My Best Friend (Classic Doctor Who, Four/Sarah Jane, Free Month)
Title: My Best Friend
Author: erisinia
Fandom: doctor Who Old School!)
Pairing: The Fourth Doctor/Sarah Jane Smith
Spoilers: From 'The Time Warrior' to 'Hand of Fear', and maybe School Reunion.
Disclaimer: Doctor Who belongs to the BBC, but they lost any right in my eyes to complain about harmless fan fun when they burned Two's episodes. OH, THE HATRED IN MY HEART.
Warning: Not dial-up friendly AT ALL. Oh, free month, how I love thee; a crazy picspam with something that thinks it is an argument. Heh heh heh.
NOTES: I'm not too good with the essay writing, but this pairing needs some love. So I give it to you.
So, the Doctor. He's this alien dude with two hearts who becomes someone new instead of dying in a clever ploy that has let one show continue for forty years.
This is Sarah-Jane Smith.
She is a girl reporter. She and the Doctor got off a bit on the wrong foot; she had snuck into a secure area by impersonating her microbiologist aunt, and the Doctor called her on it and told her to make him coffee. Being a feminist, this of course tee'd her off severely and she was all, "Grr." Long story short, she stowed away on his TARDIS and ended up in the middle ages where she promptly charmed her way into the favor of the dude in charge of a castle, mistook the Doctor for the badguy, and led a team of archers into the enemy castle to capture him. After they got that problem sorted out she helped him save the world (wearing a smashing blue gown to do it.) It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Oh--when I hear people say "Yay for Rose, finally a companion who can do something other than scream!" I want to get Sarah Jane to shoot them. She totally could.
Sarah's first Doctor was Three.
He's a'ight, and they did have moments of extreme cuteness, but she was his 'assistant' and not a lot more.
I know, I know, but he was still totally in love with Jo.
So. They have some adventures together, Sarah lightens up a tiny bit, and then he dies. Poor Three. And in his place there appears a towering, booming-voiced fellow with a frequent toothy grin hovering on the border of utter insanity and a mop of curls that always appears on the verge of escaping his head and running off to devour small children.
Meet Four. He is the bee's knees.
During most of his debut episode they don't interact, but what they do have is indicitave of awesomeness to come.
Also, she is the first person to whom he extends his famous offer of "would you like a jelly baby?" which is, like, huge. She is also the last person the Doctor actively asks to accompany him, for a very long time.
Their first big adventure together is to the furture, on a sattelite. The alert viewer can detect chemistry already emerging; a new Doctor's first big adventure is pivotal, and theirs laid the foundation for much cuteness to come. For example, Sarah gets stuck in a conduit (she was running a wire for them 'cause she's itsy-bitsy) and Four gets her moving by insulting her. She comes out, with all sorts of nasty things said about him, but he just grins and helps her out of the tube. This proved that he is a stinker but you can't stay mad at him long.
Four's a tactile sort of person, and he's always leaning against her...
...neither of them seem to have any concept of personal space.
And they're always sharing adorable smiles.
Sarah in particular seems smitten.
They're always looking out for each other, whether one of them has been captured (yet again)...
(he wrote 'Relax' on the outside of her prison there)
...or knocked unconcious...
...or any other sort of peril you like to name.
"Leave me behind, I'll only slow you down!"
"*makes like Tarzan*"
Four is very gentle with Sarah.
...and you never see him so furious as when someone hurts her.
Periodically he will appear to die, and then Sarah is always adorable when he comes back to life.
It's the other way 'round also, of course; in Genesis of the Daleks when he finds out she's alive he clenches her in a quick, almost involuntary hug that it is impossible to get a good cap of. Dangit.
And it's a silly reason to be behind the pairing, but it's so darn cute...he's so tall and protective and she's so tiny and spunky.
