Project FANGARIUS: Life Beyond the DW-RPG Club

Although it sounds like something from Extreme Makeover, Project FANGARIUS was really about how Fanger survived the cancelation of his own series, and ended up continuing through his Eighth and Ninth Incarnation.  Despite the fact the DW-RPG Club had been officially disbanded, FANGARIUS had only undergone under hiatus status.

Funny thing, when you work on a series, sometimes the characters end up in obscurity, and at other times they continue on through unusual means.  In this case, the year was now 1988, and I was attending Lee College.  Somehow, while obtaining a Liberal Arts degree, I had ended up on the college newspaper, The Lantern.  Where I had not only composed articles, but illustrated editorial cartoons, some with Fanger as well as other characters.

Consequently, what had really gotten Fanger back on the scene were the odd parallels between his series and Doctor Who, and the fact I had gone to a Sci-Fi/Fantasy and ended up getting FANGARIUS a theme song.

Losing Fanger's Mind:  FANGARIUS' Theme Song

During the late-Eighties, Galveston held a Sci-Fi/Fantasy Con, and some of my former members thought it'd be great if we attended it.  I recalled they had a fanfic section where one could 'pitch' your version of famous shows and films.  My friends had unwittingly submitted FANGARIUS for this little stunt, but due to their unexpected haste, had overlooked one minor detail:  FANGARIUS had sorely lacked a theme song.

The real truth was I had always considered a theme song, but I wanted something a bit different than the typical sci-fi fare.  Some members had considered a Twilight Zonesque theme, however, I had suspected it didn't really fit with Fanger.  Whereas others had wanted something along the lines of Star Trek or Battlestar Galactica, but I had felt they were a bit too pretenous, and they really didn't describe Fanger's overall persona.

Since the DW-RPG Club had always gone straight for the adventure anyway, we had never given the theme song concept any more thought.  Besides, who actually plays a theme song for an RPG, let alone a convention?  Amazingly, Stephen Sondheim, Liza Minnelli and the Pet Shop Boys had gotten me out of a seriously, sticky wicket.


Now I should indicate they didn't directly help me out.  In 1988, the Pet Shop Boys produced a song called, "Left To My Own Devices."  Mysteriously, I had always thought the song fit with the film, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Where I would envision Roger and all his friends saving Toontown from Judge Doom.  

Nevertheless, about the time PSB was co-producing songs, they did one with Ms. Minnelli in 1989,called "Results."   And in this collection, there was an updated version of a Sondheim song called, "Losing My Mind."  I loved how PSB gave the classic a Whovian style with the tune itself.  And whenever I heard the overture, I always mentally augment my own lyrics:  Fangarius, where have you gone? Fangarius, where have you been?

Before I had realised it, I had ended up selecting a theme song for FANGARIUS.  Strangely enough, if you listen to the original lyrics, the title and song sort of fit my character since I felt many Companions probably do lose their mind when dealing with the Paranormal Time Lord.

Throughout several years, there have been several mixes of the song, which have also kept with being FANGARIUS' Theme Song.  Some which enigmatically describe each Incarnate's personality.

FANGARIUS: Lost Regeneration Plots & Missing Adventures

If you've been reading this blog so far, you'll note how FANGARIUS parallels with Doctor Who in more ways than one.  Besides the turbulent Sixth Fanger/Doctor year of 1986, about the time I had entered into college, Doctor Who was about to enter the verge of cancellation, even with Sylvester McCoy portraying the Seventh Doctor.

Though the television series was about to go off-the-air, Virgin Publishing and the BBC had come up with a unique way of continuing The Doctor's adventures:  The New Adventures.  Basically, they kept on adding new stories as well as New Companions like Bernice.  But it was Virgin's plan on creating The Missing Adventures which gave FANGARIUS a new leash on life.

Basically The Missing Adventures dealt with Past Doctor tales which took place within The Doctor's Timeline.  Meaning writers could compose stories dealing with any Incarnate of The Doctor.  And the same thing had occurred with Fanger as well.  Yet, the first of the new tales actually dealt with some plots finally revealing what caused the Fourth Fanger into transforming into his Fifth Incarnate.

Fanger's Lost Regeneration Plots

Before I commence with this section, I do need to clarify on some points. When transposing the information from my memoirs to this blog, I had realized I had erroneously made a bit of an inaccuracy.

In reality, during the DW-RPG Club, the Regeneration thing had been unexpectedly dropped on me.  The truth was, I had simply regenerated Fanger without rhyme or reason, with this being Fanger's unknown Regeneration since the Eighth Doctor regenerating into his Ninth.

Back then, Fanger and Nyssa had only hinted on what caused the Paranormal Time Lord's Fourth Regeneration. And considering the fast pace of the DW-RPG Club's series, we had never given it another thought.  That is, until a former member attending the same college had suggested I pen some actual stories leading up to and revealing the cause for Fanger's Fourth Regeneration.

This time using my college life as a basis, Fanger's Fourth Incarnate and Nyssa find themselves secretly enrolled at Lee College, where they continued their adventures on Earth.  More specifically, Baytown, Texas, and also ended up getting married, and of course, Fanger ends up losing his Fourth Incarnation.

However, the dilemma was how did he enter into his next form?  Once again, the truth proves into being stranger than fiction.  During February 1989, Baytown had undergone the worst freeze it had ever known.  Experiencing this phenomenon, I was inspired in composing the plot, DeepFreeze.

DeepFreeze begins where Fanger and Nyssa start noticing how the planet is going through an unusual Northern trend.  Especially when places like Malibu and Orlando are experiencing snow storms.  However, when South America and Australia start undergoing subthermal weather, the Paranormal Time Lord decides to investigate.

Meanwhile, Nyssa notices Lee College has obtained a new satellite transreceiver dish from an unknown benefactor.  Normally it's supposed to help track satellites and weather patterns, but she suspects something afoul when she discovers the places it has been tracking has been hit by the unusually-cold weather.

