. He introduces the two Doctors to his friends – the Free-Fall Warriors! The Warriors scoff when the Doctor tells them that the box in question is a time machine, and they challenge him to ride with them. Asimoff is understandably nervous, but they strap in to Machine Head’s ship.

Meanwhile, at the outer edge of the system, Raiders are preparing for an assault.

The two Doctors experience phenomenal acceleration on the ship. Machine Head explains that his modified head allows him to withstand the G-Force better. Suddenly, Raiders appear and shoot the ship, forcing it down onto an asteroid.

Fortunately, the asteroid has a breathable atmosphere, but Machine Head is unable to repair the damage. He contacts Big Cat, who decides that there’s no time to contact the military, so the Free-Fall Warriors will have to handle the Raiders themselves. A TV crew follow the Warriors out of space dock, on the trail of a big story.

Meanwhile, the Doctor has repaired Machine Head’s ship and they head off to zap the Raiders.

The Free-Fall Warriors are winning the battle with the Raiders, as observed by the throng at the Festival. Suddenly, a pair of Raider ships break through and attack the Festival. The crowd flee in terror, but Machine Head and the Doctors chase the Raiders and Asimoff fires the shot that blows them up.

The Warriors and the Doctors are celebrated as heroes, with Asimoff taking photos to show his Auntie. The Warriors ask for a ride in the TARDIS, but the Doctor claims it would be a little tame by comparison. He heads off for an ice cream with Asimoff, who starts to tell him the plot of his latest science fiction story.
 

Exciting, Star Wars style dogfights? Tiger, shark and machine headed aliens? Not likely! Even the computer game that the Doctor plays at the start would have been beyond what TV could achieve in the 70’s.

I’m sure a lot of people would love to see something like this in the new series though. Perhaps Big Cat is a distant relative of the Cat Nuns from New Earth.
 

We get the usual high standard of artwork for this story. Asimoff is a superb little creation, with his chequered flat-cap, rolled up socks, Hawaiian shirt and snout growing out of his forehead. His face is simultaneously hideous and sympathetic. The Free-Fall Warriors also look damn cool, with their funky heads and matching spaceships. Big Cat even manages to look gnarly and hard with his puss-cat head, when he could have easily been too cute. Anthropomorphism? What’s that?

The space battles are whizzy and awesome with fab explosions.
 

After the incredibly grim cannibal antics of The End of The Line, Free-Fall Warriors is a blast of fresh air. If you love whiz-bang action with weird and over-the-top characters, then this is one for you. It’s good to see that Steve Parkhouse can turn his hand to more upbeat stories. His strength is coming across in inventing characters, as opposed to the wild madness of the Dez + Skinn stories, or the morality of Steve Moore’s scripts. The Free-Fall Warriors are great fun and Doctor Asimoff is even more so. Right from the start with the Doctor enjoying his Space Raider game it’s crammed full of action. It’s a great idea to have the nervous Doctor Asimoff along for the high-speed chase. It also has a lot that would appeal to younger readers, with the distinctive ships and characters to copy and draw. It’s a simple strip that’s easy to follow.

It’s not all great though. The story spectacularly goes nowhere and the Raiders’ assault is very easily mopped up. The thing that bugs me about this one is that it’s a showcase for the Warriors rather than a Doctor Who story. The only input the Doctor really has is in repairing Machine Head’s ship, but aside from that he’s a passenger in every sense. Flying spaceships and blowing stuff up has never really been the Doctor’s bag - although there is that opening sequence, which may suggest otherwise!
 

This strip features the first mention of Mazumas, the comic’s universal space currency. Although the Doctor doesn’t use them to buy a Kronkburger, sadly.

Doctor Ivan Asimoff returns in his own story, The Fabulous Idiot, published in the 1982 Doctor Who Summer Special, which sees his over-active imagination causing trouble at home. He meets the Doctor again (6^th Regeneration Variety) in Polly the Glot, published in Doctor Who Magazine issues #95 and #96, in 1984-1985.

The Free-Fall Warriors also appear in a strip of their own in the 1982 Doctor Who Summer Special. Called Sudden Death, it sees Big Cat racing against the sinister Shaman Khan. They also appeared as one of the back-up strips in Marvel’s Captain Britain comic.

Attractions at the Festival of Five Planets include the Space Raiders and Comet Chase arcade game, a bizarre game seemingly called ‘Bingo’ and Qrrxtl’s, where you can buy a Triplovian Sundae. You can also watch the Free-Fall Warriors Stunt Team, or buy a floating puffer fish on a string from a warty, beardy alien with big ears.

The Doctor travels in an anti-grav tube to get to the space dock, along with the other Doctor and the Warriors. The Doctor has previously travelled in an anti-grav tube in The Life Bringer!

In Issue #58 of Doctor Who Monthly, John Evans from Chester wrote in to say:

‘I read the first page of ‘The Freefall Warriors’ in shock. Could this be the Doctor? What a relief it was only a game!’