Looking Back (comic story)

Looking Back was the first original comic story published in the Fireball XL5 60th Anniversary Comic Anthology in 2022. It contained elements from the Doctor Who universe.

Set in 2090, long after the 2060s of the reprinted material in the anthology, it depicted an older, now-Commander Steve Zodiac recount his prior service to a Lieutenant Nineski, daughter of the man who had held that same position during Steve's command of Fireball XL5. Steve specifically recalled the "Astran crisis"; the Astrans had been introduced in The Daleks comic Duel of the Daleks while their home planet of Astra was first namedropped in the Doctor Who television story The Rescue.

Summary
Commander Steve Zodiac watches from the Space City Control Tower as a World Space Patrol craft smoothly takes off from a launch pad. Speaking to Lieutenant Nineski, he says he sometimes enjoys reminiscing about the past during quieter periods, noting that the antigrav generators on the current specification of craft make for quieter lift-offs than the "roar" of the old Fireball. He continues on, remembering that 0G to 5Gs in ten seconds was "always a thrill" even with the inertial dampers set to max, though he acknowledges the new generation of ships are better for wildlife and for the environment.

Snapping out of it, Steve tells Nineski that had been the last of the launches for an hour or two and instructs her to monitor their sensor data, but bemoans the fact there is no crew as such to talk to in the mean time. Nineski agrees and tells Steve her father has described to her how Steve would always chat to him and Commander Zero back in the day. Steve corroborates the story and Nineski comments on the adventures they all had, saying she sometimes wished she had been alive during that time too. Steve confirms it was "thrilling" but also reminds her it was "a very dangerous" time for the Galaxy, recalling the Astran crisis as an example. He goes on to say that peace is a fragile thing which fear and distrust can easily destroy, cautioning Jo to be careful what she wishes for.

Characters

 * Commander Steve Zodiac
 * Lieutenant Jo Nineski

Worldbuilding

 * Steve claims the take-off of a Fireball craft "shook the Earth".
 * A picture of Supercar with the quote "From tiny acorns" beneath it is present in the Space City Control Tower.
 * A picture of Fireball XL5 flying through space is also present.

Story notes

 * Steve says he and Lieutenant Ninety sometimes used to send Commander Zero "completely tootie, or whatever you young people call it these days". The slang tootie and its alternative form toot was used extremely prevalently in the television run of Fireball XL5 but was not carried over when the series was spun-off into comics for TV Century 21. Depending on context, it could be used as a synonym either for odd and eccentric or for silly and foolish.
 * The picture of Supercar is a reference to the the programme of the same name, which was produced by Gerry Anderson and AP Films immediately prior to Fireball XL5. The series was set in the then-present day of the 1960s, explaining the in-universe significance of the quote below the picture.
 * In the video trailer for the Fireball XL5 60th Anniversary Comic Anthology, Steve Zodiac was briefly voiced by Marc Silk in dialogue from Looking Back.

Continuity

 * Steve Zodiac recalls the Astran crisis, leading into a reprint of COMIC: Space Border Battle.