Their last episode together is stuffed with cuteness. Ah, their last episode; fit to make a shipper cry. During the entire thing they are in fine form, protecting each other, teasing each oher, working together. As Alan Kistler said:
[In The Hand of Fear]there was one scene where Sarah Jane defied the Doctor's wishes and joined him as he marched into danger (once again). Her explanation? "I worry about you." The Doctor said, "Yes, but ..." "But what?" Sarah Jane asked. Then the Doctor simply admitted, without looking directly at her, "I worry about you too." This dialogue was not overplayed or trumped up, but it was very sweet and all the more telling when you consider that I personally cannot think of a single other Doctor Who episode on TV where the Doctor directly said those words "I worry about you" to ANY of his other friends and companions, with the exception of his granddaughter Susan. So you can see, Sarah Jane definitely was someone special to him. How special is up to your interpretation.[...] As the Doctor told her she had to leave, Sarah Jane was heart-broken and had difficulty finding the words to say "good-bye." The two friends had one of the most heart-felt good-bye scenes in the whole show’s history. As Sarah Jane left, she forced a smile, her eyes watering, and said, “Don’t forget me.” The Doctor smiled back as he said softly, “Don’t you forget me.” Sarah Jane shook her head, knowing it was impossible that she’d be able to do so.
Four was one of the most enigmatic Doctors; the hardest to understand, and often the most of a loner. But the ending, with that "Don't you forget me." hidden in the shadow of his curls, makes me sniffle every time. Sarah Jane was special, there's no doubt about that. Although I love Four in just about any episode you care to name, my favourites have Sarah Jane; she did something to him and was something for him that none of the other companions were.
Why this ship? The thing about Four/Sarah is that they're not my OTP. I can get through an episode without thinking 'OMGtheirloveissotemporal!', I don't freak out when someone ships one of them differently with others, and I don't invent scenarios where they spend eternity together. It's a comfortable sort of ship. That's why I tend to promote it more than Nine/Rose; for one thing, that ship has plenty of fans already, and for another, it makes me vaguely uncomfortable. Oh, I believe it is twoo wuv and that they are soulmates as much as the next fangirl, but thinking too much about it is...itchy. As uktechgirl said in her 5/Turlough entry, the Doctor isn't going to spend the rest of his life with someone, no matter how much he loves them. Ten said the same in School Reunion (which I have sadly neglected in this rticle, but nyah). Nine and Rose need each other, and as much as I appreciate that it is hard for me to work with. If you'll forgive a 'types of love' classification drilled into my head in English Lit, Rose and Nine are Eros--idealized, passionate, romantic. Four and Sarah Jane are closer to what would be called Storge love--friendly, comfortable fondness and deep loyalty. Storge doesn't have to be romantic, and it is perfectly canon to say that Four and Sarah love each other in that way. "This is Sarah Jane Smith, she's my best friend," the Doctor introduced in 'The Seeds of Death'. They care about each other, they worry about each other, they rescue each other, they joke around and keep each other company. Sarah isn't just the Doctor's Companion, they are two travelling companions going on adventures. While he is clearly her superior in many ways, they usually interact as equals. So all this is well and good; why mess with what's there? Well, I'll tell you. ;) Four and Sarah are Storgic lovers, best friends. This is all we get on screen, except for a few hints...and those are what fascinate me. Hints that if we played around with this or that, if that circumstance changed, they could be something more. Again you must forgive my diversion, but Storge can combine with elements of Eros and produce Agape, something selfless, pure, deep, passionate and enduring. It is this potential for TWOO WUV that makes me go "Wouldn't it be cool if..?" and sniff out subtext in the episodes.