Fanger later discovers a new type of F-Clone, the Ice-Clones, are responsible for this sudden cold snap.  Yet, the mastermind is not Davroan, as the Paranormal Time Lord suspects, but an unexpected adversary.

Glaceséche, the Last Frigidonian, decides on transforming Earth into the New Frigidonios, and making himself Emperor and Fanger his Prince.  (Due to a miscomprehension, Glaceséche has decided Fanger is now his adopted son.)  As usual, Fanger doesn't share his adopted father's plans, and desperately attempts a way for reversing the Global Ice Age.

Nyssa, and the Lantern Staff, provide the solution: Lee College's dish is actually helping the Ice-Clones transmit a signal to the satellites for controlling the weather.  The only way they can stop it is if they can produce a powerful biofeedback force to override the signal.  Regrettably, not even Fanger's TARDIS can provide the necessary force, so Fanger constructs a Parakinetic Interface and plans on using his powers as the source.

What ensues is a tour de force between Fanger and the Ice-Clones, with Fanger overextending his PK Limitations in the process.  Though Glaceséche escapes before the Paranormal Time Lord unleashes an intense biofeedback signal of PK Force.


The entropic effect from the signal instantaneously destroys the Ice-Clones, but regrettably, the overextension ends up ravaging Fanger's body. Completely weakened, he manages to go back to the Journalism Office, where he collapses and begins entering his Fourth Regeneration.


Fanger's Missing/New Adventures

As I once mentioned, during FANGARIUS' High School Run, the Sixth and Seventh Fangers sort of got shafted when it came to episodes.  Besides working on some odd episodes with the Fourth and Fifth Fanger, I also had let some of my members (now in college) come up with some missing or new adventures dealing with the Sixth and Seventh Fanger.

 

The Missing Adventures mainly focused on plot episodes or ideas I had thought about being a great tale concerning the Fourth and Fifth Fangers.  Whereas some of the Sixth and Seventh Fanger tales focused more on filling in the missing years between the two Incarnates, like what occurred during the Sixth Fanger's Exile in the 22nd Century, and how he managed on regaining his travels.  The Seventh Fanger focused more on his Bohemian nature while he investigated the supernatural and extraterrestrial as he continued his travels throughout Time and Space.

Some adventures went in-depth with Fanger's battle against the Conspirator, while some focused on him just coping with the typical monsters and such, including some battles with The Master himself.

The New Adventures continued where FANGARIUS had left off, where the Seventh Fanger was now dealing with the aftermath behind the Conspirator's plots.  He also encountered advanced versions of the Cybermen and Daleks, not to mention the F-Clones.  Also with the help of some members, the Seventh Fanger had some wild adventures in both the DC and Marvel Universes.  Including one where a malfunctioning genetic device (later it would be the Chameleon Arch) transformed both into a Fangarian Realm (It's a Fangarian World, Baby!) and he had to deal with two imps upon getting things back to normal.

But it was the epic tales and a forgotten promise which brought about something with FANGARIUS:  An entirely new Regeneration.

FANGARIUS: The DW-RPG Chronology

Rather than compose an endless blog entry about the DW-RPG Club's exploits (which would give me Writer's Cramp and a major headache), instead here's a brief Chronology on how FANGARIUS series ran through its 'high school' seasons:

1983

• During Doctor Who's Twentieth Anniversary, the DW-RPG Club debuts, heralding FANGARIUS' Series Premiere.  

•  Although 25 plots were conceived for the Fourth Fanger, only 14 episodes were produced. 

•  The Inquisitor (aka Bishop) makes his debut in Destination:  ZERO.  The Inquisitor would start making other enigmatic appearances throughout the series itself, and later become Fanger's Paradox Incarnate, Jidai Sakugo's adversary.

• Next to his cousin, Kiptom, Fanger's older brother and sister, Dunestar and Zaralynn ('Lynn), make their debut appearances in different episodes.  Not to mention revealing some of Fanger's secret Past.

•  The F-Clones--the Daleks' new mortal enemies--debut, becoming the most frequently recurring adversaries of the series.

• The Michael J. Fox craze with the female members brings forth a completely-reinvented Alex P. Keaton.  Mr. Fox's popularity also fleshed out many other characters within F4's era:  Brannl (Rassilon's Son), Glaceséche (Last Frigidonian), and Grandier (Gallifreyan Ancient).

 1984 (Spring)

•  After seven episodes, during an attempt saving Gallifrey, Fanger gets caught by the Time Lords.  Placed on trial by the High Council, Fanger's found guilty of violating Non-Intervention Laws.  The Fourth Fanger gets sent to Earth--during the Third Doctor's Timeline (1970s)--while the Third Fanger gets placed into a specialized SuspensRoom, completely sealed off from The Doctor, inside the TARDIS.  Thus preventing any possible Paradox Effects from occuring.

• Fanger's Exile ends (c. 1976-79) while persuing ANACHRONOS back to Gallifrey.  On his homeworld, Fanger successfully dispatches the cybernetic intruder from the symbiotic computer, The APC Net (aka Matrix).

• GENFAR, the confidential Fangarian BioSphere, is revealed as Fanger attends a special reunion with his Clanstribe and other Wolf-Clans in hopes of preventing another Great War from occurring.

• The Fourth Fanger episodes draw to a close, as the members elect Fanger should undergo a Regeneration per school year.  Consequently, since this decision came after the last F4 episode, Deathtrap (where Fanger and Nyssa--his bethroed--reunite, and later become married), the Regeneration Plots were transcribed as a means for bridging the gap between the Fourth and Fifth Fanger.

1984 (Fall)

• Next to Fanger entering a new Incarnation, the first major change hits FANGARIUS:  all episode plots are now limited to 18, rather than 25, as a basic preventive towards possible conflicts with school business.

• After much deliberation and endless attempts, the Fifth Fanger makes his debut, appearing as a lupine Michael J. Fox.  Besides being married to Nyssa, Fanger ends up having two sons: Fanstar and Ianstar.  And later one daughter:  Achika Barbara.

