Ranking Doctor Who’s modern day companions
By Lacy Baugher
Adelaide Brooke
Captain Adelaide Brooke was in charge of Bowie Base One, the first human colony established on Mars in the 2050s. Unfortunately, the base was attacked by a disgusting water-based monster known as The Flood, which rapidly infected all human hosts as they came in contact with liquid. (And making water pour from their body henceforth at all times.)
In the correct version of her timeline, Adelaide ultimately gave up her life to prevent the viral monster from infecting humanity, blowing up the base with her and the Flood inside. Her death was a fixed point that would eventually inspire her granddaughter to pursue a similar career, ultimately becoming a pioneer of human space travel who changed history.
However in “The Waters of Mars,” the Tenth Doctor visited the Mars base while reeling from a series of personal losses, declared himself the Time Lord Victorious and claimed that all of space and time should bend to his will. He decreed Adelaide should not die, and shuttled her and some other crew members back to earth rather than letting them die in the explosion as intended. However, he didn’t count on the fact that Adelaide would realize what her remaining alive would mean, both for her granddaughter and the future of humanity as a whole. She bravely and selflessly rejected the promise of a longer life – or of ever seeing her family again – in favor of committing suicide in order to keep the timeline on track.
Best episode: Since Adelaide only appears in a single Doctor Who installment, we have to go with season 4 special “The Waters of Mars.” But as one-offs go, it’s a stunner. Lindsay Duncan’s performance is amazing from start to finish and she more than holds her own opposite a version of David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor that’s going a bit power mad. Her decision to take her own life is portrayed as an act of bravery and sacrifice, one which not only preserves the timeline of human space exploration, but also reminds the Doctor that it can be dangerous for him to travel on his own for too long.