The Last Sontaran
The Day of the Clown
Secrets of the Stars
The Mark of the Beserker
The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith
Enemy of the Bane
The Sarah Jane Adventures
Season Two
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The Last Sontaran The Day of the Clown Secrets of the Stars The Mark of the Beserker The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith Enemy of the Bane |
BBC The Sarah Jane Adventures Season Two |
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"Still involving children in your dangerous games?" by Neil Clarke 18/6/10
It feels slightly unfair judging SJA on adult terms; at the same time, it clearly does cater for a wide audience, despite the limitations of its format, so why not. Though not a rabid follower of all things new series, I am surprisingly fond of this spin-off , certainly more so than Torchwood, which was almost incomprehensibly awful in every way, at least up to Children of Earth. (I was apparently mistaken in thinking an 'adult' Doctor Who spin-off would address similar stories with a greater degree of complexity, realism and maturity - akin to season twenty-six - rather than being Doctor Who's deformed cousin.)
Favourably comparing SJA to Torchwood is something of a backhanded complement, but let's say that, despite being as twee as fuck, it is considerably more mature and likeable a series, and leave it there.
Lis Sladen is of course wonderful, although the extremity of her Doctor/Captain-Jack-like knowledge seems a little odd or inappropriate at times; yes, she travelled with the Doctor, but even given her subsequent involvement with aliens on earth, what did she do, take notes? It would be more interesting were she slightly less assured in this respect, but then I suppose that would simply lead to her having to consult Mr Smith even more, and the less we see of that mobile disco, the better. I'm not entirely sold on Luke, either. Fortunately though, he's the only one of Sarah's adolescent posse who really feels like 'a child actor'.
Clyde, on the other hand, is great (even though he should be massively annoying); in fact, having palmed Martha Jones off on Torchwood, could things go the other way, by having him become a companion? The male companion has only featured in the new series as aberrations like Adam, the unwilling Mickey and Doctor-equivalent Jack, but I reckon Clyde Langer could work (partly because he's straight enough to forestall the redtops' inevitable raised eyebrows about two men in the TARDIS).
Maria's replacement, Rani (no relation), is perfectly likeable too; in fact, she seems more natural than Maria, but is slightly less interesting. Maria went against the grain in terms of leads - as established by the new series' Rose/Martha/Donna - by seeming a bit art school, where the template established by the Davies companions is anything but.
The budget of this series is noticeably reduced: the first series gave us original monsters the Gorgon, Kudlak, and the Trickster (who everyone seems unfeasibly impressed by; a black-robed extradimensional evil being seems pretty bog-standard to me), whereas there are conspicuously no new creations in this entire series (Clyde's dad with blue veins and obligatory freaky contacts doesn't count). More generally, the effects (especially the CGI) don't match up to the series' ambition. Which wouldn't matter except they are so obviously trying to match Doctor Who's and falling short; a smaller focus might be beneficial in future. (Even the Black Archive looked all too obviously like an MFI warehouse, with the security to match.)
In fact, this series is generally weaker than the first. The Last Sontaran suffers from feeling unpleasantly nineties (all the computer hacking stuff; also, the radio telescope is even less realistic than The Android Invasion's!), and away from the team's usual stomping grounds, the story feels very thin, while Kaagh's literal stomping got tiresome pretty quickly. (Incidentally, his name would be okay if it was pronounced as 'Kaah' but 'Karg' sounds unfortunately B-movie.)
Also - though this is more the fault of The Sontaran Stratagem - this story runs with the Sontarans' reworking as noble warriors, with their hyperbolic suffixes and absurd war chant, which seems somewhat incompatible with their establishment in The Time Warrior as the ultimate parody of military buffoonery (spelt out during Lynx's very first appearance by the brilliantly funny moment with the little flag). They're meant to be unpleasant little thugs; nobility and honour shouldn't come into it.