• The first Fangarian Trilogy emerges in the series, The Fangarian Planets.  The saga focuses on the Fifth Fanger saving the last surviving Tellurians (Earth) from The Great Fall Out.  Afterwards, Fanger discovers and establishes two new planetary colonies:  Fangaria and Earth II.  Unlike the Fourth Fanger episodes, the three-episode saga contains major gaps in Time.  By the end of the Trilogy, Fan, Ian and Achika are practically grown (reaching their 100s), and the Fifth Fanger uncovers a plot by the unknown Conspirator.  Later, Fanger and Nyssa decide on resuming his TimeSpace travels, in order to save everyone from the Time Lords' unexpected wrath.  Eventually Nyssa stays behind on Gallifrey, in hopes for keeping her husband safe from the High Council.

• James Atkinson II --one of the Fourth Fanger Companions--makes a brief return.

• While visiting a now-neglected AssaultLab base, Fanger receives an unusual Companion, Scott Compstar.  Scott is actually a genetic-cyborg, once designed for militaristic combat, until the company behind his creation was taken over by the infamous MeglaCorp. 

• Returning briefly to the late-20th Century Earth, the Fifth Fanger teams up with a UNIT Operative, Harry Hupermeister (later changed to Harry Hooperman).
  

1985 (Spring)

• Since four members were becoming Seniors (meaning their Graduation rehearsal took precedence over our club), 1985 only allowed a few episodes.

• In the final episode, The Genesis of the F-Clones, taking a page from Terry Nation's classic story, but The F-Clones are the antagonists.  The Time Lords send the Fifth Fanger back to the point of F-Clone creation, where he finds the Fourth Fanger trapped within a SuspensCapsule.  He discovers Davroan is really Davros' brother, and the F-Clones are actually mutant Thals within specially-engineered cyber-symbiotic automatons.

• Although managing to foil the F-Clones' advanced development slightly, and saving his former self, the Fifth Fanger unwittingly gets ensnared within a neutron explosion.  The intense radioactive exposure prompts another Regeneration, but in a way no one expects.

 1985 (Fall)

• Fanger's Eighth Anniversary (1977-1985) - In celebration of this occasion, a special mini-series:  The Ultimate Trial was done containing six episodes:  the first four were simply undone plots of the Fourth and Fifth Fanger; the remaining two had the Sixth Fanger contending with The Inquisitor, Tris Gunhul and Omega.

• In The Ultimate Trial, The Inquisitor is finally revealed as an unknown Future Incarnate of Fanger.

• In conclusion to the Fifth Fanger's cliffhanger, Fanger stuns the members by entering a humanized Incarnation for the first time.  The Sixth Fanger actually received his Incarnation through a BioData Transfer from Harry.  Thus explaining why this new Fanger resembles John Ritter.

• Even though the Sixth Fanger survives his harrowing ordeal, Rassilon and The Inquisitor decide on temporarily exiling the Paranormal Time Lord once again on Earth.  Covertly, they both want Fanger to investigate the strange goings on in 2357-Earth.  After about thirty-two episodes of FANGARIUS, the TARDIS 2's exterior is transformed from a multicoloured police box, into a blue telephone kiosk.

• Stranger than fiction:  Coincidentially, about the same time the BBC places Doctor Who on hiatus, leaving the Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) in the lurch, FANGARIUS receives the same fate.  The problem begins when two head members expel an unruly player from the club without my consent (my Choir duties kept me away from a majority of club meetings).  Afterwards, word inexplicably leaks out about our club, prompting a local Anti-D&D organization to come and investigate on-campus.

 1986 (Spring)

• The DW-RPG Club resumes business, but only after promising the PTA it would be disbanded and FANGARIUS would end at the 1986-87 School Year.

• For about ten episodes, the Sixth Fanger remained.  The first five focused on his 2357-Earth Exile, while the remainder had him pardoned, allowing him to resume his TimeSpace travels. 

• While visiting another planet, the Sixth Fanger gets enigmatically poisoned by The Rani, prompting him into entering his Sixth Regeneration

1987

• After another four-month hiatus in the Fall of '86, Fanger enters his Seventh Incarnation, this time resembling Martin Short.

• The final episode was another mini-series, The Gallifreyan Connection, where it primarily tied-up loose ends and revealed some outlandish identities and secrets--especially the Conspirator's.

Although the DW-RPG Club's lifespan had been severely limited, FANGARIUS would still survive through the odd-assorted short stories, drawings and strips.  In fact, though the role-playing game had cease, I had never imagined the Paranormal Wolf-Being would keep on travelling through my college years and beyond.  Not only having some special stories, but also spawning two new Incarnates, one in the form of Jerry O'Connell, and the current one who was inspired by Ashton Kutcher.

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FANGARIUS: The Preliminary Concept

As with most series, you essentially need a primary foundation.  Although the Dr. Who & Fanger plots had established Fanger's unique relationship with the Time Lord, eventually I had required something which motivated Fanger's solo adventures.

Commencing with Fanger's Fourth Incarnation, I had shaped his new form in the appearance of a young man in wolf's clothing, not discerning the fact Fanger was now 121 years old!  Nonetheless, I had decided Fanger was sent back to Gallifrey.  Back on his homeworld, Fanger continues his advanced studies at the Prydonian Academy, with his cousin, Kiptomtrevelundarian.

The concept tells of how Fanger not only becomes a Paranormal Time Lord, but also embarks upon his own personal adventures:

While awaiting Graduation Day--where the High Council decides upon whether or not promoting students to Time Lord status--The Master makes another attempt seizing control of Gallifrey.  The infamous Renegade is now assisted--with the aid of a psionic amplifier--by some displaced F-Clones.  Realizing the real potential threat, Fanger cleverly foils The Master's vile scheme by acquiring the amplifier, then ordering the F-Clones into destroying themselves (Fanger instructs them into piloting their crafts into a neutron star.).  Although The Master escapes, Fanger's heroic and resourceful acts are rewarded, as he and Kip have now been given Time Lord status.

