Descendance / Ascendance [COMIC/1996.8.10 ~ 12.21]

★★★☆☆

  The biggest disappointment I felt from this comic two-parter (or should I say twenty-parter, taking into account one comic "story" consists of ten parts...) is that this is yet again a case of new companion Stacy being almost completely sidelined. The setting of Mars would've been a perfect way to learn more about how this person reacts to certain things, how she handles situations in an environment she's not accustimed to... but no, she's manacled to a wall next to an Ice Warrior that promptly becomes the Doctor's other companion. Really, Gary Russell, were you that unsure about whether audiences would warm to a blond girl and an Ice Warrior traveling together inside the TARDIS? Would it have been a catastrope to at least let Stacy in on some of the action? 

  Alright, I'll admit that the paragraph above may haave been a little unwarranted. I was just a bit miffed at the fact that Stacy was pretty much shoved under the rug right after her introduction story (which was already pretty slight in terms of her involvement). Descendance / Ascendance is actually a solid two-parter, mixing Ice Warrior politics with the usual bangs, flashes and underground monsters of Doctor Who. I'd say this two-parter has a slight edge over Dreadnought due to its more lengthy nature allowing for a more relaxed pace and a more thorough exploration of Ice Warrior society (though admittedly we don't see a whole lot). 

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ  

  Once again, Lee Sullivan's artwork brings out so much of the excitement and the complexity of the work. Thanks to his illustrations, as well as the aforementioned length, Descendance / Ascendance proves to be an entertaining and occasionally rather beautiful Ice Warrior story. Rituals, conspiracies and heroic sacrifices... what's not there to like?