11 Doctors, 11 Stories

So, this is a collection of the 50th anniversary Ebooks. I will review each story on its own.

1. A Big Hand for the Doctor. 3.5/5. The 1st Doctor becomes a reluctant swashbuckler against alien pirates. 'Artemis Fowl' author Eoin Colfer sprinkles in some very interesting ideas and twists, and while the description of the Doctor being obsessed with hunting down these baddies seems more fitting for a 7th Doctor/Ace story, it mostly works, and is not too distracting. This is a fun one.

2. The Nameless City: 5/5. Speaking of going against established tones, here we have the 2nd Doctor and Jamie going head to head with Lovecraftian cosmic horror. Taking what is arguably the most innocent era of our beloved TARDIS travels, and placing them smack dab into what is basically a Cthulhu Mythos story shouldn't work. But it does, and there is some striking imagery here. Also, the method by which the villains are defeated got a hearty chuckle from your humble reviewer.

3. The Spear of Destiny. 4/5. Now THIS author understands Pertwee!!! We get a smashing good pseudo-historical story with the ensemble we know and love. Jo, the Brig, etc. Interesting plot, great characterization, and fun twists.

4. The Roots of Evil. 4/5. Interesting concept with this one, and with a modern twist. Feels just like a super-condensed Tom Baker story. Instead of 4 episodes, we get 40 pages. All that plot development is still there, it's just REALLY REALLY FAST. This one is fun. Plus, there is a great line from the 4th Doc:

Spoiler:

More to come when I have read them.

5. Tip of the Tongue. 6/10. The Doctor and Nyssa investigate aliens who have become a fashion trend in WW2 Maine. Bizarre imagery, but not enough of the Doctor. Strange, but falls a little flat.

6. Something Borrowed. 7/10. The Doctor and Peri attend a wedding, and find an old enemy waiting in the wings. Interesting world building here. And I am a fan of the 6th Doc.

7. The Ripple Effect. 7/10. Interesting parallel dimension story. Ace of course questions the Doctor's grand scheme, and his eventual solution to the problem.

8. Spore. 7.5/10. The 8th Doctor must battle a sentient disease. Tone reminded me of the film 'Phantoms'.

9. The Beast of Babylon. 8/10. Very striking images in this one. The decision to not include Rose is an interesting one, and the point of where to put this story in the 9th Doc's timeline is undoubtedly clever.

Thus far, there has been a very good variety of kinds of stories here. Only 2 left to go!!!!

Hey Matt! Just found this thread, thanks for the reviews! I have a question, if you don't mind?

I'm considering picking up the '12 Doctors, 12 Stories' set. I'd like to read and own for each Doctor a novel that effectively captures the character of each incarnation, so that I always have a means of enjoying a story with each Doctor through another platform - just in case there's an apocalypse and there's no running electricity for me to easily watch my DVDs anymore (sounds weird, but it's the way my brain works ).

So my question is: do all of these short stories accurately and effectively capture the characters of each incarnation? For instance, is it easy to see that Hartnell is the no-nonsense grandad with a hard shell and soft centre, and is it easy to see that Tom is dark and mysterious but funny and mad, etc?

Thanks in advance!