K-9 Mark III
From TARDIS Index File, the free Doctor Who reference.
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| K-9 Mark III | |
| Also known as: | K-9 |
| Race: | Robot |
| Home Planet: | Earth |
| Home Era: | circa 1980 - 2007 |
| Appearances: | Full List of Appearances |
| Actor: | John Leeson (voice) |
- "K-9!, Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, allow me to introduce K-9! Well, K-9 Mark III, to be precise."
- ―The Doctor introducing K-9.[src]
K-9 Mark III is the designation given to the third known version of the K-9 robot. This version was given by the Doctor as a present to his former companion, Sarah Jane Smith, in the late 1970s.
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[edit] History
How Mark III came to be built has not been chronicled. Based upon the original K-9 Mark I designed by Professor Marius (DW: The Invisible Enemy), and upon K-9 Mark II, which the Doctor, in his fourth incarnation, was shown uncrating following the decision by Mark I to stay on Gallifrey (DW: The Invasion of Time), it is assumed that Mark III was either built by the Doctor, or he obtained it from the same source from which he obtained Mark II.
[edit] Travels with Sarah Jane Smith
The Doctor left K-9 for Sarah-Jane in 1978, but she did not actually learn of its existence until 1980. Soon after being uncrated, K-9 assisted Sarah Jane in defeating the Hecate worshippers of Moreton Harwood. (KAC A Girl's Best Friend) It is known that K-9 and Sarah-Jane shared more adventures after this, but only a few have been chronicled. (K-9 Annual 1983, et al).
Circa 1983, K-9 Mark III still lived with Sarah Jane, but, by chance, did not accompany her to Gallifrey. (DW: The Five Doctors) Later, K-9 accompanied Sarah to an archaeological dig in Egypt. (DWM: City of Devils) In the early 1990s, K-9 assisted Sarah in investigating a supposedly haunted house. (VD: Housewarming) In 1996, Sarah used K-9 to hack into records and find Sam Jones' home address, and later to translate Lost Boy's speech. (EDA: Interference - Book One)
[edit] Break down
K-9 was briefly possessed by a demonic pig spirit, but was freed when Sarah accidentally electrocuted him. (ST: The Sow in Rut) K-9 began slowly breaking down and eventually ended up deactivated in a cardboard box in Sarah's attic. (VD: Moving On) Hilda Winters later had K-9 dismantled and analysed. (BFSJS: Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre)
Later, Sarah Jane began carrying K-9's remains around in the boot of her car, having given up on being able to repair him with modern-day technology. (DW: School Reunion)
[edit] Sacrifice
In 2007, when Sarah Jane met the Doctor again, he successfully repaired K-9. During the ensuing incident with the Krillitanes, K-9 oddly bonded with Mickey Smith, who identified himself as being another of the Doctor's "tin dogs". K-9 Mark III ultimately sacrificed itself to stop the Krillitanes, which led to emotional reactions from both the Doctor and Sarah-Jane.
Not long after, however, the Doctor presented Sarah-Jane with K-9 Mark IV, and the two went off for more adventures. (DW: School Reunion)
[edit] Features
Mark III included some improvements over past models. The new mechanics of K-9 Mark III included larger wheels in conjunction with a front and back-wheel drive. (K-9 was given a brand new coat of paint (this time a metallic-blue) plus a handle on the top of the shell to make carrying him easier. (KAC: A Girl's Best Friend)
[edit] Behind the Scenes
- Only the pilot episode of K-9 and Company, A Girl's Best Friend, was ever aired.
- The original outline to K-9 and Company, it would have been eventually revealed that K-9 Mark III was actually sent by and under the control of the Master, but this element never made it to the screen.
| Variations of K-9 |
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| K-9 Mark I – K-9 Mark II – K-9 Mark III – K-9 Mark IV K-9 (2050) |
