I'm a geek. Sue me. · 4:00pm Jun 29th, 2021
So the recent chapter of Tales from a Double Date brought in a number of new characters. I figure, why not share some of the origins behind them?
The crew of the Valiant are all expies of characters from Doctor Who - specifically, the more prominent military staff members of UNIT from the late sixties/early seventies. Colonel Stalwart Steel is inspired by one of the show's most beloved recurring characters, Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart. Affectionately referred to as the Brig, Lethbridge-Stewart made his debut as a colonel in the Second Doctor story The Web of Fear, then returned a year later in The Invasion having been promoted to the rank of Brigadier. He was a regular presence throughout Jon Pertwee's tenure, and appeared in sixteen of his twenty-four stories. He appeared twice more during Tom Baker's tenure, then made odd appearances throughout the rest of the classic series, having retired from the military but still coming back when most needed. His final appearance was in an episode of the spin-off series "The Sarah Jane Adventures", before the character passed away to reflect the passing of his actor, Nicholas Courtney. Though that didn't stop the Brig from coming back one more time during Peter Capaldi's tenure, having been resurrected as a Cyberman. The fandom's still in an uproar over that. The Brig and the Doctor would occasionally clash over one thing or another, but ultimately trusted one another and considered each other close friends.
Sergeant Grace Point, meanwhile, is inspired by one of his most prominent and long-lasting subordinates, Regimental Sergeant Major John Benton. He made his debut as a corporal in The Invasion, then returned the next year in The Ambassadors of Death with a promotion. He was promoted once again in Robot to Regimental Sergeant Major, and made his final appearance in the program (to date) in The Android Invasion. Benton was steadfast, loyal, and probably one of the nicest folks you could meet. Brewed a good cup of coffee, too.
Captain Pure Green is inspired by Captain Mike Yates. Introduced in Terror of the Autons, Yates made his final proper appearance in the program in Jon Pertwee's final story, Planet of the Spiders. Yates was generally a decent guy, but he got the short end of the stick more than once.
Lieutenant Vintage Balm is inspired by Lieutenant Harry Sullivan. Introduced in Tom Baker's first story, Robot, he was a regular throughout Baker's first year and made two more appearances in his second, with his final appearance to date being in The Android Invasion. Good-natured and old-fashioned, the man was competent if clumsy. There's disagreement about whether or not the character is dead, however, fueled mostly by the fact that his actor, Ian Marter, passed away back in the eighties.
Finally, Corporal Bell Carol is inspired by Corporal Carol Bell, in what is likely my laziest bit of expy naming to date. She only appeared twice, in The Mind of Evil and The Claws of Axos, but twice is enough to make you a recurrer in my book.
I'm going to refrain from elaborating on Colonel Stormfront for the time being, mostly because of the spoilers involved.
As for the diplomatic party at the end, they were a mix of influences from both the comic and other franchises. Princess Horaia herself is an original creation, but she has her basis in the comics. In the initial four-part arc for the comics' Season Ten, the nation of Farasi is established as having four rulers. One of them, Prince Abraxas, plays a small role in the story. That gave me enough to go on to try some theme naming, as Abraxas was a benevolent being in Gnostic belief systems. So I went digging around Wikipedia for Gnostic deities and found Norea, a figure in Gnosticism connected to Adam and Eve and also known as Orea or Horaia. I went with the third name because it seemed less likely to encourage cheap jokes and because it sounded the most exotic. All three, however, are tri-syllabic, which seems to be a theme for zebra names within the comics. I don't have anything firm in mind for now on the male zebra who accompanied her, but the two mares who accompanied her are meant to be honor guards - their outfits are derived from the uniforms worn by the Dora Milaje in the MCU. Don't expect any acknowledgement of their portrayal in the original Marvel comics, however.
Anyway, proper work's begun on Chapter Five. Hopefully, it'll be ready for release at the end of this month.
Cool!
Glad to see the influences that went into the characters here. 
(Well, most of them. I'll be interested about those spoilers for whenever they come due. ^_^)
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All I'm going to say for now is that one, researching the Doctor Who characters might give you an idea of what's going to happen to their expies down the road, and two, that I didn't choose the name Stormfront lightly.