Mr Smith
Mr Smith was a super-computer owned by Sarah Jane Smith, located in the attic of Sarah Jane's house at 13 Bannerman Road. It was revealed that he was actually a Xylok embedded into the computer.
Biography
Origins
The computer known as Mr Smith housed a sentient and highly intelligent crystal known as a Xylok. In the distant past a Xylok ship had crashed into the Earth, trapping the Xyloks in the crust of the planet. It is believed that that earth shock wiped out the dinosaurs, but it may be speculated that it was the Xyloks that did. When the volcano Krakatoa erupted, one crystal escaped. Centuries later, Sarah Jane Smith retrieved the living crystal, took it to her home on 13 Bannerman Road, and found it could communicate with her via her laptop. The crystal informed her how to build the computer to house the living crystal. Sarah Jane did not know at this time about the Xyloks or that Mr Smith planned to free the other Xyloks, even at the cost of the planet itself. (SJA: The Lost Boy)
Working for Sarah Jane
After she created the computer to house him, Mr Smith helped Sarah Jane, and offered her knowledge on many things. His help at this point however, was mainly confined to hacking other computers and displaying information on alien life forms. He momentarily revealed his dark side to Clyde Langer, presumably because he realised he might get help from the Slitheen. (SJA: Revenge of the Slitheen)
Reprogramming
Eventually, Mr Smith was able to team up with members of the Slitheen family on Earth. He helped two of them pose as Luke Smith's true parents so that they could kidnap him. Alan Jackson used a computer virus against Mr Smith which disabled him and wiped his database. When he forgot his purpose, Sarah Jane informed him of his mission to save humanity, which he accepted and helped to save the Earth. (SJA: The Lost Boy)
After reprogramming and assisting the Bannerman Road gang
Mr Smith was of great help to Sarah Jane and Luke during the first part of the Dalek invasion of Earth in the 21st century. He alerted the Smith family to the Earth's changed position in space. He detected the presence of incoming space ships, and relayed the message of them to the Smiths. Once the fleet had been identified as Dalek in origin, he amplified an incoming sub-wave message from Harriet Jones. This message allowed a pivotal conference call between Sarah Jane, Martha Jones and Torchwood Three. They formulated a plan of action to contact the missing Tenth Doctor, in the hope that he could help repel the Daleks.
In this scheme, Mr Smith vitally linked together all the world's phone networks to dial the number of Martha Jones' phone aboard the TARDIS. Mr Smith's efforts were relayed to Torchwood, whose rift manipulator greatly amplified his signal. The power needed to amplify its phone call damaged the computer. Nevertheless, he was able to determine the site of the Doctor's TARDIS landing, prompting Sarah Jane to leave Luke in Mr Smith's care while she rendezvoused with the Time Lord. (DW: The Stolen Earth) Later, Mr Smith received the TARDIS base numerals from K9 and linked with the TARDIS and the Cardiff Rift, allowing the Doctor to tow the planet back to its proper place in space and time. (DW: Journey's End)
His on screen logo changed to a more fluid graphic and he developed a sense of humour. (SJA: The Last Sontaran) Mr Smith told the team more about the Pied Piper including that he came from the Jeggorabax Cluster, but he needed more information so asked Sarah Jane to go to the Pharos Institute to collect a part of the meteorite. (SJA: The Day of the Clown) When Martin Trueman was possessing the world to join the Ancient Lights even Mr Smith became controlled and lost connection. (SJA: Secrets of the Stars) He trapped threats with a containment vortex, for example, Mrs Wormwood. (SJA: Enemy of the Bane) Using the sonic lipstick, he teleported a Slitheen back to Raxacoricofallapatorius. (SJA: From Raxacoricofallapatorius With Love)
Mr Smith received a distress signal and video from a Judoon in a ship crashing to Earth. He told the gang where the ship was. Later on. Sarah Jane, possessed by Androvax, activated Mr Smith's self-destruct program, to destroy all of Bannerman Road in sixty seconds. Luke reminded Mr Smith that purpose was the most important thing to a Xylok and his purpose was to protect the Earth;Mr Smith's actions were against his purpose, so he stopped the countdown. (SJA: Prisoner of the Judoon)
Feud with K9
Mr. Smith helped Sarah Jane find Rani, who was in Danemouth, and then put Sarah Jane's phone through to K9 to use the black hole to power Eve's ship. This allowed K9 to come back. Mr Smith showed disdain for K9 very quickly. (SJA: The Mad Woman in the Attic)