Also, the lack of any follow-up to the events of The Stolen Earth/Journey's End is irritating; a) given the propensity of the three series to reference one another, this feels like a big oversight, and b), why go out of the way to constantly show alien incursions that are apparently too big for the public to avoid and then instantly forget about them the next time the same thing happens?
Let's see. Obsessive-compulsive list coming up: in the new series alone, the public have been faced with large-scale alien activity in Aliens of London/World War Three, The Christmas Invasion, Army of Ghosts/Doomsday, The Runaway Bride, Voyage of the Damned (kind of), Partners in Crime, The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky, and the aforementioned series four finale. Oh, and guess who wrote EVERY SINGLE ONE of those stories (save one - and Helen Raynor doesn't appear to have a personality so she doesn't count). Tsk.
Normality is reset each time, which is understandable, but begs the question: why bother in the first place? Journey's End combined three series, but with no repercussions, save a reference to 'those Dalek things,' and the Brigadier's comment that 'now the cat's out of the bag about aliens', so what's the point?
The Day of the Clown was pretty good, but suffered from over-explanation, which diffused its creepiness (that every single threat Sarah faces absolutely has to be alien, rather than something more nebulous, is gratingly literal), while this and the subsequent Secrets of the Stars both end with possessed people wandering around, as in The Christmas Invasion: an example of slightly lazy feeding off the parent series. In fact, these stories feel too similar for one to follow the other in the run; the main difference being that Bradley Walsh makes a perfectly serviceable villain, whereas (the equally washed-up) Russ Abbot is a bit shit.
The Mark of the Berserker didn't do that much for me either; do we really need a Sarah-lite story in a run of six stories? In another example of the spin-off's stringent following of the new series' formula, this story in particular was hampered by the sledgehammer emotional content. Although, arguably, it was a little more ambiguous and thus interesting that usual, in the interplay between Clyde and his hitherto unseen absentee father. (On a side note, isn't Three Non Blondes' Jocelyn Jee Esien fab? I sort of fell in love with her here; I'd rather she had a bigger role in the series than Rani's dippy mum.)
The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith, much like the previous season's Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? (incidentally, any kids' show referring to that particular Bette Davis psychological melodrama is automatically a winner in my book), is the strongest story here because it tears up the rule book in terms of format, while its emotional content derives from the situation, rather than being bolted on.
As for Enemy of the Bane, I hate the mentality of throwing everything but the kitchen sink into finale stories, in the mistaken belief that it'll mean more, so, much like its predecessors, this ended up feeling flimsy, lacking the preceding story's more effortless epic quality.
The Brigadier's triumphant return was a huge disappointment, simply because it wasn't allowed to be triumphant. The man barely even talks to any of the regulars, let alone interacts with them to a significant degree! I fully realise that this is probably due to Nicolas Courtney's advanced age, but it could have been no barrier to his involvement had the character been written with this in mind (rather than slashing his involvement because he wouldn't be running around or dodging bullets); he's barely even present! There's certainly no character development, and his involvement here seems ultimately a rather thankless missed opportunity.
It would still be wonderful to see him return in a bona fide - and, preferably, character-driven - Doctor Who story, one that was actually concerned with the character beyond his being used as an end-of-season reveal.
On the plus side, his walking-stick gun was, it has to be said, kind of inspired. Given that, in his civvies, the character is deprived of the military background which defines him (to an extent, he is 'just an old man' here), it was canny to give him a memorable visual addition (akin to recognisable accoutrements like Sarah's watch, sonic lipstick, and Nissan Figaro); a gimmick appropriate to a kids' series, but which also goes some way to diffusing his potential quaintness.
I'm well aware my opinions here are more or less irrelevant - I have no doubt this series is wonderful for its primary target audience - but, still, it is worth watching for more than fanboy completism alone, though I do feel some of the limitations of the new series' format which it replicates are exposed.
