Warriors of Kudlak
Encyclopedia
Warriors of Kudlak is the fourth story of the British
science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures
. It forms the fifth and sixth episodes of the show's first series. The first episode aired on the CBBC Channel
on 15 October, and the second on 22 October.
, who informs them of who Kudlak is and the background to his race. He is a member of the Uvodni race, and they were part of a planetary alliance fighting against the Malakh. The Malakh won the ensuing battle, but the Uvodni would not quit, and continued fighting. Eventually, Kudlak was injured on the front line and forced to leave fighting to others. He was thus sent out as part of an Imperial Fleet to recruit "warriors" from other worlds. His ship [and, likely, all the others] were led by a Mistress, who kept the War-adrenaline in Kudlak alive.
After decades of recruiting (mostly Terran
) children via war-games - called 'Combat 3000' - Kudlak - or rather Mr Grantham - abducted Clyde and Luke. Meanwhile, Luke and Clyde rescue other children from their crates, including Lance and a girl called Jen.
Mr Grantham breaks into Sarah Jane's home, but is overpowered by electrocution. Back on the Uvodni ship, the children make their way to a shuttlecraft, but are again captured.
Sarah Jane and Maria blackmail Grantham into transmatting them to the Uvodni ship, where they find and talk to The Mistress. When Kudlak brings the children to The Mistress, everyone is reunited. Preparing to kill them, Kudlak is stopped by Luke, who has discovered a message made by the Uvodni Emperor ten years ago, revealing an armistice
has been made with the Malakh. Not programmed to recognise "peace" as a concept, the computer Mistress had buried the message and kept leading Kudlak in recruitments. With the truth revealed, Kudlak destroys The Mistress, releases the children and swears to do what he can to reunite all the surviving past-recruits with their families.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures
The Sarah Jane Adventures
The Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television series, produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies and starring Elisabeth Sladen...
. It forms the fifth and sixth episodes of the show's first series. The first episode aired on the CBBC Channel
CBBC Channel
CBBC is a BBC television channel aimed at 6 to 12 year olds. It complements the CBBC programming that continues to air on BBC One and BBC Two. Launched on 11 February 2002, it broadcasts from 7am to 7pm on Freeview, cable, IPTV and digital satellite, occupying the same bandwidth as, but a different...
on 15 October, and the second on 22 October.
Part 1
When 'Combat 3000', the new laser-tag centre, arrives near Sarah Jane, a young teenager called Lance Metcalf visits it, where he mysteriously disappears. When Sarah Jane starts investigating, she discovers twenty-four children have previously gone missing. Meanwhile Luke tries to master being funny but can't quite do it. He also doesn't understand games. Therefore Clyde takes Luke to 'Combat 3000'. Sarah soon discovers that there have been mysterious storms at the time of the disappearances and that Mr Grantham and Kudlak are working for the Mistress, leader of 'Combat 3000'. Luke and Clyde manage to survive Round One and are challenged to make it to the door to the championships, facing other expert 'Combat 3000' players. When Luke and Clyde are very close to the door, they are attacked. Soon, Clyde and Luke manage to escape and are locked in a room where they mysteriously disappear. Meanwhile, Mr Grantham points a gun at Sarah and Maria but Sarah uses her Sonic Lipstick to help her escape. Maria and Sarah arrive in a different room where they are then confronted by Kudlak.Part 2
They successfully escape Kudlak after creating a diversion, and return to Mr SmithMr Smith (The Sarah Jane Adventures)
Mr Smith is a fictional extraterrestrial computer voiced by Alexander Armstrong which appears in the British children's science fiction television series, The Sarah Jane Adventures, with further minor appearances in the final two episodes of the fourth series of Doctor Who...
, who informs them of who Kudlak is and the background to his race. He is a member of the Uvodni race, and they were part of a planetary alliance fighting against the Malakh. The Malakh won the ensuing battle, but the Uvodni would not quit, and continued fighting. Eventually, Kudlak was injured on the front line and forced to leave fighting to others. He was thus sent out as part of an Imperial Fleet to recruit "warriors" from other worlds. His ship [and, likely, all the others] were led by a Mistress, who kept the War-adrenaline in Kudlak alive.
After decades of recruiting (mostly Terran
Terran
- Fiction :Terran is a demonym, a term commonly associated in science fiction with humans.- Literature :* Terran Federation, a government in the 1959 science fiction novel Starship Troopers...
) children via war-games - called 'Combat 3000' - Kudlak - or rather Mr Grantham - abducted Clyde and Luke. Meanwhile, Luke and Clyde rescue other children from their crates, including Lance and a girl called Jen.
Mr Grantham breaks into Sarah Jane's home, but is overpowered by electrocution. Back on the Uvodni ship, the children make their way to a shuttlecraft, but are again captured.
Sarah Jane and Maria blackmail Grantham into transmatting them to the Uvodni ship, where they find and talk to The Mistress. When Kudlak brings the children to The Mistress, everyone is reunited. Preparing to kill them, Kudlak is stopped by Luke, who has discovered a message made by the Uvodni Emperor ten years ago, revealing an armistice
Armistice
An armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...
has been made with the Malakh. Not programmed to recognise "peace" as a concept, the computer Mistress had buried the message and kept leading Kudlak in recruitments. With the truth revealed, Kudlak destroys The Mistress, releases the children and swears to do what he can to reunite all the surviving past-recruits with their families.