To conclude, I have collected quotes from various fans at total random. So it's not just me, and I can prove it. XD
"Sarah Jane was the first one to truly be a "companion." She was on the TARDIS because she wanted to be (even if she did grumble about it at times). She had several return trips to her native time and still chose to continue on with the Doctor. If the Doctor was not around, she would often come up with a plan herself rather than sit and wait. She would scream at the monsters sometimes, but she was just as willing to pick up a rifle and play back-up with cover fire. What's more, Sarah Jane had a natural chemistry with the Fourth Doctor in particular and they exchanged much banter. The Doctor may have been smarter, but Sarah was her equal in wit, persistence and strength of personality. There were even times where they seemed to have mild flirting going between them. Many years later, the new TV series would imply that Sarah Jane had actually fallen a bit for the mysterious Time Lord, even if he couldn't bring himself to fully return such feelings. There were several times when the two would seem to share warm smiles that were infectious to the audience." ~Kistler
"the rabid fangirl in me dies every time the Doctor recovers from one of his many near-deaths, with a lazy smile and a 'good morning' as if Sarah is the first thing he sees every day" ~ladyvivien
"I liked Leela, I liked many companions, but somehow it's always Sarah Jane in my head when I thnk Companion." ~lhp, TWoP forums
"I see that era as the Doctor & Sarah Jane Show. As far as I'm concerned, the rapport between them, along with the brilliant writing and casting, are what made DW an international hit and cult program." ~EHParson, TWoP
"Sarah Jane was more than an assistant, in my mind she's the closest person ever to the doctor, including Susan his grand-daughter and Rose, his romantic interest. It might have been the great dynamic between Tom Baker and Lis Sladen, but the writing for the relationship between the Fourth Doctor and Sarah is brilliant. In The Seeds of Death when the Doctor says Sarah Jane is his best friend, I believe it. And when they say goodbye in The Hand of Fear, I feel a pang. A BIG pang. PANGS, people." ~ Just'sin, ''
"Really loved Sarah Jane and of all of them she seemed like the most suited to him in a romantic sense. I know they never went there but if they had I think it would have worked on some level because I think they had chemistry. Not is a fiery romance way but like a mature married couple." ~MDKNIGHT, ''
"Sarah was always special. If I was going to ship him with anyone (and I'm not), it would be with her."~blarney, '' (Even the non-shippers ship Four/Sarah! XD)
My Sarah Jane -- a Sarah/Doctor lj community
http://community.livejournal.com/my_sarah_jane/
Sarah Jane lj community
http://community.livejournal.com/sarahjane_fic/
Video clip from Four's debut--the start of a beautiful friendship!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUHFLGQXu90
Sarah/Doctor music vid by neohippie1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zj4vNYnrkQ
"The Doctor and Sarah Jane rescue each other" (music vid)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrsEL5E_YyA
Sarah Jane music vid by chocolatesal
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipLHgBQ_bLw
Author: erisinia
Fandom: doctor Who Old School!)
Pairing: The Fourth Doctor/Sarah Jane Smith
Spoilers: From 'The Time Warrior' to 'Hand of Fear', and maybe School Reunion.
Disclaimer: Doctor Who belongs to the BBC, but they lost any right in my eyes to complain about harmless fan fun when they burned Two's episodes. OH, THE HATRED IN MY HEART.
Warning: Not dial-up friendly AT ALL. Oh, free month, how I love thee; a crazy picspam with something that thinks it is an argument. Heh heh heh.
NOTES: I'm not too good with the essay writing, but this pairing needs some love. So I give it to you.
So, the Doctor. He's this alien dude with two hearts who becomes someone new instead of dying in a clever ploy that has let one show continue for forty years.
This is Sarah-Jane Smith.
She is a girl reporter. She and the Doctor got off a bit on the wrong foot; she had snuck into a secure area by impersonating her microbiologist aunt, and the Doctor called her on it and told her to make him coffee. Being a feminist, this of course tee'd her off severely and she was all, "Grr." Long story short, she stowed away on his TARDIS and ended up in the middle ages where she promptly charmed her way into the favor of the dude in charge of a castle, mistook the Doctor for the badguy, and led a team of archers into the enemy castle to capture him. After they got that problem sorted out she helped him save the world (wearing a smashing blue gown to do it.) It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Oh--when I hear people say "Yay for Rose, finally a companion who can do something other than scream!" I want to get Sarah Jane to shoot them. She totally could.
Sarah's first Doctor was Three.
He's a'ight, and they did have moments of extreme cuteness, but she was his 'assistant' and not a lot more.
I know, I know, but he was still totally in love with Jo.
So. They have some adventures together, Sarah lightens up a tiny bit, and then he dies. Poor Three. And in his place there appears a towering, booming-voiced fellow with a frequent toothy grin hovering on the border of utter insanity and a mop of curls that always appears on the verge of escaping his head and running off to devour small children.