Privately, the current political situation between the Clanstribes and Gallifreyans make Fanger reconsider his newly-gained position.  Unknown to the Council, the Paranormal Time Lord has been covertly engineering his own type of TARDIS, a Model 92 Deluxe, or TARDIS 2, as he denotes it.  Not wanting to be simply a Council figurehead, Fanger escapes Gallifrey within his craft.

To make matters worse, unknown to Fanger (at first), Kip has secretly stowed on-board the transdimensional vehicle, leaving the planet as well.  Not to mention, during a trial run, Fanger accidentally short-circuited his TARDIS' chameleon circuit, placing it in the form of a multicoloured police box. 

Establishing this as the cornerstone of Fanger's adventures, FANGARIUS had officially made its debut.  And over just the span of four School Years, the series evolved into something of its own, as well as the DW-RPG Club itself.  Leaving Fanger with three other new forms (making a total of Seven Incarnates at the items), and the Rise and Fall of the Club itself.

The Doctor Who Role-Playing Game Club (DW-RPG)

The interesting thing about RPGs, no matter what genre you prefer, is the fact they're configured exactly as a film or television series.  The rules are your basic character limitations, the GM is your director and the players are the characters.  But more importantly, RPGs have special books providing invaluable backgrounds and settings, helping the players and GM with understanding the RPGs' scenario better.

When I had purchased The Doctor Who Role-Playing Game, I really had no intention of establishing a club, nor orchestrating one together.  The original intent was for me accessing better research material from the BBC series.  This way Fanger could be safely integrated into the series without any more faux pas like the Peter Cushing Incident.  The television shows and literature--regardless of the well-conceived plots and episodes--had provided little, if any, background information about The Doctor and his Universe.  Therefore, recalling how TSR is extremely thorough with their mythical realms, I presumed FASA had done the same for Doctor Who.

Meanwhile, my family and I had recently moved to Baytown, and my father got a promotional job at Crosby Middle School.  He was now an Assistant Principal, rather than a teacher.  Consequently, because Crosby was such a small town, my father was also considered an administrator.

Bill Cosby had once indicated the problem when you're a (presumed) genius, people have this appalling habit of ignoring the fact you're still normal. Because I could read at 2 1/2 years, I was always being tested and retested, ending up in advance classes, until I had nearly burned out on educational venues.

Calculating this into the equation, because my dad had become an administrator, many had gone under the misapprehension I was exceptionally well-suited for specialized school activities.  So when I had become a Freshman at Crosby High, I had ended up being shanghaied into yet, another extracirricular scheme.  This time I was requested in creating an afterschool reading club, designed for both Middle and High School students, in hope of improving academic reading skills.

Not that I discovered the concept being distasteful, the idea just didn't appear very practical.  For most of you recall, school meant getting up at the crack of dawn, and starting classes around 7 a.m.  You'd  have classes non-stop--with the occasional homeroom period and lunch break--until about late afternoon, then you furiously had to recall exactly what assignments needed to be done at home.  In all the while, you also had ensuring you didn't miss the bus home.

Taking all this into account, the last thing anyone wants to do is stay after school, meeting within the Athletics Building, and talk about books which you're supposed to have read.

Nevertheless, I had found myself committed to at least attempt such a venture.  The tentative membership had consisted about ten people.  Due to this extremely last-minute bombshell, I had unwittingly brought my DW-RPG stuff to the Athletic Building.  Totally amazed, I had discovered every person there was an avid Whovian.

Derik, one of our members, had come across some of my FANGARIUS sketches and preliminary background sheets, everyone had become sold upon the prospect of forming an RPG Club.  Before I had immediately jumped into this, I had first explained some basic guidelines.  Naturally, the club had to be kept secret from the school district.  Despite the RPGs winning the war, there had still been some restrictive rules not permitting the playing of RPGs on campus.

Another was prophetically breaking the strict perimeters of role-playing, making our club more of a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure format.  One reason was due to the time constraints, we couldn't realistic set up a proper RPG game, or environment.  The other was, I had felt this essentially avoided the dreaded Syndrome (TCLS), and allowed every member to participate equally in the series itself.

Last, but hardly least, in keeping with the original intent of the club, my only major requirement was each FANGARIUS episode contained some type of reference from famous written works and/or subtly deal with current issues. 

Basically the way an episode worked was this:  members would propose concepts and story ideas for Fanger, we'd vote on one, and I'd work on a beginning script, then we'd go from there, like a genuine episode.  Thus, FANGARIUS and The Doctor Who Role-Playing Club was established.  But as with all good things, Fanger had to have a start, and in the next brief entry I'll tell you about the Preliminary concept behind FANGARIUS, which would become the cornerstone of the Paranormal Wolf-Being's Tales through Time and Space.

The Age of Role-Playing Games

Before we dive directly into FANGARIUS and The Doctor Who RPG-Club, I thought I'd first educate you with some background info upon the Role-Playing Game itself.

Now before you start clicking away, thinking Oh, God, Fanger's become the freakin' History Channel, I'm going to give you a more subtle, condensed version, which will help serve as a reference point for later posts focusing upon the series in relation to the club itself.

The Ancient Days of Role-Playing (RPG)

In the days long before World of Warcraft, Age of Conan and even, Final Fantasy, there was simply the Role-Playing Game.  Though many have argued its exact origins, the RPG's popularity emerged from the late-Seventies/early-Eighties, right out from the ashes of 8-tracks, disco and incredibly-bad movies.

Basically many know the concept of role-playing, because when you were a kid, you probably played some type of pretend game like 'cops & robbers,' 'cowboys & indians,' (remember, folks, pre-PC days here) or even your favourite space hero. Or to put it in simpler terms, similar to acting.  Where, as with your pretend game, one assumes the role of a character within a specific setting and usually must contend with a series of situations.

