Jo Martin’s Forgotten, Fugitive Doctor is returning in a Doctor Who comic book event that kicks off on Free Comic Book Day 2022. No one can fault current Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall on his ambition; during his tenure he’s revealed everything viewers thought they knew about the Doctor was wrong. She is not a Time Lord at all, but rather she is the Timeless Child – a being who originates from another universe, whose power of regeneration led her to become the base genetic code for the entire Time Lord race.

The retcon has also introduced a new incarnation of the Doctor – usually referred to as the Forgotten Doctor, but sometimes the Fugitive Doctor, played by Jo Martin. Doctor Who: Flux finally confirmed this Forgotten Doctor’s place in the timeline – she’s a pre-Hartnell incarnation of the Doctor, who served an interventionist group known as the Division. Her story remains a mystery, and unfortunately it’s looking increasingly unlikely Chibnall will be able to explore it. His time as showrunner is coming to an end, along with Jodie Whittaker’s as the Thirteenth Doctor. There are only two more specials this year before the two depart, with Russell T. Davies returning as the next showrunner and the Fourteenth Doctor as yet unanncounced.

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Surprisingly, it looks as though the Fugitive Doctor’s story will continue in the comics rather than on the small screen. The Free Comic Book Day website has been updated to confirm Titan Comics’ Doctor Who FCBD issue features Jo Martin’s Forgotten Doctor. Written by Jody Houser and featuring art by Roberta Ingranata, it will serve as the lead-in to an epic new arc that will launch in May 2022. Here’s the solicit:

“An epic adventure with the traveling Time Lord, this issue serves as a lead-in to the explosive new story arc that reveals the very early years of the Doctor. Past, present, and future all collide in a Doctor Who tale that’s out of this universe!”

It seems some of the Doctor’s forgotten adventures will be told in different media, rather than in the TV series. That had always been likely – Doctor Who has a long history of transmedia, and when a showrunner leaves the different media tend to run with the various loose ends. The story of Russell T. Davies’ Time War has been told in novels and audiobooks, for example, while Missy – the version of the Master from Steven Moffat’s tenure – has recently starred in her own comic book miniseries. But it’s still surprising to see this happening before Chibnall has actually leaves. As Davies explained in the May 2005 issue of Doctor Who Magazine:

“Doctor Who is produced by a Public Service Broadcaster and it is paid for by you, the license payer. As a consequence of this status, the BBC has to be very careful with its merchandising. We are happy for you to enjoy the Doctor off-screen and read the novels, but we must never make that purchase necessary. If you had to buy a BBC novel in order to understand the plot as transmitted on BBC1, then we would be breaking the BBC’s guidelines.”

This is why the Doctor Who TV series couldn’t get involved with the popular Time Lord Victorious transmedia initiative back in 2020 and 2021, for example. It perhaps hints there won’t be many more revelations about Jo Martin’s Forgotten Doctor in the next two Doctor Who specials – which, to be fair, is a good thing because it would be better for them to be focused entirely on Jodie Whittaker. The Doctor Who FCBD special will be in stores on April 13, 2022, and viewers eager to learn more about this Forgotten Doctor will definitely want to pick it up.

Source: FCBD

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Thomas Bacon
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Tom Bacon is one of Screen Rant’s staff writers, as well as a Peer Mentor for new writers and a member of the Care Team, offering support and a listening ear to members of the Comics group. A lifelong fan of major franchises including Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Marvel, Tom is delighted his childhood is back – and this time it’s cool. You can find him on Twitter @TomABacon.

A graduate of Edge Hill University, Tom remains strongly connected with his alma mater as a volunteer chaplain. He’s heavily involved with his local church, and anyone who checks him out on Twitter will swiftly learn he’s into British politics too.

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