Meet Four. He is the bee's knees.
During most of his debut episode they don't interact, but what they do have is indicitave of awesomeness to come.
Also, she is the first person to whom he extends his famous offer of "would you like a jelly baby?" which is, like, huge. She is also the last person the Doctor actively asks to accompany him, for a very long time.
Their first big adventure together is to the furture, on a sattelite. The alert viewer can detect chemistry already emerging; a new Doctor's first big adventure is pivotal, and theirs laid the foundation for much cuteness to come. For example, Sarah gets stuck in a conduit (she was running a wire for them 'cause she's itsy-bitsy) and Four gets her moving by insulting her. She comes out, with all sorts of nasty things said about him, but he just grins and helps her out of the tube. This proved that he is a stinker but you can't stay mad at him long.
Four's a tactile sort of person, and he's always leaning against her...
...neither of them seem to have any concept of personal space.
And they're always sharing adorable smiles.
Sarah in particular seems smitten.
They're always looking out for each other, whether one of them has been captured (yet again)...
(he wrote 'Relax' on the outside of her prison there)
...or knocked unconcious...
...or any other sort of peril you like to name.
"Leave me behind, I'll only slow you down!"
"*makes like Tarzan*"
Four is very gentle with Sarah.
...and you never see him so furious as when someone hurts her.
Periodically he will appear to die, and then Sarah is always adorable when he comes back to life.
It's the other way 'round also, of course; in Genesis of the Daleks when he finds out she's alive he clenches her in a quick, almost involuntary hug that it is impossible to get a good cap of. Dangit.
And it's a silly reason to be behind the pairing, but it's so darn cute...he's so tall and protective and she's so tiny and spunky.
Their last episode together is stuffed with cuteness. Ah, their last episode; fit to make a shipper cry. During the entire thing they are in fine form, protecting each other, teasing each oher, working together. As Alan Kistler said:
[In The Hand of Fear]there was one scene where Sarah Jane defied the Doctor's wishes and joined him as he marched into danger (once again). Her explanation? "I worry about you." The Doctor said, "Yes, but ..." "But what?" Sarah Jane asked. Then the Doctor simply admitted, without looking directly at her, "I worry about you too." This dialogue was not overplayed or trumped up, but it was very sweet and all the more telling when you consider that I personally cannot think of a single other Doctor Who episode on TV where the Doctor directly said those words "I worry about you" to ANY of his other friends and companions, with the exception of his granddaughter Susan. So you can see, Sarah Jane definitely was someone special to him. How special is up to your interpretation.[...] As the Doctor told her she had to leave, Sarah Jane was heart-broken and had difficulty finding the words to say "good-bye." The two friends had one of the most heart-felt good-bye scenes in the whole show’s history. As Sarah Jane left, she forced a smile, her eyes watering, and said, “Don’t forget me.” The Doctor smiled back as he said softly, “Don’t you forget me.” Sarah Jane shook her head, knowing it was impossible that she’d be able to do so.
Four was one of the most enigmatic Doctors; the hardest to understand, and often the most of a loner. But the ending, with that "Don't you forget me." hidden in the shadow of his curls, makes me sniffle every time. Sarah Jane was special, there's no doubt about that. Although I love Four in just about any episode you care to name, my favourites have Sarah Jane; she did something to him and was something for him that none of the other companions were.