In the case of RPGs, the goal usually focuses upon one's survival.  And RPG's also implement certain regulations (hit points, attributes, etc), primarily dictated by the head (or Game Master), while success/failure is determined with a mere roll of the dice.  This sort of prevents the old 'I-got-you-no-you-didn't' debate one gets into when you played as a child.  Though some might argue on how some mechanics of an RPG work at times.  Naturally, those who've played their digital counterpart (sans the dice) are well-familiar with the concept.

One of the most popular RPGs is Dungeons & Dragons series, which was arguably inspired by the works of J.R.R. Tolken (specifically with The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings saga), and for awhile, became the archetype for most RPGs being produced.  Of course, an observer would probably never suspect something this simple, yet, complex, would ever develop into a major problem.  Regrettably, as with most fads, Role-Playing also possessed an unexpected dark side towards its participants.


The Dark Side of RPGs
About 1981, there were various reports of D&D participants who had literally gotten intensely involved being their characters.  The result would turn even more dangerous whenever the character ended up deceased, for it would inexplicably result in a psychological condition, sending the player completely out of Reality.

Even though I'm no Dr. Phil, nor dare I ever pretend to be, I have witnessed some people who did enter this trauma.  Thus, I had formulated my own hypothesis behind this curious ailment:  The Creation Loss Syndrome (TCLS).

Being a cartoonist and writer, it's naturally known whenever a person creates anything from an actual person, to a completely ficitional being, the person begins developing an affinity with that character.  Translation:  Killing off said character would be akin as if one killed your own child or best friend.  Therefore, in my own theories, I suspected the Game Player (GP) would foolishly put so much into their creations, they couldn't dare visualize its death, despite harsh rules and regulations.


One solution I proposed in combating TCLS, was having the GP produce alternate characters from the one creation.  Thus, if the alternate gets killed, their original character remains intact, preventing any psychological damage.  Naturally, one of my associate's thought if one got that involved with RPGs, one should quit and acquire a life.


Consequently, the TCLS Outbreak with game participants had immediately spawned an immensely hateful reputation for RPGs.  As a result, as most loathed items which are secretly liked by its followers, war within society would soon follow.


The Great RPG War

As with most addictions, RPGs had received attention from watchdog groups who wanted to do nothing more than simply eliminate the problem.  At the time, TSR officials had simply dismissed the problem, noting their D&D system was never designed for teenagers, nor kids, but rather a more collegiate group.  Similar to the adult magazine, RPGs could no longer be sold except in certain specialty shops, and only to persons over 18.  Regrettably, these restrictions didn't hamper the craze, nor halt the TCLS Epidemic one bit.  Ironically, it had taken a flawed legislative bill to make a dent in the RPG War.

Around 1982, the Senate allegedly passed a bill outlawing public participation of RPGs, but the act possessed a highly, short-lived enforcement.  Not considering the obvious fact, most RPGs were done in private, but the bill specifically denied TSR games.  More precisely, D&D, since it stated the TSR-based systems failed giving participants a clear discrepancy between fact and fiction.

However, little did Congress realize they would single-handedly revolutionize RPGs with just a few overlooked loopholes.

The TV/Movie/Literature RPG
RPG Companies had immediately noticed the bill only prohibited games constructed upon pure fantasy.  But what if a RPG was based on something where one could indicate to players the vital difference between fantasy and reality?  About October 1982, FASA and West End started releasing RPGs based on such popular television, movies and books, such as Star Trek, Star Wars, and Indiana Jones.  Remarkably these new formats helped RPGs win the war, though some people have formed Anti-D&D groups, in hopes of abolishing all RPGs.

And it was one game in particular by FASA, The Doctor Who Role-Playing Game, which would unwittingly start the debut of our club and the FANGARIUS series.

From Fanger to FANGARIUS

About the end of 1982, a realization came to me concerning the Toon anthropomorphical form of Fanger.  Despite coming up with background plots and essentially giving Fanger an in-depth background, one thing was true about what Jon had commented about the character:  no matter what I did with Fanger, he'd never be taken seriously as The Doctor, or his Companions. 


During the Peter Davison episodes, I had thought long and hard of having Fanger undergo a physical transformation.  One which the Fourth Fanger possessed a more humanesque Incarnation, while retaining his lupinesque (hence where the term Wolf-Being originated).

One might think this was an easy task.  Then again, so's, 'reversing the polarity of the neutron flow.'

One notable problem was, of course, not wanting Fanger appearing as a wolfman reject.  Mainly because he'd then be an anti-thesis to what Fanger was primarily all about.  Meaning it would've undermined the true reason behind his creation.  Another dilemma was the reason why I preferred the Toon realm from the realistic (?) superhero form.

Throughout the media, we've always stereotyped a standard for men and women.  And, regrettably, that was also proven in comics, since heroes seemed to be well-built, and shapely-figured.  When in truth, most people aren't like that, and the reason I liked characters like Bugs, Daffy, Woody and others were, they were heroes by just being themselves.  So the problem also was, I didn't really want Fanger being too muscular, nor looking too rugged.

Strangely enough, it was Chuck Jones who saved me out of this jam.  After all his style inspired how the Third Fanger had 'regenerated' from his first form, and I recall how he illustrated human figures.  Not to mention, one rule about keeping things simple when creating a character.

Armed with that knowledge, I began working on sketches, some loosely from Super Fanger until I had come up with a prototypical image for the Fourth Fanger.  Of course, the real challenge wasn't as so much transforming Fanger, as it was given him a new nom de plume.

As most people know, Doctor Who is simply the name of the programme, since the star is more commonly referred to as The Doctor.  Thus, I felt Fanger deserved a slightly better name than just 'Fanger.'

Naturally, there was one smart alec--who shall remain nameless--had suggested the peculiar title, Fanger What,  but I prefer not to get into it...

