My Fellow Ameri-Whovians

[radiumgirl]

I was sitting on my sofa this afternoon, slightly distraught that I don't get BBC America (I used to, before I downgraded my cable package) and could not, therefore, watch the series premiere of Doctor Who tonight, when I remembered that the UK is shiny, and, more importantly, five hours ahead of me, which means that the episode already aired on their side of the pond.

Which, in turn, means I should be able to download it.

So I started an epic quest for torrents, and stumbled upon this. 

I'm so sad. So so sad. 

Sarah Jane Smith was an iconic character (in my humble opinion) and so important to the Who mythos, not only in the classic series but (again, in my humble opinion) even more so in the new series. She was a vital link to the past and the present and Elisabeth Sladen's enthusiasm, support, and constant contributions to the new series was nothing short of glowing. 

 

There have been companions both before and after Sarah Jane's departure, but to me, personally, even though I came into the show through the new series and, admittedly, have watched only pieces of the classic series, to me, Sarah Jane Smith was THE companion. She was Every(wo)man. During her time on the TARDIS, she became more than a damsel at a time when women needed to see that on their televisions. Later, when she resurfaces decades later in the new series, we see something that the classic series tended to gloss over: life after the Doctor. There is a reason why the Doctor cannot fall in love with his companions. There is a reason why he has to let them go. Sarah Jane's reappearance in the series served to remind us of that, and the Doctor, of the maelstrom that is his entire existence, of the bittersweetness he leaves in his wake. 

 

To travel with the Doctor would be an amazing opportunity, but it wouldn't come without consequences. 

 

Goodbye, lady. You were brilliant.