A Review by Finn Clark 15/8/04
DWM's least interesting one-episode comic strip in over a decade. That said, it's not actually bad. Indeed it's vaguely amusing, but personally I'd have to go back to Marc Platt's Cat Litter (DWM 192) to find a one-parter I didn't prefer. That was 1992, by the way. Fifteen other one-parters appeared in DWM between that and this and I like 'em all better than The Power of Thoueris, though admittedly I'm ignoring some pretty dire stuff from the Specials and Yearbooks.
The Doctor's on holiday in ancient Egypt (date: "quite a while ago") when a forty-foot alien hippo called Thoueris starts throwing her weight around and feeding people to crocodiles. The Doctor sorts her out... and that's all there is to The Power of Thoueris, if you don't count a closing pun as old as the pyramids themselves and infinitely more groanworthy. This isn't a story that's about anything; it's just a silly runaround beside the Nile.
The art's by Adrian Salmon. Admittedly he's an acquired taste, but personally I love the fact that he's working for us. He does extreme art, angular and stylised almost to the point of absurdity, and you won't see the like anywhere else. That's good. However unfortunately here its effect is diluted by muddy colours that tend to make his drawing look bland and dull. I admire the fact that DWM went into colour with their comic strips, but so far their computer colouring has been pretty hit-and-miss. My favourite colouring job to date was on The Nightmare Game, but there's also been some real dross perpetrated. Unfortunately this isn't one of DWM's successes.
Mind you, I'm sure Adrian relished drawing Egypt. Head-dresses, gigantic hippos and Nile crocodiles are exactly what an Adrian Salmon script should be giving him to play with.
This isn't the first comic strip set in ancient Egypt, of course. What's more, by now there's practically a profusion of Osirians. Was someone selling package holidays? In addition to Thoueris and Sutekh himself, we've met Kephri the Beetle-God from Curse of the Scarab (DWM 228-230) and Nephthys from The Sands of Time (Virgin MA). What's more, these Osirians all look completely different, from jackal-headed humanoids to bear-sized beetles. That's one weird species. What do Osirians consider sexy? Or shouldn't I be asking that question?
There's an interesting dating coincidence if you start comparing these stories, incidentally. In 2000 BC tomb robbers entered Nephthys's tomb in The Sands of Time and broke the canopic jar that contained her evil impulses, but that's also when Kephri the Beetle-God brought a plague of insects. The Power of Thoueris doesn't give a date for itself (beyond saying that the Osirians were ordered to leave Earth by Horus "a few thousand years ago"), but if it's also set in 2000 BC then might all this Osirian activity be related? Perhaps Nephthys woke the others when her energies were released?
There's also a non-Osirian Egyptian story: The Gods Walk Among Us (DWM 59). It's set around 3574 BC and has Sontaran Field Major Styx being treated as a god. It's drawn by David Lloyd and it's better than all of these others put together!
The Power of Thoueris isn't bad, but it doesn't really have a point. You'll probably enjoy it, after a fashion, but you won't remember it for long afterwards.
A Review by Richard Radcliffe 14/6/05
A one off story that showcases the wacky artwork of Adrian Salmon.
The 8th Doctor is on holiday, in Egypt (a long time ago, says the panels). He's with an Egyptian friend, and they are visited by the god Thoueris. The Doctor takes exception to this invader, and gets rid of him.
Adrian Salmon has long enhanced DWM with his unique depictions of the Doctors adventures. Here he gets another chance at the full comic strip - it's just a shame the subject matter is so weak and inconsequential. That's not to decry Salmon's artwork - that's as good as ever - just that Scott Gray has done far better the vast majority of the time.
The god Thoueris must be one of the worst super beings ever, and a giant Hippo hardly looks that menacing either. But that would be taking something serious that is done quite light-heartedly. It's a throwaway comic strip, disappointing but a change from the norm.
It only lasts one issue after all, so should be taken with a pinch of salt anyway. I'm quite intrigued by the Victorian story about to hit DWM, that should be a lot better. 5/10