Doctor Who ( 2009 ) " Doctor Who " ( 2009 ) published by IDW Publishing , was the first American comic book , comprised of multiple stories , with an ongoing , original " Doctor Who " narrative . It was set entirely within the 2009 Specials and featured the Tenth Doctor . It ran for 16 issues and one annual during 2009 - 2010 , and was the last comic strip series in the world to regularly star Tennant ' s Doctor , until Titan Publishing Group got the license in 2014 , and made . In January 2011 , it was succeeded by " Doctor Who " ( 2011 ) , a publication that featured the Eleventh Doctor , Amy Pond and Rory Williams . Name . When originally published , this series was often marketed with the unofficial title of " Doctor Who Ongoing " . Because IDW were publishing one - shots at the same time as the early issues of this series , the word " ongoing " helped to distinguish the title in the minds of consumers and retailers . However , the " actual " indicia title was always simply " Doctor Who " . Since those early issues , IDW virtually stopped their publication of one - shots in 2010 , and they decided to relaunch the series with a new issue # 1 to herald the arrival of the Eleventh Doctor . Hence , for clarity , the Tennant issues are best thought of as " " Doctor Who " ( 2009 ) " , while the Smith issues are best referred to as " " Doctor Who " ( 2011 ) " . Evolution of the series . IDW announced in February 2009 that it was planning the series to run for at least 18 issues . The company repeated this commitment at the New York Comic Con and on the publisher ' s page of issue # 1 . On both occasions , they claimed that the 18th issue , scheduled for publication in December 2010 , would feature the start of original comic book adventures featuring the Eleventh Doctor . However , in February 2010 IDW modified its schedule slightly . The Tenth Doctor ' s adventures were reset to end with issue # 16 , scheduled for publication in December 2010 . At that time , it was unclear whether the Eleventh Doctor would simply pick up at issue # 17 , whether the title would restart with issue # 1 , or whether the Eleventh Doctor would simply be used in a series of limited or one - shot titles . Finally , IDW dropped all pretence of including the Eleventh Doctor in this title , and said that he would get his own title , with his own issue # 1 . Content overview . Ultimately , then , the series focused on the adventures of the Tenth Doctor , pairing him with both new characters created for the comic book and occasional returning companions . Beginning with issue # 6 ( published in mid - December 2009 ) , the Doctor began travelling with two companions created for the comic book , Matthew Finnegan and Emily Winter . Martha Jones appeared at the end of issue # 8 and joined him for the the four - part story arc with UNIT and Captain Magambo that followed . All stories occurred consecutively , with one story leading into the next with a cliffhanger ( much in the spirit of the early seasons of the TV series ) . Judging by author Tony Lee ' s hints in issue # 1 , the general plan was always that the first sixteen issues would be interconnected to some degree . In a Newsarama interview , Tony Lee said , " We do have stand alone stories set on colony worlds , Lovecraftian horrors in Oxford , UNIT in modern day Greenwich , and a two parter set in the TARDIS . " In order , these last three descriptions referred to what became " Final Sacrifice " , " Don ' t Step on the Grass " and " Tesseract " . Setting for the Tenth Doctor . Initially , the exact placement of the Tenth Doctor stories was slightly vague . Lee wrote in a publisher ' s column : Lee has given subsequent opinions that seem to shunt the stories after " The Waters of Mars " . In an interview with Comic Book Resources , he said that the Tenth Doctor ' s adventures in the ongoing are most likely set directly before " The End of Time " . Lee confirmed that this is where he personally sets them in his Newsarama interview . This view is supported by the Doctor ' s first scene in " The End of Time " , which revealed that following " The Waters of Mars " , the Doctor travelled for an indeterminate period of time ( the animated TV story , " Dreamland " , is also said to take place during this period ) . Dialogue throughout the series confirms that the stories firmly take place after the " he will knock four times " prophecy first heard in " Planet of the Dead " , but more exact placement is not yet possible barring a possible future reference to the events of " The Waters of Mars . " It is worthy of note , however , that a major plot point in both " Silver Scream " and " Fugitive " deals with the Doctor having saved the life of a woman considered a " fixed point " in history . Considering the events of " The Waters of Mars " , in which the Doctor learns a painful lesson about violating this rule , placement before " Waters of Mars " is a possibility . Annual . According to an old tradition in the American comic book industry , IDW published an annual in 2010 . This special issue was 48 ad - less pages , square - bound , and contained four original short stories , " Ground Control " , " The Big , Blue Box " , " To Sleep , Perchance to Scream " , and " Old Friend " . It should not be confused with British annuals more commonly associated with " Doctor Who " . It was first published on 14 July 2010 in North America . Initial publicity regarding the annual indicated that it would focus on the Doctor ' s TARDIS . The annual featured the first IDW appearance of the Eleventh Doctor , appearing alongside the Tenth Doctor for two panels during a dream in the story " To Sleep , Perchance to Scream " . Trades . As it has done with its one - shots , " Agent Provocateur " , and " The Forgotten " , IDW has begun reprinting the story arcs as trade paperbacks . The first volume , " Fugitive " , published in March 2010 reprinted the first six issues of the title . This was followed by " Tesseract " and " Final Sacrifice " . Awards . " Doctor Who " ( 2009 ) was recognised by as the " Best Licensed Series " of 2010 . In giving the award , they wrote :