Doctor Who review: The Knight, The Fool and The Dead is central to Time Lord Victorious

Time Lord Victorious: The Knight, The Fool and The Dead isn’t just an exciting Doctor Who novel. It’s almost central to understanding what the whole event is really about.

Well, it’s official. Time Lord Victorious – the much hyped-up multi-platform event of the year – has truly begun. Yes, we’ve had stories begin in the comics – first, with the Titan comic mini-series with the Tenth Doctor, then with the Ninth Doctor’s comic strip in Doctor Who Magazine. But the brand new novel The Knight, The Fool and The Dead feels like the true beginning of it. Because it reveals the exact cause of the whole event.

Focusing on the Tenth Doctor, the story takes place very shortly after the events of the 2009 special The Waters of Mars. After trying to change a fixed point and facing the consequences of that, the Doctor knows that he’s gone too far this time. To recover, he’s gone back to the Dark Times – a time when the universe itself was young. He knows that he won’t ever make the same mistake again. Would he?

The Knight, The Fool and the Dead works on two levels. First, Steve Cole’s novel explores the Tenth Doctor at one of his most vulnerable points. When he’s trying hard to recover from one of his greatest mistakes, while also avoid having to face his own mortality. He knows that he’s going to die, and he’s desperate to avoid that at all costs. He wants to find some hope, to find something to live for. But is the Dark Times the best place to find it?

Kicking off the event

Of course, there is another layer to The Knight, The Fool and The Dead. It’s not just about exploring the Tenth Doctor at a particular point in his life. No, far bigger than that is how it reveals what Time Lord Victorious actually is.

This is something that we’ve had very few details of so far. Even the Tenth Doctor comic story, Defender of the Daleks, has revealed very little of it so far. It’s included hints and foreshadowing, but that’s it. So what does The Knight, The Fool and The Dead reveal?

Honestly, everything. From why the event begins to the relevance of its title, The Knight, The Fool and The Dead is central to understanding Time Lord Victorious. It also introduces or explores several major elements to it.

First of all, the Kotturuh are the central antagonists of this story. A race that brings Death to the universe on a huge scale, they’ve been promoted heavily for the Time Lord Victorious event, and will be making several more appearances in other media. (Including two Short Trips featuring the Master, which will be released later this month.)

It’s fascinating to see the Doctor face a different kind of enemy – in some ways, he’s facing a representation of Death itself. Considering what he knows he’ll be facing very, very soon, the Kotturuh feel like the most appropriate enemy for him to face at this time.

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Brian

Secondly, we get to meet Brian the Ood Assassin in this novel. He’s quite an intriguing character. While he comes across as polite and likable as any other Ood (well, on a good day, at least), he’s also clearly one that’s dedicated to his job. There are moments when he and the Doctor get on reasonably well, and then there are other moments when he makes some shocking choices. It’s certainly an interesting partnership – particularly as it’s strongly hinted that Brian may be more familiar with the Doctor than the other way around…

Lastly, we come to the ending. I won’t spoil it – at least, not here – but suffice it to say, it’s big. The Tenth Doctor goes on a huge journey in this novel. By the end of it, he is the Time Lord Victorious, with no one to stop him…or is there? The Knight, The Fool and The Dead ends with a crucial cliffhanger, one that will leave you eager for the conclusion to the whole event in December with All Flesh is Grass.

Overall, The Knight, The Fool and The Dead achieves exactly what it needs to. It tells a fast-paced story in its own right, one that develops the Tenth Doctor considerably and takes him to a very dangerous point in terms of character. At the same time, it introduces major elements and themes of the whole event, while also setting up the next novel in a big way. In short, it’s an extremely exciting opening installment to the whole event.

Are you intrigued by The Knight, The Fool and The Dead? Have you read it already? Do you think it did an effective job of revealing what Time Lord Victorious actually is? Let us know in the comments below.