Seriously, though, I wanted a name which not only fit this new Incarnation, but also revealed an air of importance.  Stranger than fiction itself, I had happened on discovering the perfect name while conducting research for a Math project.  While studying Greek mathematicians, I had come across an obscure name, Fangkarius,who had performed the unthinkable of his time:  Fangkarius had disproved the Pythagorean Theorem. 

Nonetheless, the name had imprinted itself upon my brain, and by simply removing the k, I had ended up with Fanger's real name, Fangarius.

But despite all the trouble I had gone through with revamping, and renaming, Fanger, little did I suspect in 1983, Fangarius--The Role-Playing Series, would be spawned.  Not to mention a whole new set of episodes, characters, as well as Incarnations, would be set into motion.

Entering the Dr. Who-volution: The Doctor Who/Fanger Plot Episodes

In 1981, I had immediately acquired my first crash course into social cliques. The rule for this in Alief was this: unless you somehow belonged to such a class, you weren't allowed liking the same things as the class. For instance, Doctor Who (now aired occasionally on the Sunday Channel 2 Movies) was now considered an exclusive-only item to the Aliefians. Meaning they felt only they had the privilege accessing it, and no commoner was permitted in viewing it. Worse than that, most of them were also the worst snoops, invading one's privacy for the sheer torture of it.

Jon Mitchelson had once gone through my private notebook and found a copy of the BBC-Oriented tale. Consequently, Jon had wasted no time trashing my work, stating Doctor Who was completely off-limits. (Hey, it was typical. I even had a guy scream my name was S***head, because we had the same nickname.) Adding insult to injury, Jon had claimed Fanger was too stupid to be anything but a Toon Companion.

Angered and embittered by the malicious act, I had expediently begun making serious overhauls upon the character itself. In all honesty, I had never planned on Fanger being a mere Companion to The Doctor. Conducting some extensive research upon the show itself, I had learned despite the BBC's meticulous world of the Time Lord, they had grossly overlooked one minor detail: Gallifrey's Ancient Past. Even on occasion, one of the Doctors would make a brief comment about the planet's obscure history. However, nothing was ever really pursued on the subject. With this infomation at fore, I had elected Fanger would not be just a simple basis upon The Doctor's life, but rather an intricate component, or extension, within The Doctor Whoniverse and possibly beyond.

The Doctor Who/Fanger Plot Episodes

Allowing my emotions to subside momentarily, the first talk I had acknowledged the natural reality I couldn't simply utilize the same Fanger for all Four Doctors (during this time, Tom Baker was still going strong in the US, while Peter Davison would be taking over the role in England). So first I had needed to re-evaluate Fanger's character. Although his remarks were cruel, Jon had established a substanial point. Upon re-reading the BBC-Dalek episode, I had realized I hadn't actually integrated the character with Doctor Who, but instead, had stuck Fanger in like a Colorforms character. In other words, Fanger had literally no real substance to him, making it difficult for hardcore fans to enjoy him. Taking this into account, I had needed to learn exactly how and why The Doctor had left his homeworld, and somehow applying that towards Fanger.

Fanger's Background Concept
About the Third Doctor's (Jon Pertwee) Season, we finally learned one of the reasons why he had left Gallifrey in the first place. According to the Time Lord, The Master had engineered a bloody coup on their world as a means for overthrowing the High Council. Consequently, all the infamous renegade had accomplished was creating a deadly bloodbath and near destruction of the Capitol.

Taking this into account, I conjured forth the ancient race I referred to as the Paranormal Wolf-Beings, who once existed long before Gallifreyan Man. As with their counterparts, the Wolf-Beings also had felt the physical and psychological scars of The Master's bloody coup (which the Wolf-Beings would later refer to the incident as The Onslaught).

In the original concept, Fanger was only a child when he had witnessed this disaster and was mysteriously rescued. Unintentionally, The Doctor and Susan had fled in the same, exact TARDIS in which Fanger was placed in for safekeeping. Another item was The Doctor knew Fanger's family, and was the character's Godfather. Realizing he couldn't simply leave Fanger behind, The Doctor had reluctantly taken the frightened being with him and Susan.

In the process, I had also done something with Fanger, which was never, ever permitted with Toon characters, serious and otherwise: Fanger unwittingly had become an addict to a medicinal drug. The reason behind this was demonstrating Fanger also had a normal vice despite his intergalactic, supernatural background. Even though Barbara had helped Fanger overcome his dangerous addiction, the trauma of The Onslaught would remain burned in his mind, as he privately vowed to help other cultures from entering such horrors.

Powerful stuff, one might say, and it was. But surprisingly, creating Fanger's background was just the easy tip of the iceburg, the real fun came into literally splitting the character into three personas.

The Three Fangers
Remembering how Fanger--like most famous Toons do--had regenerated into three slightly altered forms in his Past lives, it was only fitting these multi-Fangers would be integrated into The Doctor's life as well. The only obstacle I had come into contact with was which Fanger would go with whom, and how explaining why the character's physiognomy (physical appearance) was only altered slightly, whereas The Doctor's form kept changing dramatically.

Since Fanger originated from an ancient race, I had immediately formulated a theory about how his culture could utilize variated techniques upon specialized talents such as Regeneration. In one of the Second Doctor episode plots, the phenomenon of Mental Regeneration came into play, as The Doctor indicated Wolf-Beings possess the unique ability of maintaining their original shape while their minds undergo a transitional change. Establishing the hows and whys down, I had then simply divided the Fangers into three distinct personalities:

The First Fanger - Eliminating the original obnoxiousness from Phoomy Man!, F1 possesses the innocence and curiosity of a child, while always attempting to help others in the process. Rarely using magic, F1's powers were still growing, and he usually prefers using his wits over physical acts as a means of reticifying dangerous situations.

The Second Fanger - Taken from the series, It's Fanger!, F2 has been considered as one of the most-wild Fangers of the lot (of course, before The Seventh Fanger had come onto the scene). Due to an electroplasmatic imbalance, this Fanger possesses Toonesque abilities, and has contacted the annoying habit of puns and wordplay into becoming reality. However, F2 uses this to his advantage by confusing and bewildering his enemies, allowing The Doctor to come up with something. Possessing a Scottish accent (and at the time, sounding like Robin Williams, thanks to Mork & Mindy), F2 always tries looking on the brighter side of life, rarely thinking about The Onslaught.