However, the fact that this series is as good as it is is quite a shocker. I need only direct your attention to the trailer for the Bob Baker's K9 series to show how bad a children's DW spin-off could be, appearing as it does to encapsulate everything tawdry and lazy about kids' TV. 'Darius, Starkey, and Jorjie'? When even the names don't have any bearing on reality, you know you're in trouble. And, rationalising the disparity between a London setting and Australian locations by saying it's set ten years into a globally-warmed future... for the love of god, just SET IT IN AUSTRALIA. At least then the whole thing'd be comfortably out of the way.
A Review by Stephen Maslin 2/8/10
Rewind... The Sarah Jane Adventures, 'Season Zero' (1981-2006). Always a spin-off in-waiting, Sarah Jane had a patchy history of well-meaning attempts to get her back on screen. The 1981 pilot for K9 & Company seemed perhaps the only real TV opportunity. Nothing came of that and her subsequent Who appearances felt increasingly flat. There was an oddly dressed (no change there) cameo in The Five Doctors and another ten years later in the ghastly missed opportunity that was Dimensions in Time. BBV's Downtime in 1995, though often superior to the official Doctor Who movie the following year, was never going to have investors cueing up. Lawrence Miles 1999 bizarre and sprawling double novel Interference gave her a significant role, though not one that would lead anywhere. Then two series of 'Sarah Jane Smith' audio dramas were produced by Big Finish in 2002 and 2006. Though these audios were rather po-faced and 'right on', Elisabeth Sladen was back in some kind of limelight and turned in some splendid performances. Some of it was pretty good (Test of Nerve, Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre, Buried Secrets, Fatal Consequences) and some of it merely not bad. Sadly, it often felt like yet more proof that, even with a good pair of headphones, time travel to the relatively recent past just wasn't possible. But then came School Reunion...
Great though that was, I still didn't watch The Sarah Jane Adventures Series One. By the time that came onto our screens in 2007, I had stopped watching Doctor Who altogether and had not renewed my Big Finish subscription. The complete reconstruction of the Who franchise made me reluctant to shoulder yet another crushing disappointment. How wrong I was.
I didn't see this (or indeed the SJAs Season One) until after I had seen the rest of Season Two but in hindsight, it has far more in common with that first season, both in tone and in terms of personnel (the Jackson family leaving for America at the end of the episode, not the beginning) and feels very tied-in to Doctor Who (an understandable ratings ploy perhaps), much more so than the rest of Season Two. Though the title demolishes any mystery about the lights in the sky right from the start, part one is generally pretty good with some very pacey direction. Part two, however, is far less convincing, involving a lot of padding and a couple of problems that seem to recur in the SJAs: namely, a powerful alien easily fooled by children (well, it is a kids' show, I suppose) and a treacly closing homily. 6/10.
My first introduction to Sarah Jane in the 21st century was Day of the Clown and what an introduction. On paper, it didn't look good. Always a difficult proposition for any series, a new family had to be introduced. (I needn't have worried. A charming, well-cast group of individuals with loads of room for character development.) A former game show host as the villain? (Big surprise just how unsettling Bradley Walsh's portrayal actually was. First class.) A gaggle of children who one might have thought would irritate the pants off of anyone over the age of thirty? (No problems there either. The regulars are really well portrayed and even the bit parts are well done.) The plot could be summed up easily as 'Children are disappearing and it's up to Sarah Jane and the gang to stop it!' and if you'd seen that in the Radio Times, you'd have hardly ringed it in felt-tip pen and rushed home early from school/work. What really makes this episode shine is it's visual impact. The clown's first fleeting appearances are especially fine, as are its later scowling through windows and the hall of mirrors in part two. For a less-than-mega-budget children's TV show, the directing is superb but the production also sounds very mature, both dialogue and music (and there is of course a lovely little moment for old school Who fans as, flicking through a selection of images on a computer, one of them is a still from 1966's The Celestial Toymaker.) Not yet quite hooked, I was certainly impressed. 8/10.
