A Rose by Any Other Name (comic story)

 was an ongoing Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor backup comic strip from 2014-2015. It featured the adventures of the Tenth Doctor and a cat he adopted and named after Rose Tyler.

Summary
The Doctor adopts a cat named Rose.

Issue 1
The Doctor has built a shrine to his lost companion Rose Tyler, and has been spending time watching romance and emotional films while binge-eating Ice cream. After great emotional straight, the Doctor suddenly exclaims that he now has a cat -- which he decides to call "Rose," much to the annoyance of the cat.

Issue 2
The Doctor imagines what he expected owning a cat would be like; the pair sitting at the table, watching Chums, and being friends. In reality, The Doctor has been scratched up by Rose-the-Cat after five days of not being able to find her. He is exceedingly angry, and begins to lecture the cat, but his anger fades after watching the cat for some seconds.

Issue 3
Watching the Doctor sulk in bed and cry over Rose-the-Human, Rose-the-Cat begins piloting the TARDIS to random spots in time. She visit Paris, France in the year 1879, where she finds a Mouse; New New York in the year 5000000023, where she catches a fish; 2014 on the planet Messaline, where she drags a Hath head back to The TARDIS; as well as others. After waking from a nap, the Doctor is horrified to find his room filled with animal carcasses, Rose believing that this will please him. Instead, he begins to cry over the loss of the animals. Rose, annoyed, states "you try and help..."

Issue 4
to be added

Issue 5
Rose-the-Cat and the Doctor are walking alone in an unknown location. Rose-the-Cat is trying to help the Doctor get over Rose-the-Human, and suggests he go for a rebound companion. The Doctor agrees shortly into the conversation, but later storms into the TARDIS angrily saying that he was stood up. Inside the ship, Rose is being stroked by a member of the Sisters of Plentitude. He angrily says that Rose was meant to be setting up a date for him, which Rose suddenly recalls being the point of her introducing the Doctor to someone. The sister awkwardly asks if she should leave.

Issue 6
to be added

Issue 7
Rose-the-Cat has thought of a plan which would help the Doctor get over Rose-the-Human: a shopping spree to spend off his emotions. The Doctor eventually sees it as a good plan, and takes them to a mall-planet outside of Nebula 6879H which has been having a closing sale for some time. They buy boxes and boxes of clothes which they have tried on (including a Waldo costume and a pink tutu) which they take back to the ship. Rose asks the Doctor if he has filled the hole in his heart left by Rose-the-Human, to which the Doctor says that he has, but quickly admits that that is not so. After a moment of thought, he realizes that he must begin to see the universe in a new light and enjoy the small things. Rose, meanwhile, is not listening to him, already exploring the many boxes they have brought home.

Issue 8
The Doctor has been inside the TARDIS for 26 hours, watching marathon reruns of Chums episodes. Rise is extremely bored with the show's reassuringly predictable plot, and just wants to go outside with the Doctor. 31 hours later, the pair are still watching, but Rose has grown more positive with the program, and says that the likes the episodes airing that day, but preferred the ones which had aired the day before. The Doctor agrees, saying that that season had had some of the best episodes. However, he suddenly begins to question what the pair are doing. He is the Doctor, a powerful being who travels through time and space battling injustice. He can just go back in time to watch the older episodes. Rose notes that there is already a channel that plays the day's previous material, 104. The Doctor begins to cry that he is not useless, and is no longer good for anything. Rose tries to comfort him, and says that they could go back in time to when he was good for something. The Doctor does not find the suggestion helpful.

Issue 9
The Doctor, Rose-the-Cat, and K9 are shopping for materials for a Sunday roast, as Rose believes that filling the Doctor's stomach will remove all room for heart-brake over Rose-the-Human. Rose-the-Cat notes that as a Time Lord, he should be able to get over her easily as 'time heals all wounds.' The Doctor is shocked that Rose-the-Cat has payed enough attention to him to remember his race, and begins explaining why Rose is mistaken using items from their shopping cart as metaphors. A tea-towel represents all of time, an onion represents the Doctor, and a turnip represents the Doctor's heart-brokenness. Rose begins to question what is happening. Minutes later, their shopping crate is crushed and their food is scattered all over the isle. Rose-the-Cat notes that the Doctor's explanation made no sense, to which the Doctor says "exactly! Neither does love!" Rose angrily questions why the Doctor is as annoying as he is and why Rose has to hang out with him, as K9 notes that the Doctor's heart-brokenness is on the floor.

Issue 10
Rose-the-Cat attempts to help the Doctor find new companions by referring him to Sergeant Benton's lonely hearts club. The Doctor gets a banana and a banana daiquiri to help him through the night. At the lonely hearts club he meets a Cyberman, a Weeping Angel, and a Hath. After several more daiquiris, the Doctor gets angry and gives up because he cannot find anyone he likes. At this point he sees a young red-haired girl, sitting alone and reading A Brief History of Time. Despite Rose's pleas that something seems off, the Doctor invites her back to the TARDIS. As he turns to go on ahead of her, the woman turns into a Zygon, turns to an unknown friend, and throws a thumb up. Rose-the-Cat tells her waitress "Keep 'em comin', love" as she is poured a cup of milk.

Issue 11
The Doctor has spent some time eating buckets of Dhakan Dazs, and has grown somewhat obese. Rose-the-Cat voices disgust at this, saying that if Rose-the-Human broke his heart this much that she hopes he at least said the L-word to her. The Doctor thinks that the cat means Lilith, and says that rose broke both of her hearts, not just one. Rose says that the Doctor needs to get out of his funk and possibly rebrand. The Doctor is unclear momentarily what she means, before he realities that she means Regenerate. Rose says that as long as the Doctor remembered her and wasn't fat, it would be fine. As punishment, the Doctor once again places her in her space-suit-of-shame, leaving her floating outside the ship once more. Outside, the cat notes that the Doctor could become ginger, which makes him consider the issue.

Characters

 * Tenth Doctor
 * Rose
 * Sisters of Plenitude
 * K9
 * Mouse
 * Cyberman
 * Weeping Angel
 * Hath
 * Zygon

Original print details
to be added

Continuity

 * The Doctor has a shrine to Rose Tyler and names a cat after her, placing this after her departure in Doomsday. The Tenth Doctor was previously shown obsessing over the loss of Rose by growing tree limbs in the shape of her name in the TARDIS garden. (PROSE: Keeping up with the Joneses)
 * The Doctor drinks banana daiquiris and gets drunk. (TV: The Girl in the Fireplace)
 * The Doctor can speak cat. (TV: The Lodger)
 * In an attempt to find "gifts" to cheer up the Doctor, Rose visit Paris, France in the year 1879, where she finds a Mouse; New New York in the year 5000000023, where she catches a fish (TV: New Earth); 2014 on the planet Messaline, where she drags a Hath head back to The TARDIS (TV: The Doctor's Daughter); as well as others. One of the "gifts" that she leaves in the Doctor's room is an Ood head.