The Third Fanger - Sounding like Mickey Dolenz (of Monkees' fame), F3 was the split difference of F1 and F2. The Third Fanger tends on relying more on his wits and superspeed rather than using his Paranormal skills in solving problems. Wisecracking, Fanger doesn't like it when he's bullied by anyone, good or evil, and tends to let those know his feelings at times. Now mechanically inclined, F3 can also invent the most remarkable items out of even the most commonplace items.

After surgically separating the three Fangers, I decided which Fanger would go with the correctly-matched Doctor, determining when it was time for a Regeneration to occur. The actual setup went like this:

The First Fanger - First and Second Doctors; The Second Fanger - Second and Third Doctors; and The Third Fanger - Third, Fourth (and eventually) and Fifth Doctors.

With this proper setup, Fanger could safely interact with the appropriate Doctor and his Companions, preventing the Colorforms Syndrome from cropping up.

The Foundation Plot/Episodes
Finally after much time and effort in getting Fanger properly re-tooled for Doctor Who, the next item was creating some Dr. Who and Fanger episodes which would serve as a basic foundation for Fanger's enigmatic history with the Time Lord. Consequently, the only thing which remains of these episodes are the plot synopsis below.

Due to my constant battles with the Aliefians, and (like the incident with the earlier Fanger series) bad plumbing in 1983, I had lost most of the actual, story content. Fortunately, experience taught me in sagely making plot sheets for these episodes, whereas they miraculously survived the fateful perils of which their ancestors had perished. The plot/episodes are here as follows:

1981 - Patrick Troughton (Second Doctor)

The End of Time (aka Chronopolis)
More fantasy than Science Fiction, the Time Lords send The Doctor, Fanger and their Companions (Ben, Jamie and Polly) to Chronopolis--the Mystic City of Time--for assisting Father Time in saving the city from an evil wizard, Anachron. Anachron ends up placing Fanger under his spell, but The Doctor and his Companions rescue Fanger. They defeat the wizard in a Chronoduel--where famous Historical armies battle each other in fierce combat. However, armed with some Toon knowledge from a famous rabbit, Fanger and The Doctor easily defeat Anachron and rescue Chronopolis.

It's here we learn Fanger's identity as a Gallifreyan Paranormal Wolf-Being. Although here we don't officially make the connection between the planet and The Doctor. Fanger's now referred to as a Legendskeeper, meaning he's essentially responsible for recording all the sacred Legends and History of Gallifrey and the Universe.


Space Station Invaders (aka Reptilitron Invasion)
Despite the B-Movie title, The Doctor, Fanger, Jamie and Zoe end up on the planet Zantron-7 in 5214. There a Meglacorp Installation is being invaded by the Reptilitrons--who want to destroy the installation. Except after Fanger loses a life (entering his First Regeneration), The Doctor then discovers it's Meglacorp--and not the invaders--who are the true enemy. Thus, Fanger, The Doctor and their Companions must attempt in preventing the devastation of the planet's ecosystem, while quelling a possible intergalactic war.

Interestingly enough, Meglacorp would later become one of Fanger's most dangerous thorns. In FANGARIUS, Fanger usually ran into the infamous, intergalactic corporation more than once. Fanger even stated they made the Usurians (economic invaders from The Sun-Makers from Pluto) look like angels, due to Meglacorp's nefarious, business-like tactics.

1982 - Jon Pertwee (Third Doctor)

Shadows of the Night (Dark Shadows Crossover)
After The Doctor's Exile to Earth, UNIT's American branch contacts him and Fanger to go to Collinswood, Mass., after a bizarre series of vampiric murders have plagued the small town. As they investigate, Fanger encounters Barnabas Collins. Although Fanger knows about Barnabas' vampiric affliction (due to Angelique, a rogue witch), the Paranormal Wolf-Being suspects Barnabas' innocence in the murders.

Mainly because Fanger and The Doctor notice the victims haven't been drained of blood, but instead, cerebral fluid. Determining the cause, The Doctor realizes an Ancient threat, known as the Ceræbions are responsible. The Ceræbions are phantasms which can assume the shapes of others after consuming their victims' brain fluid. Fanger discovers their shape-shifting only lasts for about five days, depending upon the strength of the brain fluid.

After giving Barnabas some Synthblood, Fanger makes peace with the local vampire. Barnabas doesn't like the unearthly intruders any more than Fanger, nor The Doctor, and decides on helping them rid Collinswood of the invaders. Fanger discovers the reason the Ceræbions are here is because they plan on establishing a colony here on Earth. Collinswood was selected because these beings are attracted to the negative emotions of humans, such as hatred, suspicion and fear. Auspiciously, the investigators discover infared light is the invaders' Achilles' heel, thus Fanger and The Doctor, with Barnabas and Dr. Hoffman, develop a special strobe light.

Naturally, they use it for vanquishing the Headlordsman of the Ceræbions, but not before Fanger is brutally, mentally assaulted by the High Priest. The result forces the Wolf-Being to undergo his Second Regeneration.

1982 - Tom Baker (Fourth Doctor)

Dominatrix One
In this Stephen King-esque tale, Fanger, Sarah Jane Smith and The Doctor stumble upon a small, vacant town, Williamshire--where the inhabitants are being controlled by some unknown force. The Doctor senses a renegade Time Lord at work, while Fanger suspects otherwise. Basically because most Time Lords rarely implement the Mystic Arts as a means for conquest. Sarah gets captured by a group of psionic apparitions--The Spiritrals, who have been enigmatically entering the RealDimension.