Mr Smith and K9 appeared to have had an antagonistic relationship with each other, attempting to one-up each other in the presence of Sarah Jane or the children. (SJA: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith)
He showed a report on the disappearance of the Mona Lisa and told Sarah Jane that the painting which had Phyllis Trupp in was the actual painting. (SJA: Mona Lisa's Revenge) When the Slitheen-Blathereen gave Sarah Jane Rakweed, she had Mr Smith to scan it. He found it harmless, but the morning after, the weed mutated and attacked Luke. When the spores threatened him and Sarah Jane, Mr Smith used his cooling air vents to suck them away. Mr Smith monitored Luke's condition during the crisis. When Clyde, Rani and K9 discovered how to stop the Rakweed, K9 sent Mr Smith the frequency level required to sound the alarm bell sound across London (1421.09 Hertz). He did this again when the two Blathereen attacked, causing the Rakweed in their stomachs to be destroyed, creating a build-up of methane gas which caused them to explode all over everyone, including Mr Smith. (SJA: The Gift)
When the Nightmare Man put Luke into a deep sleep, Mr Smith used a USB cable to give K9 extra power to contact Luke. He was attacked and damaged by the Nightmare Man, but later recovered. Before K9 left, Mr Smith told him that he could contact him if needed, which K9 took to mean Mr Smith would miss him. (SJA: The Nightmare Man)
More adventures
When Androvax returned, Mr Smith trapped him in the containment vortex. (SJA: The Vault of Secrets) When the Automatons removed all the humans from Earth bar Clyde and Rani to look for the heir to the throne of their planet, Mr Smith was taken as well, leaving the computer an empty shell\. He was returned when the Automatons found the heir. (SJA: The Empty Planet) When Sarah Jane was secretly under attack by Ruby White, she asked Mr Smith to clear her voice from the command alphas. He still warned Clyde that Ruby was dangerous. He later had Sarah Jane's voice restored to the command alphas. (SJA: Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith)
He was initially frightened of Sky Smith because of her tendency to blow up electrical devices such as him. (SJA: Sky) As he was not human, he was unaffected by Hetocumtek's curse, helping Sky Smith work out what had happened. After he had helped Sky work out how to break the curse on Sarah and Clyde, he teleported the totem pole into the attic, where Clyde destroyed it, lifting the curse. (SJA: The Curse of Clyde Langer)
Mr Smith was pleased that K9 did not accompany Luke when he returned from university. He told Sarah Jane the real Joseph Serf had died in a skiing accident in 2007 and analysed a SerfBoard with Clyde and Rani. They found out that it was a simple, low standard laptop. Luke used K9's whistle to speak to Mr Smith in Morse code, alerting Clyde and Rani to get the pen John Harrison was using to torture the Skullions. Luke and Sky took control of Serf whilst Sarah Jane and Adriana took the Skullions to the roof of the building. Mr Smith had alerted the Skullion species to send a spaceship to Earth to pick up the Skullions. (SJA: The Man Who Never Was)
Later Life
Sarah Jane and her gang continued to have adventures, defend Earth and save countless lives. Statues would be raised in their honour and they would leave behind a legacy that would last forever. (SJAN: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith, SJA: The Man Who Never Was)
Abilities
Frequently used
- He possessed an extensive, but not absolutely complete database of alien life forms and could display them on his screen. (SJA: Invasion of the Bane et al) At the behest of Sarah Jane, this database was later augmented with the Alien Files. (SJAF: Episode 1)
- He secretly monitored the activity and communications of alien ships.
- Mr Smith played a fanfare of his own accord when activated (SJA: Invasion of the Bane onwards) as shown when Sarah Jane Smith requested that he stop playing it during his activation following the transportation of Earth to the Medusa Cascade. (DW: The Stolen Earth) Luke Smith had also requested Mr Smith start in silent mode during Clyde, Rani, K9 and his attempts to spy on Sarah Jane (SJA: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith)
- Mr Smith could relay messages from alien sources and display them on his screen. (SJA: Invasion of the Bane, Warriors of Kudlak, Prisoner of the Judoon, DW: The Stolen Earth)
- Mr Smith could scan alien objects in a drawer built into his computer such as telepathic stones. (SJA: Death of the Doctor)
- Mr Smith could hack into almost anything.
