The Then and the Now

The Then and the Now was the first story printed in the second year of Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor. A two-part story, it was the first in the series since What He Wants... to feature the Doctor and Alice without John Jones or ARC, and was the first comic printed after the conclusion of the Four Doctors crossover event. It also featured the surprise return of comics character Abslom Daak, who had originally been introduced during early issues of Doctor Who Magazine. This comic chooses to go back to basics with Daak – of carrying around Taiyin in order to find a way to revive her, in spite of the prior stories Nemesis of the Daleks and Emperor of the Daleks! showing Daak having left Taiyin behind.

The comic is also notable to non-Daak fans as being the first story since The Day of the Doctor to depict the Curator, and the only one to directly connect him to the Doctor. While the previous story had only hinted that he might be a future incarnation of the Time Lord, this comic decided to clearly show the figure as one of the Doctor's forms when time is distorted around him and Alice. He appears in front of the Eleventh Doctor, who is in front of the First Doctor, suggesting that his is indeed a future incarnation.

Technically speaking, the entirety of Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor Year 2 could be viewed as one 14-part-story, with one plot-structure and hefty continuity between issues. Because of this, most of the ideas and characters introduced in The Then and the Now would have feature roles all the way through COMIC: Physician, Heal Thyself.

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