During a rescue attempt, Fanger and The Doctor locate the renegade Gallifreyan Paranormal, The Dominator, who plans on using an Ancient Dimenspell for conquering the Earth, during the Moon's eclipse. Afterwards, The Dominator plans on invading and conquering the Universe as well. Auspiciously, The Doctor, Fanger and Sarah remedy the situation by altering some of the incantation's words. The result plunges the Spiritrals and The Dominator into a closed Dimension--trapping them there for at least 2000 years.

Dominatrix One also brought some more inscruitable information about Fanger. One interesting aspect is Sarah Jane Smith being a blood relation to Fanger (Earth cousin). Not to mention, the Fourth Doctor now acknowledges Fanger as being a Demi-Time Lord.

1982 - Peter Davison (Fifth Doctor)

The Satellite Connection (aka The Starscan Project)

By pure coincidence, this episode started the same way the Peter Cushing/William Hartnell Dalek Episodes had. When Logopolis had aired here on PBS, my friends had complained about the way this particular episode was produced. As I was thinking up a way for Fanger entering his first physical Regeneration, I had started re-inventing the tale. As you read the episode synopsis, you'll also notice I poke fun at the current fads and innovations of the early 80s: Satellite TV, Radio telescopes and Atari Cartridges.

The Synopsis:
The Master basically plans on enslaving the people of Earth by using a discarded radio telescope in Houston (but, in reality, secretly being used by The Starscan Project) and an augmented television satellite. By doing this, he simply transmits a hyperwave signal to the satellite. Mysteriously, the TARDIS Sensors detect the anomaly, prompting The Doctor and Fanger to go to Earth and investigate. By examining the varying frequences from the satellite's control appartus, Fanger and The Doctor realize The Master has failed for compensating the varying positions as the satellite orbits Earth. (Specifically, The Master forgets satellite self-correcting gyros won't be perfected until about 1984.) As an unexpected result, the controlled slaves become deadly maniacs who set off after The Master himself!

Forced to work with his enemies, The Master learns from Fanger and The Doctor, the only way he can save himself is destroying the control device on the satellite. Fanger and Nyssa devise a plan for positioning the satellite directly over the Starscan Project's radio telescope. By transmitting the correct signal, it will instantly short-circuit the device. While The Doctor positions the satellite into place--via the TARDIS--Fanger and The Master work upon the calculations for transmitting the signal.

In truth, The Master hopes on blackmailing both the Project and Earth Governments, while also ambushing Fanger with a Magnalite staser and fettering the Paranormal Wolf-Being onto the radio telescope itself. However, The Master fails realizing whom he's dealing with, thus ends up blowing out the controls and freeing Fanger. Apparently, Fanger secretly replaced the program cartridge with an Atari cartridge--Galga--which blows out the main controls. As a result, the reversal signal automatically activates, thwarting The Master's plans.

Enraged, The Master recreates the same incident with Fanger as he had with The Doctor, leaving the Wolf-Being hanging for his life. Afterwards, The Master attempts murdering Fanger with the Tissue Compression Eliminator. But in order to avoid the deadly TCE blast, Fanger releases his hold on the satellite, falling to his death. The sudden impact prompts him on entering his Third Regeneration.

The Satellite Connection also made some new revelations: Tegan Jovanka was mentioned as being Fanger's Earth Cousin as well. This was one of the first consecutive episodes which led quickly into the next plot/episode, and brought forth the first Companion from a sitcom: Alex P. Keaton. Who would later end up being a long Companion for the Fourth Fanger, not unlike Sarah Jane Smith is to The Doctor.

Doctran
Taking place after The Satellite Connection, right after Fanger's Third Regeneration, Fanger accidentally appears nude since his new body rips apart his clothes. Nonetheless, The Doctor, Alex, Tegan and Nyssa attempt transporting the disoriented Wolf-Being back to the TARDIS. Mainly to avoid the Houston Police and other authorities. Regrettably, The Doctor gets mysteriously ambushed by a cybernetic duplicate of himself, Doctran, and his Fanger, or F-Clones. Doctran wastes no time capturing the others and taking the newly-Regenerated Fanger to a secret subaqua base in Galveston Bay.

Secretly, Doctran's plot is to deceive Fanger into piloting the TARDIS back to Gallifrey. Once there, Doctran and the F-Clones plan on conquering the Time Lords' Homeworld. Once obtaining the secrets of TimeSpace travel, they plan on conquering the Universe. But as The Doctor is imprisoned by his doppleganger, he learns a disturbing secret about the F-Clones: they originate from the same planet as the Daleks, Skaro. Meanwhile, Alex manages to escape when he meets his own duplicate, AleC, and finds out AleC comes from the Future.

Locating and freeing, Tegan and Nyssa, Alex then helps them locate Fanger. The Fourth Fanger slowly regains his memories, pondering on why Doctran and the F-Clones want to actually conquer Gallifrey. Doctran reveals how the F-Clones plan on ridding the Universe of the Daleks, however, after the Time Lords' interference with both Dalek and F-Clone development, he acknowledges they are a greater threat than the Daleks.

Using The Doctor as hostage, Doctran forces Fanger into piloting the TARDIS to Gallifrey. However, with Alex and Nyssa's help, Fanger reprograms the co-ordinates, sending the TARDIS through an Ionic Voidstorm. The ionic disruption paralyses the invaders, and frees The Doctor from his energon cell. Taking advantage of the situation, the Time Lord uses the TARDIS Defense Systems to teleport Doctran and the F-Clones into the distant future, upon a far away, barren planet. Although they've managed in saving Gallifrey, The Doctor and Fanger have also placed the TARDIS upon another random course. This way, the Time Lords cannot calculate the group's next destination.

Doctran was actually the first episode where I introduced a completely new adversary, The F-Clones. Although here I hinted the fact they had a strange connection with The Doctor's Timeless Nemesis, The Daleks, The F-Clones would later be revealed as their mortal enemies in FANGARIUS.

Now that the plot/episodes had been established the next thing was coming up with a new full name for Fanger as well as starting up an extended, spin-off series of his own. Little did I realize how exactly I was going to do it.