Why this ship? The thing about Four/Sarah is that they're not my OTP. I can get through an episode without thinking 'OMGtheirloveissotemporal!', I don't freak out when someone ships one of them differently with others, and I don't invent scenarios where they spend eternity together. It's a comfortable sort of ship. That's why I tend to promote it more than Nine/Rose; for one thing, that ship has plenty of fans already, and for another, it makes me vaguely uncomfortable. Oh, I believe it is twoo wuv and that they are soulmates as much as the next fangirl, but thinking too much about it is...itchy. As uktechgirl said in her 5/Turlough entry, the Doctor isn't going to spend the rest of his life with someone, no matter how much he loves them. Ten said the same in School Reunion (which I have sadly neglected in this rticle, but nyah). Nine and Rose need each other, and as much as I appreciate that it is hard for me to work with. If you'll forgive a 'types of love' classification drilled into my head in English Lit, Rose and Nine are Eros--idealized, passionate, romantic. Four and Sarah Jane are closer to what would be called Storge love--friendly, comfortable fondness and deep loyalty. Storge doesn't have to be romantic, and it is perfectly canon to say that Four and Sarah love each other in that way. "This is Sarah Jane Smith, she's my best friend," the Doctor introduced in 'The Seeds of Death'. They care about each other, they worry about each other, they rescue each other, they joke around and keep each other company. Sarah isn't just the Doctor's Companion, they are two travelling companions going on adventures. While he is clearly her superior in many ways, they usually interact as equals. So all this is well and good; why mess with what's there? Well, I'll tell you. ;) Four and Sarah are Storgic lovers, best friends. This is all we get on screen, except for a few hints...and those are what fascinate me. Hints that if we played around with this or that, if that circumstance changed, they could be something more. Again you must forgive my diversion, but Storge can combine with elements of Eros and produce Agape, something selfless, pure, deep, passionate and enduring. It is this potential for TWOO WUV that makes me go "Wouldn't it be cool if..?" and sniff out subtext in the episodes.
To conclude, I have collected quotes from various fans at total random. So it's not just me, and I can prove it. XD
"Sarah Jane was the first one to truly be a "companion." She was on the TARDIS because she wanted to be (even if she did grumble about it at times). She had several return trips to her native time and still chose to continue on with the Doctor. If the Doctor was not around, she would often come up with a plan herself rather than sit and wait. She would scream at the monsters sometimes, but she was just as willing to pick up a rifle and play back-up with cover fire. What's more, Sarah Jane had a natural chemistry with the Fourth Doctor in particular and they exchanged much banter. The Doctor may have been smarter, but Sarah was her equal in wit, persistence and strength of personality. There were even times where they seemed to have mild flirting going between them. Many years later, the new TV series would imply that Sarah Jane had actually fallen a bit for the mysterious Time Lord, even if he couldn't bring himself to fully return such feelings. There were several times when the two would seem to share warm smiles that were infectious to the audience." ~Kistler
"the rabid fangirl in me dies every time the Doctor recovers from one of his many near-deaths, with a lazy smile and a 'good morning' as if Sarah is the first thing he sees every day" ~ladyvivien
"I liked Leela, I liked many companions, but somehow it's always Sarah Jane in my head when I thnk Companion." ~lhp, TWoP forums
"I see that era as the Doctor & Sarah Jane Show. As far as I'm concerned, the rapport between them, along with the brilliant writing and casting, are what made DW an international hit and cult program." ~EHParson, TWoP
"Sarah Jane was more than an assistant, in my mind she's the closest person ever to the doctor, including Susan his grand-daughter and Rose, his romantic interest. It might have been the great dynamic between Tom Baker and Lis Sladen, but the writing for the relationship between the Fourth Doctor and Sarah is brilliant. In The Seeds of Death when the Doctor says Sarah Jane is his best friend, I believe it. And when they say goodbye in The Hand of Fear, I feel a pang. A BIG pang. PANGS, people." ~ Just'sin, ''
"Really loved Sarah Jane and of all of them she seemed like the most suited to him in a romantic sense. I know they never went there but if they had I think it would have worked on some level because I think they had chemistry. Not is a fiery romance way but like a mature married couple." ~MDKNIGHT, ''
"Sarah was always special. If I was going to ship him with anyone (and I'm not), it would be with her."~blarney, '' (Even the non-shippers ship Four/Sarah! XD)
My Sarah Jane -- a Sarah/Doctor lj community
http://community.livejournal.com/my_sarah_jane/
Sarah Jane lj community
http://community.livejournal.com/sarahjane_fic/
Video clip from Four's debut--the start of a beautiful friendship!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUHFLGQXu90
Sarah/Doctor music vid by neohippie1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zj4vNYnrkQ
"The Doctor and Sarah Jane rescue each other" (music vid)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrsEL5E_YyA
Sarah Jane music vid by chocolatesal
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipLHgBQ_bLw