On the tenth anniversary of The Sarah Jane Adventures, the Torchwood comics line pays tribute to an old friend.
Captain Jack himself, John Barrowman, revealed the new character – Sladen – on Twitter last week. Sladen will make her debut in Torchwood: The Culling on October 18th 2017. The book also features artwork by the awesome Neil Edwards.
“When we last saw Captain Jack, Gwen, and the rest of the new Torchwood team, they had just defeated an alien invasion in the Arctic… but missed a mysterious pod, buried under the ice, that held a seemingly familiar face. Now Captain Jack must battle his worst nightmare… or greatest daydream!”
Meet #Sladen! Elisabeth Sladen / Sarah Jane Smith was the mother of our ship on #DoctorWho and now Sladen lives in #Torchwood. John & Carole pic.twitter.com/qvnyfU92RQ
— John Barrowman MBE (@JohnBarrowman) September 19, 2017
We don’t know much about Sladen at the moment, but we do know that the character is named in tribute to a Whoniverse legend. Elisabeth Sladen played Sarah Jane Smith, companion to the Third and Fourth Doctors, from 1973 to 1976. She quickly became a fan favourite and reprised the role several times on TV and audio. In 2006, she returned to the newly-revived series and soon launched a CBBC spin-off based around the character. That series, The Sarah Jane Adventures, celebrates its tenth anniversary today. Elisabeth Sladen passed away in 2011 after a short battle with pancreatic cancer.
“We are very excited to bring this new character Sladen to the world of Torchwood. You all know both Carole and I were great fans of the wonderful Elisabeth Sladen who played Sarah Jane Smith and what a better way to pay homage to her and create a character with her last name. Elisabeth Sladen was the mother of our ship on Doctor Who and now Sladen lives in Torchwood,” said Barrowman.
We’ll be bringing you a review of ‘Torchwood: The Culling #1’ very soon. In the meantime, check out this cover artwork.
