Doctor Who Photo Covers Create New Companions

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor #5 photo cover

The Doctor Who comics, like so many these days, are available with multiple covers. There’s usually a main art cover, possibly a painted variant, but there’s also been a lot of photo covers. These are easy enough to make with clip art, since there are likely tons of images of the previous Doctors in costume, striking poses, but what I’ve found particularly interesting is when they do photo covers with the new companions.

The Eleventh Doctor, for example, doesn’t travel with Amy and Rory in the comics, since that story has long ended. Instead, he’s palling around with a new character, Alice Obiefune, a librarian coping with the recent death of her mother, in the comics written by Al Ewing and Rob Williams and drawn by Simon Fraser. I like her a lot, since she’s got a good, down-to-earth mien that reminds me of Martha Jones. She’s clever and determined, and the doctor provides a kind of grief treatment. She’s appeared on photo covers for Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor issue #5 and issue #7, as shown here:

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor #5 photo coverDoctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor #7 photo cover

So I suppose Titan and/or the BBC hired a model to do a few shots to use to play a character that’s never appeared on screen or in person before? I’m not entirely certain that they’re using the same person every time, though.

The same applies to Gabriella “Gabby” Gonzalez, who’s now hanging out with the Tenth Doctor. As written by Nick Abadzis and drawn by Elena Casagrande, she’s an aspiring art student struggling with family expectations. She’s appeared on photo covers for Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor issue #3 and the upcoming issue #14 (due out June 8), as shown here:

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #3 photo coverDoctor Who: The Tenth Doctor #14 photo cover



One comment

  • I find it clever and intriguing that they’re using models to add a new element to stock photos – but it is frustrating they don’t credit who they are, and I guess that prevents them from appearing at conventions like Shannon McRandle (who appeared as Mara Jade on a Star Wars Expanded Universe gaming card and became a convention staple ever since) – though I wouldn’t be surprised if they eventually did. Counting the cover to #13, “Gabby”has been played by 3 different models.

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