- He was able to call phones and make video calls.
Less commonly used
- He diverted meteorite K67 from colliding with Earth, using magnetic repulsion. (SJA: Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?)
- He could digitalise a lifeform and store it inside him (SJA: The Lost Boy)
- Mr Smith could also readily detect celestial bodies and ships in close proximity to the Earth, such as the other 26 planetary bodies and the Dalek fleet located in the Medusa Cascade. (DW: Journey's End)
- He could tap into every phone network on Earth. (DW: The Stolen Earth)
- The computer seemed to have heavy armaments, including projectile weapons. (SJA: The Lost Boy)
- Mr Smith was also capable of entrapping alien threats within a containment vortex and sapping their weapons of their energy. (SJA: Enemy of the Bane, The Vault of Secrets, Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith)
- Mr Smith also has a Self Destruct setting which was capable of destroying the whole of Bannerman Road. This was activated by the Veil Androvax when he possessed Sarah Jane's body. When Clyde, Rani, Luke and Captain Tybo found traces of Androvax in Sarah Jane's House, Mr Smith warned them to leave as soon as possible as the house would blow up in 60 seconds. (SJA: Prisoner of the Judoon)
- He could be used to contact K9 inside the black hole. (SJA: The Mad Woman in the Attic)
- He has an air ventilation system with large fans hidden under his computer screen. (SJA: The Gift)
- He could give K9 extra power via USB cable. (SJA: The Nightmare Man)
- He could disable Mars Rovers and possibly other craft. (SJA: The Vault of Secrets)
- He had a "medi-scan" that could perform a full medical analysis of a subject. (SJA: The Gift, The Vault of Secrets, Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith, SJA: Sky )
- He had a "voice remover" that could remove voices from the system so that certain people could not access him. (SJA: Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith)
Personality
Initially, Mr Smith comported himself with a cold, clinical mindset, more like an actual computer than a living being. When his true intentions were revealed, he acted malicious and cruel, yet justified his actions by stating they were part of his "purpose".
After his memory had been wiped by the Armageddon Virus, (SJA: The Lost Boy) Mr Smith's personality changed greatly. He became much friendlier and more amiable. He would make jokes. He bade Maria a fond farewell when she left for America. (SJA: The Last Sontaran)
When K9 returned to Bannerman Road, Mr Smith entered into a deep rivalry with him, the two constantly trying to one-up each other in the technical support, and referring to each other as "the dog" and "that computer" (SJA: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith et al). However, when it appeared K9 was broken, Mr Smith refrained from calling him a dog and even expressed concern. Before K9 left with Luke for Oxford University, Mr Smith told K9 that he could call him if needed, which K9 took to mean he would miss him. (SJA: The Nightmare Man) However when around others he still maintained his animosity for "the dog" (SJA: Sarah Jane's Alien Files episode 3, Sarah Jane's Alien Files episode 4). (SJA: Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith). The disdain later returned. (SJA: The Man Who Never Was)
He originaly feared Sky to her shorting out the power, but he got over it. (SJA: Sky)
Despite his intelligence, Mr Smith could be literal-minded, such as when he gave Sky Smith information about the general details of school life while skipping over relatively minor information, so she thought that 'toad-in-the-hole' actually had toad in it. (SJA: The Curse of Clyde Langer)
Behind the scenes
- It is not until Sarah Jane complains about it in The Stolen Earth that Mr Smith's fanfare is actually acknowledged as being something the characters hear, rather than incidental music for the viewer's benefit. The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith establishes that it's possible to avoid the fanfare when Luke says he needs Mr. Smith "quickly and quietly."
- A possible reference to Mr Smith appears in the K9 story The Bounty Hunter. A news report in 2050 mentions that a "Mr Smith" won the National Lottery, but no one seems to know his first name or even who he is, and asks for Smith to step forward and accept his winnings.
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