AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe (Second Edition) [Paperback]

Ever wanted to know when the Cybermen were created? Or how about when the Daleks invaded Earth for the first time? Or perhaps how the universe began and how it will end? Well fans here's your chance with Ahistory (Second Edition). So is there a difference with the first edition? Oh yes and that difference is the reason enough to get this one.

This edition has been expanded to cover not just the books and Big Finish audios published after the first edition but the two series of the revived TV series featuring David Tennant plus Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Smith Adventures, and even the long running Doctor Who comic strip. Where has the first book contained 500 or so stories this one contains well over 800. It also presents interesting theories regarding continuity gaffs over the various stories.

One of the best things about the book is that it gives nice, neat little summaries of each story which is helpful when you're a fan seeking good stories. The summaries are usually filled with spoilers for the different stories so consider your-self officially warned.

While the spoilers aren't good for new fans, long-time fans should enjoy this. Full of theories and dates, this book should be helpful to any fan fiction writer looking for a good time to set a story at. Or if you're a die-hard Who fan seeking to know history according to the Doctor, it's just about as good as stepping into a real-life Tardis. Definitely recommended to Who fans.

"Ahistory" is the latest edition of Mr. Parkin's attempt at chronologizing Doctor Who. As such it is a humongous work with seemingly endless entries about every tiny nuance that ties individual episodes of Doctor Who together, along with the books and audio adventures of the same.

The trouble here is that everything is an enormous mess, because nobody really cared all that much about continuity in a show that was originally designed to be shown once and then taped over.

What makes it worse, according to "About Time" (which I recommend instead), Mr. Parkin seems to have actually written Doctor Who novels to cover plot holes in the continuity (such as Tegan not liking transmats when she'd never seen them before in the show -- surprise, there's a story he wrote where Tegan encounters transmats!)

There is much in this book. Far, far too much. Also it contradicts many things that are said in "The Discontinuity Guide" and "About Time". It even contradicts itself in places.

One gets the sense that it's all a bunch of fanboys arguing with one another, and not a respectable history (or even ahistory) that tries to be definitive.

So this is a terrible work for someone wanting an introduction to Who, but is great for those who want to write their own Who and would like to know what happens in the Somethingth Century so they can put their story there.

The major redeeming feature is that "The Discontinuity Guide" and "About Time" do not cover the books or audio adventures to any real extent, and "Ahistory" does. But even this can be seen as a handicap when there is still much debate over the canonicity of the books or audio adventures.

A purist will probably go for just the television series, as there is enough of that to last a lifetime (28 seasons so far), and will likely wish to pass on this book. But the rest of us; the completists, the people interested in what the novels are saying without wishing to actually read them, and the novelists and writers of fan fiction; these will want to have a crack at "Ahistory".

The time and effort spent, and the attention to detail are represented on every page. Especially enjoyable where the essays featuring Parkins' own theories on some of Doctor Who's mysteries, and the section collecting all know references to the Doctor's own personal history. Whether you are a new fan looking for more info on the Doctor, or an old fan looking to put a little more order into his world, this book is for you.