Further proof that Day of the Clown was not just a flash in the pan comes with Gareth Roberts' Secrets of the Stars. Too good a writer to merely ridicule astrology out of hand and give the audience a ready-made demolition job, Roberts simply puts it all out there for rational assessment, giving us a great little story into the bargain. (To keep older viewers on their toes, he also slips in references to the Draconians and seems to be tying in the Ancient Lights, taking control of people star sign by star sign, with the Virgin New Adventures range.) The gradual take-over of the population is very effective and Russ Abbot is rather good as the charlatan turned prophet (and his final end is not at all what one expects). All in all, very entertaining as well as a coded warning against blanket adherence to the irrational. 8/10.
A very uneven story. Once the plot is established, there is a heavy emphasis on families, with a lot of angst and precious little action. Nothing wrong with that per se but the style is unlike other SJA story and often even unlike itself, never really finding any consistency. (At one point, there is even a sequence of rock music video father-son bonding, bringing it all very much into the realm of ordinary television. Elsewhere, Maria and her father from Series One turn up to very little dramatic effect.) Sarah Jane herself is barely in the story and as for the ending... It's all resolved by people just learning to be themselves (or something) and feels like a copout of major proportions. Closing with Clyde the cool teen showing us how sensitive he really is and we have a very tacky resolution indeed. At times visually impressive but definitely the weakest story of the season. 4/10.
Beserker's terrible ending may be sickly-sweet in the extreme but its discussion of parents and their children does lead us nicely into a far better script. The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith has a blend of childhood fears and an adult sense of a past gone forever. (For older viewers, TToSJS should carry a health warning, such is the frankly overpowering sense of loss and regret. One cannot help but read into it the contrast of the current Doctor Who world alongside the author's obvious love for an earlier, perhaps more innocent version of it.) The 1950s setting is beautifully done and though Sarah Jane's parents are a little easily convinced of the truth of the situation and the music sometimes threatens to overwhelm the dialogue, the emotional punch is very, very strong. There's some splendid acting from the supporting cast: notably Rosanna Lavelle and Christopher Pizzey as Sarah Jane's parents, but also Georgie Glen as Mrs King ("Can that really be the fashion in the Punjab?") and Robert Madge's creepy little Oscar. But this is Sarah Jane's gig and Elisabeth Sladen is brilliant. Graeme Harper's direction is likewise superb and there's even a quarry! What on Earth is this doing hidden away at half past four in the afternoon? Exceptional television by anyone's standards. 10/10.
Enemy of the Bane is the closest that the SJAs have got to classic series tokenism. Nicholas Courtney enters the fray as the Brigadier, a Doctor Who regular throughout the 1970s. Possibly for reasons of health, he is sadly underused but the older audience get their little reminder of past glories without the narrative flow being disturbed or the modern audience being alienated, which is quite an achievement. The problem is that, such nostalgia aside, Enemy of the Bane is a bit of a let-down in most other respects. There doesn't seem to be any good reason at all why the Tunguska Scroll has to be stolen, other than that the plot requires it. UNIT's safety is a lax as ever but the Brig's agreeing to assist in the break-in does not ring true with his sense of military obedience. His inexplicable absence from the denouement is wrong too. Worse, the attempt to finish on an epic high simply does not suit the show's small-scale cosiness and, as with Luke being on the run from his pursuers in part two, their is a lot of sound and fury signifying very little. Enemy of the Bane is not an Armageddon Factor in the scale of its anti-climax but it feels flat nonetheless. 6/10.
A couple of shows aside, Sarah Jane Adventures Series Two was a lovely surprise: television that combined a sense of continuity with modern production values and exciting, thought-provoking stories. Yes, the theme music and opening titles are dreadful and Mister Smith's fanfare every week is a little tiresome. Yes, Thomas Knight has never quite pulled off the boy genius bit (because no one should ever be asked to try) and his character's on-screen relationship with his adoptive mother is at times awkward and cloying. Yes, it's for kids but so what? You will also find an innocence and wonder in The Sarah Jane Adventures that, albeit in very modern garb, manages to revive the spirit of times long past. Who'd have thought that in an age of constant ephemera, such charm could be recaptured, twenty-five minute episodes, regular cliffhangers and all. Top.