Tegan Jovanka
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Tegan Jovanka |
| Occupation: | flight attendant |
| Relationships: | The Doctor, Nyssa of Traken, Adric, Vislor Turlough |
| Fandom: | Doctor Who |
| Other: | Portrayed by Janet Fielding |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Tegan Jovanka is a character in Doctor Who fandom. She was a companion of the Fifth Doctor.
Canon
Tegan Jovanka is an Australian airline stewardess, and the longest-serving Classic Who companion. She appeared alongside the Fourth and Fifth Doctors.
Tegan also appeared in the Doctor Who Tie-in Novels and Big Finish audio dramas. Some suggest that she was married to rock star Johnny Chess. A.K.A John Chesterton; the son of Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright.[1] In the Big Finish audioplay The Gathering, it was revealed that she is dying from a brain tumor she developed during her travels with the Doctor.
Fandom
Fan Opinion
Tegan is a walking, talking contradiction. She says she isn't brave, and yet goes into dangerous situations without a second thought. (Going with the troopers in Earthshock, going after the battery in Frontios, to name a few instances) The same woman who puts on such an act of confidence is the the same woman whose Mara-influenced mind creates dark reflections of Adric, Nyssa, and the Doctor to mock her. She doesn't like people, yet look how fiercely loyal she is to both the Doctor and Nyssa. And she asks to stay in the TARDIS, but complains about everything about the TARDIS.
It's these contradictions of character that make Tegan so interesting to me. I find them interesting and not annoying because they are balanced out by Tegan's strengths. She's loyal. She's brave. She has a highly developed sense of right and wrong. She's honest to a fault, speaking her mind even when it might be dangerous to do so. Despite her best intentions, she wears her heart out on her sleeve. [1]
Relationships
Tegan's most popular ship is with Nyssa of Traken, whether this pairing is considered canon varies depending on the source material. She is also shipped with The Doctor, usually as the Fifth Doctor. There is also a lot of gen fanworks focusing on her friendships, usually with the Fifth Doctor's Tardis team of Adric, Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan.
Common Tropes and Storylines in Fanworks
- Hurt/Comfort: there seems to be a fair mix of Tegan being hurt and receiving comfort from others, but there is also many fanworks where she is the one providing comfort to Nyssa or The Doctor.
- Episode Codas: fanworks that take place after episodes that may have been difficult for Tegan or deal with he aftermath of certain events. A common choice seems to be Terminus.
- Meeting Other Characters: having Tegan meet other Whoverse characters is common, these are usually other classic who companions like Sarah Jane Smith, Jo Grant, etc. However, it also not unusual for Tegan to meet other more modern companions, especially after the introduction of the "Companion Support Group" that was introduced during the Thirteen Doctor's run.
Example Fanworks
Fanfiction
- Revisionist History by aces, Life in the subjunctive case.
- Grounded by Calapine, Tegan realises that she's made a mistake.
- Gathered by warinbabylon, Tegan doesn't quite say goodbye to the Doctor when she wants to.
- The Legacy by LilacFree, a sequel to The Gathering audio drama.
Filk
Meta
- The Brave Heart Of The TARDIS (1/2) and (2/2) posted at Loves Them All, by lilly_rose (2008)
Example Art Gallery
Art by Deborah M. Walsh for The Faces of Time #3 (1983)
Art from Zeta Minor #3, with K-9, by C.H. Burnett (1984)
Cover art for Flight Through Eternity #1, with the Fifth Doctor, by unknown artist (mid-1980s)
Archives & Fannish Links
- Tegan Fanlisting (archived link)
- Tegan's Worldwide Admirers (archived link)
- The Tegan Jovanka Homepage (archived link)
- xmouth-on-legsx, a Tegan Jovanka Livejournal community
- Tegan Jovanka tag on the AO3
References
- ^ a b The Brave Heart Of The TARDIS (1/2) posted at Loves Them All, a DW LJ comm, by lilly_rose, Apr. 21st, 2008.