Love and War, 1992, Paul Cornell
And so, good-bye to Ace. But as compensation, we get Professor Bernice “Surprise” Summerfield, one of the best and most brilliantly conceived Who-companions. It’s a shame she’s relegated to the questionable continuity fields of books and audios, as with the right actress in the role she could easily rival Sarah Jane for popularity. Still, in a “squint and you can see it” way you can sort of spot her legacy in characters like Donna and River Song.
Oh, man, it’s a good thing writing fan-fiction doesn’t tempt me, as I’m now picturing “Benny meets Captain Jack” scenarios…
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Benny’s a good character. It’d be neat if she could pop up on the series somehow, though I’m not sure who I’d want in the part.
I’d love to see Benny for realz, whether she’s played by her audio self, Lisa Bowerman or not. Love and War is one of the best New Adentures, if not THE best, and the reason I’ll pick up any Paul Cornell comic to this day.
The only NAs I’ve read are Human Nature and half of The Dying Days (need to get back and finish that at some point), and I’d still put Benny on my list of favorite companions.