Continuity
- This serial was the first of The Sarah Jane Adventures not to feature Alan Jackson and Chrissie Jackson, although Alan is mentioned.
- Although it appears the teleportation is the same as the Judoon, Mr Smith does explain that this rain is a by-product of teleportation. It also uses the Doctor Who term transmat.
- Lance has posters from the DVDs featured in the Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
episode "BlinkBlink (Doctor Who)"Blink" is the 10th episode of the third series of the new production of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 9 June 2007, and is the only episode in the 2007 series written by Steven Moffat; the episode is based on a previous short story written by...
" in his room, as seen when Sarah Jane meets Lance's mother. - Sarah Jane mentions her UNITUNITUNIT is a fictional military organisation from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures...
training in this serial. - In the book adaptation of this episode, one of the Combat 3000 warriors is from Deffry Vale High School, also featured in the Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
episode, "School ReunionSchool Reunion (Doctor Who)"School Reunion" is the third episode in the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It first aired on 29 April 2006. The episode's narrative takes place some time after the events of "The Christmas Invasion"...
", which reintroduced Sarah Jane and K-9. - While Mr Smith is searching for missing children, there is a poster in the background of Sarah Jane's attic depicting the design of John Lumic's Cybermen.
- One of the aliens briefly depicted by Mr Smith is the Beast from the Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
episodes "The Impossible PlanetThe Impossible Planet"The Impossible Planet" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the first part of a two-part story, followed by "The Satan Pit". The TARDIS lands in a base on a planet orbiting a black hole, an allegedly impossible situation that stumps even the Doctor...
" and "The Satan PitThe Satan Pit"The Satan Pit" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the second part of a two-part story, following "The Impossible Planet". With the TARDIS seemingly lost, Rose and the remaining humans are trapped on the base with the possessed Ood, while the planet...
." - Slabs are used to capture Luke and Clyde as seen before in the Doctor Who episode "Smith and JonesSmith and Jones (Doctor Who)"Smith and Jones" is the first episode of the third series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 31 March 2007. It sees the debut of Freema Agyeman as new companion Martha Jones...
". - Sarah Jane's business card shows her address as 21 Bannerman Road, as does the number plate on her door in Eye of the GorgonEye of the GorgonEye of the Gorgon is the third story of the British science fiction television series The Sarah Jane Adventures. It forms the third and fourth episodes of the show's first series...
, rather than 13 Bannerman Road which is stated throughout the second and third series.
- Sarah Jane makes a remark commenting on how many times she's had guns pointed at her and says that she's lost count
- Sarah Jane speculates that Lance might become the first man to walk on MarsMarsMars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
, before adding "first human man," alluding to the Martian race of Ice WarriorIce WarriorThe Ice Warriors are a fictional extraterrestrial race of reptilian-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The race originated on Mars, and first appeared in the 1967 serial The Ice Warriors where they encountered the Second Doctor and his...
s whom she met with the Third DoctorThird DoctorThe Third Doctor is the third incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee....
in The Monster of PeladonThe Monster of PeladonThe Monster of Peladon is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 23 March to 27 April 1974.-Synopsis:...
.
Outside references
- Lance Metcalf's father was in the army and was killed in IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. His death was implied to have taken place during the Iraq War. - Clyde references Obi-Wan KenobiObi-Wan KenobiObi-Wan Kenobi is a fictional character in the Star Wars universe. He is one of several primary characters in the Star Wars series. Along with Darth Vader, R2-D2, and C-3PO, he is one of the few major characters to appear in all six Star Wars films...
, saying that he is Luke's mentor. He also references Captain Kirk, after Jen earlier says, "Beam me up, Scotty!". Mr Grantham says "a Galaxy far, far away". - The popular series of video games HaloHalo (series)Halo is a multi-million dollar science fiction video game franchise created by Bungie and now managed by 343 Industries and owned by Microsoft Studios. The series centers on an interstellar war between humanity and a theocratic alliance of aliens known as the Covenant...
is also mentioned in this serial. - The recruitment of children in this episode is similar to the movie The Last StarfighterThe Last StarfighterThe Last Starfighter is a 1984 science fiction adventure film directed by Nick Castle. The film tells the story of Alex Rogan , an average teenage boy recruited by an alien defense force to fight in an interstellar war. It also featured Dan O'Herlihy, Catherine Mary Stewart, Robert Preston, Norman...
. In that movie, an arcade game of the same name is used to test the qualifications of warriors. This leads to a teenager being recruited to fight in an interstellar war. - The kidnapping of children to be used in an alien war is also the premise of the Virgin New AdventuresVirgin New AdventuresThe Virgin New Adventures were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
novel Toy SoldiersToy Soldiers (Doctor Who)Toy Soldiers is an original novel written by Paul Leonard and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Bernice, Chris and Roz.-Synopsis:...
. The novel Winner Takes AllWinner Takes All (Doctor Who)Winner Takes All is a BBC Books original novel written by Jacqueline Rayner and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was published on May 19, 2005, alongside The Clockwise Man and The Monsters Inside...
also has a very similar plot involving the kidnapping of people to fight an alien war using games as a recruitment tool.
External links
- Sarah Jane Adventures homepage
- Writing Kudlak - The writer Phil Gladwin describes the origins of this episode.